Difference In Hackles?

"prevetdan" wrote in news:1104810499.678278.120680
@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

I have been shopping for hackle and while not that new to tying, this
is the first time I've bought hackle. Can someone tell me what the
difference is between Hen and Rooster hackle? I assume that Hen is
softer and probably used for wet flies/nymphs and that Rooster is
stiffer thus more suitable for dry flies. Correct? Also what is the
difference between Capes and Saddles? I mean other than what part of
the chicken they come from. Also, being a college student, I am a
pretty budget minded tyer. I would like to know, if anyone can tell
me, how much I would be sacrificing if I got a "Bronze" as opposed to
"Silver" or "Gold" grade? I think I've read somewhere that each
company has it's own method of grading so for sake of argument let's
stick with Whiting for comarisons. Well, I think that will do it for
now. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Regards,
Daniel


You're dead on about the differences between hen and rooster. The cape
is from the neck area, all the way to the tip top of the head. The
saddle is more from the back, and has longer feathers.

When you buy a cape, you get a wide variety of hackle sizes, but when you
buy a saddle, you only get two or three sizes. The saddle feathers are
long, and usually you can get about five flies tied with one feather.

As for grade, you can see the differences on the Whiting Farms website,
when its up and running again. These days, all "genetic" hackle, that
is, from birds raised for the purpose, is pretty damn good. In fact, I
believe that Bronze-grade stuff is as good as what used to be called a
"grade 2" about ten years ago. You'll get less feather density on the
lower grades, and you might not get as many feathers in the size 20-24
range (I'm not as sure about the latter).

There are two options for the budget-minded that you should consider.
Hoffman bundled a half a brown neck with a half a grizzly neck, and that
combo should get you through many flies. When you have half-necks,
though, its not possible to get feathers with opposing curves for
streamer wings, and the like.

Also, consider buying "100-packs", which are about 20 saddle feathers all
of the same size and color. This is great when you find a bare patch on
your neck where all the size 14 feathers used to be. If you know what
you're going to be tying, this can be an OK deal. They also sell quarter
saddles for a little more money.

I've stuck to Whiting and Hoffman hackles, and Metz before that. Collins
is also supposed to have decent hackle, and Keogh is a less expensive
option, but I know little about the quality.

Scott