Inventor of No-Hackle Flies

[Byron haugh]

Hi,

I sometimes think that Doug Swisher and Carl Richards do not get the credit they deserve. I think most of us credit Mike Lawson for the "no-hackle" fly (He perhaps made them most popular); and others with the Comparadun - perhaps even Craig Mathews (although he replaced split tails with a Zelon "shuck" to form the Sparkle Dun).

Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Swisher and Richards deserve a lot of the credit for popular flies sans hackle. Before I get blasted, I should note that Fran Betters is credited with having invented the "haystack" which preceded the comparadun. Or, should the credit be given to Caucci and Nastasi as most writers do - their book "Hatches" was published in 1970? I have seen a photo of a fly tied by Swisher which purports to have been his pattern as early as the mid-60's and the fly looks like the comparadun except that it used split deer hair for the tails.

What Doug Swisher himself says about the origin of the comparadun:

I’m constantly being asked about the history of fly patterns so I thought I’d use this part of the website to cover some of the more important milestones, most of which happened in the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s. Even though there are many more books being written nowadays, most of the original ideas were spawned 30 to 40 years ago. The year 1965 seemed to kick everything off'

The first No-Hackle Fly -- 1965
Swisher & Richards -- AuSable River
Hair Wing --Split Tails
Between 1965 and 1966, the tails were made of hair or hackle fibers, either clumped or split with thread and the wings were made of hair or hen hackle fibers, either clumped or spread from waterline to waterline. Carl and I simply called it a Hairwing or Henfiber No-Hackle. Years later, someone else “re-invented” it and called it a Comparadun.




This is a duck wing No Hackle Doug tied.

[Silver Creek]

You have to be excellent to tie the duck wing no hackle correctly.

The problem is that the wings must be perfectly symetrical or the wings spin the fly. The result is a twisted leader. I think that is why this fly is not as popular as the comparadun. Because it has caught fish for me that parachutes and sparkel/comparduns could not, I save mine for very special fish.

[Byron haugh]

Yes, it is hard to tie correctly. And, the wings soon become frayed. However, if nothing else will attract that sipping trout, often it will.
Of course, the comparadun is also a "no hackle" dry fly.

[john52948]

i may be wrong , but i think fran betters came up with his haystacks and usual patterns in the 50's. the first time i walked into his shop was in 67, and he was pushing the haystacks series pretty hard at that time, and it seemed to be pretty well established among the locals

[Byron haugh]

Yes, I said that Fran Betters is credited with the haystack before the comparadun was developed

[Allan]

Sorry to burst all your bubbles. insofar as 'inventor of no-hackles'. If you have or can get your hands on the book, Quill Gordon, by J. McDonald, take a look at the plates following page 52. You'll see over a dozen flies tied without the use of hackles. These no hackle flies were painted based on the patterns described in the book, The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle by Dame Juliana Berners. This work from the 1400s easily predates the idea that the 'no hackle' is a product of modern fly fishing.

Allan