Jack's Fly Tying Materials

Blood Marabou

Blood marabou is thin-stemmed, long-fibered turkey marabou (not to be confused with marabou shorts or "chickabou"). Length 3.5 to 4 inches long. These often hard-to-find, high-quality feathers are used for tying flies calling for very soft marabou.

For examples of flies you can tie using blood marabou see Tying the Soft Hackle Streamer, Tying the Soft Hackle Sand Eel, and (my webmaster Mike's favorite striper fly) Tying the BeastMaster General.

Chicken Poop Feathers (CPF)

Tie some of the most "magical" dry flies you'll ever fish! These marabou-like feathers come from just above the legs or near the anus of the chicken. Not be confused with "chickabou," these water-shedding feathers are relatively firm of stem and heavily barbuled. It's this concentration of barbules that traps air bubbles and allows the fly to float without dressing or--when pulled under--to gather about the barbules dozens of tiny air bubbles that mimic those of an emerging natural.

For examples of flies you can tie with Chicken Poop Feathers, read Tying the CPF No-Hackle Caddis Dry Fly/Emerger and see the CPF flies in Jack's Freshwater Flies Gallery.

Corsair Tubing

This is the REAL stuff. Strong, durable, and malleable, this easy-to-use polyester or polyester/mylar tubing is used to tie some of the most realistic and interesting flies you can imagine. Each pack contains four feet of material, not three, like some imitators.

For examples of flies you can tie with corsair, read Tying the Floating Minnow, Tying the Corsair Sand Eel, and Tying the Featherwing FishHead.

Crab and Dab Fur Hackle

Crab and Dab Fur, not really a "fur" but a very soft yarn made mostly of viscose and polyester which is woven into a string on one side only. Extremely easy to use, it's a perfect material for creating wide, flat-bodied flies such as crabs and baby flounder imitations. Form bodies by simply winding it along the hook shank until the desired fullness is attained. Mix colors to achieve the mottled coloring common in bait species. Try this stuff and you may never tie Merkin-style crabs again!

Each package contains nine feet of material, enough to tie dozens of flies.

See my article Three Crabs and a Dab for step-by-step instructions on using Crab and Dab Fur to tie four simple and very effective patterns.

E Z Mini Hooks

Best hackle pliers in the world! For sheer gripping power, working in small spaces, and durability, none compare to the E-Z Mini Hook. I've been using mine for almost fifteen years. Don't be fooled by cheap imitations such as you find in most electronics stores that grip poorly and cut hackle stems with their sharp edges.

Eyelash Comb

When it came to tying tools, there were a select few that Jack swore by and was never without: his Renzetti whip finisher, his dubbing needle mounted in an ancient elk horn handle, his EZ Mini Hook, and an eyelash groomer. It was a must, especially for his soft hackle and GSS flies. Of the eyelash comb Jack wrote:

"An eyelash comb is one of the handiest tools a fly tyer can own. It is extremely useful for combing out unwanted material, raking bodies to increase bugginess, distributing material, and for all-around fly grooming."

Eyelash combs are available for five dollars or more at most drug and beauty supply shops. Or you can purchase them here for a whole lot less.

First Quality Streamer Bucktails

These are top-quality bucktails--the same ones Jack used to tie BeastMaster Generals, Bucktail Beauties, and other of his patterns that relied on high-quality fibers. These tails have a high ratio of the long, crisp, finely-tipped fibers that make for the best streamer and dry fly wings. And almost every fiber is saturated in the stated color of the tail--no overabundance of natural brown hairs.

Flashabou

Strong mylar fibers that have the flash of tinsel and the action of marabou. Excellent in all types of flies. Use it for tails, winging,side flash, wound bodies, ribbing, throats, and carapaces.

Gartside's Secret Stuff

You too can be a magician at the vise with Gartside's Secret Stuff (or "GSS" for short). Wow your friends! Catch more fish! Have more fun! Learn the arcane secrets of "The Great Gartside, the Fly-Tying Magician" and make them your own.

This ultra-fine 8 inch long hair-like material is incredible! It moves in the water like no other synthetic material I've ever used and has a translucent luster that outrivals nature's.

Use it alone or blended with natural materials to create the most effective baitfish imitations you've ever tied. Use it as a hair substitute for lively and realistic streamers and baitfish imitations. Use it instead of Flashabou to form highly visible parachute wings, spinner wings, tails, hackle and bodies on all sorts of flies.

And here's the best part (for fans of epoxy flies). With GSS you can form realistic epoxy-like heads or bodies without the muss or fuss or weight of epoxy. This is fun stuff! Magic stuff!

For examples of flies you can tie with GSS, read Tying the Secret Baby Baitfish, Tying the Blueback Herring, and Two Simple Secret Flies.

Secret Fly Kit

Everything you need to get started tying flies with Gartside's Secret Stuff. The Secret Flies book has step-by-step instructions for dozens of patterns, plus important tips for working with the material. The two packs of GSS provide enough material to tie hundreds of flies. And as a bonus, while supplies last, a Secret Baby Baitfish tied by Jack is included as a tying model. Kit includes:

Jack's book Secret Flies for Fresh and Salt Water

+ 2 packs of Secret Stuff

Small Worm and Eel Chenille

Approximately 1/8 inch in diameter, this fine suede chenille is ideal for tying small sand eels, small cinder worms, San Juan worms, Baby Buggers, and many other effective flies.

Sticky Back Foam

For gurglers, sliders, beetles, hoppers, all kinds of floating flies.

This high-buoyancy closed-cell foam has a sticky underside--just peel away the protective backing and press against another piece of foam (sticky or non-sticky) for instant adhesion. Press multiple sheets together to create foam as thick as you want. Press different colors together to achieve two-tone or even triple-tone effects. Create foam whose underside presents a dark silhouette (to fish) and whose topside presents a high-visibility surface (to fishermen). Lots of fun!

Each sheet approximately 4.5 inches by 6 inches. 1/16 inch (2mm) thick.

For examples of flies you can tie with sticky-back foam, read Tying the Double Gurgler, Tying the Gurgler, and Tying the Gartside Bug.

Wiggle Worm Chenille

Wiggle Worm Chenille is a two-ply plush chenille, ideal for tying up fat and juicy worm patterns (Palolo Worms, Redfish Worms, etc.), Worm Gurglers and Sliders, and super-meaty wooly buggers. The Cinder Worm chenille is perfect for tying spawning cinder worm patterns and has many other uses as well.

See my article Tying the Wiggle Worm for step-by-step instructions on a fly you can tie using Wiggle Worm Chenille.