That was my thinking as well. I thought, while hackle size is imperative for properly floating the fly on the surface, a parachute may be more forgiving on a slight oversize. Maybe not an undersize, but that's never my problem. I'm currently out of hackle of a certain color for size 14 and smaller, so I tied on a natural rooster neck appropriate for a size 10 and a grizzly of size 12. It looked o.k., but obviously, a little long. It's a parachute adams.