Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 28
FRAGILE
FLIES:
Teaching Children to Tie Glass Bead Fly Patterns
by Christian A. Shane
photos by the author
" The vast assortment of colors, finishes, and sizes augments
a tier's ability to imitate a predator's food, whether it is an
insect's translucent body or a minnow's sheen. " Introduction
by Joe J. Warren, Tying Glass Bead Flies (1997).
As parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, we warn our
children to stay away from broken glass and to be careful
when playing around delicate items. In the world of tying on
the vise, fly tiers and anglers take a different approach and
encourage kids to tie and fish with glass beads on the hook.
Glass beads have become another great material
readily available to fly tiers in tying flies. As any effective
fly tying ingredient, glass beads have assortments,
varying sizes, and palettes of color. Introduce your young
28
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater * March/April 2021
fly tier to a whole world of exploration with glass beads on
the vise.
Just as fly tying hook sizes range from large hooks
(represented by small numbers) to small hooks (represented
by larger numbers), the smaller the glass bead number,
the larger the bead. Conversely, a small bead would have a
larger number size. For example, a 6/0 bead would be larger
than a 15/0 seed bead. Using the 'aught' or 0-based sizing
measurement, most manufacturers measure the beads sideby-side to fit into a given inch. If the bead size is 8/0, that
corresponds to eight glass beads per inch, or 8-aught. Fly tying
manufacturers typically utilize millimeters and the sizes of
midge, small, medium, and large.
This is important to the fly tier since the bead size should
match to the appropriate hook size. Generally, midge hooks
(#18-24) would fit with 15/0 micro glass beads, small hooks
(#12-18) for 11/0 small beads, medium hooks (#8-12) for 8/0
medium beads, and large hooks (#2-8) for large 6/0 beads. Of
course, some manufacturers differ in their bead size, glass, and
finish, so experiment with the beads which match the tier's
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021
Contents
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - Cover1
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - Cover2
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - Contents
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 4
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 5
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 6
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 7
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 8
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 9
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 10
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 11
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 12
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 13
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 14
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 15
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 17
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 18
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 21
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 22
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 23
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 25
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 26
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 27
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 28
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 30
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 31
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 38
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 40
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 42
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 53
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 55
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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 61
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 62
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 63
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - 64
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - Cover3
Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - March/April 2021 - Cover4
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