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Simplejack

Hungarian partridge substitute?

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There has been a lot of good recommendations about a lot of different feathers you can use. I have to agree that a partridge feather has a great look to it on a fly that calls for it but the other suggestions will work. If you are looking for a reasonably priced source of soft hackle feathers then you might consider purchasing a starling skin. The feathers don't have the barred or mottled look of a partridge feather but they have great action in the water. There is a lot of fly recipes that call for hen feathers...they can either be used for a collar or the fibers can be tied in as a beard

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unless you dont have the money, Dont buy the package feathers. you will limited to just whats in a bag and usually most of it will be waste.

 

buy the full skin. it has other feathers that can be used as well as the grayish barred feathers

 

male

 

male-350.jpg

 

female

 

femle-350.jpg

 

starling feathers make great soft hackle feathers but are not really a substitute for the gray barred feathers of the Hungarian partridge

 

starling250-2.jpg

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Has anyone ever tried Pigeon? They aren't illegal to hunt and you might have a decent color choice if you're a good shot.

 

Blane

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unless you dont have the money, Dont buy the package feathers. you will limited to just whats in a bag and usually most of it will be waste.

This is very sage advise.... the package feathers are just a bag of frustration... I went through a full bag to find a dozen for a size 14 fly... I wound up biting the bullet and picking up a full skin. Lots of size 10 and up...

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Has anyone ever tried Pigeon? They aren't illegal to hunt and you might have a decent color choice if you're a good shot.

 

Blane

I've never heard of anyone using rock dove, and I certainly haven't. They come in an interesting array of colors, though. They are good to eat....

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"unless you dont have the money, Dont buy the package feathers. you will limited to just whats in a bag and usually most of it will be waste."

 

True! Unfortunately I learned this the hard way....................twice.

Never said I was bright.....................

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im gunna stick with shoebop on this one. buying multiple packages are not only affordable, but you can get a variety of colors as well. im guessing the person who lead you to buy a whole skin was a fly shop worker.

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If you hunt just go get one they are typically easy to find, buying one tho is worth the money 25 bucks for a couple hundred flies if you think about it... not near as bad a sixty dollar neck...

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Packaged feathers are a waste of money. It is not that hard to find a full skin for $15 to $20.

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im gunna stick with shoebop on this one. buying multiple packages are not only affordable, but you can get a variety of colors as well. im guessing the person who lead you to buy a whole skin was a fly shop worker.

i'm not a fly shop worker nor do i need a fly shop workers advise in buying fly tying supplies

 

buying a full skin will give you a wider range of feathers to choose from. the gray barred feathers are not the only feathers that are usable for fly tying. the tail feathers, wing feathers, micro marabou feathers etc can all be used in tying flies. packaged feathers do not contain these feathers.

 

most packaged feathers may contain a generous amount of usable feathers but more often than not the ratio of usable vs non-usable feathers are usually stacked on the non-usable side of the equation. theres no other options in a package of feathers. your stuck with what the the distributor packaged. if you think a fly shop owner is bagging up the prime feathers for $1.95 a bag, i have some ocean front property in arizona i'd like to sell you.

 

i stick with my advice and buy the whole skin in whichever grade and price range. youll end up saving in the long run

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I just received Mike Hogue's Holiday newsletter earlier today. He has both #1 grade male and female skins for $22.00 each, or two for $40.00. He's at eflytier.com if anyone here is interested.

 

Regards,

Mark

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Have to agree with flytire on this one. A quality whole skin means lots and lots of usable feathers. Buying odd packets is a complete gamble that will cost more long term.

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im gunna stick with shoebop on this one. buying multiple packages are not only affordable, but you can get a variety of colors as well. im guessing the person who lead you to buy a whole skin was a fly shop worker.

i'm not a fly shop worker nor do i need a fly shop workers advise in buying fly tying supplies

 

buying a full skin will give you a wider range of feathers to choose from. the gray barred feathers are not the only feathers that are usable for fly tying. the tail feathers, wing feathers, micro marabou feathers etc can all be used in tying flies. packaged feathers do not contain these feathers.

 

most packaged feathers may contain a generous amount of usable feathers but more often thann not the ratio of usable vs non-usable feathers are usually stacked on the non-usable side of the equation. theres no other options in a package of feathers. your stuck with what the the distributor packaged. if you think a fly shop owner is bagging up the prime feathers for $1.95 a bag, i have some ocean front property in arizona i'd like to sell you.

 

i stick with my advice and buy the whole skin in whichever grade and price range. youll end up saving in the long run

all im saying is that you get decent feathers for what you pay for and you can get multiple colors. Simple jack is cleary on a budget, looking at his other threads(no offense, kudos for keeping with the budget). the most sound advice for him would be to buy some feathers for 1.95 a bag and maybe get a couple bags in varying colors. maybe you would rather spend the money for a whole skin, that's fine. I just think for what the question is, the cheaper alternatives are a better choice.

 

and the fact that youll end up saving is obvious. but its like saying don't buy a used car for 15,ooo, buy a brand new car for 40k+ because less things will go wrong with it.

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