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Sonoman

Color fast tying thread

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I am looking for fly tying thread, 70 or 140 denier, that will maintain its color when coated with UV or head cement.  Does such a thread exist?  When tying some Perdigon flies and shad flies, I was looking for a bright red collar with some "pop".  When I applied UV cement to the Wapsi Ultra Thread 140, the color dulled and disappeared.  For grins, I tried a couple wraps of some old "A" size rod-wrapping  thread, I believe it was Gudebrod "NCP" (No Color Preserver) thread from when I built fly rods many years ago, and it gave me the color contrast I was looking for and it remained very bright under the UV cement.  Sadly, I am about out of that thread, plus "A" thread is tricky to use on a size 16 fly to manage bulk.
 
Does somebody make a thread that does not dull when cement is applied? Here is a photo of the same Perdigon thread-body fly, tied at the same time, one with red Ultra Thread wrapped over a black Ultra Thread body and the other using the "A" size rod wrapping thread over the same Ultra Thread body  You can see the Ultra Thread does not show any red, except if you look closely you can see a small piece of the tag end that did not get trimmed tight.  The other thread, which I am would like to buy more of, is bright.  This photo was taken in direct sunlight. 
 
I bought some rod wrapping color preserver to try, but it's difficult to keep on just the head, it's an extra step, and it only worked so-so.  What do you recommend to maintain bright colors under UV or head cement?
 
 

Perdigon.jpg

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try glo brite threads

Glo_Brite_Floss.jpg

or 

uni stretch for the hot spot

hareline-uni-nylon-stretch-floss.jpg

 

or entirely white thread and color with a marker

if you used a dark color thread for most of the fly and then tie on a red thread for the collar, it will darken because of the dark thread underneath

red is a shitty color anyway. i muse red on some salmon and steelhead flies and it always darkens when wet

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Your problem might not be the thread, but the fact that you wrapped the thread over black thread.  The red thread didn't lose its color, it became translucent and let the black show through.  More layers of red thread, or maybe a layer of white thread before the red, should prevent the red from looking duller after finish is applied.

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Two things I have done for the past 15 years or so:

 

I no longer use anything but White thread.  ONLY when I am tying black nymphs or streamers,  will I use my 20 year supply of NYMO black thread.  I use water-based rod varnish or polyurethane varnish on all my heads.  I can color the head any color I need with a marker. and often use a Gel Pen to make a brighter area.

  

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Here's two things to try - with the thread you have.... as noted above, tied over white materials or white thread,  that red thread will show pretty well as the color you're wanting ( I do a ton of basic saltwater bucktail jigs using white bucktail - and the red collar always pops (to add to that effect I'm using fl. red, in a nylon thread).  Here's a pic or two... 

PYiYsb5.jpg

wCTC9P8.jpg

Here's some clouser style flies (fl. red thread over polar bear wing)

The other "trick" I'm using is that none of what you're looking at has any head cement or other finish applied - the only thing I'm using is a thin super glue instead (original Krazy Glue) applied as sparingly as possible.  One of the benefits is that it not only secures everything (understatement) - it also acts as a thread sealer so applying head cement or those popular UV finishes over it after it dries, doesn't effect the color of whatever thread you're using... 

Hope this helps... "Be a hero - take a kid fishing"

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I don't tie Perdigon flies, but I do want to have a clean body color when I'm tying my soft hackles.  I've used white thread, but it usually takes a couple layers to keep the hook shank from showing through.  I've taken to using metallic threads silver, gold and pearl as the base thread before wrapping the floss.  They'll highlight the colors and add a bit of sparkle/flash to the fly.  I coat the bodies with thin UV resin to increase their durability.

Color preservative can be thinned.  It will dry quicker, and rather than just applying it to the head area, apply it to the whole body.  As already mentioned use a brighter color red.

Super glue.  I use that for my heads on smaller flies.  The only problem I've had with it is when I've used yellow thread.  For some reason, and I not sure why it bleeds red.  It might be the brand I'm using though I've used a couple of different brands.  It's an interesting effect, and can be useful.

As far as jigs and Clousers, especially if I'm doing two or three color ones,  I've been using clear polyester thread when I tie them.  It's not as bulky as regular tying thread, and lets the material color show through.

BRclousers1.thumb.jpg.046a09fd407e8e0f1d5998434398d900.jpg

DSCF1058.thumb.JPG.124d8a08ac62b33327892572ff532dcd.JPG

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Bit late to this thread, but I thought this might help someone else. You could try brushing your thread wraps with color preserver that rodbuilders use to keep the color before applying clearcoat to the wraps. To my knowledge is does darken slightly, but keeps it from going  completely dark.

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