Tups Indispensable

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PhilA
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by PhilA » Thu Dec 13, 2018 11:31 pm

A little more Tup's trivia...

Anybody wonder where the name "Tup's Indispensable" came from and why it's faintly red? The root origin is Skues' sense of humor. 'Tup' is a Middle English term for ram, as in male sheep. 'Indispensable' derives from that which distinguishes a ram from a ewe. The wiry ram's wool used for Tup's Indispensables is harvested from a ram's scrotum. It's often described as a "dusty yellow", and I'm told that rendering it "thoroughly washed and cleansed of the natural oil" is not a pleasant task.

The tinge of red derives from an old English method of knowing when each ewe in a flock had been mated by a ram. Farmers would first tie a rag soaked in red dye to the belly of the rams. Then, the flock would be inspected each morning to identify ewes who had red stains on their backs. Such ewes had been 'tupped', and the shephard would then know when the lamb would arrive. Procreation is a messy business, and the red dye of tupping inevitably spread to the ram's private parts. This ram, for example, has been attending to the procreation of orange Tup's dubbing...

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tie2fish
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by tie2fish » Fri Dec 14, 2018 7:32 am

Pretty sure I had read this some place before, but this illustrates it far better. Thanks, PhilA.
Some of the same morons who throw their trash around in National parks also vote. That alone would explain the state of American politics. ~ John Gierach, "Still Life with Brook Trout"
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tie2fish
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by tie2fish » Fri Dec 14, 2018 9:25 am

ForumGhillie wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 7:50 am How did they go about blending materials back then? By hand?
I still do for small quantities; helpful when using a Clark block as you can align the fibers while blending.
Some of the same morons who throw their trash around in National parks also vote. That alone would explain the state of American politics. ~ John Gierach, "Still Life with Brook Trout"
narcodog
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by narcodog » Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:19 am

ForumGhillie wrote: Fri Dec 14, 2018 7:50 am How did they go about blending materials back then? By hand?
Coffee mill.
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joaniebo
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by joaniebo » Fri Dec 14, 2018 10:38 am

A link to a previous discussion elsewhere:

http://classicflyrodforum.com/forum/vie ... 3&t=100746
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letumgo
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by letumgo » Fri Dec 14, 2018 12:31 pm

I'm late to the party, but am always interested when I read the phrase "Tups Indispensable".

I've enjoyed reading this new thread, and seeing fresh details on an much discussed topic. Great contributions guys.

I chuckled when I saw the photo of the sheep. Seems like neighboring farms would each want their own different color, as a way to monitor their flocks.

Thanks for the added links, photos and article reprint. This really should be pinned as a reference.
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Mike62
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by Mike62 » Fri Dec 14, 2018 1:34 pm

PhilA wrote: Thu Dec 13, 2018 11:31 pm A little more Tup's trivia...

It's often described as a "dusty yellow", and I'm told that rendering it "thoroughly washed and cleansed of the natural oil" is not a pleasant task.
A lot of things we do as farmers would seem genuinely unpleasant to a lot of people, and maybe they are; ...you get used to it. This is a great thread. I've made my own version of Tup's dubbing in the past but I see that I have far too much red in my mixture.
joaniebo
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by joaniebo » Fri Dec 14, 2018 3:37 pm

Ok folks, get ready to read the funniest thing ever about Tup's dubbing:

http://classicflyrodforum.com/forum/vie ... 7s#p594342
Greenwell
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by Greenwell » Fri Dec 14, 2018 5:10 pm

Tups TFAL.jpg
Tups TFAL.jpg (132.82 KiB) Viewed 15691 times
These flies are the specimen Tups flies from the De Luxe edition of Eric Taverner's Trout Fishing From All Angles1929, and were dressed by Miss Austin. The pattern on the left is the Nymph and on the right is the Spinner. I apologize for the blurry photo but the flies are housed under a sheet of "Perspex," an early form of plastic, and this was about the best I could do. At least it shows the basic configuration and style of the flies.
Greenwell
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Re: Tups Indispensable

Post by Greenwell » Fri Dec 14, 2018 8:29 pm

And a tip of my hat to John the Magician! Much better!

What doesn't show is their size, no larger than a modern 18.
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