Ideal Fiber Length for Dubbing

[Uncle Jesse]

The question is "What is the ideal fiber length for dubbing?" I was thinking if you have some knitting yarn you want to convert to dubbing, how long should you cut the yarn pieces?

[Silver Creek]

About 1/2 inch

http://globalflyfisher.com/tiebetter/dubbing/

[AlanB]

There really isn't one! The longest I've seen in commercially available dubbing is in packs of Fly Rite which can be a couple of inches long. The shortest staple dubbing I've ever seen used is the flue from peacock herl (I'm not joking). You want something in between. How long you make it depends on the effect you want from your dubbing, and also how fine the fibres you are mixing are. The finer the fibre the longer the length you can use.

If you want a spiky dubbing cut some up at 1/2 inch and about twice the amount shorter (1/4 to 3/8 inch). If you want a smoother effect cut the fibres longer. You need to experiment with length to get the effect you like.

Cheers,
A.

[Gandolf]

Hi Uncle Jesse,

I agree with AlanB. The finer the fibers, the longer they can be and still dub nicely. When I make dry fly dubbing from rabbit, I pick out the gaurd hairs from a bunch that I trim off, and then use that lenght underfur "as is" after I blend it. The underfur can be up to 3/4" long or so.

Coarser dubbing like fine yarn, I cut maybe 3/8" long or so. Really coarse yarn, I may even trim shorter still.

Regards,

Gandolf

[Byron haugh]

For knitting yarn, I agree with about 1/2 to 3/4 inch

[Allan]

What AlanB said plus:
For dry fly dubbing with almost all the natural furs just pick out the guard hairs. Some naturals, like mole, are onlky 1/4" or so. For yarn it depends on the coarseness of the fibers. Softer less coarse yarn fibers can be longer, say 3/4 - 1". That's not a fast rule. For nymphs and coarser hair there's still no fast rule. Depends on the 'look' you want to achieve. For instance, if you want to get a 'seal type' look, you can use Aunt Lydia's Rug Yarn cut into 3/4" pieces. Put in a coffee grinder and just pulsate the machine for a second. Do this as many times as necessary to get the fibers to fluff but not melt.

Allan