Pharside of the Pond with Peeete

Saving the World
Phlying!

Catching
Welded
Welded
Not Welded
Not Welded

Whilst I’m gathering info together relating to the Bug-Bond Pro-Tying Team I thought I’d share a few images and words with you. As I’ve mentioned before it always gives me a buzz when I see flies tied by others or fish they’ve caught… especially when they tell me Bug-Bond forms part of that equation.

I’m going to blog twice today as I’ve a huge amount of info to put out there…

First up is none other than Pete Gray with all his phuzzie notions and out of the box fly tying… with the advent of light cured acrylics now being common place in fly tying Pete has pushed the envelope. “Phly Welding” is the new art form… place braid on the hook shank and then start spot welding your material on and create your fly.

I recently wrote to Pete and said that I’d like to put a profile up along with some photos of his ties… so a package was delivered to my door by two “suits” with dark glasses and ear piece communication… not to mention the bullet proof blacked out 4x4 that hit a quiet leafy lane in England on an autumn day.

The USB stick in the pack immediately downloaded the files onto my PC… of course they were encrypted… well nothing a couple of judicious blows of a hammer can’t fix! (Jack Bauer, eat your heart out!)

I was shocked, according to Pete I’ve violated his Federal Witness Protection Scheme… there are images I just can’t publish here... safe to say he was looking after all our best interests whilst in the USAF and he believes he can still “Phly”.

Latterly he can be found in his tying bunker at an undisclosed location breathing life into fish catching creations.

All the above is said with tongue firmly in my cheek BUT with huge respect for the man.

Thanks for allowing me to peer into those files and allowing me to see the unabridged Pete on the Pharside of the Canal… and here’s to an adult beverage in Somerset!

And Pete, keep whacking the home runs…

Tackle Trade World spots Bug-Bond!!

Bug-Bond is getting noticed! This time Tackle Trade World has given Bug-Bond half a page in their news section following the very successful trials with the help of Harrison Advanced Rods in Liverpool, UK.

“My old friend David Edwards has been showing me his UV cure resin product “Bug-Bond” which looks like a clear epoxy but cures almost instantly with UV light. Primarily aimed at fly tyers, David has shown me that it may well have applications beyond that and he has been evaluating the use of Bug-Bond in rod building. I do not want to let the cat out of the bag, but can confirm that Bug-Bond has a lot of potential to the rod builder in that it cures quickly to a bright clear finish and I can therefore see it being used by both custom and production rod builders in the future.” says Dr Steve Harrison (Harrison Advanced Rods, Liverpool, 20th September 2010)

Bug-Bond International Pro-Tying Team

Bug-Bond International Pro-Tying Team

Barry Ord Clarke (United Kingdom/Norway)
Andy Elliott (Ireland)
Simon Graham (South Africa/Finland)
Ulf Hagstrom (Sweden)
Dougie Loughridge (Scotland)
Davie McPhail (Scotland)
Chris Newsome (USA)
Johan Put (Netherlands)
Chris Reed (United Kingdom)
Chris Reeves (United Kingdom)
Barry Reynolds (USA)
Chris Sandford (United Kingdom)
Steve Silverio (USA)
Riny Sluiter (Netherlands)


Bug-Bond was officially launched in January 2010. During the first 9 months of this year the number of Bug-Bond users has grown across the world... there are now users in 20 countries across 5 continents.

In order to maintain and enlarge the profile of Bug-Bond across the globe it gives me great pleasure to announce that an International Bug-Bond Pro-Tying Team has been formed.

Each member of the team brings with them an enviable level of expertise whether their speciality is trout, salmon, pike, saltwater or realistic fly tying.

The team has an international flavour and will be promoting Bug-Bond at fly fairs/shows across the globe, through magazine articles and of course the Internet. Many of the tyers run their own angling related businesses and I have pleasure in being able to return the compliment and support their ventures by highlighting their businesses here.

Over the course of the next week or so I will introduce the team members to you via the blog and their details will be available on the Bug-Bond website.

The USA and more....

Wow! September has been a great month with a lot going on... it kicked off with a 2 page feature in Trout Fisherman including a step by step and a review by Robbie Winram... I was over the moon with his comments.

I then brought together the culmination of 12 months research and work on rod blanks and built and fished a 9' 9# where all the rings were attached only with Bug-Bond (no thread)... 13 pike up to 16lb on the Harrison Advanced Rods Lohric blank... that is a seriously nice stick! I have named the rod "Zero" as in Zero Thread Technology (very tongue in cheek BUT I have proved a point... Bug-Bond is versatile!!)


As I've previously blogged Pete Gray provided some kind words about Bug-Bond...

In the background Steve Silverio has been fighting the Bug-Bond corner, Steve is a thoroughly nice guy and a great tyer I have huge respect for him and his talent... I hope to be posting a bit about Steve and his ties in the coming weeks...

So what's the big news I hear you ask... Well as of yesterday stocks of Bug-Bond went on the shelves of http://www.whitewaterflies.com/ . This is a major step for Bug-Bond and removes a major stumbling block in our progression in the US market. I've had huge support from the US angler but potsage costs inhibited some from purchasing the product. Not anymore!!

