Quill Gordon Soft Hackle

[Greenwell]

Peacock quill is a favorite body material and not just for the classic Quill Gordon fly. It's been around for quite a long time and it's use goes back at least to the latter part of the 19th century. Frederick Halford in "Floating Flies and how to Dress Them", 1886, discusses the material at length. It's most likely that Theodore Gordon got the idea from Halford and adapted it to the dry flies he was developing for the Catskill Rivers. As a dry fly material it is almost water proof, especially when varnished or otherwise coated. When used on wet flies it allows the fly to sink rapidly as it adds almost no bulk to the body. It's only drawback is it's fragility, which can be overcome to some extent by counter ribbing the body with fine gold (or silver) wire. From examining original Gordon flies it doesn't look like he varnished the body, but Cross, Darbee, Dette, and Flick did. They favored old fashioned Spar Varnish, which produces a nice result but is slow drying and hard to find now. Of course modern tiers have the new epoxies and these produce an almost indestructible finish.

Art flick gives detailed instructions for stripping peacock eye quills in "Streamside Guide". It's a pretty easy process of soaking the eyes in Clorox Bleach for a few seconds and then putting them in a bath of water and baking soda to neutralize the bleach. If there is any interest I could give the detailed process. It also works for all kinds of other feathers like pheasant tails, etc.

In his 1963 book "My Friend the Trout", Eugene Connett describes his "Beaverquill Nymph", a fly pattern that would fit right into this discussion. The recipe is as follows:

Tail: A few fibers of Blue Dun Hackle or Wood-duck flank.
Abdomen: Stripped Peacock Quill ribbed with Gold Wire
Thorax: Pinkish Brown Beaver Fur spun on yellow silk (I believe this was a mix of dyed and natural fur, Connett is vague on this point.)
Hackle: Blue Dun Hen

I've fished this fly a bit over the years, mostly in size 16, and it's a very good fly, especially early in the season. Connett believed, "that a quill body appears to give a translucent effect, probably because of diffraction from it's shiny surface". This may well be true as it's been an effective and popular body material for a long time.

[raven4ns]

Thank you, Bill, for the tackle shops. When I tie the Blue Uprights I usually put a light coat of head cement over the herl just to make it a bit stronger. It makes such a great body but trying to find a decent piece of herl to strip was a challenge.



John, it's amazing just how much information you have regarding the history of fishing and flies in particular. You and some of the other members are a wonderful resource to this site. It certainly makes it easier for those of us who have more questions than answers...lol.
I want to thank you guys for sharing your knowledge so willingly.

[DOUGSDEN]

Paul,
Your Quill Gordon Soft-Hackle is beautiful! I wish I could tie like that! It is hard to beat the combination of peacock and partridge! Please keep contributing 'cause we really like what you do!
In the Den,
Dougsden