How to Dye Feathers Sunburst with Davie McPhail. 

Came for the feathers, stayed for your relaxing voice.

Very Nice Davie. Sunburst is a Beautiful color when mixing Fluorescent Yellow and Fluorescent Red. I will definitely have to try this. Thankyou for showing me how its done. Aloha.🌴🎄🎣

Hi Davie, Thanks for sharing this video on how to dye your own hackle feathers… Some great tips & techniques, regards, Wayne

I don't tie fly... but I have wanted to try dying some of the feathers I have collected from my birds. This is the best video I have found. Thank you.

Not only are you a world class tyer but a dyer too!

Thank you!!! Used your method to dye feather plumes for our SE Virginia high school marching band. And it worked like a charm. Saved us so much money!!! Thank you thank you

I've just got my first fly tying kit by veniard. I'm looking to watch a few more of your videos before getting to work, I can't wait for it tbh. Thanks for the great contents in your channel!

Wonderful video and very helpful to me. :) I have several ziploc bags full of white feathers that my neighbors roosters leave in my yard all the time. Now I can color them. :) I also have a lot of different colors of dye that I need to use up from when I was making tie dye shirts. - Heidi

Never tried dyeing for myself, but once again, you make it look easy. Love how there's no nonsense, it's straight from the hip, right bang in your home stuff, which just adds to the atmosphere of "we can do that!" You have been inspirational to the average guy with your laid back, but extremely informative narratives, and your, at times out the blue, witty quips which have us all peein' ourselves all the way to our vices. LOL Many thanks for posting and may your talent reward you. J

Great info davie thanks mate.

Another masterclass

Your voice is so relaxing

Hi Davie, I'm just using the Green Highlander dye from Veniard. Also its the Artic Fox that im dying that is already coloured, probably taken out the bath too soon. Im pleased to say that my experimental cape came out perfect! Thank you! Best Regards, ~David

Use the wife's hairdryer, just don't tell her. Brilliant 😂😂❤

Hi Davie. I also could use a link to the dye you are using. Thank you for all your great videos - I have learned a lot watching them. Thank you for sharing. All the best Erik

Great video Davie. I would like to see more like this. I would love to see your home fly tying desk too. Perhaps some information on the tools and materials you use. Thanks again for posting your videos. I check RU-vid daily for your videos.

Thanks Davie, Now to go annoy the mother until I'm allowed full acess to the sink. Wait till she smells the vinegar! I pretty much talked myself into salmon fishing next year from tying the your salmon flies as they looked liked a challenge! Cant wait for the 1st Feb, the start of the Irish Salmon season! The Munster Blackwater is a 2min walk from the back door. Thanks for the video, I'm sure I'll have another request for you by next week! Darragh

smashin Davie, I've not had the confidence to give this a try yet but in the new year I'll be giving this a bash with the old stand by pot that hasn't seen teh light of day for years. If your up in the Glasgow Angling center between Christmas and the new year I'll see you there. Hope you and the family have a fantastic Chrismas and a brilliant new year.

Hi Kim Krikau Jensen, It's the same process but I dye the feathers red then black to get a better black... All the very best Davie

@1968drum Daniel......the liquid in the pot is water ..the Vinegar is added ( from the bottle) at the end to set the dye

great video davie, only died fritz so far myself and was able to get some nice shades of sunburst the same way you done it, by mixing the two colours

Hello and thanks for your great videos. Can i ask you what type of dye can we use. I will be thankful for information.

works very well, I just died some ostrich plumes this way, thanks Davie!

