taffy1
Well-known member
I've always used the hackle pliers, not had any difficulties. Each to their own & what suits them really.
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I've always used the hackle p;iers, not had any difficulties. Each to their own & what suits them really.
No, funnily enough. I have some silicone tubing attached to the hackle plier jaws, user friendly in my case.Do you never damage or kink the tip, gripping it in hackle pliers?
No, funnily enough. I have some silicone tubing attached to the hackle plier jaws, user friendly in my case.
Am interested to see that you go to the trouble of dying the legs in different colours. Does it really make much difference to catch rate ? I find the size and shape/silouette of the fly is the most important.And single-knotted? I would need single-knotted in chestnut for heather flies, and in claret and black for hoppers and raiders and the likes...
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Col
I hold the tip between finger & thumb, it's the butt end I draw through the loop, less damage to the pheasant fibre. I know this isn't adopted by many, it works for me & I don't think I'll try anything different soon.
Am interested to see that you go to the trouble of dying the legs in different colours. Does it really make much difference to catch rate ? I find the size and shape/silouette of the fly is the most important.
Ah - right - you are doing it backwards.
Col
Yes, but it's sort of pulling "with the grain", so to speak.![]()
I do seem to, there again it's the way I've always done them so it has become the norm for me.True. And can you position the knot very close to the tip that way?
Col
Yes, but it's sort of pulling "with the grain", so to speak.![]()
ColI guess the key one there would be the heather fly. It's a bit like asking if there is any difference between a Bibio, with its red centre section, and an all black palmer when there are heather flies on the water?
A heather fly just looks right with chestnut legs...
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... even thought it's only the 'thighs' that are chestnut. I guess you could use a black Pantone pen on the tips.
That pattern is fantastically good when heather flies are on the go.
...and a black fly suits having black legs, rather than natural...
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Though I like natural melanistic for this pattern...
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Melanistic again...
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... and a claret hopper looks much better to my eye with claret legs. It probably works just as well with natural, so some of it is no doubt some combination of anthropomorphising and confidence in what we are fishing.
You could ask the same question of any dry fly: is it worth using olive dubbings and blue dun hackles and all the myriad fancy shades and tones that we use? Wouldn't we be better to make them all black?
Here's a couple of hoppers shot from the fish's eye view, from under the water...
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And a dead buzzer for comparison...
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Up to each of us how we approach it. I'll certainly be continuing to use colours in my dry flies. As I see it, if it's worth using different colours for bodies and hackles, it's worth using different colours for legs.
Col
for what its worth i hold the thicker part of the stalk and make a loop then i put the thinner side across the loop and just like colin i insert a dubbing needle and pull the thin end out ,i usually make one knot as its too time consuming and some times i will use 2 stalks with the one knotView attachment 33069 but you get a different shilouhette to the one above when its far more practical to just buy knotted pt which usually has the 2 knots in each stalkView attachment 33070
Or you could use something else for legs...
View attachment 33082