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nichalos82

Dry Fly Tie Tips- Keeping Dry Flies Dry?

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I am just curious if anyone has any tips they to add extra floating properties to their Dry Flies beyond the gel or paste on the fly while at the stream?

 

I know materials used are important as to whether the material floats or absorbs water but is there anything you might add during or immediately after tying a dry fly that gives it better floating properties and/or repels water more effectively?

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I've started using watershed this year. Takes 24hrs to dry so I treat my polyyarn while on the card. Then apply a very small drop-it runs quickly into dressings, to my fly and it makes gink on the water last a lot longer.

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Bear in mind that traditional dry flies don't float! (Buoyant flies, like poppers and deer hair bugs do float). Dry flies stand on the meniscus. Applying floatant of the gel type is done to locally change the properties of the meniscus around the fly, to make it support the fly better. If you are using a material for its buoyancy then it must be buoyant in the fluid in which it is immersed.

For example using foam for a parachute post. When a parachute fly is supported by the hackle laying on the meniscus the post is not in the water. The fluid it is immersed in then is air. Therefore to be any use for providing buoyancy it would have to be lighter than air. If you want to present the parachute by pulling it under and having it pop back up, then it is of some use. Otherwise it makes a mockery of using the foam that way for buoyancy. (Foam is also added to a parachute wing to "Blade" the wing, but this does not add buoyancy either, for the reasons given).

 

To increase the flies ability to stand on the meniscus you should think along the lines of spreading the weight of the fly over a greater area. Things like splitting or spreading the tails, and adding more hackle will do this.

 

Also using materials that don't wick up the water will help. A biot body, for example, will detract less from the flies ability to stand on the meniscus than an untreated dubbed body.

 

Not tips as such, but a way of thinking about what we are trying to achieve; I hope it helps.

 

Cheers,

C.

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Welcome Nichalos

 

Go to http://www.flyanglersonline.com on left side select Fly Tying.... scroll down and select Tying Tips. You'll have to search (bottom of page) for Dry Flies That Really Float. Interesting article by George Emanuel.

 

There was a lengthy thread on this topic about a year ago. Somewhere someone posted a tip for how to dry a wed dry fly using a rubber band. Maybe some of these guys have that post bookmarked.

 

While you're at it how about providing a bit more info about yourself in your profile. It helps people answer your posts if they know where you are, what you fish for etc.

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Great advice from Piker and Crackaig.

 

I pre-treat some dry flies with Water Shed, Fly-Agra (no longer available), Scotch Gard Outdoors, Rain-X, etc ... They all help float your fly, but they're not a magic bullet. A treated fly will float longer and recover from fish a little better, but flies eventually get too wet to float.

 

Some materials, like poly yarn, antron, some furs, will wick water and hold it on their outer surfaces. Floatants will help these materials repel the water. You can apply floatant at home or on the water. IMO, the home treatment is a little more durable and helps keep flies dry on stream.

 

Piker's tip for treating the whole card of poly is a great idea. Then you don't have to treat each fly. Some yarns like Para Post, Hi or EP Fibers come treated with Water Shed or a similar silicone.

 

To demonstrate what Crackaig explained, drop some untreated polypropylene yarn in water. It will float on top for a few seconds, but it will quickly "suck down" into the water with almost nothing above the surface. It won't sink to the bottome because Polypropylene is buoyant with a density lower than water, but it would do very little to help support your fly.

 

Now put some floatant on some poly yarn and drop it in water. Almost all of it will float above the water, supported by surface tension.

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Welcome Nichalos

 

Go to http://www.flyanglersonline.com on left side select Fly Tying.... scroll down and select Tying Tips. You'll have to search (bottom of page) for Dry Flies That Really Float. Interesting article by George Emanuel. ...

 

OMG - what a great archive of fly tying tips! I read FAOL all the time, but I forgot about these articles. You could spend a month in there and barely scratch the surface.

 

here's a direct link to the Fly Anglers Online Archive of Tying Tips.

 

and a link to Dry Flies that Really Float

 

Thanks FlaFly!

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BTW - has anyone tried Rustoleum NeverWet to pre-treat flies?

 

It claims to be super hydrophobic in their ads, but ... you know. Neverwet came out first in the big tubs for coating floors and wood, but now there are many versions including Outdoor and Shoe & Boot that might work better.

 

Plus I saw some on the clearance table at the local HW store. Mmmmm, clearance ..., must resist

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Tips?

#1: Make sure you get a high quality, 1x fine (wire), dry fly hook. The less expensive hooks do work, but they are heavier.

#2: Be prepared to pay up for dry fly quality hackle. You don't have to buy the most expensive hackle, but the good stuff does cost more.

#3: Choose body materials that resist absorbing water (already mentioned above).

#4: Make liberal use of floatant. If it is a past or gel, let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes before fishing (something most of us rarely do). If it is a powder, like Frog's Fanny, it is a desiccant that draws water away from the fly, and can be used almost immediately.

#5: Be sure to treat your tippet with floatant as well. An untreated leader can pull your fly under.

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I don't know about Rustoleum but I have heard of folks that use Rain-X (for car windows). Crack is right, a dry fly takes advantage of surface tension, just like real insects do. But once a fly gets soaked, it can't do that anymore until it is dried. Treating it with silicone or any other treatment is intended to keep it from getting wet at all, or at least not so quickly.

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Welcome Nichalos

 

While you're at it how about providing a bit more info about yourself in your profile. It helps people answer your posts if they know where you are, what you fish for etc.

I apologize for the broken profile but to answer your question... I'm brand new to tying and Fly fishing but I have tied some successful flies!

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