Howzit going Davie. Hope You're Doing Well. I still watch you're Fly Tying Videos all the time. You're still the Best. I would like to Dye some (White & Badger) Strung Hackle Feathers to Sunburst, but I don't know which Brand to get. I buy stuff from the Essential Fly in the UK, and they sell Veniards Tube Dyes. Is this the same stuff you use? And what other colors of Dye are also you're Favorites? Thankyou Very Much Davie. You Take Care, Aloha🌴🏄‍♂🎣

Hi Davie Many thanks for this vid.i have been dyeing my own feathers for a while now and from your video i have been getting some processes wrong so big thank you for this.And would like to thank you for all your help in fly tying over the past year and wish you and your family a merry xmas. best fishes s.c

Hi Davie ,excellent video perfectly explained.I have followed your advice to dye a bunch of CDC feathers with amazing colours,ginger ,olive ,dark brown,claret etc but I did find that the dye used for clothing just clumped the feathers together so I think the Veniard way to go is the correct way ,how would you go about dying a grizzle hackle as I have purchased a cheapish one that I want to dye march brown ,cheers Davie ,keep them coming during this testing time

Davie you say theres nothing worse then dye on your fingers what about colour run on other flies 😂 boils my blood, great video yet again davie, Thanks Jay

Hi Davy - do you ever attempt dyeing whole capes? I find the skin to be very fatty even after a hot wash. Brilliant vid as ever btw

Hi carlo boni, It may not have dried out completely or you may have had it in the pot too long and it's went really soft..If you feel this is going to happen just allow the tail to dry out naturally after dying as the less you touch it the better...I'm glad you liked the videos.. All the very best Davie

Davie, question…..when you are dying the Scanfil darning wool yarn that amazing Sunburst color, do you recommend washing it with liquid soap as well as adding some directly to the dye bath to enhance the dye absorption, and do you bring the dye bath up to boiling or dye cold with wool ? Leonard 👍🎣👍

Hi Davie Can you send me the link for the dyes as well. regards Matthew Huggins

I am so glad you made this videoe because I was wondering how to do this.

Great video have you ever done a video on bleaching materials. Cant seem to find anything on how to do this.

Awesome vid as always Davie. I have a question, Can you re dye feathers if you are not happy with the first attempt? Think I mayY have added a tad to much of the fl red and wanted it to come out a bit more like a light olive color. Many thanks Mike.

Also, do you bother with fabric conditioner as some do, apparently.

How I love this Scottish accent! I hated it, when I first came to Scotland, but Scots are aswsome people and they simply changed my mind. To video - superb work thanks, Davie. What type of dye do you use? I missed is somehow from the video. Thank you. :-)

Thanks David, great stuff. I've been trying to dye marabou feathers with Iron Oxide but so far no success, do I have to boil it or just bring it to heat? Why did you mix the vinegar? Tight lines!

Very good video. Love all of your fly tying videos they are great. Could i ask what dye you use thanks.

Great fideo,One compliant.Please speak louder, or more into the mike. Thanks for all the great info.

Hi Davie Great video I was wondering how to do it. I will have to get some dies and try it out. On some cheap feathers first and then work my way up to the better feathers. Do you dy all your feathers and hair? Thanks for the Great Videos Chance

Could you make a video on how you dye peacock feathers for the quills for dry flies. Thanx

Great video Davie and very helpful thanks pal. Would the same procedure be used for micro barbed cock saddle hackles or is there anything i should be cautious of doing smaller finer feathers? I’m looking to dye some dun coloured hackles to a plain black but obviously don’t want to make a balls of it and have the barbs warp or fall off on me so I’ll give test one first. Would you recommend splaying out the barbs first before dying or leave them closed?

Hi Davie, Thank you for the excellent videos regarding the dyeing of feathers.I have also been keenly dyeing my own materials for a while now, with some success. I have recently purchased AK Best's book - Dyeing and Bleaching Natural Fly Tying Materials, and I noticed that he suggests adding the vinegar to the dye bath at the start of the process prior to adding the material.My understanding was that the vinegar acts as a setting agent so that the materials are colourfast, however in your video's you add the vinegar add the end of the dyeing process once the material has acquired the desired colour.My question is this;Does the addition of the vinegar halt the colour being taken up into the material, if so why would he add it at the beginning ?or is the time at which the vinegar is added irrelevant, as it merely acts to set the dye ?Hope I have put this across clearly. Best wishes and thanks again for the dyeing videos. There is not too much stuff out there on the internet about dyeing so it was greatly appreciated.Also, do you plan to do any videos on bleaching/colour removal ?RegardsLindsay

this is great, thanks for sharing! could you please share what kind of dye you use and where you buy it?

