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can make your flys less "fluffy"

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Hello I recently got a fly tying kit and so far I have learn 1 pattern (the renegade) now the first one I made looked weird and choppy

but the next 10 I tied look just right

 

but the last 3 I have tied are really "fluffy"

the feathers are go out like twice the size I think they they should and I don't know why

 

I've been using the same feathers

 

can I trim them out will they look bad?

 

or is there a better way?

 

I can put up pics if need be

 

any help will be most welcomed

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Guest Big E

Pics would help...I don't get what you mean when you say fluffy.

 

The Renegade is pretty easy to tie and the only thing I can think of that would make it look fluffy is if you are putting on too much hackle or using the wrong size.

 

Or were you talking about the peacock herl? A trick to that is to tie in your herl and then go around your thread making like a herl rope so to speak....really strengthens it.

 

But pictures would be best to properly critique your work and see what fluffy is.

 

Oh and welcome to the forums!

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Although there are exceptions, we almost never trim hackle to size. It's the fiber tips that float the fly.

 

Sounds to me like you should be using a hackle gauge to size your feathers. Alternatively, press the hackle against the shank of a mounted hook. The barbs should extend 1.5 to 2 times the hook gap.

 

If you are using cock neck, you may also want to avoid using the lower 1/3 or so of the feather, which often has a thicker rachis (stem) and webbier (fluffier) fibers.

 

By the way, welcome to the obsession.

 

 

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Guest Big E

As others have said...hackles are way too big. You'll want something about 1 to 1-1/2 the hook gape. A good way to size them is to bend them around the hook before you tie them in to see if they are the right size.

 

Apart from that it looks like you are on you're way. In future you may want to move the front hackle closer to the eye and keep the eye clean.

 

Good first try! Be sure to save your first tie and in a few years you can look back on it and see how far you've progressed.

 

Also, have a good look around the internet as there are lots of pics and videos. Here's a nice SBS (Step by step) video on the Renegade that may help you out.

 

 

Good luck and don't be afraid to ask questions.

 

 

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renegade.jpg

 

try to tie something similar to the one above

 

1. your hackles are way too big

 

2. you did not use tinsel for a tag at the bend of the hook

 

3 peacock body is too short putting the forward hackle in the wrong location

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Welcome to this great addiction! :D

 

First, these folks have given you sound advice! Second, tying kits don't usually have the best materials in them, but for getting started with the basics they'll do.

 

Proportions are something all tiers have to learn. Take a good look at the fly that flytire posted, notice how the brown fibers extend slightly down past the hook point. They are about 1 1/3 the width of the hook gape (at least that's what it looks like to me), the exact proportion is not usually critical, as long as the fibers are stiff enough to float the fly properly. The red fibers on your fly are about 4 times the gape width.

 

As you tie more, you should see the difference in the proportions of your flies improve. Also, as you learn more about the materials, which types are better for specific types of flies, and about the quality difference, you should also see an improvement.

 

As far as tying kits go, most of the feathers in them are better for tying wet flies, streamers, panfish flies or for dressing poppers. They don't usually have good feathers for tying dry flies. You may do better by attempting some others types of flies with the materials you have.

 

Although, the Renegade pattern is a dry fly, it can be tied as a wet fly too, and works well as such so don't give up on it! Tied with softer hen hackle, in that red & white combination, it 's a killer Bluegill & Crappie fly!

 

Keep tying, and keep posting the pics, the advice the folks here will give, will vastly shorten your tying learning curve. ;)

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