40 Rivers To Freedom

Santa brought me a new video camera.  While it will get most of it’s use at chorus concerts and the kids’ sporting events, it’ll spend its off time at the tying bench and on the water…

I’ve got a lot to learn when it comes to this video stuff, but I gotta say that I’m pretty happy with the results of the tying video I did below at the camera’s default settings and basic lighting.  I should be able to ramp up the quality level a notch or two once I figure out all the buttons and stuff.

Anyways, here is a video tutorial on how to tie a very simple damselfly nymph pattern that proved itself over and over again on my local panfish puddles in ‘09.

The biggest perk of this blogging thing is the friends I’ve made along the way.  One such friend is Keith Barton, the dude who writes the Singlebarbed blog.  Among his many talents, Keith makes a pretty sweet dubbing blend or three.  I got a baggie of one of his newest blends a month back or so, the peackock blend I used on the bottom right flies in the pic.  I think Keith nailed the peacock herl color scheme in this blend, but what I was really impressed with was how soft the stuff is.  It stuck to the thread like glue.

The copper/brown mix at the top is also from Keith, but isn’t really a blend, more of an uncut ingredient that isn’t too shabby by it’s lonesome.  The flo-orange stuff on the bottom left color scheme is the stuff you get at your local fly shop.  It isn’t too bad to work with, unlike some sparkle dubbing stuff I’ve used in the past, but it lacks the softness of Keith’s stash.

There comes a point in every fly tyer’s life that they’ll want, or need, to use epoxy.  Unfortunately, epoxy is oftern frustrating to work with.  You’ve gotta mix it right; you’ve only got a limited amount of time to get it on there, etc.  It’s because of this that several alternatives to epoxy have become increasingly popular with fly tyers: Tuffleye, Rio Knot Sealer, and Loon UV Wader Repair.

Now, there’s a new player at the table. Clear Cure Goo.

Clear Cure Goo is still a mom & pop operation at this point, however, after reading the test results  on this stuff when compared to it’s rivals- I’m guessing it will be a household name in no time- at least where fly tyers live.

Clear Cure Goo is another UV light cured product.  However, unlike the Rio and Loon products, this stuff stays clear after exposure to extended periods of heat.  And unlike the Tuffleye,  it’s pretty much unbreakable after it’s been cured.

In other words, it’s pretty much the best stuff going right now.

I’m hoping to get my hands on this stuff soon to do some testing of my own. I work in this big old lab with all these fancy testing gizmos around me, it should be fun to use them on something interesting for once.  I’ll keep you posted.  In the meantime, check out their website by clicking the link above.