Hi Davie, Many thanks for doing this video. I tried it exactly as you said. Of course, I was very careful with the red, and used sparingly. Now that they are dry, they are still a bit too yellow. Guess I didn't use enough red. Is it possible to repeat the oricess and hit them with only the red, to make them more orange? Excellent videos - thanks (just don't tell them you borrowed their hair dryer - LOL!!)

If you were going for golden olive would you dye the feathers yellow followed by an olive?

hi, I would like to know what is the brand of the dye powder?

Davie, would the procedure be the same for dying bucktails?

HI Davie, hope you're well. Have you ever tried bleaching materials before colouring them? Curious to know what you think about it.

Hi David! Great video thanks for helping me with how to dye, I'm trying to dye some feathers for masks I'm making,but I have a question before I get started, what kind of dyes are you using? Are you using acid based dyes, like I could get to dye fabrics? I'm assuming it should be alright as it can leave colour on wool etc, but I wanted to ask first before I thew some money at this.

Hi davie have you got any tips for dying feathers primrose no one seems to have a dye close to the colour could you possibly recommend a blend of dye colours to get the best result thanks

what is that in the clear bottle you put in it after the color? :)

Hi Davie I have been tying flies for about 4 years now and i want to start dying my own feathers, i want to dye a grizzle cock cape olive is this the same process as in the video? Also i would like to thank you for all your videos they have helped me loads with patterns and techniques. Especially the bug bond its great stuff!. Cheers Richie, Newcastle

Davie, someone told me I have to soak a full skin overnight with dawn. Is that true? Secondly, I have some doubles on the pears all's silks and i want sone bright yellow. If I used peroxide to take some of the color our do you think it will dye? I know you dye darning yarn and I have had success with that. Do you put the whole tippet section with the crests into the dye after cleaning? Sorry to be a pain, but you are one of the only people that answer my questions. I do appreciate you time and can wait for an answer. All the best to you and God bless you and yours. Sean

Davie have you done a video on picric acid? It is hard to find the materials dyed with this so was thinking about doing it myself. Could you point me in the right direction by chance?

Thank you

Thanks for your response Davie, Do you mix these in any specific proportions to get the Rhode Island Red colour or is just a question of trial and error. I was thinking of using a Jacquard acid dye in the colour "vermillion" - any thoughts on that? Thanks again for your great videos and helpful advice. Alexander

Hi Davie soooo glad I found this video! Just wondering if you think this method would work with dark brown pheasant feather tails? :)

Veniard dye is expensive in Canada as I browsed. I saw also silver creek dye from ENGLAND are selling in ebay. Can you please tell me what brand of dye is the best for dying feather? I have no experience about dying feather, but looking at your video is not so difficult. Thanks for video

I did notice on a website for dying feathers your video and it has instructions at what temperature do you set the boiling water and for how long . And is critic better then vinegar.

Hi Davie, Do you know anyone or anyplace I can get natural materials for dying . Flat out tying this year and I’m trying to make things easier for myself 😄

Do you use a particular make of dye Davie? Thanks for posting the videos been interested in the ones using Bug Bond.

David it seems to me you are very good at this. Would you pleaseeeeee explaing how to dye peacock feathers. Actually I like to bleach them to Ivory color...How to do that.

Thanks mate.

Davie, Im currently Dying an old rubbish white cape Highlander Green but it seems to have got to a point then stopped colouring. I washed them in a Washing Powder and used brown vinigar, does this make a difference? Im scared to move onto the Artic Runner fur that i want to dye later as im using the cape as an experiment. I noticed that you said it may take DAYS?!? I've got no chance of being allowed to keep the gas cooker on for days! Can you offer any assistance? Thanks, ~David

Oops, No fideo involved! I ment to say VIDEO.

Nothing more than water and vinager? Someone told me he puts a dab of dishsoap also. What are your thoughts on that?

hey davie, ty so much for showing me, how you dy the feathers. i have darkbleu ostrich large plumes. i wonder if i can dy them to. if so, with what did you dy with? is it like a fabric dy, u use? im from holland so i hope i can find it here to! regards sophianne

Davie Im just curious what kind of dye are you using? Is it something that we can get or can you advise something that would work

Is it the same process with any dyeing? If I want to dye some feathers black.

Davie, If I'm going to dye whole capes or hairs and furs on the skin would you lay them out on some kitchen roll and allow them to dry naturally or just get in about them with the wife's hairdryer and hope she doesn't kill me when she finds out? tight lines bud, Jim.

Also, is it possible to dye whole capes like this? Because i don't know if the dye would get to the feathers in the middle of the cape.. Thanks, Mike

Hi Davie, They are a very weak green with a blue tinge. Very much like a weak turqoise. ~David

Hey Davie , what kind of dye are you using and do you know if clothing dye will work the same way.

Cheers Davie! I'll give that a go. One thing, i bought Artic Fox dyed Green highlander but its more of a bluish green. Looks nothing like the one in your video of the Highlander, can you dye feathers like this that are already dyed? I've got it steeping in Fairy Liquid at the moment and ill go ahead with the dying if you say it would be ok. Best Regards and thank you! ~David

Sorry pressed wrong button I was wondering if you could put a video up of how to die golden pheasant tippets thanks, daryl

Hi davie, is the liquid all vinegar, or is it mixed with water. peace love fish,Daniel

Hello Davie Have you by any chance tried to dye Rhode Island Red? If so, what colour/make have you been successful with? Thanks.

Hey Davie, Just me again, I got some blood marabou feathers, and as you said, the dye is getting all over my hands! Is it too late to rinse them and let them dry? I don't want to ruin them, but if I get as angry about my black fingers, that I couldn't get off for awhile, meaning no tying, I am apt to throw them out. Problem is, I have to buy them again and might buy the same problem. Thanks Sean

hi davie i have heard some rumours that people have gotten in to bad health when they dyed thier own materials so i was wondering if veniards dyes can cause health problems or if these rumours were false because i wud like to dye my own feathers. thank you

Hi Davie, Can u bleach the feathers white? If so, would you use hair bleach? Best Regards, Sabrina

Hi Davie Could you please tell me where to get the strung hackles especially the badger? I have searched online for veniard strung hackles but had no luck. I'd like to try dying different colours for the cascades and parks shrimp. Would these strung hackles still do for the smaller doubles too like 9s and 11s salars? Your videos really are such a big help, look forward to each one. Many thanks. Alan.

What brand of dye did you use? I have been wanting to dye my own feathers for a while now and it would really help me out

cool

Davie! How would I go about dying peacock or ostrich herl? Thanks I need some quills dyed.

Hi Davie, Excellent clip. I was wondering how long the process took please? Have you ever dyed a Cock Pheasant saddle hackle (Mrs Simpson feathers) as I am thinking about dying a Grizzle saddle hackle and the Pheasant an olive but are very uncertain. When you say e-mail link do you mean in the youtube inbox? Thank you for your help.

hi davie can I use food coloring or will the color come out when the fly gets wet?

EXCELLENT, Thanks Davie will be giving this a go later going to get the dyes in the now lol the sunburst looks amazing would you do this process for fox, goat aswel? thanks Kenny

What dye did you use like the brand name? Also could you tell me where to buy it. Thanks tight lines

Hey Davie would this work well for cream Metz #2 hackle?

And can i dye deer hair this way to?.

Hi what did u use to dye feather?what brand I mean

Can you tell me where to buy feathers at a good price in bulk?

What brand are your dyes?

dave Allan McClenaghan I'll go half with you for a1/4 pound of these fethers in this video

Davie, I was looking around for the strung badger. I can't seem to find it. Could you send me a link please? Thank you

You are using which dry??

Where do I buy the dye ?

Hi Davie Where do you get your dies and could you do this with golden pheasent?? Merry Christmas Fabregas9200

where do u get ur dye from?