The hair was course, wiry, and a bit unmanageable. The hard fibers did not compress undo the force of the tying thread, and seemed to be subject to pulling out under what I judged to be normal force. Applying CA glue during the tying sequence reduced any chance of the hair pulling out. Along with an epoxy coated head, I was sure the durability of this fly would meet my needs. In the water, yak hair was surprisingly translucent, especially in the natural white and light colored dyed hair selections.
Durability is almost unparalleled in natural materials.
Baitfish fly patterns tied with yak hair have rapidly become some of my favorite patterns. I have found this fly tying material to be very useful for tying large bunker and herring patterns for striped bass, and for flies used in clearwater situations. I have tied some very productive patterns for uses in the cull behind shrimp boats and for a general baitfish pattern whenever chumming in open water. I prefer instead to use a straight long shank hook, like the Mustad 34011, and then bend it as shown. Note that the barb is mashes and the hook gap is opened slightly.