Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

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tie2fish
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Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by tie2fish » Mon Apr 02, 2018 9:13 am

Two years ago this month Forum member Steve Bird (UC Steve) sent me some beautiful feathers from a Welsummer hen chicken, some of which got used to tie a couple of flymphs. In going through them again today I noticed some smaller ones mixed in and wondered what they would look like on a spider hook with a silk thread body. Pearsall's Gossamer #32 Classic Chestnut looked to be a good match, and here's what resulted:

Hook: Daiichi 1640, Size #12
Thread: Pearsall's Gossamer #32, Classic Chestnut
Hackle: Welsummer hen chicken saddle
Body: Thread wraps


Image
Last edited by tie2fish on Wed Apr 04, 2018 11:33 am, edited 1 time in total.
Some of the same morons who throw their trash around in National parks also vote. That alone would explain the state of American politics. ~ John Gierach, "Still Life with Brook Trout"
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Theroe
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by Theroe » Mon Apr 02, 2018 9:58 am

tie2fish wrote:Two years ago this month Forum member Steve Bird (UC Steve) sent me some beautiful feathers from a Welsummer hen chicken, some of which got used to tie a couple of flymphs. In going through them again today I noticed some smaller ones mixed in and wondered what they would look like on a spider hook with a silk thread body. Pearsall's Gossamer #32 Classic Chestnut looked to be a good match, and here's what resulted:

Hook: Daiichi 1640, Size #12
Thread: Pearsall's Gossamer #32, Classic Chestnut
Hackle: Welsummer hen chicken saddle
Body: Thread wraps


Image
Bill - you NEVER cease to amaze me! What a lovely fly - I really like that shade of brown. Back in the mid 1980's, I was on a kick to raise my own hackle since Darbee's had closed. Among my Bantams & blue Andalusians were a pair of Welsummer chickens from an Amish friend down in Lancaster....they have the most translucent "bug brown" of any chicken IMHO.
Nice Work!!

Dana
Soft and wet - the only way....
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Ron Eagle Elk
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by Ron Eagle Elk » Mon Apr 02, 2018 11:04 am

Bill, that is just a lovely dressing. I'd love to fish that over some local cutthroat.
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swellcat
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Re: #32

Post by swellcat » Mon Apr 02, 2018 1:12 pm

Appealing colour, absolutely.

#32

My first thought was, "We're going to need a bigger microscope."
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by UC Steve » Mon Apr 02, 2018 2:35 pm

O my. Zen simple perfection. :mrgreen:

Bought a dozen welsumer chicks last spring & a neighbor is raising them for me. Don't know how they are faring, the chicken situation at her remote homestead is iffy at best, with lots of chicken-killing critters in the area. Will be back home next week to start the guiding season & will go check on the welsumers (should have skinned them last fall, they looked ready). If there are more than two left, I'll sell the remainder to pay for feed. If that happens I'll post any extras here should anybody want a complete cape.
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by William Anderson » Mon Apr 02, 2018 4:30 pm

Welsummer hen is a new one on me but I can see the appeal. that is a fantastic looking combo.
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William Anderson
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by William Anderson » Mon Apr 02, 2018 4:31 pm

UC Steve wrote:O my. Zen simple perfection. :mrgreen:

Bought a dozen welsumer chicks last spring & a neighbor is raising them for me. Don't know how they are faring, the chicken situation at her remote homestead is iffy at best, with lots of chicken-killing critters in the area. Will be back home next week to start the guiding season & will go check on the welsumers (should have skinned them last fall, they looked ready). If there are more than two left, I'll sell the remainder to pay for feed. If that happens I'll post any extras here should anybody want a complete cape.

Well done. I'll be looking for these.
"A man should not try to eliminate his complexes, but rather come into accord with them. They are ultimately what directs his conduct in the world." Sigmund Freud.
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tie2fish
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by tie2fish » Mon Apr 02, 2018 5:48 pm

William Anderson wrote:Welsummer hen is a new one on me but I can see the appeal. that is a fantastic looking combo.
See ... https://www.google.com/search?q=welsumm ... 77&bih=735
Some of the same morons who throw their trash around in National parks also vote. That alone would explain the state of American politics. ~ John Gierach, "Still Life with Brook Trout"
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by UC Steve » Mon Apr 02, 2018 6:51 pm

Welsumers are mainly speckled brahma, some colored & patterned very similar to red grouse. On a single cape you'll find the predominant brahma, but also duns, gingers, furnace, some black, & the nice chestnut Bill used for his fly. Surprised nobody is raising these for the tying trade.
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Re: Welsummer Hen and #32 Classic Chestnut

Post by daringduffer » Tue Apr 03, 2018 12:39 pm

Pretty beautiful spider, Bill. Pretty pretty.

Steve, I was floored when you first posted on Welsumers on this forum. They look the business!

dd
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