For years I've been saving the tail feathers from the first and second pheasants I ever bagged. Rather than just have them laying around I'd like to inlay them on a fly rod I'm making for myself. I've made ten rods at this point for other people, but haven't gotten around to making my own rod until now.

I've read past discussions on how to inlay feathers on rods, but these don't mention using larger tail feathers. I figure I'm going to have to use just the tips of these, but I don't want to cut into them and wreck the feather if it's going to be too difficult to inlay on the rod. I get the concept of how to inlay, but I'm concerned about the shaft of the feather being too thick on these particular feathers. Does anyone have any experience with these? Advice? Suggestions?

The rod I'm making is a 7/8 wt. 9' fly rod I'm going to primarily be using to troll leadcore with for trout. I'm pretty excited about trying this new technique, but a little apprehensive too.

~ Jackie

Jackie, you might contact Russ at Golden Witch (A rodbuilding.org sponsor) he can provide you with the answers.

Thanks Phil, I'll drop him a line.

I was kind of hoping to get advice from some of you seasoned rod builders in this forum. You guys have given me great answers to my previous questions and I'm sure some of you have hands-on experience with feather inlays. Let me know if you think my idea will fly.

~Jackie

Jacki , I have never had any luck inlaying the shafts of feathers larger than a neck hackle , and that takes 3 or 4 coats of epoxy to cover up . I think you will be better off putting CP on the feather , and letting it dry , then use a razor and cut the barbules off the shaft .Kind of like filetting a fish .......cut the sides off , then lay them next to each other along the blank axis . I'm not sure how much of the bigger barbs you can get to form to the curvature of the blank , but it's worth a try. I have never tried this , but if I had to try , I would do this on the first shot........then ?
John

Got Fish ?

Sounds good John. I'm going to use just the top inch or two of the feathers, so the shaft shouldn't be as thick as the very bottom of the feather, but that's a good option if it gives me any trouble. I'm a little concerned about it.

CP is how I'm planning on sticking it to the underwraps prior to finishing it. Any tips for applying the first coat of finish to the feather without messing it up too bad? I'm planning to gently brush the finish onto the feather without the rod spinning. Once I get it pretty well covered I'll start the rod spinning and apply the finish to the rest of the area.

Should I put a layer of finish on the under wraps before adding the feathers or can I just put it right on the thread after using CP?

Thanks,
Jackie

Jackie,
I did a green pheasant tail buttwrap a while back. I did basically what John said. I permaglossed the feathers, then cut strips about 1/4" wide from them. I laid them down with CP, one at a time, heavily wrapped with mono. Then finished as usual. I enjoy the result, but it was a royal PITA.

Look under my name in the photo pages if you want an idea of what it will come out like.

Jackie:
I have found that the best way to lay a feather on a rod or thread wrap is to coat the surface you are sticking it on and then set the dry feather on. Let it dry before coating with CP (20-30 min). I have found that wetting the feather with CP to lay it on bunches the feather up and gives it an unnatural look. If using more than one layer of feather, coat the first and let it dry before repeating the process. I was very intimidated at first with feather inlays. I took an old broken rod and practiced until I felt more comfortable. The beauty of doing feather inlays is you can take it off and try again if you do not like the look (before you apply finish). I hope this helps.
Barry

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm definitely going to give it a shot. I have been looking at the feather inlays in the photo gallery and they're all pretty great. I'll take as much advice as you folks can give, and I'll be sure to post a photo of my first feather inlay once it's finished.

~Jackie

Another way is this. When I use long feathers I tape the tips and butt sections in place, then use diluted CP the secure the section between the tape. After comptely dried, remove the tape and coat those sections. When using tape I use masking tape and stick it too my pants a few times to make it "less" sticky so it doesn't "pluck" the feather when you remove it. I haven't had experience with the thicker stems, and can see where this could be an issue. SO like mentioned above. I would get them in place with CP or whatever. Put a coat of finish on, let dry and then shave the next day. If overlapping feathers, you may have to do this xxx many times for how ever many layers you have.
Hope this made sense.

I could use smaller more traditional feathers for this project, but I kind of like the idea of my first inlay on the first rod I've made for myself having some sentimental value. I think with the advice given here I'll definitely be able to put a process together that should work. If I get stuck I'll let you know. I won't be getting to the actual inlay for a few days, so any last minute advice is welcome!

~Jackie