how to keep thread from slipping while making a thread head

[redietz]

You didn't mention what kind of flies you're tying. All the advice above is useful, but not necessarily for all flies. For example, if you're trying to build up a head, say on a streamer (maybe you want to paint eyes on it) then minimizing wraps isn't the answer, but for most flies, it is.

A couple of other suggestions:

1) (This is idiotically simple, but it took me forty years to figure out) Turn the fly over. If you have a rotary vise, just rotate it 180 degrees. If you don't have a rotary vise, pop it out of the vise and invert. The thread is far less likely to slip off the eye if the eye is sticking up. If you follow the advice given above, you shouldn't need to do this very often, but as Buddy pointed out, all of us still crowd the head on occasion, even though we know better. (It seems more likely to happen to me if I accidentally cut the thread while trimming a hackle stem.) Use this trick in just such an emergency.

2) Sometimes when you're building up head on say, a bucktail, you get a little "step" where the bucktail ends. The same thing happens to a lesser extent with a quill wing on a wet fly. The natural tendency is to wrap over the top of that step to force it down. That just makes it worse. It makes the step all that much higher, and thread then slips forward off it. Resist the temptation to do the "natural" thing. Build up the head from the front to back; the step should be the last thing you wrap over.

[AlbaSurf]

Hi Albasurf,

If you are trying to build up a head, how you apply the thread can make a difference. I try to apply the thread in smooth layers. To do this, I first wrap down the material to get it firmly held in place, and then try to make a smooth slope from the hook shank up the head, forming a cone that is larger at the materials end of the head, and small at the hook eye end of the head.
....
All wraps are fairly tightly done, one wrap hard up against the previous wrap. As such you will usually end up with a strong thread head, with little tendency to slide down or creap off the front of the hook.

A few simple "don'ts" may help. Don't try to build up the head by wrapping "down" the head by starting the wraps at the material end of the head and wrapping toward the hook eye. Don't use loose thread wraps, keep the thread at least moderately tight as you wrap, a good rule all of the time while tying, not just will finishing the head, and I usually try to work just a little below the breaking point of the thead. Don't try to build up the thread by building up one spot at a time, again lay down the thread in layers. Finally do not try to make too steep of a cone shape toward the front of the head, rather a moderate taper will work better.

These may be too simple minded, and if so my apology.

I have great confidence that you will get this small problem under control quickly with just a little bit more practice.

Regards,

Gandolf

Gandolf,

Not to simple-minded at all! Thank you very VERY much for such a clear and wonderfully detailed explanation! I realized, through your description, and I was wrapping the the thread up the head, and then back down (which is when it would slip), instead of starting over all the way at the bottom! Eureka! Thanks so much!

Karli-Rae

[AlbaSurf]

You didn't mention what kind of flies you're tying. All the advice above is useful, but not necessarily for all flies. For example, if you're trying to build up a head, say on a streamer (maybe you want to paint eyes on it) then minimizing wraps isn't the answer, but for most flies, it is.

A couple of other suggestions:

1) (This is idiotically simple, but it took me forty years to figure out) Turn the fly over. If you have a rotary vise, just rotate it 180 degrees. If you don't have a rotary vise, pop it out of the vise and invert. The thread is far less likely to slip off the eye if the eye is sticking up. If you follow the advice given above, you shouldn't need to do this very often, but as Buddy pointed out, all of us still crowd the head on occasion, even though we know better. (It seems more likely to happen to me if I accidentally cut the thread while trimming a hackle stem.) Use this trick in just such an emergency.

2) Sometimes when you're building up head on say, a bucktail, you get a little "step" where the bucktail ends. The same thing happens to a lesser extent with a quill wing on a wet fly. The natural tendency is to wrap over the top of that step to force it down. That just makes it worse. It makes the step all that much higher, and thread then slips forward off it. Resist the temptation to do the "natural" thing. Build up the head from the front to back; the step should be the last thing you wrap over.

Genius! Yes to all of those things! Thank you!

[AlbaSurf]

Buddy, Kimba, Neil,

Thank you all so much for the great advice! I'm definitely going to use it and I'll post some pictures of before and after thread head pics!
lol