A great guy, and great hackle, Collins Hackle

[Montanacur 0]

Hey all,

 

I haven't done a lot of posting here, mostly because there has been so much information to soak up I haven't had time. But I appreciate everything discussed on this site, and can't tell you how much it has impacted my tying in a great way. I just started really tying this last spring in April or May, and so I'm slowing building up my repertoire and supplies. Ok, probably not as slowly as my wife would like, but hey, she likes that I have a great hobby.

 

Anyways, the main point of this post is to do a little bragging on Collins Hackle. After reading so much about it here and on other sites, I decided I needed to call the man and talk to him. So I did, and we had a great conversation, and I sent in an order for 4 #3 capes. A grizzly, a dark barred ginger, a barred dun, and a brown. The grizzly is incredibly awesome to say the least. Hackle length is good, quality is outstanding. I've tied with a few bronze and high & dry capes from Whitings, as well as a #2 Metz, so I have those to compare it to. The brown cape was unusual in that the smaller sizes (14-18) are quite small in overall feather length. You grab one that looks like it should be a 14, and when you check the hackle length it is much longer, sometimes even a 10. But again, great quality, color, and wrap-ability. The barred dun and the barred ginger were pretty much the same in quality and feather amounts. They had the least amount of smaller feathers, but those feathers were very good, and true to form. The saddles all ranged from 10-14 mostly in size, but a lot of variability in some of the feathers themselves, meaning it could go from a 14 to a 10 in the same feather. But like most people already know, he doesn't care about the saddles. Still usable for sure though! Definitely could see that his grizzly capes are the highest quality of what he produces. One thing that I want to know is the lack of twist when using a hackle. I was really impressed with how well they went on the hook. Better I think than any of the other breeder's capes that I mentioned before. Here are a few pictures of the hackle, and some flies I tied with it. In the picture with the big group of flies, I used my whiting's capes for the parachute Adams and Purple Haze, as I had tied those before I got the capes from Collins. However, I used the barred dun from Collins for the gray haze cripple. I highly recommend these capes to others.

[famill00 0]

How long did it take to get your order? I am going to be sending him a check in the next couple days...

 

-Forrest

[flytire 0]

nice hackles and flies

 

this may not be significant but i would repackage the saddle hackles to keep them straight indstaed of curled up in too small a bag.

 

it may just be nothing to worry about but thats just me

[Flyunder 0]

I've have nothing but good things to say about him, and every time I've dealt with him it's been seamless. Orders through the mail are a very short wait, he gets them out very quickly. Just allow time for your check to get there then he ships right away. On the phone while talking with him it's like talking to an old friend, never have I been rushed off the phone.

[bigdewy 0]

I placed an order last winter and he called me before shipping the hackle! Like Flyunder said, it was like talking to a long-time fishing buddy!!

[sculpinmaster 0]

Wish I could get these in the UK.

[BassMouth87 0]

Sadly due to hassle he does bot ship outside of the u.s which put me in the same position....I then had a buddy from the states order me $200 worth of capes and reship them, beautiful capes and saddles at a bargain. I called him and talked with him for a good hunk of time, he wanted to make sure I got what I would use most, asked a lot of questions and told me for what I am tying the grade 3 capes would be fine. Sure I will have hackle for decades to come now lol.

[cruzfly89 0]

does anybody have any experience with the grade 1 capes?

[phg 0]

I've picked them up and looked at them, ... but put them back. They are really beautiful. Large, thick with long consistent hackles, and probably worth the price, but I get by on #3 just fine.

 

Charlie is usually at the International Fly Tying Symposium, this weekend in Somerset, NJ. He has a full selection of his capes on display. That by itself almost makes it worth the trip.

[Andy Fisher 0]

My last Collins neck is almost 10 years old now. I'm sure glad to see Charlie is still producing. His stock has a buggy quality to it that is unmatched. I'd love to see Charlie come out to one of the West Coast shows.

[Montanacur 0]

Sorry for taking so long to get back to you, I was out of town. Yes the shipping was very fast. As soon as he received my check, the capes went into the mail the same day. I am thinking about ordering a couple in #2 in the near future.

[m_grieb 0]

Charlie is a great guy. ive ordered his stuff a few times. just like mentioned, it is like talking to a old friend when you talk to him on the phone. I would also suggest his tailing packs and other products that he has available. Im kind of a traditionalist when it comes to utilizing as much as possible, and Charlie does a great job trying to utilize all the feathers of the bird.

 

my two cents

 

Matt

[bigdewy 0]

I bought a bag of his chickabou with my last order and it was definitely worth the money; A lot of bou for a little cash!!

[Montanacur 0]

nice hackles and flies

 

this may not be significant but i would repackage the saddle hackles to keep them straight indstaed of curled up in too small a bag.

 

it may just be nothing to worry about but thats just me

Thanks Flytire! And you're probably right about the storage. No sense in having to deal with twisted feathers of my own making.