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Tying Hackle Wings

Still struggling to tie perfect hackle wings? Try matching the feathers and gluing the butts before sitting down to tie.

When I plan to tie a fly with hackle wings, I start by measuring each feather against a template drawn on a sheet of heavy cardboard. This assures me that each wing, as well as every fly of a given size and pattern, will be identical.
Next, I group a handful of feathers according to size and shape. While holding the tip of each stem against a baseline, I locate the corresponding mark (determined by hook size) and score the barbs with the points of my scissors. Then I use my thumb and fingernail to strip them away.

After all my feathers are prepared, I find four to eight hackles with similar curvature and shape and then glue the wing butts together with a drop or two of head cement. Once you've matched them up and glued them, you've eliminated the aggravation of wrestling with multiple hackles.

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