Jazz musician Woody Herman invited Best to play with his big band, but Best had just been drafted into the U.S. Army and couldn't join.

Best also produced a collection of videos that range from 50 to 120 minutes long and detail "efficient and practical methods" for fly tying.

[5] His flies were contracted by large firms like the Orvis Company, the Urban Angler shop in Manhattan, and international supplier Umpqua Feather Merchants from Colorado.

[11][12] Best's manuscript materials, published articles, memorabilia, flies, and business correspondence ranging from 1983 to 2015 can be found in the Montana State University Archives and Special Collections.

Best's testimonials for the Orvis fly tying catalogues show his support for the company's goods.

[17] The Orvis Company continues to reference Best's fly tying methods in instructional videos.

He wrote in a document given to the MSU Archives and Special Collections, "If they were I would go back to my car and bring in the display cases and tell the owner that I noticed they were out of size 16 Adams (for example) and ask if they would like to place an order.

His monthly column "From the Vise" gave detailed instructions for creating a specific fly.

[1] Best noticed that the same kind of insect in different areas have slight color variation that many anglers ignore.

Gierach writes of this method for fly improvement, that Best creates "a new pattern that may ... fool a few more trout.

[8][1] Umpqua Feather Merchants and the Orvis Company continue to use Best's patterns and reference his work.