Stripping peacock quills

[Gene L 0]

Hard to do, for me at least. I've tried everything without notable success. There's always herl left on the quill, making a Quill Gordon fuzzy. Tonight, I think I found the ticket.

 

Just pull the herl across a diamond fingernail file several times with downward pressure on your thumb. On each side, of course. It's not fast, but it's faster than the old eraser trick, and cleaner, too.

 

Works for me, YMMD.

[Simon Lidster 0]

The easiest way I've found is to use a small blob of hair removal cream on your finger and run the herl through it against your thumbnail. 2 passes through and its completely fibre-free.

 

Of course you need to wash it in water immediately and wash your hands before touching any other fly/feather.

 

Works a treat for me!

 

Apparently bleach does the same.

 

Simon

[mr P. 0]

I use an Art-Gum eraser on a hard flat surface. The eraser is soft and gets everything off.

[Crotalus 0]

i cheated and bought a couple of the eyes dipped in wax, they clean off pretty easy with just a finger nail.

 

I suppose you could dip your own but that might end up with a lot of mess.

[Gene L 0]

I just tried the Hair Remover (Sally Hansen) and it works GREAT. Just do as the man said, and strip off the herl with your fingernail.

 

Previously, I tried the eraser trick and it was long and unproductive for me. I think because the quill has a curved surface, I always found holdover on the edges.

 

I tried bleach/water 50/50 as reccomended, but it didn't work very well at all and left the quills brittle. You're only supposed to leave it in the mixture for 30 seconds or so, then rinse, but it didn't remove all the herl. I have a loupe and use that to look at the product. So far, the SHHR and/or the fingernail file do the best job for me.

[surfbunker 0]

I think this is one of those cases of not reinventing the wheel. The eraser has worked for countless tiers for countless years. When you get into bleach and hair removal creams, you run the risk of compromising the integrity of the quill which may jeopardize your finished fly when you need it most. Just my $0.02

[Gene L 0]

I doubt you could tell the difference between an eraser done quill and a hair cream quill. If you shellac the quill on the fly, as you should, that will take care of any problems of denigration.

 

I'm not a missionary for any particular method, by the way. If it works for you, go for it, whatever the method.

[surfbunker 0]

I doubt you could tell the difference between an eraser done quill and a hair cream quill. If you shellac the quill on the fly, as you should, that will take care of any problems of denigration.

 

I'm not a missionary for any particular method, by the way. If it works for you, go for it, whatever the method.

 

 

Ha ha! i forgot about the shellac part. Been so long since I tied local flies. Brought back great memories of watching Mary Dette tie that fly. I would still stay away from hair removal cream....what if you get an itch on yer eyebrow, might get strange looks at work..LOL!

[Matt B 0]

I go old school, and use beach. It tends to work great.I've never really had a problem with quills getting to brittle. My bigger problem is getting eyes that have the good segmentation to the quills, and long enough that there is plenty usable on a single quill. Also stole the wife's clear coat nail polish for the coat afterwards. works good, normally do 2 or 3 coats.

[crawfly 0]

I go even older school and use a gum rubber block meant for clearing sanding belts.

It is 1 1/2 square by 8" long and its sharp edges make easy removal with several passes.

These days I use UV resin on it, one coat, and good to go! VERY good durability.