Emma Variant (Gunnar Johnson Flympher Pattern)

[letumgo]

John,

Many years ago, Bill Shuck sent me a disk of some tying wax he made up. I simply call it Shuck wax.

Somewhere, buried on the forum, are some old posts discussing how Bill made this wax.

Bill Shuck’s wax, and Bill Bailiey’s tying wax are my two go-to choices for tying wax. Both are outstanding.

[letumgo]

Beautiful pattern. A tutorial even a caveman (me) can follow. A tying station that humbles my scorched earth bench of feathered carnage... Thank you, Ray; your tutorials are a great resource.

Your tutorial reminds me that I have a bag full of smallish grizzly feathers that have been tucked away for years, forgotten until now. And you've given me a reason to take another look at that spool of grey Pearsall's that sits ignored in the corner.

Mike - Your comments brought a smile to my face. My tying bench is currently a mess, so I ended up tying with my travel kit, on the kitchen table. I really need to “tame” my tying desk, one of these days.

I was really surprised by how much I liked the look of the waxed light gray silk on the hook. The wax darkens the silk several shades, while preserving the light transmission qualities of the silk. The combination gave a nice medium dun colored silk under body. I’d like to tye up some dun colored versions of this pattern too. It just looks so buggy!

[tie2fish]

John,

Many years ago, Bill Shuck sent me a disk of some tying wax he made up. I simply call it Shuck wax.

Somewhere, buried on the forum, are some old posts discussing how Bill made this wax.

Bill Shuck’s wax, and Bill Bailiey’s tying wax are my two go-to choices for tying wax. Both are outstanding.

.

I think this may be one of the posts that Ray refers to above ...

by tie2fish » June 3rd, 2011, 6:55 am

Ray ~ I first heard about the 7-2-2 ratio recipe from John Shaner, and he emphasized that this is based on weight, not volume. What I found out as I kept changing it to get the result I wanted is that there's probably not a single ratio combination that will work for everybody because of differences in the ingredients. There are many grades of rosin, for example, and I used natural beeswax that I got from a keeper rather than the refined stuff that's sold in stores. In addition, I used a specific brand/grade of olive oil as a softener, whereas I'm pretty sure the 7-2-2 formula is based on a lighter oil, such as castor. The one thing I would recommend for folks wanting to try making their own is to use a minimal amount of oil initially; it's much easier to add a little more oil if the cooled product is too hard than it is to crush more rosin or shave more beeswax if it's too soft.

[letumgo]

That’s the one. Thanks Bill.

[REE04419]

As always, Ray, beautifully dressed flies and brilliant tutorial. If you would self publish a book with your flies and tutorials in it, I'd buy it, no question. It would have to be autographed so I could say "I knew him when."

[PhilA]

Dana - I was hoping you would chime in with the background on the hackle. Thank you. Do you know why they are called “Knee” hackle. Do these feathers come from the legs (thigh region) of the chickens?

They are beautiful little soft hackle feathers. Very soft and webby, with nice dark barring. I think these would make nice wings on dry flies (gasp).

Ray,
Beautiful tutorial! Those flies look absolutely delicious, in a troutly sort of way.

About knee hackle...
"Knee hackle" is a term used by Henry Hoffman, the famed hackle grower who sold his line of chickens to Tom Whiting in the 1980s. Hoffman used the terms "knee hackle" and "thigh hackle" to describe lower and upper leg feathers of roosters and hens that is quite good for soft-hackled flies.

Hoffman wrote an article about knee hackle and other soft feathers at: http://flyanglersonline.com/flytying/ty ... art327.php

I bought some grizzly feathers that look very similar to those in your photo from Dave Roberts years ago. He didn't call them "knee hackle", but rather "winging patches". They were/are small little patches of skin with soft webby feathers good for larger soft-hackles and upright wings. A Delaware Adams that I tied with those feathers...



Phil

[letumgo]

Thank you, Phil, for answering my question about “knee hackle”. Your depth of knowledge is astounding. Thank you for sharing the link/article. Gorgeous dry fly, by the way. I love the look of the grizzly wings.

Your post reminded me of “Mayfly Winger Patches” that Feather Emporium sells. These are probably the same feathers. Sweet!
https://www.featheremporium.com/Fly-Tyi ... ckle2.html

REE - I appreciate the encouragement. You and Mark were the first two people to encourage me, as I began exploring soft hackle flies.

[Mike62]

Ray,

Awesome pictorial and pattern!!

What the heck is "Waxed with Shuck Wax"????

John

I'm a little embarrassed to admit that the wax ring for a toilet base works for me.

[letumgo]

Mike - That's the hallmark of a real fly tyer. You are welcome to join my fly tying support group "FTMWOL" (Fly Tying Materials Without Limits). The only rule we have, is that all members must wash their hands before each meeting. (kidding/humor)

John - You're well stocked with knee hackle. Those are lovely little patches of feathers. Have you tryed any of the other colors he sells?

[PhilA]

Ray, these are Winger patches from Feather Emporium... I forgot I had these until I read this.

Ray and John,
That's it ... Winger Patches. Yesterday I searched Dave's web site for "winging patches", but found nothing. Looks like they are still available in lots of colors.