This incredible dry fly hackle began its odyssey in 1954 when legendary Catskill fly tier Harry

 Darbee generously provided Andy Miner with some of his Darbee hackle stock hatching eggs. 

  What resulted from  this gift was a pivotal event and foundation for the future of  genetic dry fly hackle.

 A  Minnesota lawyer by  profession, Andy Miner was also a meticulous, patient soul and through judicious 

 study, experimentation and perseverance bred a markedly better hackle rooster. In 1974 Ted Hebert of 

 Laingsburg, Michigan obtained the best of the Miner hackle stock. For the next twenty plus years Ted 

 Hebert continued the genetic selection as Andy Miner had taught him and further advanced the stock 

 in pursuit of ever improving hackle and beautiful colors.

Each pelt  is graded for the following items:

• Fine, supple quills...for neat, effortless wrapping.

• Freedom from web...for more strength and less absorbency.

• Uniform barb length...for optimal appearance and higher floating flies.

• High barb count...for more hackle per turn.

• High barb strength... for maximum support on the water's surface.

• A longer "sweet spot"...the area where prime hackle resides on a feather.

• Full, generous pelts... for excellent value and economy.

BRONZE- Excellent quality and adequate for most all tying.

SILVER-     Additionally strong in the overall length and density of the feathers.

GOLD-   Extremely high quality and high density of feathers, with particular emphasis on the hard to find tiny midge size hackle sizes in the cape or extraordinary feather counts in the saddle. For the most demanding fly tier.

PLATINUM-  For the collector. The pinnacle of genetic progress. Rare.