what brand/type of epoxy is being used for tying flies? Isn’t an epoxy a mixing of two components that chemically react and therefore has a certain working time before setting? so then do you apply all of the epoxy mixture to completely already tied flies?
I don’t know the brand name but I buy 2 kinds, 5 min and 30 min (working times). It depends on what you are doing as the kind to use. Your correct on the 2 part mixture.
It usually makes sense to have multiple flys tied to the point that requires the epoxy so you only need to mix it once.
Lately I have been using Loon UV knot sense. It’s a one part that uses UV light to cure. Works great but costs considerably more than epoxy.
I was taught in the mid 80s to use a bit of head cement. So far only three flies have unraveled their finishing threads. I’m not sure if it’s a case of something I did or rough treatment from a fish. I’m not a fast tier. After my dad died, I lost interest until last year when I realized the cost of flies between DH and our kids was starting to cramp the budget.
Okay, ignorant question of the day: Can cement and epoxy be interchanged?
Diane, I guess you could use epoxy for head cement but it would be messy just to cement the heads on flies. I am so clumsy I always get head cement in the eye. If the expoxy dried it may be tough to open it back up.
Bill
Epoxy is used on large head flies such as streamers . Some add stick on eyes before coating others will paint the eyes after. Dont buy the twin tube epoxy,if you do separate the two for better mixtures. The two bottle type works best and can be bought in a 2 oz size (5 min) at model air plane stores. Usually one would tie several flies and dry them on a dryer motor. DianeAD head cement is used on smallier flies to seal the threads and is not neaded if you whip finish 4 times. You can also use clear nail polish.
Bill
Thanks, William,
That’s what I do: use it over threads.
In the UK we use a 5 minute epoxy called Devcon (which I believe originates in the US). Its clear and fast drying. Its used mainly on the bodies of Buzzer patterns, and once applied it is air dried on a slow turning wheel, so it doesn’t run or blob.
Occasionally I use it to build up bodies on fish fry patterns, often mixing it with glitter or something to produce realistic scales on the fish…
I would never use it on heads. Its applied very quickly after mixing, usually to several already tied flies. You do not get long to apply it!!
[This message has been edited by mickporter (edited 31 March 2006).]
I use epoxy for certain patterns, copper johns, epoxy scuds, etc. I have found that some brands are more clear than others. Some turn a bit yellow with age and some will be slightly foggy.
The Devcon brand works well and comes in both 5 min. and 30 min. (2-ton) I use the 5 min. stuff for most applicatons where I want it to sit on top, the 30 min. when I want it to ‘soak in’ like a bullet head bucktail fly.
You need to use some kind of a rotation device to keep the epoxy evenly distributed while curing. You can hand rotate the faster setting types, but it’s a pain. I have a BBQ motor with a cylinder of foam attached. I stick the fly into it and let it spin until cured.
Due to the limited working time I like to process flies in batches. I tie up a dozen or so and apply epoxy to them all at once. Depending on the pattern the epoxy is applied to a finished fly, or to a fly at a certain stage of construction. Depending on current temp & humidity the 5 min. epoxy gets too stiff to work with in about 2 min. the 2-ton (30min.) has about 15 min. working time.
There are one part epoxy substututes on the market, such as Loon’s Hard Head and Softex. I find that these products are not as transparant as the epoxy. They also have a limited shelf life after being opened. The epoxy will last for years in the tube if stored at moderate temps.
Be careful not to mix up the color coded caps on the epoxy tubes/bottles. Mixing the caps will cause the contents to cure.
[This message has been edited by kengore (edited 31 March 2006).]
I use a the Devcon 5 minute epoxy for most of my epoxy flies. I’m not mass producing flies so I’ve moved away from the 30 minute stuff and the dryer to tying up a dozen then spending an hour or so applying the epoxy and using my rotary vise to rotate them. That answers one of your questions. The epoxy is applied after you’re finished tying the fly.
I find I can better control the shape of the head on a fly by doing them individually, and on a fly like a Surf Candy, where the body is epoxy you almost have to do them one at a time.
There are some alternatives, like Softex(too toxic for me)and Loon’s Hard Head that have already been mentioned. You can use UV Knot Sense, for small to medium heads. Silicone is another alternative for heads, and to a certain extent bodies.
I use the Devcon epoxy in both 5 min and 30 minute varieties. I like the 30 minute better because it gives me the time to epoxy several flies before it gets too thick to use. The 5 minute works well for small jobs, but I find that over time, it tends to yellow more and a bit faster than the 30 minute epoxy. One thing I strongly recommend is that you get the two separate tubes rather tahn the double barrel tube. You can control the amount of epoxy much better with the two tubes and it’s much easier to get the proper proportions.
Jim Smith
Z-Poxy, found in most hobby shops and in some fly shops, is a really good fly tying epoxy too. Come in two bottles and is mixed 50/50. They make a 5-minute cure version of Z-Poxy and a 30 minute cure version.
I like to hold the fly in forceps and hand turn them under a lightbulb to snap cure the epoxy when using 5-minute. If I use the 30-minute epoxy, i’ll carefully coat the fly heads and then place the wet batch of epoxied flies on a turning wheel so that the coating does not slump during the 30 minute cure cycle.
Interestingly, I have abandoned the use of te expoxies for the easier to use UV curing polymers such as Loon Products UV Knot Sense. I use a UV flashlight to effect cures in 5-10 seconds. And the UV polymer is gin clear. I overcoat it with SHHAN for a really nice fly head or scud back…
Rich
Flymaker2; What is shhan?
bobb thanks
I thought UV Knot sense was the answer to messy epoxy, but it turns dull. When you fish, the shiny coating washes off your fly. I now just use black thinskin and a strip of pearl flashabou for wingcases, without the epoxy.
sunbob - SHHAN is “Sally Hanson’s Hard As Nails Fingernail Polish”
Greg F - Since I do coat the cured UV Knot Sense with a SHHAN, it does stay clear. Otherwise-as you stated…
Rich
[This message has been edited by flymaker2 (edited 02 April 2006).]