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Thread: Been ask a Million times I bet, Best Fly Floatant?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Midland, Texas
    Posts
    162

    Default Been ask a Million times I bet, Best Fly Floatant?

    Last year I saw some posts on here about 'Frog Fanny' floatant being better than sliced bread and being one of Pavlov's Dogs went out and purchased TWO bottles of it. I am not calling anyone out with this or being critical of your judgement or use of this product. I am not nearly as good at fly fishing as some of y'all. I cannot get this stuff, the Frog Fanny, stuff to work. It will float a fly for one or maybe two casts and has to be reapplied. One of two things:

    1. Am I doing it wrong? Use the brush and rub the stuff in. Floats the fly once or twice.

    2. What is the NEXT best fly floatant?

  2. #2

    Default

    i never had much luck with the powdered stuff except as a fly drier. gink works best for me and i tried a lot of em.
    "There's more B.S. in fly fishing than there is in a Kansas feedlot." Lefty Kreh
    I can't say about fly fishing but there's a lot of feed lots in Kansas.
    Wes' Pattern Book
    http://www.flypatternbook.net

  3. #3

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    I stick with Gink as well. It's everywhere and works.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Western Washington
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    Default

    Mark,

    I use the dry powder silicon type floatants for really small flies. With the Frogs Fanny you need to jamb the powder into the hackles and body. When it comes in contact with moisture it forms gas bubbles that help keep the fly afloat. The gel type floatants can actually sink a really small fly.

    For most of my dry flies, I use a gel or liquid type floatant. Loon makes a good product as does Gink.

    For really large dry flies, I have found Mucilin to be a great products and a number of my guides use it as well.

    None of the floatants will work for a long time. There are a number of factors that cause a fly to sink. Foam from the top of the water, dirty leaders and tippets, fish slime from the fish you just caught, choppy water, wind action across the top of the water, hydraulics of the water pulling the fly and leader down...they all factor in.

    Larry ---sagefisher---
    Organizations and clubs I belong to:

    Fly Fishers International Life Member
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    President & Newsletter Editor--The Dead Drift

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  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Golden, Co. USA
    Posts
    798

    Default

    Tiemco's Dry Magic, 'cause it also works well on cdc.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Fort Wayne, Indiana
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    460

    Default

    Albolene.................

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Location
    Rothschild (Wausau), Wisconsin
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    Default

    FF is a water repellant. Once the fly gets eaten, the fly get water logged and you need to get the water out of the fly before reapplying FF.

    I use a traditional floatant like Aquel that soaks into the body of traditional flies, and I use Dry Magic on CDC. Then apply the FF. After the fly gets taken, I squeeze the water out with an artificial chamois, then I treat it with a desiccant FF combo like Shimazaki Dry Shake or Top Ride. The combination products will dry out the fly and coat the fly with the same material as FF. Blue Ribbon Floatant, that Loon Outdoors sells as re-filler for Top Ride, is the same material as FF.

    Floatants work by 2 methods, soaking into the spaces between dubbing and/or coating the fibers and feathers. FF cannot soak into the spaces between dubbing like gel floatants can. So use both methods.

    A third method is to "presoak" the flies in water repellants such as RainX or the old style (green can) Scotchguard. Spray the Scotchguard into a small capped bottle and soak the flies after you tie them, then place on a paper towel. Recap the bottle after use to save the Scotchguard.
    Regards,

    Silver

    "Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought"..........Szent-Gyorgy

  8. #8

    Default

    I have used the paste, which is silicon, for 30 years and it works very well on all dry flies. Various dealers including Orvis sell it.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    Mooresboro, NC, USA
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    1,061

    Default

    I use fumed silica on my dries. I mostly use a cdc comparadun style fly and the fumed silica has worked well for me. Usually I can get many casts in befre having to re-apply. After catching a fish the cdc will be soaked --- squeeze water out with your fingers, apply liberal amount of silica, work it in well with fingers or brush, and you're good to go. I fish with one fella who hates the stuff because you have to re-apply after catching a fish. My thinking is very simple ...... I'll gladly spend the time it takes to put on floatant for a fish.

  10. #10

    Default

    Hydrophobic Fumed Silica (brand name Frog's Fanny) is by far the best all around floatant, as it will work on anything, including midges, CDC, and hare's foot. To properly treat a fly, excess moisture needs to be removed. I use a commercial product called Shamadou, but a piece of Chamois works just as well. Once the excess moisture is removed, work in the FF with the brush. When used in this manner, there is nothing on the market that is any better.

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