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Doug's Comments On Marrying Feathers
Marrying feathers is the process of uniting sections from differently colored wing flight quills, tails
or flank feathers. To produce married wings you need to have a matched
pair (one from each side of the bird) of feathers for each color you require.
In order to produce the married wing decide on the number of barbules required
for each color to produce a wing of the proper width for the size of fly
you are tying.
Take your first color and cut
out a group of about ten to fifteen barbules. Cut out a similar width
of the second color. Even the tips of the two sections and hold the
butts of the sections close together between the thumb and first finger
of your right hand. With the thumb and first finger of your left
hand, gently stroke the feather sections upward, making the sections adhere
to each other. Take similar sections from all left-hand feathers
and form the other wing. Slide the two sections together so that
the barbules lock together. If you try to marry barbules from opposite
sides of the feather you will find that they do not truly interlock and
will separate easily). To separate off the required width of the
second color counts up the number of barbules required and slide a darning
needle along the joint just above the last barbule required. This
will separate off the required width. Repeat the process with any
other colors required. Finally when all colors have been married
adjust the width of the first color using your needle. You will find
it fairly easy to marry larger widths of feather but if you try this with
only one or two barbules you will have difficulty.
TYING INSTRUCTIONS
(1) Wrap
a layer of white thread along the shank of the streamer hook from behind
the eye of the hook to the bend.
(2) Tie in the married tail with 3 loose lops to prevent the married sections from
separating. Continue to tie in the tail with tighter wraps.
(3) Tie in the white floss and silver ribbing.
(4) Wrap the thread toward the eye.
(5) Wrap the floss to form the body to the mid section.
(6) Tie in the mid fin with the same technique that was used for the tail.
Make sure that the fin points in the down direction.
(7) Continue to wrap the floss to form the mid section to the eye, and secure with the
thread.
(8) Carefully wrap the tinsel with five wraps to form the ribbing, and secure it
near the eye
(9) Attach the yellow calf's tail underwing so it extends to just above the bend of
the hook.
(10)Attach the two grizzly hackle wings flanked with the two olive hackle wings.
This step can also be done Rangeley style by cementing the grizzly and
olive hackles before attaching.
(11)Tie in and finish with a black head.
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