FLYMPH FORUM

Anyone have an idea for a good Landrail primary substitute? Trying to finish out the Leisenring set and his Coachman lists Landrail for the wing. I have never seen Landrail in person, the photos of the flies Lance has shared it appears to be a light brown dun color maybe.

Wood thrush???

I can send you some ....

Carl ~

Veniard used to sell starling skins that had been bleached and then dyed a light brown as landrail sub. I used up all I had, but have purchased some bleached starling to try dying. I will send you some of the bleached starling if you would like it. Please PM me.

Bill

Thanks for the offers guys.

Bill, problem is I don't really know what I am looking for as far as color, nor would I probably dye some myself. Not my favorite thing to do.

As far as thrush Dana, I have no idea really if it would be a good sub.

I think chukar makes a good sub and Leisenring ended up using French partridge. If you can find something better then great. That's an actual landrail wing in the photo next to the chukar tail.

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=7903&hilit=Landrail

In Fly Fishing & Fly Tying for October 2011, Geoffrey Bucknall has a piece about feather choice. There he lists as a good landrail substitute:

In a partridge tail you may also find several plain ginger feathers. These are excellent substitutes for protected landrail feathers, once used for sedge-fly wings. Fold a section, then tie it down flat on top of the hook-shank. this wing is supposed to split.

He also suggests the use of the European jay primary wing feather for wing slips instead of starling due to the "semi-transparent, almost silvery sheen", although it is fragile. Use it for Greenwell's Glory, for example. Snap it out from its parent feather so the fibre roots cling together. Works for both wet and dry flies'.

Here he also suggests the use of pigeon's secondary as a source for body herls for Kite's Imperial and other olives. He knows no better body herl and the secondaries offer three different shades.

The article is illustrated with photos and it is easy to understand his point.

I don't have time right now for the rest.

dd

Thanks guys. Chukar and Partridge I have plenty of. I'll take a look. The chukar tail looks like it may be a good match.

Carl, I believe I have a spare chukar skin if you need one. Also, if you have one of the last swaps I participated in and tied a cow dung fly I had to find a landrail substitute. I believe I used chukar. I listed the winging material on the toe tag. I checked out a few different wings and didn't find one I really, really liked. I think I settled on chukar. I did have yellow dyed starling in the materials being considered. Didn't look exactly like what I wanted.

Thanks Bill for the offer. I have quite a bit of chukar though. 3 Birds, 2 tails and it looks like it may work well.

I might have posted these before.