I recenlty bought two dry fly necks from a local retailer. They are made by Kenough. Last night I tried to use some feathers for a web wing caddis (size 12). I measured the hackle fibers against the gauge and was confident I had the right size.

When I palmered the hackle it was two or three sizes to large. Then it dawned on me that I was tying in from the butt end of the feather... which was marketedly longer than the last 1/3 of the feather. Is this common among dry fly hackles? The Whiting 100 pack has very long feathers that has a uniform barb length from tip to butt...

Am I a victim of my own budget... i.e., should I just buy a better hackle?