Feather wing Atlantic Salmon flies, we will all agree, require a reasonable amount of dexterity. But many of us do not realize that even when given the very finest dexterity, only mediocrity will come from the vise of an individual that has not selected and prepared his materials properly. Much of the preparation required can be accomplished in advance of tying the fly. Given advance cleaning and proper storage, materials can be ready to use at a moments notice. When not cleaned and/or when improperly stored, materials may be misshapen, or worse yet, devoured by insects. Specific details of preparation and storage will be discussed at length during the symposium, but below is a very general list of some things to consider.

Material storage should only begin after proper cleaning. Most often simply washing the material in warm, soapy water (dish washing liquid is generally adequate,) thoroughly rinsed, then either air dried or blow dried does the job nicely. Some feel that the addition of Woolite® adds luster that may have been lost due to drying over years of storage. Also it has been suggested that hair conditioners applied during the final rinse may improve the material was well, particularly hair.

Once the material is absolutely dry it can be stored. Flat materials, (i.e., turkey tails, small body feathers, etc.) can be stored in side opening zip-type bags. Top loading bags generally mean a mangled feather for turkey, goose, etc. Also side open bags are easier to get one's hand in and out of. They are a bit more difficult to find, but well worth the search. I prefer to stack feathers that have a bit of a natural curve, such as wood duck, pintail, mallard, etc., and place them in that fashion into a zip-type bag. The curve is retained, but storage space is reduced to a minimum. You may wish to pair the feathers in advance, then stack them. I prefer to place these zip-locks into a sealable Tupperware® type container to which I will often add a small amount of Paradichlorobenzene (Enoz Moth Ice® Nuggets is the brand I - use.) This will deter or kill any unwanted insects, but will not fumigate the tying area with a very nasty cancer causing agent. It also makes for a very compact storage space.

Some materials are not happy in flat bags. An example is the 3-D feather found on the crest of a Golden Pheasant. Once prepared (an interesting process in itself) the feather is best stored with numerous individual feathers stacked into themselves progressively smaller to larger. Then the whole stack can be easily placed into a plastic box. The box can then be placed into a Tupperware® type container. Fair warning, though: styrene plastics will melt when in contact with Paradichlorobenzene, or at the very least will cloud. Center tails of Amherst and Golden Pheasants present another storage problem involving a 3-D feathers. Though the beauty of the feather is lost, cutting it into more storable size pieces makes sense. Also consider slicing the feather shaft in half so that the feather halves can be stored flat.

Even though every care has been taken to properly clean and store materials, invariably some item called for in a fly will be bent, twisted, or flattened out of normal alignment. This is the time to bring out the electric tea pot. 1 would discourage the use of devices I have seen that supposedly "perk" ones feathers up at vise side. The purchase of an electric tea kettle is worth every penny, and probably less than the aforementioned devise. Electric tea kettles heat up very quickly and give an adequate amount of steam to do the job. Caution should be taken to not burn oneself or the material since the steam is amazingly hot! Enough said.

I use steam to reshape back to a normal position most anything: macaw, turkey, strung hackle, floss (silk or rayon,) etc. But perhaps the most amazing use is one I learned about from a friend when I complained about blowing up a wing and having to rebuild it numerous times. His response was, "Why didn't you steam it?" It never occurred to me! Since then I have salvaged many wings that were crumpled seemingly beyond repair by re-steaming them. Also consider steaming a wing just prior to initial mounting. The steam seems to soften the barbs allowing them to collapse a bit more readily.

Even with the best material preparation, without a good understanding of how a material naturally responds the fly tier is at a major disadvantage. I would recommend getting at least 20x magnifying lens and then take the time to look closely at your materials. Ever wonder why a hackle rolls up onto it's side when wrapped? Ever wonder why certain dubbing materials are easier to use than others? Ever wonder why a herl wraps nicely one time and the next it looks like someone stepped on it? Ever wonder why some feathers in a tail or body veiling stack onto one another easier than others? Close observation of the natural material will answer each of those questions. Having a good working knowledge of the anatomy of the materials we use will only improve our flies.

Preparation also involves what I define as "substitutes" and "alternates." My definition of a "substitute" is a material that has been selected which looks like or is made to look like a feather normally used, such as substituting dyed-yellow CDC for toucan. My definition of an "alternate" is a material that has been selected to replace another that may be slightly or perhaps greatly different from the normal material used, such as Kenya Crested Guinea in place of Teal. There is opportunity for a great deal of creativity here. Hand dipping feathers into various colors of dyes to get multiple tones of color, bleaching barbules off barbs, bending materials under pressure or heat are all ways to achieve either a match to a specific material or creating a different look. Peeling alternate barbs, inserting barbs into wing slips, mixing colors of floss all are ways of making some changes that may be subtle to striking. They may subtly substitute a part of the fly or they may alter it a great deal.

The last item of preparation I make before tying a Salmon fly is what I will call the "advance plan." Knowing what you are going to do long before you get there is crucial to the final look of the fly. If you can mentally picture the whole tying process of a fly in advance, wonderful. I find it beneficial to make sketches of the fly before ever putting thread to hook. A simple way of doing this is to photocopy the hook intended for use and make pencil sketches on the photocopy. If you are more artistically inclined you may wish to use tissue paper overlays with colored pencil as Steve Fernandez does. I prefer to make the sketch as close in size to the actual fly as possible so that I can place my sketch immediately behind the fly during the tying process for direct comparison. Rarely will the appearance of the drawing and the fly end up the same, but the proportions and materials placement it gives me are indispensable. Also it is easier to erase pencil scratches than it is to unwrap numerous warps of thread.