dyed hackle stems

[flybugpa]

does anyone know a source for dyed Stems ,not quills as they seem too large for use on smaller flies,sub size 18. thank you very much in advance,heinrich

[Joe Billingsley]

Hi, Heinrich,
I started making my own a few years ago because of the same problem. The ones marketed for smaller flies are still too large. I just followed the instructions in A.K. Best's book, "Dyeing and Bleaching Natural Fly Tying Materials". It is easy and you can be more precise in the colors since you are dyeing them yourself. Whiting used to sell a neck that was specifically sold for using the stems, but I don't know if they still do. I'm sure any neck that has thin stems will work.
Joe

[peregrines]

Flybugpa-

They should be readily available in fly shops including FAOL sponsors like Hook and Hackle:
http://shop4.mailordercentral.com/ho...s.asp?dept=610

Soak them in a bit of water for 10 minutes or so while you get everything ready to tie so they won't split when you wrap them.

You can also find McClean's Quill Bodies (distributed by Umpqua) in many shops, which do not require pre soaking
http://www.umpqua.com/pc-1176-52-mcl...uill-body.aspx

For bodies on small flies, I much prefer Turkey Biot Quills. They will tie in much slimmer than Quills. They are longer than Goose biots and easier to work with. You also get a lot more biots than quills for less money, and of course you can use slips from the quill side of the feather for other things like wings or wing cases etc. too.
http://shop4.mailordercentral.com/ho...earchprods.asp

Strip however many you need of the biots off the leading edge of the quill nda soak them same as above. If you look carefully, you'll see a small notch on the side of the biot near where it was attached to the Quill. If you tie it in with the notch facing the eye you'll get a ribbed body, notch facing back towards the bend you'll get a smooth body.

Feather craft also sells sized Quills as well as dyed horsehair if you're tying really small stuff. You would use it the same way as a Quill.
http://www.feather-craft.com/wecs.ph...se_page&page=2

Hope this helps. Good luck

mark