December 18, 2006: Excellent tied flies

Undertoad • Dec 18, 2006 12:19 pm
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It's the weekly Cellar IotD - Neatorama collab!

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Horrible camel spider? Guess again.

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Weird dragonfly in its environment? No. Maybe the steel hook at the bottom of this one gives it away.

These are bait! The long tradition of fly-tying, producing glittering insects to catch fish, is hereby taken to extremes by master fly-tier Graham Owen.

...not designed primarily for fishing, just having fun trying to imitate insects and striving to make them look as alive as possible. Some of these flies have been acquired by collectors and placed on display, others used for product photo shots, and some presented as gifts.

Ah, so not really bait, but ironically, this is simulated bait!

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It's art, is what it is. It's a fine craft and should be celebrated. The amazing detail on the wasp includes a hidden hook; not the tradition to hide it, not really necessary, but an interesting take on the business end.

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And I think it's hilarious that he has actually fly-tied flies.

Be sure to visit Neatorama for more mind-boggling items.
LabRat • Dec 18, 2006 12:29 pm
You know they're good when the gross you out even though you know they are fake.
lawman • Dec 18, 2006 12:46 pm
Wow, these are amazing... now what I would like to see is how well they perform versus commercially available flies... A lot of time, lures are designed to catch the fisherperson's eye, not necessarily the fish's.
barefoot serpent • Dec 18, 2006 1:21 pm
I'd be diving in all the time to retrieve a snag.
charmzny • Dec 18, 2006 2:29 pm
LabRat wrote:
You know they're good when the gross you out even though you know they are fake.


I'm with you. Even knowing that's a fake spider just gives me chills...

Give me reptiles any day!
milkfish • Dec 18, 2006 2:38 pm
You know they're good when a real one tries to mate with it. Ow, hook!
Spexxvet • Dec 18, 2006 2:38 pm
MMmmmm, they look tasty. I'll just have a bite....OW! Holy crap that hurts. Let me pick it out of my mou..OW! It's stuck!
xoxoxoBruce • Dec 18, 2006 2:55 pm
Bet one of them costs more than a ton of fish. :smack:
Shawnee123 • Dec 18, 2006 4:09 pm
Tied flies when you're having fun, um, er...never mind.
rkzenrage • Dec 19, 2006 12:51 pm
So cool... I want some for my jacket!
Shawnee123 • Dec 20, 2006 5:03 pm
bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Sheldonrs • Dec 20, 2006 5:15 pm
Shawnee123 wrote:
Tied flies when you're having fun, um, er...never mind.


hehehe! Punny.;)
classicman • Mar 8, 2009 10:57 pm
bump. If you've ever tried to tie your own, you get a whole new appreciation for these. They are amazingly well done!

He's got a new link

Here is one new oneImage
monster • Mar 8, 2009 11:35 pm
that is particularly cool.