IFTS 2007

Published Nov 18th 2007

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By Bob Petti

Some pictures from the 2007 International Fly Tying Symposium in Somerset, New Jersey.

A good crowd. - The IFTS had a very good turnout this year, as the room was pretty full from the start, as this pic as taken about five minutes after I paid for my ticket, just before 10am.

A good crowd.
Bob Petti

A few vendors - The IFTS has a few vendors each year, but the emphasis is definitely on the tyers themselves, as more space is devoted to individual tyer stations than vendors selling their wares.

A few vendors
Bob Petti

$AK Best - AK Best at the Featured Tyer\'s table, jabbering with the crowd and demonstrating his tying techniques. He had a big crowd, as you would expect.$
AK Best
Bob Petti

Bill Skilton - Bill Skilton is the master of foam flies - and foam tying materials. Watching him tie is great fun. You can be sure his flies are fish catchers.

Bill Skilton
Bob Petti

$Don Bastian - Don Bastian, by any measure a master fly tyer, busy at work at the show. Of all the tyers you can watch during the day, I don\'t think anyone ties as much as Don does. As you can see here - his hands are always moving.$
Don Bastian
Bob Petti

$Blaine Chocklette\'s gummy flies - I don\'t know the name of this fly, but it is off the vise of Blaine Chocklette of Sili Skin and Loco Foam fame. This fly looks like a hard bodied \$
Blaine Chocklette's gummy flies
Bob Petti

$Sardines anyone? - A tin of Blaine Chocklette\'s sand eels. Looks like you should get out some crackers and cheese. These flies are so lifelike, they are almost bait. I have to try that stuff sometime.$
Sardines anyone?
Bob Petti

Andrea and Glenn Van Benschoten - Andrea and Glenn Van Benchoten of Reel Simple Fly Fishing. I like their approach to things, as their aim is to make fly tying and fishing more approachable to beginners by removing much of the fluff and complexity that can be so intimidating to newbies.

Andrea and Glenn Van Benschoten
Bob Petti

$Steve Silverio\'s Tube Fly - Steve Silverio had a very beautiful display in front of his tying station. I took a number of photos, but this was my favorite because of the colors and the contrast. He was tying with a unique hair materials he imports from Iceland. Beautiful stuff. It shimmers like polar bear.$
Steve Silverio's Tube Fly
Bob Petti

$Funky Chicken - A Whiting stuffed chicken in front of Fly Tyer Variant\'s booth. My first thought was - look at all that excellent streamer hackle.$
Funky Chicken
Bob Petti

$Mike Hogue - Mike Hogue in front of his Badger Creek Fly Tying booth. I\'ve been fortunate to get to know Mike a bit better since he moved to the Ithaca area. I don\'t see him as much anymore since I\'ve moved away, but he\'s a good egg and has a great shop.$
Mike Hogue
Bob Petti

$Don Bastian - The only time Don\'s hands are still is when he\'s holding a wing in place. Don\'t blink, \'cause two quick wraps later their moving again.$
Don Bastian
Bob Petti

$Ted Patlen and Chris Del Plato - Ted Patlen (L) and Chris Del Plato (R), flipping through an album of photos from Lew Oatman\'s estate. That album is a treasure.$
Ted Patlen and Chris Del Plato
Bob Petti

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User comments

From: Christopher Soule · cjsoule·at·yahoo.com Link
Submitted November 25th 2007

Good Day,

The trick with working with materials like Sili Skin is to take a deep breath, plan ahaed and take your time! Patience is a virtue when working with this material - but patience will reward you. Go slow...

Christopher Soule

From: Les · Leslie·at·laustin4.wanadoo.co.uk Link
Submitted November 20th 2007

Thanks Kasper,

That is a shame, but eye-catching they certainly are.

Regards,
Les

GFF staff comment

From: Kasper Mühlbach Link
Submitted November 19th 2007

Helge and Les,

the rubber sand eels are not difficult to tie, but pretty useless as the silicone starts to curl and the fly to spin. More an eye catcher than a practical fly.

Kasper MÃ¼hlbach

From: Helge · Loctite1·at·gmx.de Link
Submitted November 19th 2007

Bob wow what a nice sand eels, could you send me some they look so realistic and I am hungry.
Tying instruction would be great

From: Les Austin · Leslie·at·laustin4.wanadoo.co.uk Link
Submitted November 18th 2007

Nice work!
Those sand-eels are amazing. Any chance of an article on how to tie them?

From: Sarunas_St · sarunas_st·at·yahoo.com Link
Submitted November 18th 2007

Nice photo reportage Bob!
Add more photos if possible ;)

Comment to an image
From: mark j. romero · markflies99·at·gmail.com Link
Submitted November 19th 2007

I checked out all of Steve's tube flies..........they are really something. He's a VERY good tyer and a VERY nice man.

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Trip Reports

IFTS 2007

Show

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The Global FlyFisher - A Good Place to go for Online Fly Fishing and Fly Tying

Trip Reports

IFTS 2007

Show

Pictures

The last Fly Fair?

Woolly Wisdom

What to look for when buying...

The Red and Copper Shrimp

Tour de France