With the kit, Greg Becker the owner of (Whitewaterflies) has tied up a few patterns which should give inspiration to those that wish to throw away the epoxy and the varnish... thanks for the images Greg.

It won't stop there tho' I have a second retailer in the US that will come on stream in 7 days time or so... who will it be?

Thank you all for your support and watch this space...

Phun on the Phringe with Pete...

This week top fly tyer Pete Gray (USA) who usually ties in the UV Phree Zone, as he likes to call it has decided to tie using UV cured acrylics... for "Phun"

Pete is a great and much admired fly tyer, who leads the way... he's not a follower... many who see his ties on Stripersonline are constantly WOWed by his technique and dare I say it, his genius...

His comments on Stripersonline were short and to the point...

"Used with the "tip kit" its application is much more precise and the cured results are much more tack free than the sort'a almost tack free other stuff..."

"Bug-Bond hit a home run... CCG hit a Ground Rule Double..."

...and in an email to me “David, If given the choice between Bug-Bond and CCG, I'd absolutely go with your magic voodoo acrylic WITH the "tip kit"...Over the MOON!” Pete Gray

You're "Over the MOON!" well that makes two of us Pete... and thank you for allowing me to reproduce your comments and images.

The Ducking Fedley!

“Dealing with emails that come into the office is never a chore as they are mostly fishing or Bug-Bond related and like most, I enjoy a good fishy tale. One such anecdote with supporting photos was sent to me by Chris Sandford. Chris has very kindly allowed me to reproduce part of his email along with the photos so that I may share it with you (Chris, it is much appreciated. Thank you).

The unexpurgated version will be found in his soon to be published article in the Autumn issue of Waterlog magazine (http://www.waterlogmagazine.com/ do have a look at their website and consider subscribing to this quality journal).

Chris told me that although they didn’t win the one fly event, they didn’t do too badly and more to the point the Bug-Bond flies lasted the whole day… and by the look of the photo, Chris’s fly looks as if it could be fished again the following day and probably many more.

The excerpt from Chris’s email follows…”

“A week before the ‘One Fly’ competition Bob (A Passion for Angling) James called me and asked if I’d like to be part of the ‘Dream Team’ with him and Chris Tarrant....and would I mind tying the flies!

I knew that many parts of the Test were still quite coloured so I decided that I would give the team a choice between bright and heavy and fairly traditional and heavy! But I would do my best to make all the flies indestructible. It’s amazing how much damage can be done to one fly in just one day’s fishing so I gave them all a severe ‘Bug Bonding’!

On the day I presented Bob with the choice of the flies. “Your three ‘indestructibles’” I said. He looked at them carefully and asked ‘Which one are you going to use?’ I pointed to a small, tungsten headed, flash back bug on a size 14 hook. ‘Me too’ he said ‘What’s it called?’ ‘No idea’ I replied, ‘I only thought of it yesterday!’ Bob’s guide inspected it closely and muttered ‘Looks ****ing deadly to me!’ So that, we decided, was its name. The ****ing Deadly’!

One of the funniest moments related by Bob later in the day, was when the camera team covering the event filmed him landing three fine Trout on my fly. When asked by the director what the fly was called Bob had a lapse of memory and looked to his guide for help. Without missing a beat he said ‘Oh yes…that one…it’s ‘The Ducking Fedley’!

Cheers… Chris”

Size doesn't matter... but it helps!

You sometimes get that feeling in your water that the day is going to be good... not often as we would like BUT I just had to leave work early today.

1600 hrs and I was away from the desk and by 1700 hrs almost at the lake... My hollow tie was deployed in several marks but all failed to attract... BUT I knew I was in the wrong place! As the sun started to dip I decided to go to a mark where I'd lost a reasonable pike previously and decided to play hardball... I knew that I'd scored in this mark with dark flies... black or olive and decided to use one of my pal, Simon Graham's ties. Simon has become a great pal over the ether and we occasionally phone each other to chew the fat... I look forward to tying along side him at the BFFI in October!

I have digressed the tube fly... very wet at the moment is an olive raccoon tail, gold flash and brown raccoon head with a gold conehead... I armed it with a Sakuma Manta 2/0...

I cast into a mark where I'd had a loss earlier this year casting beyond the lilies and bringing the fly back on both sides of the V... Nothing was doing. However there is another slot in the lilies 6ft away but a difficult cast... more a back cast between the shrubbery and cast to the open water but then cast it onto the corner of the small lily pads... hopping it over the top of them and then dropping it into the water. Second cast and as it just dropped into the water a bait fish went vertical and with a boil of the water I was in...

Boy did this fish run for open water... a strong fish that I was keen to subdue quickly and get back in quickly... My newly built rod, a self build Harrison Lohric 9' 9# was perfection itself and at no point did I feel out of control...

So between my pal Simon Graham and my friends Steve Harrison and Mike Helliwell at Harrison Advanced Rods I banked a personal best at 16lb...

The photos are from the phone again... and thanks to the lad who took the photos!