buying saddles and capes online

[Normand]

with the quality of todays whiting hackles, is it safe to buy a saddle or cape online? i always advocated going to a fly shop to have the ability to inspect and bend the feathers and to buy, but having to drive 75-120+ miles to a good fly shop is getting ridiculous. i'm in connecticut and have to drive to new hampshire for one of the best fly shops in new england.

i'm interested in whiting. period.

[ScottP]

Never had any issues with Whiting products bought on-line; capes saddles and 100 packs have all been outstanding. I'd say go for it.

Regards,
Scott

[Jeffdf]

If you trust that shop, give them a call and have them pick out a good one and send it to you....just a thought

[Buddy Sanders]

Normand,

Any reputable dealer of fly tying materials will allow you to inspect and return any that you find doesn't meet your specific needs.

I've had good luck buying hackle and skins online, but I have had to return a few...never been a problem (it is a bit of a time hassle, but better that than tying with expensive feathers that you don't like, for whatever reason).

Buddy

[whatfly]

with the quality of todays whiting hackles, is it safe to buy a saddle or cape online?

Have to ask, what does "safe" mean in this context? If you are worried about infestation, then of course it is safe. If you are worried about shade of color, that too is "safe" because Whiting appears to have very good quality control for his dyeing process.

The gotcha is always size, in my experience. For capes this is not an issue because of the large variance in sizes of feathers on a skin, but for saddles (which I prefer) this can be a key issue. More often than not I'm looking for saddles with feathers in a particular size and the only consistent manner I've found in obtaining such skins is by sizing them myself. If you have an online vendor whose judgement you trust, that can go a long ways towards solving the problem, but I hate going through the effort of ordering material only to have it the wrong size and being forced to return it. I just hate wasting the time. I've had more bad luck than good when buying hackle on line (from both fly shops and "producers"), so I usually just wait until I can examine the product first hand before purchasing. Patience has always paid off in the long run.

[tigfly]

Hey Normand, I have the same concerns about buying online. Even with Whiting capes I look at several before buying one. I've noticed differences in hackle length within the same grade of capes. I also see differences in color, shading, barring (grizzly), etc. I will continue to shop that way although I have read of many happy customers of Conranch, so it may not be forever. Just my 2 cents.