McNeese Fly Fishing Home Page

McNeese Fly Fishing offers exceptional
hand made equipment and custom dyed fly
tying materials to anglers around the
globe.

Dave's credentials:

Dave McNeese owned McNeese's Fly shop (Eugene,
then in Salem, Oregon) since 1969
Custom rod builder since 1975, customizing Sage fly
fishing rods since the inception of Sage Co. in 1980
Designed and produced custom fly reels
Hook designer-Partidge/ Bartleet CS10 and it's siblings,
and the new Blue Heron Spey
Fly Casting instructor
Custom dyed fly tying materials
Fly tying instructor
Mentored many of the great fly tyers of today
Featured in over 40 books and articles
Offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee
Full lifetime warranty on custom rods

A note about my flies and hooks

Way back in the winter of 1978-79 I set out to design a new Steelhead/Salmon hook to fit my style
of tying. The Partridge Hook Company was my first and only choice since I was a great fan of their
hook quality. I met with the owner, Alan Bramley, for dinner. Alan was impressed with the hooks
that I had made myself. He also saw for the first time, the Steelhead flies I tied on other Partridge
hooks at my fly shop in Salem, Oregon. He agreed to make the hooks for me, and told me that a
contract was not necessary as his hand shake was as good as gold.
This was a very convincing gentleman.

The following summer I received a box that contained thousands of my new hooks. Note that no
sample hooks were ever made for me and the hooks that arrived did not meet my hook design
requirements. I called Alan and we spoke of the changes that needed to be made in the hook
point and a wire size increased one hook size each was a must.

A slight change was made on the point, as we discussed, but nothing else. Alan Bramley then
claimed the hooks under his ownership instead of mine, since we had no contract.   The hooks were
named the CS10, and are still sold today.   I designed a total of 6 different CS10 hooks and he got
them all. In 1993 I met Alan again and showed him a new hook design for Steelhead/Salmon and
Spey flies. He was very interested, so I said, "I will give you another chance, but this time with a
contract!” We agreed and I gave him a check for $7500.00 as a deposit for samples and materials.
The check was cashed while he was still in the US, but unfortunately Alan passed away before the
hooks could be made and so my money was gone again.

I decided to start another endeavor, making high quality fly fishing reels which I produced for the
next 10 years. My dream of making a perfect hook to fit my style of tying was still strong and again
I made attempts with other hook companies to send samples of the spey type hook I made years
before. The samples that I got, met with dissatisfaction.

2005 brought better luck. I met a friend who worked for Gamakatsu USA. He assured me that
they make the highest quality hooks in the world today, and that I should be able to have them
make the exact hook I wanted without hang-ups. They sent samples, improvements were made
on these, and the money sent. The hooks arrived and they are fabulous! I have told my angling
friends that these hooks are so perfect, far exceeding the dream years ago of a hook with the
perfect bend, shank, point and the finest tapered eye ever.

Are you wondering why I have spent so much time and money developing these new hooks?
I love to tie fine flies that work, but the perfect hook was just not available to show the true
beauty of the flies that I tie... and for that matter all other tyers. I was after a hook design that
would follow my style of tying, longer shank, smoother bend, long straight hook point, and most of
all, fine return eye set low to reduce head size by 40%. The finish must be perfect as well as the
tempering and sharpness of the hook point. I’m happy to report that these are Gamakatsu
requirements as well, and that they have made a fabulous hook for me.

Thanks to all of you for your support in this long endeavor.
                                                                    Enjoy!
                                                                                   Dave McNeese

The new Blue Heron Spey Hook has arrived and is
getting fantastic reviews from some of the best.
These spey hooks make beautiful presentation flies as
well as bringing in the fish

click here to ORDER THE NEW HOOKS

McNeese Fly Fishing
serving anglers since 1969

Please contact us anytime! We look forward
to hearing from you.

  To reach Dave by email: dave@davemcneese.com
                   By phone: 503-798-5790
   To reach Lisa by email: cs@davemcneese.com