I haven't tied a traditional parachute style fly for years.

In 2011, I started using the 90 degree hackling technique, aka 9dh. The best description of this technique in the the FOTW archives, at 10-22-12, for the pt mde 9dh.

Best I can tell, this is my unique contribution to the universe of fly tying. Having seen hundreds of fly tying demonstrations, live and online, and having talked to fly tiers with collectively hundreds of years experience in fly tying, I have yet to run across anyone who has used this technique. For example, this past summer I talked to a 70s something year old fly angler who has been fly tying for 50 years and has attended and demo'd at fly tying exhibitions across the West who had never seen this technique. When I handed him a pt mde 9dh to use as a model if he wanted to try the technique, he expressed his amazement, along with his gratitude.

The 9dh technique simplifies tying off the parachute hackle, and adds a "leggy" effect at the front of the fly, which I believe enhances most any fly.

John

Additional note - since submitting the FOTW article, I've gone to a light yellow antron post for better visibility on the crick I fish, and have stopped trimming the hackle underneath the shank. I've also found that for some hatches, sizing up from the original size 16 hook makes a difference to the fishies.