The basic premise in fly tying is to attach materials to the hook with thread wraps. The materials need to be attached between layers of thread. If one ties material against the bare metal of the hook shank, the material will spin around the hook between the metal and the thread, causing all sorts of strange happenings as the tyer continues to construct the fly. So, somewhere along the line, the hook shank has to be covered with thread. Classically, the thread is attached to the hook at the eye of the fly and wrapped rearward to the bend before materials are tied in.

Hey, this sounds just like the last blog on production tying. Well, in fact, it is. In the last blog on this topic, I addressed bi-directional tying, but in a back-handed fashion. So let’s look at it face on. Typically, once the shank has been wrapped from front to back, the tyer lashes in the tail by wrapping forward, then wraps the thread back to the rear of the hook and ties in the next material. In the example fly this would be the tinsel. Then, the thread is wrapped back to the rear of the shank and the next material (chenille) is tied in. The thread is then wrapped back to the head before the body materials are wound on. Just look at the excess wrapping that waste time and thread:

1. The hook shank is covered with thread twice, when it only needs to be covered with thread once.

2. The rear of the hook sports 6 layers of thread instead of only 4.

So, learn to tie in materials in both directions. As long as one is going to wrap thread over thread, why not tie in materials? Why not, indeed. Look at the same photos from the last blog with bi-directional tying glasses on this time.

In our example fly from the last blog on production tying, the thread is attached directly above the hook point and wrapped rearward to lock it in (Figure 1). The thread is then wrapped forward as the tail is tied in (Figure 2). As the thread is wrapped back, a piece of tinsel is tied in (Figure 3). Then the thread is wrapped forward again, securing a piece of chenille. The thread is continued forward to cover the hook shank (Figure 4). The chenille is then wrapped forward over the thread-covered shank, followed by the tinsel, and the fly finished (Figure 5).

Figure 1. Rather than covering the entire shank with thread, cover only the portion that is involved in the immediate tying step.

Figure 2. Classically the tail is tied in by wrapping forward over the thread base. The thtread base can be extended forward if needed for the next step,

Figure 3. The next material, in this case tinsel, is tied in as the thread is wrapped rearward.

Figure 4. The chenille is tied in as the thread is wrapped forward. The thread is then wrapped forward to cover the shank.

Figure 5. The finished fly, accomplished faster and with fewer wraps of thread, is just as hearty and effective as one dressed with conventional tying tactics.