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 Post subject: What fly tying varnish?
PostPosted: Sat Jan 14, 2023 7:25 am • # 1 
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Location: Italy
I'm talking about varnish to close the knots principally, on the head. I was used buy it in fisherman shops, but even the cheaper is darn expensive (for my opinion a varnish who cost at least 70 or 80 euro per liter is expensive). And it dries in the container too quickly, for me, so either you buy it back or you have to use thinners that solve the problem only for a short time.
Does anyone have any suggestions on more frugal products please?
zigo


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PostPosted: Wed Jan 18, 2023 4:34 pm • # 2 
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Sally Hansen Hard as Nails clear fingernail polish. I have a bottle that I have been using for over a year now. It’s pretty thick to begin with, but it hasn’t started setting up on me yet. Not sure of the cost at your location, I think I paid less than $4 here in the states at Walmart.


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 19, 2023 1:17 pm • # 3 
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Location: southern Brazil
There was a time when I used to buy head cement from fly shops, but for a long time now that has been substituted by clear fingernail polish of whatever brand happens to be the cheapest and most convenient to buy. I also became curious as to what would thin out fingernail polish when it started to get thick. Upon stopping in a shop that sells beauty products they sold me a small vial of banana oil, and it works fine.

Incidentally, have you ever had a problem with head cement clogging up the hook eye on your flies? Nowadays while tying I always have close at hand a small piece of wire to put into the hook eye before putting head cement (nail polish) on the head of the fly, for which I use the tip of a round toothpick.


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 19, 2023 1:27 pm • # 4 
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I often apply a couple of coats of "Glitter" Nail polish as head cement. I have a color resembling Krystal Flash #13 Mixed, a "Pearl" and a couple of other colors that provide just a little complimentary or contrasting (hotspot) flash to the head or bead. I trim a few fibers off the brush to get a finer brush stroke.


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 10, 2023 4:57 pm • # 5 
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Zigo,

A quart of clear nitro-cellulose lacquer will last a lifetime. I like the semi-gloss type. If you get the "brush" lacquer it tends to be less viscous and really soaks in to the threads.


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 10, 2023 6:49 pm • # 6 
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Location: The southern tip o' Texas
Most of my fly heads are colored with cheap nail polish from Walmart. Use the ones with the finest glitter; the coarse glitter leaves a lumpy head. I always seal them with Sally's Hard as Nails. I have been using Sally's for many years; it won't harden in the bottle on you. What it will do though (sometimes), is react with the glitter in some polishes when they are wet. Make sure the layer you are covering is dry before you apply the Sally's. Another thing it's handy for is hardening your flies for toothy critters. I tie mostly with .004" or .005" monofilament thread, and toothy fish like specks (salt water) or big reds have teeth that will penetrate the fly's body, and the monofilament will quickly unravel on you. I lay a base on the hook shank and coat it with Sally's. Every step of the tie I coat the mono. If I'm building a large head I will coat it in stages, so the following wraps are immersed in the wet Sally's. The result is a fly that won't unravel when a toothy fish penetrates the fly. I've had days where I caught over 100 specks on one fly; the craft fur / marabou / bucktail finally fell apart from the teeth but the monofilament never unraveled. That Sally's is some good stuff!


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 12, 2023 9:42 am • # 7 
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Jim, remember not to try and "lip" the specks. :lol


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 12, 2023 2:13 pm • # 8 
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LOL, a few years ago my buddy Jason and I were wadefishing in St. Charles Bay. I had a speck on and was working it in to grab it, when it jumped clear of the water and sunk those canines into my wrist. It hung on for a few seconds before it let go; if I'd brought a stringer I'd have invited that one to the RV for supper, and returned the bite with interest. Those little guys can chomp!


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 13, 2023 8:55 am • # 9 
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I was born and raised in New Orleans and caught literally thousands of specs over the years. But in 1978 I moved to Plano, TX and started freshwater fishing and catching largemouths, which you most of the time lip getting them into the boat. About 20 years later I visited my brother who lived in Back Bay Biloxi, MS with a dock on the water. I caught a spec and lipped it. OUCH!!! I had forgotten the basic rule of saltwater fishing - DON'T LIP THE FISH!!


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 13, 2023 9:54 am • # 10 
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Cliff Hilbert wrote:
I was born and raised in New Orleans and caught literally thousands of specs over the years. But in 1978 I moved to Plano, TX and started freshwater fishing and catching largemouths, which you most of the time lip getting them into the boat. About 20 years later I visited my brother who lived in Back Bay Biloxi, MS with a dock on the water. I caught a spec and lipped it. OUCH!!! I had forgotten the basic rule of saltwater fishing - DON'T LIP THE FISH!!

Ah...... the old Holy Thumb syndrome.......


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PostPosted: Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:29 am • # 11 
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More like the holey and sore thumb syndrome. :lol :lol


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PostPosted: Sat Oct 07, 2023 5:09 pm • # 12 
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I have used spar varnish thinned with mineral spirits for a long time. Varnish takes some time to dry and that one thing I liked about it. However, like others have said, it gets a hard film within a week or so and requires maintenance, thinning and mixing.
I have also used Sally Hansen’s. Like many here have already said, it requires little maintenance and it will last a long time. I like to apply Sally's when I want nice finished head.
Lately, I have been using CA products like Zap-a-Gap, or Loctite. I apply a light application with the applicator brush included with the product to the thread before whip finishing. These super glue products are something that we all use in out fly tying these days. So it’s usually at the fly tying desk. What’s more it’s a glue. It the last step in the tying process that adds to the long lasting durability of the fly. The other products that we have discussed are a finish coat.


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