Jeffro,

I think I might understand what you are asking. What makes a full skin worth the price of $120-200 versus a saddle that only runs about $50 in a Grade 1 (both are examples from the Conranch site)? I think the first thing is that you are getting the Saddle and the Cape. Capes run $72 in a Grade 1 (again Conranch as an example). If you were to buy both a cape and a saddle from them, you would be paying $122. This is starting to make the full skin a better deal, because of the additional feathers that you would receive. In addition, Conranch will only sell Cree in a full skin. Collins charges an additional $20 for Cree, and then only to previous customers. The other thing that would drive the cost of a full skin up is the work involved in skining the chicken and properly curing the pelt.

Now, for me, I am not sure that I am in a position to spend that kind of $$ on feathers. Maybe some day I will be. I tend to wait and look and wait and look and then I might wait some more. Finally, someone will have a sale, or I will find someone willing to trade, or some thing else for something that I "need". i will say, I don't tie a lot of dry flies. Most of the fishing that I get to do is Warm Water due to where I live.

Brian