FLYMPH FORUM

I didn't find any small hackled hen necks at the fly expo last weekend so went and ordered some from an east coast fly shop. They arrived yesterday and I got a chance this morning to tie up some flymphs with them. I tied a range of #8 to #20 flymphs to get an idea of the ranges. Turns out I have even smaller hackle than #20. Ron Eagle Elk is responsible for pointing me towards Whiting/Hebert hen necks.

Once I complete the garage wiring project I see more fishing in my future. I get the first inspection on Monday and after resolving any pickups/or getting approval will do the final power hookup. After the garage was wired I spend 3 days in the dirt trenching and laying 190 feet of wire and conduit. I learned a lot.

Bill

I kind of like the genetic hen hackle as well. Glad I dont have to trench though!

If your looking for hen necks you can't beat the selection a jimsflyco.com Jim has Whiting and some of his own label.

Bill,

Jim's is always my first stop for wet fly supplies. You saw the quality and size range of the hackle he sells at the show. Turn around time is pretty quick as well. If I want a particular color for a certain type of fly I call the shop and see if they have what I want. There are two hackle sellers I trust to select the best hackle for my needs, Jim Slattery and Charlie Collins. There were 3, but my friend Denny Conrad retired from the business.

Bill, you've been lead down a great path. I have a bunch of the Herbert miner capes and they are a bargain.

Congrats on the hen purchase. The Hebert Miner is my favorite overall. But I must say, I do have one Collins hen, and it is outstanding. I have tried to send him a message through his web site, but he never answers that. I will buy some of his hens in the future, when I can afford it. I have not tried Jim's brand of feathers. (I will have to try some of that too) I have bought some really nice hen feathers from him though. He does have some great stuff at his site.

I trust my own eye. I am so very fortunate. There are quite a few fly shops with in a 90 mile radius of my home. Most will try to get the color of genetic hackle ordered in if they do not have it in stock. Thing is, they dont get pissy if it's the wrong color and I do not buy it when it does arrive. They will simply sell it to someone else.

I bought a Dun hen cape from jimsflyco.com a few months ago. I was so mad I threw the damn cape in the trash. It is no more Dun than fly to the moon. It was more Grizzly Badger than Dun.

With Denny Conrach (sp?) I sent feathers to him twice to show him the color (plane Jane Brown) I wanted. He missed both times. I got light Ginger. I did not order from him ever again.

With the fly shops I visit. I have only myself to blame if the color is wrong. The online shops are great until you disagree with them. Then you are wrong every time! Point is, in my opinion, give your fly shop a chance to get in the hackle you want. The wait is worth it to inspect the feathers before you make a purchase.

I have a number of the Whiting Brahma hen necks, and they are great for tying. I also picked up a couple of jv hen necks from Denny Conrad; they are nice skins, but the price got too high for me. The hen necks that DUBBN was kind enough to send to me have seen some use and are nice to tie with. The hackle is almost of dry fly quality. It is also hard to beat the inexpensive Indian hen necks that are usually available for $6 or less. This is a great time to be a fly-tier; the quality and variety of materials available today is hard to beat, and with the Internet, it is easy to shop around or watch instructional videos. I think I would be a much better tier today if I had the Internet when I was teaching myself. Some of my bad habits are so deeply ingrained that I can't help myself. But the fish don't seem to mind too much if the heads on my flies are too big.

When I checked the genetic necks on Friday I did note that it was equal to or beat the dry fly necks of yore I used.

Dang, DUBBN, sorry to hear you had bad experiences with Jim and Denny, both. I've had nothing but good service from Jim over several years. Admittedly, I seldom paid for hackle from Denny as we were fishing buddies and served in some of the same places in Viet Nam.

I am having trouble finding a reddish brown (Rhode Island Red) hen cape. I have one Hebert Minor that is pretty well used up and can't find another. There's plenty of coachman brown capes out there, but not what I want.