I’ve had trouble lately with hackle twisiting so that the fibers are not perpendicluar to the hook shank. Any advice? thanks
Fritz, you quite likely are using less than quality hackle.
I’ve been there too when I went “on the cheap” in the beginning days of tying. Either that or you have a handful of poorer stuff in front of you.
Good hackle won’t give you those troubles and you don’t need to beat yourself up fighting it. This has been my experience.
Jeremy.
Used to have that problem all the time, then I switched to Conranch Hackle. Haven’t had it since.
As Jeremy suggested it’s most likely do to the hackle, not your technique. Some hackle stems are oval rather than round in cross section, or worse they vary along the length.
When you try to wrap them the stem rolls around so the flatter side is against the hook. No amount of tweaking will fix this. Sometimes there is a section of the hackle with a stem and only the tip or base is defective, just cut away the bad section and you get a usable but shorter hackle. On some necks all the stems are bad on some it’s just a few feathers.
If you have a whole neck that is a problem it’s probaly best to give up using it for hackle collars. There are lots of patterns that use hackles in other ways. Try some ‘hackle stacker’ patterns or ‘para-loop’ style patterns. Twisted hackle actually improves these patterns.
http://www.wildonthefly.com/pdf/HackleStacker.pdf
http://www.danica.com/flytier/hverhaar/paraloop_dun.htm
http://www.flyanglersonline.com/flytying/fotw2/060704fotw.php
Put an end to hackle twisting completely by using Denny’s capes and saddles. He and his products are kind of an icon here on FAOL. 8T 
All the comments regarding the fault not being yours are correct but any brand of good hackle will tie as you want it. Sometimes a hands-on-test of just bending a feather to see if the barbs splay or fan out radially will provide assurance. This is an argument of buying locally or with a mail-order source that will accept returns.
Fritz,
Could be the neck or saddle (some are have the tendency to wrap on ‘twisted’), but it could also be a matter of flawed technique. Please identify whether it is a problem isolated to a single neck/saddle, or whether you encounter it as a matter of course.
The answer will help us to pinpoint cause, and suggest a way forward.
Cheers,
Hans W
Leaving hackles in the sun is a bad thing! It dries them out and leads to all sorts of troubles. Even if that is not your case, age and drying hackles may be at least part of your problem. More than once I have soaked my capes and saddles in a sinkful of warm water with a little touch of clorox. It makes the hackles easier to deal with and makes me feel better knowing any bugs just got toasted…
I have quite a lot of Denny’s hackle also.
i have the problem of twisting hackles from conranch capes. these capes are not a cure all in the way of hackles! sorry but i dont drink that koolaid.
i simply twist them the opposite way and let them untwist while i use the rotary function of my traveller
Hi Normand,
I don’t think that any hackle is completely fool proof. A poor tie in, unsteady hand, over wrapping previous turns or even a bad thread base can probably can ruin the best quality hackle. On the other hand, even the best tier in the world is going to have trouble with some hackle either because it rolls/twists or is extremely brittle. I’ve got capes and saddles from the big name suppliers, generic skins from a variety of sources and a big pile of old necks from India. I still find Conranch a superior hackle and would recommend it to any novice or veteran alike. Just my 2% of a dollar. Others obviously disagree–no hard feelings. 8T
Normand,
Didn’t say Denny’s hackle was a cure all, just said I haven’t had that problem since I switched. Last night I used some feathers from a friends Whiting Silver cape and 6 out of 6 feathers I used twisted when wrapped.
Don’t remember offering anyone any Kool-Aid. Just stated a fact.
REE
Guess I should join in too. I was tired of high priced, over priced, stiff shafts, splitting shafts, twisting shafts, necks that were as old as I was (almost). I no longer have any of those problems. Went with Denny some time ago.
I too had the problem with some less expensive hackles. If the flies are just for fishing, use the technique demonstrated by A.K. Best in which he expects the hackle to stick out a bit in many directions - the legs of a mayfly don’t all stick straight down. It’s not as pretty as a traditionally tied fly, but it works on the fish. Second - you are the master of your materials. If the feather wants to twist, use your fingers to force it to twist back. When I was first starting out, I would let the materials do what they wanted until I learned that I could make them go where I wanted - not where they wantedd (at least to some degree). So don’t throw the old capes out. Use them on your flies you intend to fish. But to make your life easier, purchase some capes (or half capes) of some higher quality hackle such as Conrach, or Whiting (or others) that will tend to twist less.
TxEngr
Use them on paraloop flies. The hackle points all direction in any case. Also try them for parachutes.
Rick
Mr. Weilenmann:
Responding to your comment, there doesn’t appear to be twisting consistency when I hackle. Sometimes it twists while other times it doesn’t. I am tying with a very well known brand of 1st grade hackle. Someone suggested that I tie at a thinner stem diameter by stripping more fibers off at the base. Thank you