Visiting John Shaner (Fly Tying Historian)

[fflutterffly]

I met John at the Fisherman's Spot o' so many years ago. He is the culprit who suggested I look at this forum... the rest is.... well we all know. This truly must have been a magical trip to have such a divers group of people in one spot looking over the history of fly fishing. Envy you all. His presentation at the 'spot' was fascination.

[letumgo]

JohnP - your question is a welcome one and did not bother me in the slightest. I know how much color can change when an image is processed, and from screen to screen. I tried to be careful not to make adjustments that would amplify these differences. I used a flash with a light diffuser to take the picture. I believe this would be similar to viewing the yarn outside, but may be wrong. It was pouring outside, while we we at John's. photographing this in natural light was not an option.

Questions and discussion are encouraged.

[Kelly L.]

Wow, y'all got a look at John Shaner's private stash? Now I am REALLY JEALOUS!!! Thanks for showing these photos. I bet there was a lot of jaws that nearly hit the floor, with all that cool stuff to look at!

[hankaye]

Ray, Howdy;

Have a question for ya ...

With several of us in possession of some of the
Yarn that Chris Stewart (Tenkarabum), has for sale,
my question is how close does Chris' match up with
the Chadwick's. Color, thickness, any other aspects ... ?

hank

[Greenwell]

Regarding the Chadwick's 477 wool color, I just checked my card of 477 against the posted photo and it (the photo) is really pretty close. It may show just a touch more red but I might attribute that to the magnification.
I've seen quite a few subs and the closest came from Veniard, which I purchased from Great Feathers. It's thicker than the original and a tad lighter in color but otherwise is darn close.
I haven't seen Chris' 477 sub so can't speak to how similar it may be. I am pretty sure though that most of the available subs will work just fine!

[letumgo]

Hank - I have a skein of Chris's Utah Killerbug yarn, which is a nice substitute for the Chandwick's 477. The killerbug yarn is two ply, and slightly larger diameter than the Chadwicks yarn. I believe the Chris's yarn in 100% wool (I will confirm when I get home), while the Chadwicks is a blend (85% wool/15% Nylon). I like the Utah version because of the additional colored filaments in the yarn. I have some of the Veniards substitute, as well. Given the choice, I like the Utah substitute better than the Veniards (personnal preference). The Veniards yarn is very closed to the diameter of the original Chadwicks.

[Kelly L.]

Okay, I will bite. What are the flies you tie with the Chadwick's 477?

[redietz]

Okay, I will bite. What are the flies you tie with the Chadwick's 477?

Sawyer's Killer Bug. It was originally a greyling fly. You can watch Davie McPhail tying one at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jt61pj90nU8.

Essentially, its a crane fly larva.

[Kelly L.]

That is the only fly with that yarn? I have seen that one before. I I liked it very much. Thanks for that link though. I will watch it again. I have a little of that type of yarn, someone was kind enough to send me. I wanted to know if there were more patterns though, that called for it, before I used it. Thanks for the reply.

[JohnP]

JohnP - your question is a welcome one and did not bother me in the slightest. I know how much color can change when an image is processed, and from screen to screen. I tried to be careful not to make adjustments that would amplify these differences. I used a flash with a light diffuser to take the picture. I believe this would be similar to viewing the yarn outside, but may be wrong. It was pouring outside, while we we at John's. photographing this in natural light was not an option.

Questions and discussion are encouraged.

I am glad to hear that I did not offend, as such was not my intention. I looked again at the Davie McPhail video where he ties a killer bug using 477, and his card is almost empty, which might account for the darker appearance of the wool you showed, on a card that is almost full. I doubt I could resist the temptation to sell it if I had a card of the magic stuff.