Quill body help

[flytyingscotsman 0]

 

 

Alex, All,

The other day I just got done telling my wife that as much as

she likes the look of the peacock eye, I had no known tying

use for them - she might not be too jazzed when I tell her,

but I've got to give this a try !

 

 

 

 

[Alex C. 0]

No problem! When I was first learning to tie, the second fly I worked on was a Quill Gordon. At the time, I thought the only place you could get peacock herl was from peacock eyes, since thats where the book I got the recipe from said to get the quill at Now I hardly ever use peacock for quill bodies. I almost only use turkey biots now, except sometimes I'll use porcupine guard hairs. I just like the turkey biots better though because you automatically get a nice gradual segmentation with them, and if you want you can just turn them around and get a fuzzy rib at each segment.

[Crotalus 0]

No problem! When I was first learning to tie, the second fly I worked on was a Quill Gordon. At the time, I thought the only place you could get peacock herl was from peacock eyes, since thats where the book I got the recipe from said to get the quill at Now I hardly ever use peacock for quill bodies. I almost only use turkey biots now, except sometimes I'll use porcupine guard hairs. I just like the turkey biots better though because you automatically get a nice gradual segmentation with them, and if you want you can just turn them around and get a fuzzy rib at each segment.

 

 

well crap, now i am gonna have to try the turkey biots too.

[Alex C. 0]

well crap, now i am gonna have to try the turkey biots too.

 

And don't forget goose biots :hyst:

 

I like the turkey biots a little better since they're usually longer, and thus, easier to work with if you have clumsy fingers like me. Tie them in by the tip, then use a pair of hackle pliers to wrap them foward. Be careful not to twist the biot/quill as you wrap forward and just slightly overlap each wrap as you move forward. It's tough to explain with words and no pictures, but when you strip the biot/quill from the stem there will usually be a curly J shaped thing on the base of the biot. To get a fuzzy rib point that forward when you tie the biot in, and to get a smooth body tie it in so it's facing the bend of the hook. Maybe 'll post a few pics when I get home tonight. Also, if you're interested in biot body flies I super-highly reccomend Shane Stalcup's book "Mayflies Top to Bottom". He goes into pretty good detail on biots and uses them a lot in the fleis he ties in the book. It's one of the few books I have that I won't resell, but you can get it on Amazon for about $20 at the link below(no affiliation)

 

Mayflies Top to Bottom on Amazon

[flytyingscotsman 0]

 

Thanks Alex,

Now I think we're getting somewhere. I put the fragile peacock

herls and eraser to one side and pick up the tough (impossible

to break ?) goose and turkey biots, several packets of which I just

so happen to have squirreled away but never used much.

 

Tradition in fly tying has it's place, but I'm all for material substitutions

if they improve the pattern or just simply make it easier to tie.

 

 

 

 

[Alex C. 0]

(impossible

to break ?)

 

Theres no such thing on my bench I haven't had any prioblems with the biots breaking though. The only problems I have had were from not tying the tip in tight enough and having it slide out on me. Just be sure that your wraps are secure when tying the tip in and you'll be all set. That doesn't mean more wraps! You should only need 3-4, just make sure they're quality wraps

[phg 0]

If you're breaking the peacock herl, you are using too much pressure. The pencil eraser is highly abrasive, so just stroke the herl lightly, going from tip to base on both sides.

 

After it's tied on the fly, herl remains brittle if you don't coat it with head cement.

[flytyingscotsman 0]

If you're breaking the peacock herl, you are using too much pressure. The pencil eraser is highly abrasive, so just stroke the herl lightly, going from tip to base on both sides.

 

After it's tied on the fly, herl remains brittle if you don't coat it with head cement.

 

I think I had some flakey strands of herl lying around. I found that

going with the thumbnail stripping method allowed me to weed those out

as they would break, which is fine - as long as it's prior to tying the

pattern. I started using an intact peacock quill I had and the herl on

that is much better and consistent.

 

 

 

 

[Crotalus 0]

Well you guys really got me going now, i ordered 2 colors of turkey biots and actually ordered a waxed peacock eye just to see what it was like

[Crotalus 0]

My waxed peacock eye was delivered yesterday. Wow talk about easy to strip, and much less mess. I might have to get some wax and try one on my own sometime

[caddis16 0]

Stripped peacock makes a beautiful body. BUT you have to do something to protect the quill or you will have a one fish fly. Trout teeth will destroy quill quick. You already know how fragile this stuff is from trying to strip it. I recommend covering the quill body with a thin coat of flexament.

[Redleg 0]

I've been meaning to try Turkey biots, but never got around to it. Should do it soon. You might try soaking the peacock in peroxide though, to soften and help stripping.

[Allan P 0]

Just came across this site and topic and I thought to voice my $0.02(overvalued). 
1) Select the largest eyes you can and check that the back of the eye has a light cast. 
2) IMO the paraffin method works best. This method makes it easy to strip each herl, leaves the remaining quill shiny and pliable, and there’s no soaking necessary. 
3) After dipping the eye in the melted paraffin (just about 10 seconds) and when the dip dries, separate the individual herls with a needle/bodkin and cut each off so  you can store them individually in a zip lock bag. You can then strip them when needed. 
Be careful with paraffin. Highly flammable. 
Allan