Feathers

[flytyerinpa 0]

Hope I'm in the right forum for this question, every time I ask about cochie bon du necks or saddles ( hope that's spelled right ) I wind up with furnace hackle, so is cochie bon du a flute or a freak of nature ?

[rockworm 0]

The coch-y-Bondhu is like a furnace with a bit of black along the edges. A Greenwell is like a furnace except with medium to dark ginger instead of brown.

(I wonder what you'd call it if its like a Coch-y-Bondhu with ginger instead of brown?)

[mvendon 0]

Hi flytyerinpa,

 

It's not something that you want to order on a website or from a flyshop unless you call them and the person knows what a Coch-y-bondhu cape color is. The easiest way to tell is by looking at the feather tips on the cape. On a plain furnace or ginger cape, the tips will be the same shade as the middle color. On a Coch-y-bondhu cape, they will have black tips that are easy to see. Here's a pic of a few that I have that I took really quick after reading your post.

 

Regards,

Mark

 

[flytyerinpa 0]

Have to thank Rockworm for the correct spelling, and the correct description and Mvendon your 100% correct on the description my only problem is finding them when you live in Hicksville with no fly tying stores near by what can I say Cabalas is about 30 miles away but personally I'm not a fan, just don't think they carry quality stuff. So I save all my pennies and go to the fly tying show in NJ where I buy 99% of my needs, but still the Coch-y-Bondhu eludes me.

[rockworm 0]

As far as I know, the "genetic cape"-breeders don't yet have a handle on the Coch-y-Bondhu genes. Probably because the market hasn't demanded them. All of mine are Indian capes sourced out of Great Britain.

[Crackaig 0]

You can't spell Coch-y-Bondhu or Coch-y-Bonddu wrong! Even the Welsh don't agree on the correct spelling! The hackle is so called as it is the hackle used on the Coch-y-Bondhu fly, a beetle imitation. (Gold tag, peacock herl body, hackle usually size 12 or 14).

 

In A Dictionary of Trout Flies Courtney Williams explains that he has a letter from Cannon Greenwell in his own hand, in which the good Cannon gives the dressing for his fly. The hackle is given as Coch-y-Bondhu.

 

It isn't so much of a freak as just a variation. If you get a natural black cape you will find many of the feathers have a touch of colour on the fibres between the centre list and the tips. Coch-y-Bondhu is just a lighter variation of that, with more colour.

 

If the people you are asking are not familiar with the name Coch-y-Bondhu, try specifying it by description. A predominantly red game hackle with black centre and tips. They are available, I once managed to get hold of a Whiting's saddle in Coch-y-Bondhu. They don't recognise it as a colour, I had to explain to the shop what I was looking for and wait until they found one.

 

Cheers,

C.

[Adam Saarinen 0]

I bought a cape a few years ago that looks exactly like the one on the left of mvendons picture, some new capes had just come in the shop, there were 3 of those, i bought 1 & the next time i was in the shop the other 2 had gone already! I really like the look of the feathers but the label only reads whitingfarms.com American Rooster Cape Brown?