Hooks and hackle are the greatest part of the cost in producing dry flies. The intent of this site is to provide both high quality and the lowest cost possible of both those materials. When I became thoroughly disgusted with hook prices, I decided to go factory direct. After much searching, I found a company that makes high quality hooks that allow me as the importer to sell at low prices. By buying factory direct, I eliminate two wholesale vendors that are usually in between the manufacturer and the retailer. The savings to retail customers is huge. I pay as much or more than many hook companies for the manufacturing of my hooks. Eliminating two wholesalers makes a huge difference. As to quality, I have sold 120,000 hooks to Michigan commercial tyers in the last two years alone; no complaints. As a commercial tyer, I have personally sold about 140,000 flies tied on these hooks with no complaints. These are the hooks I use for my own flies as well. Enjoy the product and the savings.
My hackle comes from a number of different sources: Whiting, Metz, and another U.S. based company. You will no doubt notice my hackle prices tend to be lower than others; this is with good reason. First, I am not a big company with a lot of overhead. I am semi-retired and do this for the love of doing it as much as any other reason. Second, I buy deals wherever and whenever I find them and pass the savings on to you. Third,, when it comes to saddle hackle, I meticulously examine and regrade everything I get. Why is this important? When you buy online, you have no opportunity to actually examine the product in question. So I have done that for you. Hackle is not always graded consistently. Several years ago I purchased several pro grade saddles online only to find out that they were not even capable of producing 100 flies. On the flip side of the coin, I bought a pro grade that produced 1,500 flies. It should have been graded Silver. The point is, mistakes are made. I personally eliminate the vast majority of those so you don’t have to worry about it. I do an exact (almost) feather count on all saddles I buy; counting only feather 8″ or longer. I then take an average feather length and calculate an estimated number of flies it will produce. My saddle pricing is based on the number of flies I estimate each pelt will produce. All my capes will always be sold at prices considerably below retail; another big savings for you. If you have questions, call me direct at 989-390-0524.
Enjoy your tying and Fishing…
Tim