Do You Pretreat Your Dry Flies At The Tying Bench?
- Thread starter Old406Kid
- Start date
I often do. I've used Loon Hydrostop with good effect and am currently using something that I got from Sportsman's Warehouse. I'll add a picture in a bit.
I used to use a cortland spray I really liked. Latley I've tried a loon paste and some liquid something. Don't care for either. Anymore I'd just a soon have my dry sink, I get more fish that way.
There are a lot of floatants around. I used one called Moose Snot. Got it at Uncle Bob's just outside of Dillon. But it's not called Uncle bob's anymore. I haven't been down that way in a while. Not to sue what's it called now. I have used one put out by Loon, Costs almost 10 bucks a little bottle. It works good. I know that I have used a lot of different kinds over all the years I've been fly fishing.
^^^^!
I haven't been tying flies to fish specifically as dries a lot since I took up Tenkara in 2018, but I keep a bottle of floatant on my bench to daub on my fingers to help spin hair dubbing onto tying thread. It probably helps a bit. I also use a lot of synthetic hydrophobic dubbing and yarns that also help. On the stream my floatant is buried in my pack.
I think the OP is asking about permanent waterproofing treatments that are applied right when the fly comes off the vise. For on the stream treatment, I like Gink or Frogs Fanny.
Someone needs to pay more attention.
When I first started out in this sport I used something made by Garcia. It was liquid in an hour shaped bottle. You put your dry in the top and invert the bottle for a few seconds take it out of the bottle tie it on and go fish. Floated flies like a cork. Don't know if you can get it anymore.
Old406Kid
Legend
My bad, I edited the title.
I like Dilly Wax in a tube from the UK that I first got from Doug Swisher's (co-authored "Selective Trout" with Carl Richadrson) website who claimed it's the best he'd used. It's a little hard to find but still available in the US.
But Dilly Wax (and anything else I've tried) is nowhere near as good as "Bergman's Formula" (paraffin melted in naphtha) from his book "Trout". I just wish the "medium" wasn't so volatile; I can't find mixing or onstream-sized bottles for the mixture that prevent the naphtha from evaporating.
Old406Kid
Legend
Hell, I'm even old enough to remember that... it was good stuff at the time.
Old406Kid
Legend
I have some Flyagra which is nearly the same so will try pretreating a few with it.
Talk about getting caught with your pants down...as I was typing this my wife started talking to me and then said "you're not listening".
My reply was "I'm listening...what did you say?"
Even she had to laugh.
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For years I have used some stuff called Watershed. Just a tiny bit on the fly and once it dries overnight it is ready to fish.
The Loon stuff called Lochsa is proving to be real good also, it is a fly treatment that can also be used on CDC. I don't wait until I need it, instead put in on the fly once it is tied. About a month ago I tied up 3 size 16 midge parachute patterns using fine grizzly for the hackle. I treated each one with the Loon product then tossed them in a glass of water to see how long it would take them to sink. Still floating high and dry weeks later.
The Loon stuff called Lochsa is proving to be real good also, it is a fly treatment that can also be used on CDC. I don't wait until I need it, instead put in on the fly once it is tied. About a month ago I tied up 3 size 16 midge parachute patterns using fine grizzly for the hackle. I treated each one with the Loon product then tossed them in a glass of water to see how long it would take them to sink. Still floating high and dry weeks later.
I had an old bottle of watershed, the kind you squeeze to get some drops out, and the plastic got brittle and the bottle shattered in my hand, covering me and my work area with the silicone stuff. I never bought it again.