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Piker20

whiting saddle stocks

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A particular UK shop is selling bronze saddles with a note saying no further stock for 12months from whitings?? I think this is just a cynical ploy but wondered if any others on the whiting side of the pond have heard anything??

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The posting on Feathercraft appears to be old. With the hair fad nearly gone, saddles are readily available in the US market. Have not heard of any reason why supply would be limited, although you could drop Whiting a note and ask.

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I think it might be a hangover from the hair phase but sure id not seen it on the site before. Might drop whiting a line as you say.

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I think it might be a hangover from the hair phase but sure id not seen it on the site before. Might drop whiting a line as you say.

 

 

The following appears on the FeatherCraft site below the Whiting saddle hackle section:

 

"HACKLE CRISIS: YEAR THREE - Although the demand from the fashion industry for premium hackle has greatly diminished, growers are still scrambling to meet fly tyers needs. EXPECT SHAKEY SUPPLY AGAIN THIS YEAR. Calling us for availability is the best bet."

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That sounds familiar. Does the cynic in me think that the suppliers/shops have cottoned on to a way to generate higher prices for 'low supply'??

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A friend of mine at Orvis said it is hard as hell for him to get Whiting Buggar packs in stock. I asked him if he carried the Streamer Packs and he said it was hard enough getting Whiting to send him the Buggar packs he wasn't even going to ask for another product from Whiting and have to tell customers he is out of stock.

Just shows no matter how cool the latest synthetic materials are, there is no substitute for good hackles.

I don't know how the overseas situation with poultry is but they used to take some of the pressure off of the US producers until some bird disease epidemic but that may be over with and passed???

 

Kirk

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When I was buying from Whiting (last was about 4 years ago) it seemed they were not as interested in doing business as all my other suppliers. They also did not include all I ordered, creating backorders that came months later, when I no longer needed them. I mainly used them for the 100 packs because of the demands I had from customers. I still have a some stock I need to inventory before putting on Ebay or any other site that I can find to sell in bulk for a lot less than my dealer cost. Customer service is apparently still not what it should be. It is a shame because they do have some very good quality feathers.

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That sounds familiar. Does the cynic in me think that the suppliers/shops have cottoned on to a way to generate higher prices for 'low supply'??

 

 

Yes. Retailers have long memories. Add to that, even the whispered rumor of any kind of "shortage" or issue will cause everyone to "binge-buy" and clear the shelves because they fear they won't get any more. I think it's a threat on three fronts-- combination of POSSIBLY a hiccup in the supply, sellers knowing they can get high prices, and buyers being nervous and snapping up anything they can find.

 

Same thing is going on for a year now with ammo supplies in the US... 22LR ammo, by far the most consumed ammo in the US is absolutely nowhere to be found, and on the exceedingly rare chances it is, the prices are through the roof. The ammo companies all say they are pumping out billions of rounds and they are selling it all, but where is it?? Always back-ordered, shops can't get any, they never know if/when/what they might get, and it is sold before it ever hits the shelf (apparently.?) Consumers have to reach a saturation point eventually, but no one thought it would take a year, with no end in sight.

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I think it might be a hangover from the hair phase but sure id not seen it on the site before. Might drop whiting a line as you say.

 

 

The following appears on the FeatherCraft site below the Whiting saddle hackle section:

 

"HACKLE CRISIS: YEAR THREE - Although the demand from the fashion industry for premium hackle has greatly diminished, growers are still scrambling to meet fly tyers needs. EXPECT SHAKEY SUPPLY AGAIN THIS YEAR. Calling us for availability is the best bet."

 

That means "We are selling it to people we know and have saved the good stuff for them." I'm not a fan of FeatherCraft.

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I had a discussion at a local fly shop about this in the spring. What they seemed to think was that whiting is creating this shortage but offering more and more 100 packs and eventually they will only sell 100 packs and tell us they are doing us a favor because this is the only way they can have enough to go around. I have no idea if there is any truth to this and it is just speculation but if you think about how much more money they could make off of a saddle this way it makes you wonder.

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...

Same thing is going on for a year now with ammo supplies in the US... 22LR ammo, by far the most consumed ammo in the US is absolutely nowhere to be found, and on the exceedingly rare chances it is, the prices are through the roof. The ammo companies all say they are pumping out billions of rounds and they are selling it all, but where is it?? Always back-ordered, shops can't get any, they never know if/when/what they might get, and it is sold before it ever hits the shelf (apparently.?) Consumers have to reach a saturation point eventually, but no one thought it would take a year, with no end in sight.

Actually, we do know what's going on there. The US government is buying it all. All calibers, all gauges, all types, shotgun, rifle, pistol, millions and millions of rounds. What we don't know is why. There is some indication, though, that this extraordinary demand is slacking off. (An editorial related to this, but I'm not sure if you can see it without subscribing: http://news.investors.com/politics-andrew-malcolm/020813-643707-obama-homeland-security-vast-ammunition-purchases.htm?ntt=ammunition)

 

What's going on now, with both feather and shells, it the refilling of inventories, but public and private. Shortages generate hording, and hording generates shortages, etc., etc. Things should get back to normal in another year or two.

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We should all know by now that anything is possible in the retail world. Let the right "important" person just mention something and there is a wave of folks flocking to the stores and shops to but it all up before its gone. Just let the thought of a gasoline shortage cross our minds and most of us are racing to the pumps to fill up our vehicles and every gas can we own. It was mentioned last year that peanut butter would become hard to find and afford and now half the cabinets in the country has an extra jar or two...As far as the ammo goes, I have always tried to have that base covered for years now.... phg is right...It is a cycle that will hopefully play itself out in time.

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This is my 3rd attempt to post this message. I hit the backspace and it is like hitting the back button. May be my new computer. Anyway... I'm sure you recall the Whiting 100 shortage a while back that Whiting didn't see it coming. The high demand around the world was caused by a fashion other countries copied from the USA. People wore the feathers in their hair. A Spanish friend said they were paying between $50 to $75 per pack of grizzly (most popular) and more than $30 for other colors. I should have sent all I had to him but didn't. I regret that. However, I'm not saying Whiting is not creating shortages for longer range profits. Many corporations do it frequently, and the oil companies are the worse. They have been caught doing it many times, and they still do it occasionally. Many corporations see the opportunity at the right time and take advantage of it, placing corporate greed above consumer interest.

 

As for the government buying amo... That is a rumor generated when the government did buy out the 9mm and some 30 calibers when the Iraq and Afghanistan war was hot (training and in the field). It is possible the amo industry didn't see it coming or the brass shortage caused by it was a factor. Even if the sudden brass shortage, which should be ending soon if it hasn't already, has caused the amo price to increase. I doubt you will see the prices ever come back down. I expect the 22s will cost a lot more after the brass shortage is over. I reload many calibers (another long time hobby). It has been cheaper to buy 7.62x54 bullets than the brass cost alone because of the surplus available. I need 30.30 brass but better buy what amo (to reload later) I can find because I will likely pay more for the brass when they are back on the shelf.

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