sinking dries.

[leedsutdman]

on saturday i tied a couple of dry flies with deer hair bodies neatly trimmed with a two turn hackle to finish them off. took them out on sunday and cast them out......... they sank like a brick... ive never had a problem with deer hair before it usually floats so well.... any ideas?

[A. Fluker]

Can you show us a picture of the culprits?

[leedsutdman]

i will dig them out and photo them.

[farmerblob]

maybe chinese WATER deer

[Chris Reeves]

My guess would be that you have used hair from a deer's spring coat. this is finer and not as hollow as winter deer hair, therefore it doesnt float anywhere nearly as well. The Americans understand deer hair a lot better than we do. Have a look at the stuff from Rocky Mountain dubbing and be confused at how many different types of deer hair they supply, each with a different fly tying use.
An easy way to find out if your deer hair is hollow is simply to tie a few hairs to a bare hook and pull tight. If they flare out they are hollow, If there is no flare at all they are solid (and all steps in between)

Cheers

[leedsutdman]

the deer hair i used is thick and flared well, it is a veniard product but there is little info on the packet....i am wondering if i cut it a bit to close to the hook and have wasted most of the hollow fibre.

[emerger1981]

when you spin the hair make sure you do it from the middle or closer to the thick end, not to close as it can be very brittle at that end.

[Stillwater angler]

Originally Posted by leedsutdman

on saturday i tied a couple of dry flies with deer hair bodies neatly trimmed with a two turn hackle to finish them off. took them out on sunday and cast them out......... they sank like a brick... ive never had a problem with deer hair before it usually floats so well.... any ideas?

To many compartments flooded by the sound of it...........

[weight_forward]

Being a Leeds fan you should be used to things sinking like a stone right to the bottom

On things like G&H sedges I find if you pack the hair too tight after spinning they don't float as well as they can if the hair is a bit looser, more room to trap air I guess.

[leedsutdman]

Originally Posted by weight_forward

Being a Leeds fan you should be used to things sinking like a stone right to the bottom

On things like G&H sedges I find if you pack the hair too tight after spinning they don't float as well as they can if the hair is a bit looser, more room to trap air I guess.

trapped air you must be a man u fan.......