Hackle size for Woolly Buggers?

[Dallasblues 0]

I tie ugly Woolly Buggers. I’ve caught some nice trout and bass on these homely things though. But when I compare mine to the kind I see at a fly shop I notice one major difference. The hackle that’s wrapped around the professional buggers look nice, proportional, and fairly uniform going from eye to the bend of the hook. Using the basic saddle hackle I find online at fly shops, mine don’t look anything at all like that. The biggest difference is the size of fibers of the feather. The fibers are so much longer! Are these nice, pro-grade, buggers being tied with something different? Or are they trimming the fibers shorter after wrapping them? 
 

Does any of this make sense?

 

I’m just curious. I catch fish on my ugly ones but I’d sure like to tie a pretty one someday. 

[cphubert 0]

They are probably tied with a domestic saddle and usually have more feather length than the Chinese or packaged strung saddles and the ability to match the barbule sizes to your hook. If you are catching fish then it is a matter of cosmetics. I usually go to shops or shows and look for saddles that fit my color/ size/ and price, very hard to size and grade online. I do not personally know anyone that trims the fibers but if i had to it would be prior to tying it in by stroking the barbules backwards until they are perpendicular to the shaft then trim to length (both sides) it will give a unnatural end to the barbule (like the breadcrust pattern). but it maybe easier than trimming after. Hope this helps you.

[mikemac1 0]

The method of tying in your bugger hackle can impact the length of hackle fibers relative to the body proportions. Two techniques are commonly used.

1.  After tying in tailing materials, tie in your hackle by the tip.  All hackle feathers (especially capes) are tapered from tip to butt.  After tying in the tip, wrap your body with chenille or dubbing and leave the thread behind the hook eye.  Wrap your hackle forward and tie off.  This will give a slightly taper hackle apprearance.

2.  After tying in tailing material, tie in a piece of small wire.  Then wrap your body forward with chenille or dubbing. Just behind the hook eye tie in your hackle by the butt end (trim to an appropriate length for the body size.  The objective is to have the hackle tip be close to the end of your body wrap).  Wind the hackle back toward the tail leaving the thread behind the hook eye.  Counter-wrap the hackle with the wire back to the hook eye.

Whiting bugger packs have a good selection of hackle ideally sized or buggers.  

This bugger was tied with a Furnace bugger pack hackle from the tip over a mylar body.

[Philly 0]

My buggers aren't the prettiest, but they work, if and when I fish them.   I refuse to buy packs of "Woolly Bugger" hackle.  I've been tying long enough that I have enough necks and saddles that have seen better days and all that's left on them are feather for streamers and woolly buggers.  These are a couple of buggers that I tied up

 

I'm going to try something different this year when I tie up a couple.  I plan on using a softer hackle and twisting it with the chenille before wrapping it.  See how it works and looks. 

[SilverCreek 0]

You can also use emu feathers to tie buggers.

https://www.bobsflybox.com/Fly Pattersn/EmuBugger Family.pdf

Here are my emu buggers

 

 

[utyer 0]

You should keep right on tying your "ugly" buggers.  The original pattern had longer and softer hackle than what you find in the shop.  The "professional" flies available in shops and on-line are to catch anglers NOT fish.   

[Dallasblues 0]

19 minutes ago, utyer said:

You should keep right on tying your "ugly" buggers.  The original pattern had longer and softer hackle than what you find in the shop.  The "professional" flies available in shops and on-line are to catch anglers NOT fish.   

Well said!

[redietz 0]

25 minutes ago, utyer said:

The "professional" flies available in shops and on-line are to catch anglers NOT fish.   

And it's been like that since at least the 1600's (not just woolly buggers).

[Dave G. 0]

To me, probably just me, fiber softness is far more important than feather length or exact barb length. I know it's better looking to have perfect feathers but the fish like the movement of those fibers. My most productive woolies are tied from the cheapest ugliest darkest grizzly hen skin you ever saw. I picked it out of a barrel at a fly shop and paid my  $8 for it and caught some of our biggest salmon in Maine on our trips up there from flies tied with those feathers. I pride myself on my ugly wooly buggers for up there because they have gotten big fish when other flies failed to get any fish at all.. On that skin all the feathers were short, all the fibers long, the whites weren't very white and the black was muted dark muddy blck and that's fine with me, I'll probably never find such a perfect skin again and certainly not for $5-$8 !

[skeet3t 0]

If a fly that you tie catches fish, why worry about what the fly shops have in inventory. I have, over the years, tied some outlandish flies with what purist would consider garbage/trash to be tossed in the trash can. But my flies catch fish. Fly fishing is multi-faceted with learning to cast the basic moves, tie flies and catch fish to be released to grow and be caught again.

[flytire 0]

saddle hackles

[Jaydub 0]

I like my Bugger hackles to be about the length of flytire's tapering to a little longer in front and  soft and webby enough to provide some movement.

Some sources of bugger hackle:

Bugger packs

Cheap no-name rooster saddle patches.

Lower grade dry fly saddles often have some webby feathers that work well. I have a some older #2 Metz and Conranch saddles that have lots of good bugger hackle.

Or forgo the hackle altogether and tie something like Hale Bopp Leeches.

[mikechell 0]

I like some taper.  With the longest barbs at the front.

1. Hook: size 6 aberdeen from Walmart. 
2. Eyes: Plastic bead chain from Dollar Tree
3. Body: Feather from one of 20 or so pieces in a $20.00 sample pack from BPS over Chenille type yarn from Michael's.
4. Tail: Afterfeather from a Dollar Tree feather boa.

 

[Philly 0]

You must have one hell of a Dollar Store down there, Mike.   At some point, I brought 100 packs from Jann's Netcraft and Barlow's.  Did you know Eagle Claw makes those hooks in size 3/0?   They're cheaper that way than buying them at Walmart.  I was at Michaels and Hobby Lobby last week and there is a chenille both carry that is at least a half-inch in diameter, if not larger.  It would make one hell of a bass fly, and give me a chance to use up those 3/0 Eagle Claw hooks I brought.   I'll let you know how that turns out.