Wing material, especially for dry flies, has gone through an evolution over the past 50 years which, whether I like it or not, I have been able to witness. Years ago feather material of all sorts (mallard, wood duck and CDC come to mind) came from birds. Calf tail (not so good) and snowshoe hare (much better) have their place. But synthetic material has found its way into the game and that is good thing. First, it's fairly indestructible when compared to feathers and secondly, it sheds water as a synthetic should. Is there a drawback?
Well, yes! Most complaints about the synthetic post yarn material is that it's too hard to work with and the major complaint being how to measure out the amount of fiber to use. This is critical when tying small flies of size 20 and smaller. Here's a trick:
Find that long lost hair comb that you have in a bathroom cabinet or in that sock drawer of yours. In the photo above you will see what I'm writing about. Notice the LARGE teeth and the smaller teeth.
Now notice the second photo.
That's a photo of a hank of very fine post wing yarn being
Remember, if you think that you have enough wing material for a fly you probably have too much. GO ON THE SPARSE SIDE or the material will just wick up water and fold over and become top heavy.
Take one of these strands that you see on the left and cut it about 2 inches long. Tie in the wing material on a size 20 dry and make the post about an inch long. You want to tie it in at that inch long length because you want to have something to pull on as you snip the material to the correct length. That will make the material splay out the way it should as seen in the above photo. Notice that there's not a lot of wing material on that fly. That's what you want.
I always look for the finest wing material for standard and small dry flies. Fumed silica is the best floatant for this style of fly. I'ts the best floatant for all dry flies.
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I'm booking up for this Spring so don't wait. The Swift, Millers, Ware and all of the Westfield Branches are waiting. Book now and remember there's no deposit with me!!
Ken
12 comments:
Ken,
Good idea. That should keep me from being heavy handed with wing material.
TKR
Never saw or thought of that approach before Ken. That's a really clever strategy - thank you for sharing it. Ill be dropping an old comb into my fly tying gear bin for sure! Thanks!
Will
Will,
Now that I think of it there is a VERY fine comb used for lice removal (yes, I had kids who went to summer camp) and I think that would serve well for #26 dries and smaller!!
Ken
Nice tip for well proportioned flies!
Anonymous 10:15,
Thank You!
Ken
Really nice flies, Ken, and good tip on making the wings for them. With no hackle they sit in the water film just like the naturals.
By this time of year I have tied a lot of flies that I mainly use, those being soft hackles. For a change of pace I tie some Catskill style flies to see if I can still tie them. Some are duds, but some I will fish in the right situation.
I have never tied many streamers, but lately have been trying the muddler minnow. The first few attempts weren't good, but they are getting better. Spinning and trimming deer hair is a pain, but during winter why not pass the time trying to get it right with casts next to wood piles in mind? You never know.
Sam
Sam,
Back in the early 70's you couldn't leave home without muddlers in your fly box and you had to learn how to tie them too. I fished them weighted and on the surface. They are actually fun to tie once you get the hang of it.
It seems that the wooley bugger has replaced it as a subsurface offering and the stimulator is now our BIG dry fly. You've got me going on this! I'm going to tie up some this weekend - dry in about a size 12 for stoneflies and hoppers and an old favorite of mine, the weighted Marabou Muddler, to compete with the bugger.
Ken
Ken, that is a good idea tying up some weighted ones. I'll do that on the next couple. The ones I've tied so far are unweighted and will probably float like a cork without a split shot or two above them.
Sam
I use muddled minnows in the lakes and ponds in Maine a lot. The guys I fish with up there wouldn’t be without them. Particularly in small sizes 10s and 12s. Let em float for a while and strip them back. You get takes both ways. I have good luck with muddlers in all sizes anywhere I go. Always keep a few in my streamer box.
Chuck
Sam,
Just tied up some marabou muddlers, two unweighted and two with weight. Now I want to fish them!!!!
Anonymous 8:25,
It's been 20 years since I've thrown a muddler. Now I can't get them off my brain!
Ken
Fran Betters was a big proponent on mini-muddlers. They work!
I hope you fish those marabou muddlers soon, Ken. Those marabou fibers add a lot of life like action I imagine and will be added to mine.
Fished today, but no hits. I go through these spells where I can't buy a hit. I view it as paying my dues, the reward at some point something special will happen when I least expect it.
Best,
Sam
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