Spinning Deer Hair

[GG34 0]

Hey guys,

 

Can anybody give me some advice on how to get clean lines between colors of deer hair while spinning. It seems like I get more hair on one side of the hook then the other. I've read all posts in spinning and am using a pencil size clump with two lose wraps before I pull tight. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[tidewaterfly 0]

From you photo, you've not done a bad job of it. IMO, you just need to pack the hair tighter than what you've done. That can be easier said than done however.

 

Getting the hair densely packed will help with the color sections & clean divisions, as well as make the body appear to be more solid.

 

You also need to select the appropriate type hair for spinning. Hard to tell from your pic, what you're using may be OK. I like the courser fiber belly hair for tying bass bugs. Finer hair, like from the back of the deer is fine for smaller flies & other uses, such as wings on Caddis patterns, but doesn't make the best bugs.

 

With the bug in your pic, it might need to be trimmed down some too. I'm sure you're trying to get a specific size to the body, but without getting the hair very tightly packed, you'll lose some diameter as you trim.

 

I remember when Pat Cohen posted here regularly & started tying. He likely asked some of the same questions & now hes one of the very best at tying with deer hair.

Check out his website. rusuperfly.com

 

Look at his bass bug pics carefully. He does a lot with stacking hair too.

 

Keep at it. It starts with the correct material & with getting it packed at tightly as possible.

[mikechell 0]

agreeing with everything above. You can stack a little more hair on where it's thin, too.

[Bryon Anderson 0]

If you really want to learn to tie neat, tight bugs, I would recommend getting Pat Cohen's video "The Stacked Deer Hair Diver". He goes through exactly what materials, tools and techniques he uses and why he uses them. His results speak for themselves.

[GG34 0]

Thanks for all the good advice. That was the first I've I tied. I bought a good hair packer and the results have gotten much better. It seems that the hair may not be spinning all the way around leaving larger clumps in one side. I'll check out those references and keep on it. Thanks.

[Crackaig 0]

If the hair isn't spinning evenly all round then you might try three loose wraps rather than two, before pulling.

 

Its funny I see lots of posts about how to spin deer hair, what I never see is any discussion on why deer hair spins. Understanding what is going on will make it easier to do it, particularly to work out what is going wrong. The explanation I was given for why spinning works when I learned means that flaring deer hair would not be possible. It is, so the explanation must be wrong.

 

One bit of understanding that I find helps, is to imagine a dot on the thread close to the start of the first loose wrap. What path does that dot move along when you pull on the thread? From that you can work out what is really going on.

 

Cheers,

C.

[Bruce Derington 0]

Great job on this fly. As like most things, practice practice. Hair packer is a must, most Bugs are stacked, and creating straight, tight bands are tough. heres one I tied awhile back, bands suk

[onceahoosier 0]

My suggestion to get more even lines between colors is to use more, smaller clumps of deer hair at the interface. Even if the smaller clumps are a little uneven, if the thin areas aren't all in the same place (and you can move them around somewhat), the result is a pretty even band of hair. One other suggestion for your to consider, steaming your flies over a keetle causes them to "fluff up" which makes them look more tightly packed and also eases trimming with a blade. Good luck!

 

Tom

[GG34 0]

Thanks for the inputs. Bruce, awesome looking flies. I will try a little of everything and see what works.

[mike george 0]

Very seldom do I get involved in online chat but, in my opinion you are spinning and you need to be stacking. When spinning you loose control of the hair and rely on IT to do what you want it to do, instead of controlling it yourself. In all probabilities you are also using to many wraps of thread to "hold the hair in place". The extra wraps take up space on the shaft of the hook it self which translates to a loose bug, you also you loose control of the hair. If you go to my web page you can see what I do and it is all done with stacking the hair and not spinning. Also I do not use a "hair packer" I use my fingers to pack. The technique is what makes it a tight pack and controls the lines you are referring to. www.deerhairsculptures.com

 

Mike g

[Bruce Derington 0]

So I picked up Mike George's Vid and he has his own technique to working with deer hair. Fairly impressive in that I was quite surprised in the small 'clumps' he uses. I have got to say its something I haven't tried, BUT will! I have heard of / known of his work for quite some time, and although he doesn't know it ,I have seen him tying a couple of times at shows and his skills are second to no one. Every time I watch a video or watch someone tie I pickup a couple of things that make me think and even take the challenge and give it a try, so once I re-stock my deer hair I will post the two patterns (using his technique) that Mike ties..

[Guest]

This is one thing I really need to sit down and keep working on till I get it!!!!!