What is the best method for cleaning floating fly lines? A real cleaning, a line off the reel cleaning. I tried searching this and came up with way too many possibilities. It would be great if there something on the beginning section.
Greg
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Bugsy
Thanks for the reply. Question: What do you mean buy “non-detergent soap”? Fly line is expensive and I just don’t want to screw it up. 
I use the above method with dish soap with no problems.
Some of my fly lines are fished every year for anywhere from 30 - 50 trips per year and some are over 8 years old without showing any problems.
I do apply line “cleaner” to the line when cleaned as above. That’s all I would add…
Here is a PDF on Scientific Anglers website about line care. Go to page 7 of 8. http://solutions.3m.com/3MContentRetrie … on=current
Used to do the sink routine, but it is a pain in the rear! While it works well, there is a MUCH easier way, and it takes me 2 minutes to do while I load up my gear at the end of the day at my truck.
You can get this stuff from our very own Dot Man at his website:
Been using this stuff for the past year, and I really like it. It works as well as, or better than any other line cleaner/slickening agent, and is the easiest and quickest to use. No cleaning method will help if you don’t do it, and since this stuff is so quick and easy to use, I actually DO use it each time I fish. It will actually remove additional dirt that you don’t think is there even after a thorough cleaning using the soap & sink method. YMMV…Ed 8)
I second the ZipCast after the bath.
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I’m not too compulsive about cleaning but lately I’ve been trying to “kill two birds with one stone”…I’ll stretch out the line so as to remove the memory and while it’s stretched out I’ll clean it…just walk back and forth with my cleaning rag/pad/towel.
Yup! I always seemed to end up with a tangled mess when using the sink. Now I just walk the line around the house (always making sure the cats are locked up!) and wipe down a few times with Ivory, non-detergent bar soap on a cloth, a swipe with clean water on a rag then back on the reel. For very skanky lines with the good coating like Rio with Agent X or SA AST, a swipe or two with the 3M pad brings a brand new finish to the top.
For regular coated lines, Agent X sauce, SA or Glide works wonders. The Rio and Glide work best if left to ‘kick’ for a few hours but they do seem to last a long time.
I also use the Zip Cast, but only for a quick cleaning on site. It doesn’t seem to last and doesn’t seem to take that much more dirt off than a water dampened rag would.
A guy I met who fished a lot of warm water, ie dirty, said to use a cheap cold cream to clean the line and treat it with dressing. Tried it a couple of times. Seemed to work pretty well. Not sure if it would cause any problems or not.
Mike
Jack Hise stated the answer I’d agree with. For many years I used the “gentle, mild soap” washing method, then rinsing, then drying. It’s good, but…
Zipcast is far simpler and makes the old method obsolete. It’s great! It’s now my favored line cleaner.
Bill
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I use mostly Cortland line. Cortland makes line cleaner. It is not expensive. Wouldn’t it make sense to use what the manufacteur suggests?
I apologise in advance, but I can’t resist…I still use Armor All Cleaner/Protectant on all of my fly lines from Cortland to SA, LL Bean, Wally World and my Wulff TT and have never had a problem. Lines fly through the guides too ! Ok, I’m ready for the onslaught. :))
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
Moose are out of season 
RW here,
I’m with Jonezee. Use Cortland line…use Cortland cleaner and conditioner. How simple is that?
RW
So is golf if you’ve got what I’ve got here right now !
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
‘Remember, the only thing that matters is what you think, because everyone else is wondering if you’re right.’
Naaa, that makes too much sense. I also change the oil in my car every 80,000 miles. The manufacturer says every 3,000 but I never had a problem yet…hold on…my car is smoking…I’ll get right back to you…
:roll:
…I clean my lines after every use when I get back to camp or home. I follow the manufacturer’s (Rio) recommended method and use a sponge, warm water & a bar of Ivory Soap. I made a gizmo to hold my reel securely while I strip off only the amount of line I used that day. I wash, rinse, dry and re-spool the line and the whole process takes me less than 10 minutes.
The results are a high floater that performs like it did when new.
Moose, RW here
Could you please clarify that sentence you wrote for me?
RW