Quill Gordon

[zazzer]

Very nice, did you bleach the quills ?
It looks like black floss underneath and ribbed with the peacock quill?
What hook are did you use for the fly?
Very nice hook.
Is it a secret?

[catskilljohn]

Zazzer, you are very clever!

That is in fact flattened thread for the underbody, and a tiny space between wraps of the quill, gives it a nice segmented look. Also lets you get a complete body on a shank this long [Mustad 3399D] as the quills I have can do a #12 dry fly or smaller, but are too short for a bigger hook. Good eye buddy! CJ

[redietz]

Sweet tie, J.

Is it my materail?

Maybe. Are taking the quill from the eye?

[corlay]

Are taking the quill from the eye?

yes. I am taking the quill from the eye area.
Then striping with a pencil eraser.

any other advice or suggestions are welcome.

[catskilljohn]

Some eyes are better than others, its possible you just dont have good ones to choose from. I have bunches of eyes, but only 2 that I really love. They are the biggest ones too, maybe that has something to do with it.

There also is a "good" side and a not so good side, not too hard to tell, the distinct color change is evident. I strip mine with scissors, the eraser seems like a safer way to do it, sometimes I cut the quill accidently .

Naturally you want to tye it in by the tip, the tip being the thinner end, with the bad side out, that way when you wrap it, it turns on the good side. Not trying to make this like a first day at class, I know you already know how to tye, just wanted to mention what I know. CJ

[corlay]

I think my problem is that I don't know how to tell the difference between good and bad sides.

[catskilljohn]

After you strip one of the fluff, look at it real close, it has a concave side and a convex side. The convex side should show on the fly. The dark section will be on the front edge while you are wrapping, thats how you'll know. Same with peacock herl, I always wrap with the fibers facing backward, it gives it a smoother flowing appearance.

While this has absolutely no bearing on how the fly fishes, I get kind of nuts about it. You add up all the little details and incorporate them in your tying, and the stuff starts looking a little different, and you will see it yourself. CJ

[mikevalla]

I purchased a bulk load of 100 super long Peacock Stems, several months ago, from a British company that specializes in Ostrich and Peacocok feathers only. These have massive, meaty eyes. But maybe 20% are good for segmentation. I didn't "test strip" them all---but it looks like that's what I'll end up with.

They ship from a Chicago distributor. Ostrich.com, or something like that.

[Niklas Dahlin]

CJ.. the hat is off...

Tell me, what size is it, it looks like a quite long body. I often have problems with too short quills for the job. Love the hackle and wing... but I don´t think the head is as good as I have seen on your stuff before Love it anyway...

Later
Nik

PS.. how about sending me your addy that I have been nagging you about?

[corlay]

Ok, John.
Your post was very inspiring to me,
so last night I sat down and tied 6 of these:

QuillGordon(caL).jpg (94.56 KiB) Viewed 24 times

My peacock isn't nearly as light (and contrasting) as in your example,]
and I wish it was. Or did you prep yours in some way? Or are yours just naturally lighter like that?
Also, my quills are much thinner that your example. (mine's on a #12 hook, BTW)
Do I just need to look for a new stash of eyes?

I think my ties with catch trout all the same, though.

Thanks for the tip of spreading-out the quill turns.
Makes it a lot easier to be sure you have one long enough for the job.

For this tie I turned some Collins barred Dun 5 times, clipped down the top and then added the wing.
For some other wets with a full-hackle I do the wing first, and then turn the hackle in front of it.
But I like this one better the way i did it, for some reason.

I can't wait to put these to the test.
Heading down to Penns Creek in PA next Saturday for a Fiberglass Rod gathering (Mike McFarland organizes this annually).
Do they have an early Quill Gordon hatch down there like we do here in NY? I hope so...