Thanks to the FF&W readership, I’ve sold through my original run of FF&W tees. I’ve had more made, but have expanded the selection with more sizes, colors, fabrics and fits. I have the Men’s/Unisex 50/50 shirts in the “Shadow Gray” color (up to 2XL), a new Men’s/Unisex 100-cotton shirt in a ”Coastal Green” color (up to [...]

Loop-to-loop junctures allow for a rapid change-out of a leader. If you pre-tie your own leaders or buy your leaders pre-made, you can go from slinging muddlers to dead-drifting mayflies in about two minutes—including the fly change. You can also refresh a worn leader system in a hurry. I have had days when my terminal [...]

GB has a good post up about the 5/7 Blood Knot, a variation that I grew up tying (the “School of GB” was a great, if sometimes demanding, one). Personally, I use this knot for leader butt/taper interconnections, then move to a three-turn Surgeon’s (or Water) knot for tippet section(s) (talking trout/salmon, etc. here, but [...]

(UPDATE: December 7, 2009) These are now in my hands: Introductory price (through Dec 31, 2009) is $20 for the shirt, plus shipping (and tax in the state of Washington). Shipping costs are only a few bucks in the U.S., and a few more bucks outside the U.S. (tees ship via First Class Mail/Airmail). Sizes: [...]

Okay, I finally got my act together on these things, and am going to plunk down my cash this week for an order. After taking a poll on what people like, I ended up with a near 50/50 split between 50/50 cotton/poly and 100-percent cotton material. Back to square one… Actually, no. The poll really [...]

Spent an hour today casting and assessing three prototype finished rods and build kits. Need to tweak the last few inches of the tips (a little soft, I think), as well as the power low down in the butt sections (they’re strong, but they also cast an SA ED Sharkskin like a shot). Also need [...]

Yep, a pure lazy well-timed re-post. True, there is a perma-linked page over in the sidebar, but my web stats say the pages often get missed, so here it is again. This is an almost-verbatim snip from my Nature of Fly Casting book about one potential aid in grass-casting. And yes, you’ll probably see it show up again [...]

If I’m going to order a bunch of these things, I might as well know what to order, right? So, let me know! (Just as a note, no matter what material(s) I run with, the tees will be made (manufactured, not just printed) in the U.S.)

Thinking of a few FF&W-styled tees. American Apparel 50/50 material, Portland printed, JB art. Let me know if there’s interest…

I have a small pile of fly-fishing still-life photos that have sat mostly untouched on my hard drive (until now). I think such shots often capture the unnoticed or under-appreciated details of our fly-fishing lives. I’ll be adding more of these as FF&W moves ahead. I hope that some will spark memories for you of [...]

Some kids go to summer camp. This kid (me) goes to rod camp. Or more specifically, rod-building camp. I hadn’t built a rod in more than 20 years—until this week. And now, I’ll be building them left and right. Or, more often than not, semi-building them: Find the spine, press-fit the handle, tape on the [...]

A bit of “re-play” from an old “Fly Fish America” article (which I think made the rounds three times in various states of tune). – – – – – – – – – - The use of droppers is a staple technique for many fly fishers around the world. During opportunistic (“eat what comes by”) [...]

I occasionally get e-mails asking about roll and Spey casting on grass, and ways in which to make land-bound practice more useful. What follows is an almost-verbatim snip from my Nature of Fly Casting book about one potential aid in grass-casting. – – – – – – – – – - It can be difficult [...]

When the sad day comes and your waders are pin-holed, seam-taped, and hot-patched beyond saving, you have only a few choices (Common Threads isn’t quite there yet): Burial is often first on the list, preferably with a dousing of single-malt (for both you and the waders). This option, however, tends to create a long-lasting landfill [...]