Chadwick's 477 -- a better substitute

[Morten]

Hi, just want to contribute with som info, on getting cheap cobber wires. I just got some, and it is excellent with all the different colors, if you want to create custom bug's. You get around 1 mile wire for the price of two rolls
of Ultra Wire!



https://www.scientificwire.com/

[Norm Frechette]

interesting but with the currency exchange and shipping from the United Kingdom its probably more economical buying and using ultra wire in the USA

[rsagebrush]

You can get most colors and sizes on Ebay and attractive prices.

[Morten]

interesting but with the currency exchange and shipping from the United Kingdom its probably more economical buying and using ultra wire in the USA

Maybe, I paid 2.7 $ for 200 yards. And as a mass producer of Killerbugs I have saved a lot of money compared to bying wire in a fly shop. I can only tie around 10 Killerbugs, with one spool of Ultra Wire BR!

[halh68]

I'm glad this thread got pulled back to the top. I've basically got one functional hand and am always glad to find more simple to tie patterns. I'll have to give this one a try.
Hal

[joaniebo]

Morten

"mass producer of Killer Bugs".... where?

Bob

[Morten]

Morten

"mass producer of Killer Bugs".... where?

Bob

In my living room actually, this month i must have tied at least 100. Gave most of them to friends. But the more I tie the bug, the more difficult it seems to reach perfection .

[Marty]

Phil thanks for a fascinating thread..... I've had my Mom on the hunt for that lot# for a while. She and her friend Anne are rabid knitters and sewers..... Not sure if it'll be better than the other lot I've got current ( I went to a local shop the day I first read your post). A fun fly nerd quest AND now a great reason to go take Mom and her friend for a great lunch

[64Emmons]

If cost is a factor for the copper wire, contact your local guitar pickup winder. He will have drums of copper magnet wire that are useless to him because there may be only 1000 or 2000 feet left and he does not want to splice wire -- it is too inexpensive to bother. If he is a master pickup repair person, he will have 38 - 43 ga in at least three shades of copper from shiny copper penny color to a wine color. He may have the poly coated wire in practically any shade, but that is more likely to be 42 ga.

About 40 ga copper with a Formvar insulation is what Sawyer used for his PT nymph.

[CNS Angler]

I just joined this forum specifically because I stumbled on it while looking for a Chadwick's substitute. I have to say that the Phil's article is by far the best I have come across on this subject. My question, Phil is : where did you buy the "Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine", color #1214 ("Steel Cut Oats"), dye lot #2J9711? I hope that specific lot is still available and if not, would you be willing to sell me some 10 yards from your skein? I assume you still have some left over...

[Norm Frechette]

all

I wish i could accommodate but I no longer have any more "free" packages of the berroco yarn to give out (every inch of yarn that I had was given out to tyers on multiple forums) but it can be found online by doing a google search for "berroco ultra alpaca fine steel cut oats #1214" (it is available for $9.95 at one site)

i dont think the dye lots will be EXACTLY the same code(s) as described in this thread but i'm pretty sure the fish will never know the difference between the "original" yarn and a "substitute"

happy tying

[SpringCreek]

CNS Angler

Drop me a note. I have 10 yards I can send you. A skien is more than a lifetime supply so I am happy to help out.

Jim

Jim


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[PhilA]

My question, Phil is : where did you buy the "Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine", color #1214 ("Steel Cut Oats"), dye lot #2J9711?

CNS,
I bought my substitute Killer Bug yarn (dye lot 2J9711) in two places:
1. Ebay seller "yarnbow" (http://www.ebay.com/itm/Berroco-Ultra-A ... xyzHxRL67M) and
2. Jimmy Beans Wool (https://www.jimmybeanswool.com/knitting ... CVID=21185).

On the other hand, I have *lots* of the yarn and would gladly send you enough for gazillions of Killer Bugs. Just send me a board message with your address.

Killer Bugs definitely work well here in Wisconsin, especially in the spring...

[WiFlyFisher]

PhilA, as a fellow cheesehead and FF friend I thank you for your dedication and for the Chadwick's 477 yarn substitute you sent to me quite a while ago.. it does work!

Now if you can do the same for me for finding a great substitute for the fur from a ram's testicle I would be forever grateful.

[DrLogik]

WiFlyFisher,

Now if you can do the same for me for finding a great substitute for the fur from a ram's testicle I would be forever grateful.

No need! You can get the real deal, if you know where to go!

PM me for the URL.

Robin Nistock is who you need to ask. Explain what you want. Trust me, she already knows all about "Tups Wool" and our fly tying needs for the namesake fly. A few of us have ordered from her in the past. She'll get you that fur from that region and it will be the real deal. She will even include a How To on how to clean it. Yep, you get to do the dirty work.

Believed me when I tell you, this ain't no ordinary wool fur, buddy!

Grant

[WiFlyFisher]

WiFlyFisher,

Now if you can do the same for me for finding a great substitute for the fur from a ram's testicle I would be forever grateful.

No need! You can get the real deal from these folks:

Robin Nistock is who you need to ask for. Explain what you want. Trust me, she already knows all about "Tups Wool" and our fly tying needs for the namesake fly. A few of us have ordered from her in the past. She'll get you that fur from that region and it will be the real deal. She will even include a How To on how to clean it. Yep, you get to do the dirty work.

Believed me when I tell you, this ain't no ordinary wool fur, buddy!

Grant

Grant, awesome!! I sent her an email.

A few years ago on top of Mount Wasburn in YNP I was close to a ram and my wife asked me why I was staring at the ram's butt. It's for an old fly pattern that..... Well you know the sick look she gave me.

[flyfishingpastor]

John;

C'mon, now! There is NO substitute for ram's wool (from the testicle area)! Robin Nistock can hook you up - but as Grant said, she SURELY won't clean it for you. Or, at least, she wouldn't. I haven't finished therapy from my last/only go-round with Tups Wool, so I haven't checked back with her.

But, luckily I have enough left for the rest of my life. Trust me. I'll MAKE it last!

Pat

[WiFlyFisher]

Pat, getting my hands dirty doesn't bother. But getting the real thing from a ram's testicles gives me bragging rights... It's better than a Cree neck!

[flyfishingpastor]

John;

WAY better than a Cree neck!

Pat
P.S. DO NOT CLEAN IT INDOORS. Sure, it would be easier. But just DON'T! Your down-wind neighbors might sue, but better that than what will happen if you do it indoors.

Oh, and, you shouldn't get your hands dirty. I used a set of my wife's aluminum salad tongs (that she threw away - along with all her favorite wooden spoons that I didn't use but were in a jar right by my little experiment). But everything you eat for a week will taste like urine stained, crap saturated wool from a ram's testicles. Go figure. That stench just doesn't go away without a fight. Well, not without having all the carpets in the house cleaned. Twice. And, replacing the curtains in the kitchen. I thought my wife was going to burn the house down to get rid of the smell. Frankly, I'm kind of disappointed that she didn't. At least then I could say, "Oh, sure, you give me holy hell for trying to get some decent dubbing to tie some flies for YOU and you burn the house down because of a little vomit-inducing stench? Give me a break!"

[DrLogik]

flyfishingpastor is not over-stating the seriousness of the odoriferous bouquet that this type of wool gives off.