Comments on Reno Trout Envy: Saving $$ - part I

Anonymous-- Good call on the garage sales-- I have...

2010-02-09T09:03:37.769-08:00

Anonymous-- Good call on the garage sales-- I haven't hit any garage sales up for fishing gear but i have scored some sweet musical instruments for cheap

thanks for the advice!

cheers

Building your own rod can save you hundreds in som...

2010-02-08T23:59:46.999-08:00

Building your own rod can save you hundreds in some cases. I built a z axis and saved about $250. I got to pick my own guides and reel seat too.

I am not white rich or successful but I love to fl...

2010-02-08T19:57:04.706-08:00

I am not white rich or successful but I love to fly fish and often get weird looks while I am fishing on the truckee in shorts and a t-shirt. I guess if you don't wear the vest and the hats and expensive waders you aren't really a fly fisherman. I spend at least 4 days a week on the Truckee and do pretty well. My advice is to always go to garage sales in rich neighborhoods. Elitists seem to not know the real worth in gear unless it's the brand new top of the line trendiest stuff on the market. Which is alright by me.

I throw all my money down the drain on gear and ga...

2010-02-04T22:03:37.942-08:00

I throw all my money down the drain on gear and gas. If you need tying materials shave a dog or cat. My beard is also useful.

Aye tungsten is indeed a luxury (it's what my ...

2010-02-03T10:12:29.802-08:00

Aye tungsten is indeed a luxury (it's what my wedding ring is made of!) I definitely inspect the hook before saving anything, however I've found TMC hooks to hold up fairly well but have had daiichi hooks break on me... I'll definitely keep that in mind though, maybe I'll decrease the pressure on the vice :-)

and heck yeah on the alternate materials-- recently I started buying bass bug skirts for rubberlegs

I forgot, tungsten is a luxury. I leaned the har...

2010-02-02T15:15:29.280-08:00

I forgot, tungsten is a luxury.

I leaned the hard way it isn't worth it to reuse hooks. The strain of being clamped in the vice a secomd and third time will lead to hooks breaking off at the end. no bueno.

Brian: I started flyfishing in college and feel y...

2010-02-02T08:57:05.369-08:00

Brian:

I started flyfishing in college and feel your pain. The saving beads advice is sound-something I always did as well.

I would also look for alternate materials that would serve the same purpose to avoid having to buy new stuff. Fly specific equipment is often a rip-off as well.

Keep up the good fight.

On the fly: Heck yeah, I've got some awesome ...

2010-02-01T09:53:50.889-08:00

On the fly: Heck yeah, I've got some awesome stuff from hunting and hunters. I've got squirrel tails, sage hen, chukar, and hungarian partridge (awesome soft hackle). I've even eyeballed roadkill...

Tom: My wife thinks its funny that I get excited when she wants to go to the craft store... I always come with her and buy more than she does...

Bill: I don't know if I've gotten that desperate yet, haha! I definitely tie my own nymph and streamer leaders-- I use the cheap flourocarbon from the spincasting section. I need to take care of my line though... I just end up fishing with cracked p.o.s. line. Rod making looks... well, rather involved-- but that would be pretty awesome at the same time

Hell yeah bro if its real dire times I'll go a...

2010-01-31T10:39:55.410-08:00

Hell yeah bro if its real dire times I'll go as far as scanning overhanging braches for fresh flies! Buying hooks in bulk helps too, narrow it down to the ones used the most and get a box of 100 for each. Make your own tapered leaders, and one thing for certain you gotta take care of your line. If you take time to clean recondition and all that it lasts! Lately I've been entertaining the idea of wrapping my own rods, why not I tie my own flies.

I just made a huge score at Michaels crafts. Afte...

2010-01-30T18:23:59.087-08:00

I just made a huge score at Michaels crafts. After x-mas foam kits for two bucks, good for foam flies, and more gold and silver tinsel than I'll ever use for fifty cents. I also hunt rabbits, deer, and ducks so those help too. No matter how much I have I always seem to be needing something!

I also have done this once or twice to save beads ...

2010-01-30T06:46:01.656-08:00

I also have done this once or twice to save beads and dumbells. I have also used bucktails from a friends fall hunting kill. I also have a friend working on getting me some squirel tails. Keep an ear out for hunters and you'll probably be able to get FREE materials from wabbits to pheseant.
The snobish city people might find this method repulsive but for the rest of us we realize that the store bought materials are procured in nearly the same way...