You can always learn

[Soft-hackle]

Hi all,
We have such a great bunch of tiers, here, I'm always learning something new. Well, I thought I'd ask if anyone has a specific way they tie on and wrap Ostrich herl. I mean, I've done a fair amount of it, but, hey, there may be someone that has a technique that's worth considering. Fire away!

Mark

[letumgo]

The method I use depends on the results I am going for. If I am looking for durability (fishing flies), I tye the herl in by tips and reinforce it in a thread dubbing loop. However, if I am going for looks (display flies), I will use a single herl which is prepared by stripping the flues from the base end (leave about 3/16" bare stem) and then tye it in by the base end. Wrap the thread forward to in touching turns until the bare stem is covered (helps form a smooth uniform underbody). Then wrap the herl forward in touching turns. Stroke the small fibers backwards with each turn, to prevent the fibers form being trapped under the stem.

[Soft-hackle]

Thanks, Ray.
I've never put them in a dubbing loop. Does this mess up the fibers a lot?

Mark

[letumgo]

No. The fibers still radiate in all directions. Here is a body I tyed with the dubbing loop method. I used black thread and white ostrich herl to see if the thread dubbing loop showed thru. I was happy to see the the thread disappears under the fibers.

2010_1027_205803AA.JPG

[Soft-hackle]

Might have to give that a try. Thanks Ray!

Mark

[Old Hat]

I did an ostrich herl body in the last swap. For softies, I like to use 3 herls and tie them in by the tips with the tips extending out as a tail. I twist the herl in a rope and then wrap, then counter wrap with a rib of some type, floss or wire. Most often I will use a combination of colors to get the desired shade. For example, most of my damsel patterns use one brown herl and two olive. When I wrap the herl forward I will stop the herl short of the thorax, tie down the olive fibers then finish the thorax with the darker brown. I have used this method with many different colors to get all kinds of color combinations.
Carl

[Soft-hackle]

Great technique, Carl. Like I said, you can always learn.

Mark

[GlassJet]

I was going to post this here, but it turned into a new thread, and something i have been meaning to put up for a while.
http://www.flymphforum.com/phpBB3/viewt ... f=4&t=1278

So, there goes the neighbourhood

Andrew.

[willowhead]

Carl, i will very often use more than one color together as well.....sometimes as many as four different colors.....that is, for butts. Btw guys, there's a pretty good tutorial all about this in the Radencich book(s) and or videos on DVD. He's got his own pattended proceedure.....who knows where he got it or if he worked it out all by himself.......????? i took a class with him in Cleveland once and watched him tye in Montana all day once and at Somerset.............he's excurciatingly slow and meticulas which, is what in a lotta ways make a extremely proficiant Salmon fly tyer.....along with a lotta other things.....but he does have patiance. His method WORKS for sure.....but it's not the only way to do it and do it well. The trick is to get it goin' "right".....if you do, it'll stay that way. OH! and he also does overlap his wraps, just slightly, when doin' butts. So do i......specially if using only one herl.....i mean the "on purpose" part. If using multipul herls, it'll just happen by itself.
And what Ray said is very good bout strokin' the fibers back like any other soft hackle when you wrap. You can also see that being done, and some other VERY cool "stuff," in the two Hooked on Fly Tying VHS videos, by Alec Jackson. Ray, you can watch and read all of the above, (and a tad bit more)..... when you get here.

[kanutripr]

More than one colour at a time? What a cool idea, I hadn't thought of that!


Vicki