Floatant

[JohnP 0]

I'm old enough to remember when Gherke's Gink was the cutting edge of fly floatant, but it seems that things have changed since Heck was a pup. I have been using some other brand of paste floatant, but the stuff is hard to get out of the little container when it's cold and doesn't seem to work all that well.

All of this is leading up to a simple request for some recommendations for a good fly floatant. What are some of you using?

Thanks,

John

[CoachBob 0]

albolene at cvs

$12 for a lifetime supply

[Chase Creek 0]

CoachBob beat me to it. been using it for years, works great! And at $12 for a lifetime supply, WHAT A DEAL!!

 

SHHHH! Don't let the secret out!

[stonefly1 0]

Make-up remover / facial cream???? Who would have known! Thank for the tip!

[JohnP 0]

Albolene, eh? I had never heard of it, so I did a google search and got some, uh, interesting results ... :bugeyes: Apparently it has more uses than I would have thought. Is there a particular form of the substance that works best ... for floating flies?

Thanks,

John

[Marc Veeneman 0]

Albolene, eh? I had never heard of it, so I did a google search and got some, uh, interesting results ... :bugeyes: Apparently it has more uses than I would have thought. I

 

 

Already have some. We use it on the bottom of the pedal boat and the sailboat to prevent algae buildup. It's the best thing we've found for that, and very affordable.

 

So, yes, it does have even more interesting uses -- besides diaper rash.

[MowestFlyfisher 0]

Albolene, eh? I had never heard of it, so I did a google search and got some, uh, interesting results ... :bugeyes: Apparently it has more uses than I would have thought. I

 

 

Already have some. We use it on the bottom of the pedal boat and the sailboat to prevent algae buildup. It's the best thing we've found for that, and very affordable.

 

So, yes, it does have even more interesting uses -- besides diaper rash.

:hyst: thats awesome been trying to find something to keep the algae off of the boats we have and can't believe that it works as a floatant i have one question do you let it dry or wet when fishing it

 

[Zedd 0]

I've been wunathemdamn lerckers, having been outta fly fishing for about 30 years. I have recently gotten back into it and my, how things have changed. I have been using ginks, and it don't work worth a hootenannie. I will try some of this stuff. It can't do any worse.

[Horseshoes 0]

I put my dry flies in a box and spray them with scotch guard, let them dry and air out. no oily scum. the box is so they won't blow away by the aerosol, learnt that one the hard way. :hyst:

[lykos33 0]

I carry a pill bottle with a few cotton balls in it. Squirt a shot or two of "rain-x" in the bottle before leaving the vehicle and when I put on a fly, I drop it in the bottle and shake the bottle around to coat the fly. If the fly stops floating I just retreat it....seems to work ...cheap...easy. I would go the abolene way , but , I can't find the stuff here...

[CoachBob 0]

Based on another flyfisher's recommendation I bought Alboline years ago and am not close to running out. You can find it at any drugstore and what you want to do is open the jar and put it in a shallow pan of hot water...the jar not the contents. This will liquify the contents for pouring in a small squeeze bottle or two or three. As soon as it cools it will return to a jelly state. Squeeze a little on your fingers to apply. Your body heat will make it more liquid. One application lasts a long time -- longer in cold water than warm.

[MowestFlyfisher 0]

Based on another flyfisher's recommendation I bought Alboline years ago and am not close to running out. You can find it at any drugstore and what you want to do is open the jar and put it in a shallow pan of hot water...the jar not the contents. This will liquify the contents for pouring in a small squeeze bottle or two or three. As soon as it cools it will return to a jelly state. Squeeze a little on your fingers to apply. Your body heat will make it more liquid. One application lasts a long time -- longer in cold water than warm.

 

 

Good to know Coach

 

 

 

[utyer 0]

I'm old enough to remember when Mucilin was "state of the art" line dressing and fly floatant. The first fly floatant I ever used was something my dad taught me to "cook" up. He simply lit up a candle, and let the wax drip into a small vial of solvent. DON"T try this at home. I can't remember exactly what solvent was used (just as well.) We would tie the fly on the leader, drop it in the jar and shake it up. The solvent would dry off leaving a fine coat of wax on the fly.

 

Today, I use Abolene cream, which I warm up and pour into old floatant bottles I have mostly picked up empty along one stream or another. I first started using it in the late 70s, and am still working on my first jar.

[perchjerker 0]

utyer:

 

That "solvent' was most likely white gas. Been too many years since I read their works, but I seem to recall that it was Ray Berg and/or George Leonard Herter who recommended dissolving canning wax or candle wax in white gas to make a good dry fly and line floatant.

 

Forget about going to a service station today and asking for 'white gas'! (You would NOT believe the dumb looks you get.) You can use Naphtha or Lantern Fuel, as they are very similar to white gas chemically, to make your own. I still make it using naphtha for waterproofing my furled leaders before dressing them.

 

For the benefit of the younger members, 'white gas' is the pure, unadulterated distillate that, with the additives, we call gasoline.

 

DO NOT use either of the mentioned solvents anywhere near an open flame or lit cigarrette, cigar, or pipe, as both are HIGHLY FLAMMABLE!!!

 

perchjerker

[utyer 0]

Perchjerker,

 

You are probably right. I seem to remember the lesson was part of a camping trip. White gas was pretty common back then, and we had several camp stoves, and lanterns that burned that or "Coleman" fuel. After moving to Utah in 57, we didn't do much fly fishing at all. It wasn't until 65 that I went up to Jackson Hole and started again. By then Mucilin was what all the shops sold for fly floatant. All my old vest has a greasy pocket where I kept the tin. I know we didn't have any Bergman books around, but there was always a Herters catalog in the house.