Hopper Wings

"Peter A. Collin" wrote in message
...
Hello All,

I am doing some winter tying. Having made all of my most used patterns, I
want to get into some more extic stuff. Does anybody have much experience
with synthetic materials used for a grasshopper wing? I have always used
turkey, but believe that a synthetic would give me a neater, trimmer
profile that I want. Any suggestions?

Pete Collin

I use "thin skin" for wing cases. I also use plastic raffia. I like the
raffia because its cheap and I can fold it and glue it with fingernail
polish to get the right effect. Sometimes, I sprinkle the appropriate color
of hare's mask inside whilst folding. This gives it a mottled appearance.
I also use tyvek from overnight mailers. This can be colored with permanent
markers then cut. Additionally, I've got some tyvek survival maps used by
military pilots. These are already colored perfectly.
Herman mentioned organza. Its very nice stuff and can be purchased cheap at
your local fabric store. Buy the right color and BANG, instant wings. I
like to cut a long thin rectangle, tie it in perpendicular to the fly, then
tease out the weft. Done with sparkle organza (ask for it in the store) and
its an instant spinner wing. Darker colors, sealed with head cement or
heated (the edge will fray), make very good hopper wings.
Waterproof clear tape and feathers. Lay the feather of your choice on the
tape and cut out a wing shape. Works great. It has the durability of
synthetic and the color of the feather. Its also a lot easier to work with
once its on the tape.
Hope this helps.
--
Frank Reid
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