Fly -tying. 



59 



hook is necessary for padding, 

 and gives the effect of a fuller 

 body. The waste ends of the 

 twist and hackle are cropped 

 close (Plate B, 2). 



A spare finger of the left hand 

 must be now used to keep the 

 loose parts out of the way whilst 

 the body is being formed as fol- 

 lows : The extreme end of the floss 

 is taken between the fingers of the 

 right hand and the rolling on be- 

 gins. To effect a sheen the hold 



must be left for the wings, and 

 shoulder hackle. The last coil 

 being made, the floss is fastened 

 by the thread and the waste cut off. 



The silver twist follows next. 

 It is a matter of taste as to the 

 number of coils four to six are 

 usual ; the twist needs careful 

 fixing and the thread should be 

 well waxed at this point, for its 

 responsibility is growing greater 

 every moment now. 



The body hackle follows the 



B. (i) Tag, tail and butt. (2) Twist hackle and body. (3) Hackle in pliers. 



must not be relaxed until the 

 last coil is made. In this way 

 all the threads of the floss have 

 the same tension in them, and 

 this is the secret of the sheen. 

 The floss should be tightly rolled 

 on throughout. The first coil is 

 made close to the " butt." There 

 are a number of thread wrappings 

 of the different parts that have 

 been affixed at that point, the 

 floss now hides them. Care must 

 be taken not to carry the body 

 down too low on the shank, space 



twist, the extreme point is caught 

 in the pliers, and rolled on with 

 the weight of the tool to keep it 

 in its place. The hook is twisted 

 round, and care must be taken 

 that the- fibres of the hackle 

 shape upwards as everything else 

 does. It follows the line of the 

 twist, very close to and above it, 

 until three parts of the body are 

 covered, then the coils become 

 closer, and a bushiness is effected 

 at the finish. Let the pliers still 

 hold it whilst it is firmly fastened 



