Guest Big E Report post Posted April 29, 2010 I'm tying up some parasols and am having a hard time finding some good CDC. Either that or I just don't know enough about CDC to know what good stuff is. I've tried two well known suppliers and I get a package mainly of these very short 1" long feathers. The 2"+ feathers only are about 20% of the feathers and most of those are pretty wispy. There are only about 3 or 4 nice ones (those 2"+ and full) in a package of about 50 feathers. Whats' the deal? Am I expecting too much? Who's hording the nice CDC? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flytire 0 Report post Posted April 29, 2010 marc petitjean & trout hunter (rene harrop) have some of the best. http://www.petitjean.ch/eng/home/default.asp http://www.trouthunt.com/estore/products/242 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hot Tuna 0 Report post Posted April 29, 2010 I agree with Norm's recommendations and also check out seller salar.413 on Ebay....a former fly shop owner from our area that sells materials on Ebay now...he regularly puts up nice lots of large bags of CDC. I have a fair amount of it and it's good stuff. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Old Hat 0 Report post Posted April 29, 2010 My brother (duck hunter) supplies me with some beautiful cdc. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flytyinfreak 0 Report post Posted April 29, 2010 I get my CDC same as Old Hat. Problem is that harvesting is a pain in the canard! LOL!!! If you are wanting CDC that big you need to find some goose hunters! Why do you need feathers that big? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Big E Report post Posted April 30, 2010 I get my CDC same as Old Hat. Problem is that harvesting is a pain in the canard! LOL!!! If you are wanting CDC that big you need to find some goose hunters! Why do you need feathers that big? With parasols you need quite a long stem. Its hard to get a nice parasol when you can't even tie it on. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riffleriversteelheadslayer 0 Report post Posted April 30, 2010 do a search on ebay for swan turkey or goose CDC Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
iso18 0 Report post Posted April 30, 2010 Favorite cdc for me is from a mature canadian goose.Very consistent,soft,oily and large.And oh yeah,I harvest them myself.Maybe find someone who hutns warterfowl. shane Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flyline64 0 Report post Posted May 2, 2010 For big CDC feathers (they may be goose cdc) try the "super select" CDC from TCO in Pennsylvania: TCO Fly Shop (Make sure you order their "super select" cdc ($5 per pack)) These are actually larger than I like for using whole feathers, but sounds like what you are looking for. If you strip the strands for your tying, these will serve you well I'm tying up some parasols and am having a hard time finding some good CDC. Either that or I just don't know enough about CDC to know what good stuff is. I've tried two well known suppliers and I get a package mainly of these very short 1" long feathers. The 2"+ feathers only are about 20% of the feathers and most of those are pretty wispy. There are only about 3 or 4 nice ones (those 2"+ and full) in a package of about 50 feathers. Whats' the deal? Am I expecting too much? Who's hording the nice CDC? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dilettante 0 Report post Posted May 3, 2010 Noob question and no disrespect to this specific Ebay seller, but do you take precautions (as far as bugs are concerned) when buying feathers from Ebay merchants? I agree with Norm's recommendations and also check out seller salar.413 on Ebay....a former fly shop owner from our area that sells materials on Ebay now...he regularly puts up nice lots of large bags of CDC. I have a fair amount of it and it's good stuff. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dwiltshire 0 Report post Posted May 3, 2010 Very small plumes are great for CDC loop emergers. For stunning CDC with very long barbs and high barb count, try Lucian: http://www.flytying.ro/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hot Tuna 0 Report post Posted May 4, 2010 Hi Dilettante...just spotted your question. I take precautions with all new materials coming in, including things from my friends. As far as salar.413, he's been a commercial tyer for 40 something years and you don't make money by having your material stash getting infected. At a minimum I subject all natural materials to a deep freeze for a day or two. I keep new capes and saddles in a secondary quarantine for a little while in a clear shoe box since having my hackle getting infected would be financially disastrous...I'll spare the gorey details of exactly how much I've got. An excellent, albeit dated book about all of this is my old friend Eric Leiser's book, Fly Tying Materials:Their Procurement ,Use and Protection. You can get a copy for a good price on EBay from time to time. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pat M 0 Report post Posted May 4, 2010 I get mine from Dream Drift Flies. for 3 grams its a lot of feathers and they have some of the best quality. http://www.dreamdriftflies.com/index.php?c...6cd9fe918ade84b I'm not affiliated with these guys, just putting a good word out on their service. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gpd4 0 Report post Posted May 4, 2010 An excellent, albeit dated book about all of this is my old friend Eric Leiser's book, Fly Tying Materials:Their Procurement ,Use and Protection. You can get a copy for a good price on EBay from time to time. I just picked that up at amazon for $7.99 shipped...as a bird hunter, I think I'll probably get some valuable information out of it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hot Tuna 0 Report post Posted May 4, 2010 Great deal on the Leiser book....the other excellent book for things such as this is From Field to Fly:The FlyTier's Guide to Skinning and Preserving Wild Game by Scott J. Seymour. Available from Amato publications... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites