In October 2020, Semperfli released a range of awesome new products, one of which is their fantastic Kapok Dubbing.
Kapok, so I read, is a cotton-like material found in the seed pods of the Ceiba pentandra tree. This fluff-like material absorbs water very slowly and as such, lends itself perfectly as a pretty awesome dry fly dubbing.
Man-made dubbings can sometimes be a little tough to work with due to their longer, synthetic fibres. The Kapok dubbing, however, is absolutely wonderful; soft, short, natural fibres which are easy to tease out, it can be used sparsely over a thread under-body (giving mobility yet allowing the thread’s colour to push through for a more lifelike translucency), or it can be dubbed more thickly, allowing you to enjoy the full benefit and colour mix of the dubbing itself.
One example of the new Kapok dubbing is shown below in the form of a lovely soft hackle.
- Hook – Partridge of Redditch Standard Dry (SLD2), #12
- Thread – Semperfli Waxed Thread, 12/0, Rust
- Tails – Whiting Farms Coq de Leon
- Body – Semperfli Kapok Dubbing, Adams
- Rib – Semperfli Waxed Thread, 12/0, Rust
- Hackle – Whiting Farms Brahma Hen, natural
Disclaimer – I am a member of the Semperfli Pro Team; however, I never promote materials or products blindly. All products mentioned throughout this blog are those I have tried and tested extensively, I use in my own day to day fly dressing, and those which I am confident others will find useful.