I’ve never used UV stuff before. I’m looking for something I can repair waders with and also use for fly tying. Can anyone suggest a curing light, etc.? Are there any kits that you prefer or is it better to buy things individually?
I really don’t think it would work for wader repair. I use it a lot and it’s not as bulletproof as epoxy. If you used it on waders you could probably just chip it right off. Better a product designed for that use or the ones included with most waders unless you’re like me and lost them long ago. I love it for fly work at the desk for glossy heads and some bodies. Also the wingcase on nymphs. The heavier mixes will not set tack free. For wingcase I like to make a hump with the medium product, then color it with magic marker and finish with Silver Creek UV which will set tack free with my light. I’d probably shop ebay for a kit with light and starter products to get you going. Not cheap but great for the right uses.
I 2012, I punctured a spot on my pair of older Simms G3 waders, just above my left knee on Hot Creek. Walked into Ken’s Sporting Goods in Bridgeport, CA and my friend Jim Reid, who owns the joint, put a good heap of this on the outside layer:
[https://catalog.theflyshop.com/product_info.php?cPath=81_210_215&products_id=1235
T](https://catalog.theflyshop.com/product_info.php?cPath=81_210_215&products_id=1235)hen he hit it with this for a minute or so:
https://catalog.theflyshop.com/product_info.php?products_id=7583
He told me to walk around in the sun for awhile for it to fully cure. Then, later that evening, I AquaSealed a Simms patch on the inside of the puncture…put 'em on the next morning and the Loon has never “chipped off” and the waders haven’t leaked at that spot…Both are now a standard part of my FF kit
PT/TB
I don’t know about using this for water repair, but here is info on UV items for fly tying that has gotten good reviews:
I recently bought both of these resins, the high powered uv light and the laser light from this man, but have not used them enough yet to provide a personal recommendation on them.
John
I keep a tube of the wader repair in my vest, just in case. Don’t need a light, just apply in shade, then put the patched part in the sun. Have used it for flies, but never really got the hang of applying it. Have heard it chips off a fly if it hits a rock, but can’t testify to that.
I’ve had success with Loon’s UV Wader Repair. Put a dab inside and out, hit it with light, ready to go in minutes instead of hours with Aqua Seal types.
I am the Silvercreek of UV resin that John bought. UV resins can be used for emergency wader repair, for coating knots, coating and unraveling rod guide wrap, etc. I have, infact, repaired a barbed wire hold in my waders with my resin and a guide wrap.
However UV resins are acrylics and because they are acrylic they are not as flexible as the urethane products like Aquaseal that are designed for sealing fabrics like waters, tent seams, etc. Depending on where the repair is on the wader, the UV repair can last a long time; but I would use UV products for emergency repairs and do a proper repair with Aquaseal.
I developed my resin for my own use and to give to friends after CCG did not cure tack free. I began selling it when fly tiers asked me to provide it to them.
Planet Trout, good to point out the wader repair UV. I’ve only used the stuff designed for fly fishing and would assume something they label for wader repair is going to do the job. Thanx for pointing that out. Might have to go in my kit also. As for Silver Creek’s products, hard to find any as good, let only better. Don’t think it’s out there though a lot of people are happy with other products too.
This will speed up the AquaSeal curing process to just about 2 hours. I use it for overnight repairs:
https://www.mcnett.com/gearaid/aquaseal-cotol-240#11110
Silver’s UV product, IMHO, is the best out there for fly tying…
PT/TB
If you have toluol or toluene, you can use it instead of Cotol-240. Toluene and toluol are identical and is sold in hardware stores as a a paint thinner. It is the major ingredient in Cotol 240 and is compatible with Aquaseal, Shoo Goo, Goop, etc.
Get a square sheet of aluminum foil and fold it into a smaller square. Pinch up and fold up at the corners to make a square pan. You can squeeze some of the Aquaseal into this, put in some toluene, and mix with a popsicle stick that you can also use as the applicator stick. Repair on the INSIDE of the waders so the repairs cannot be seen. You can apply a thin coating that will seal and have more flex and will cure in 4 hours or less.
I have Simms neoprene chest waders. 6 yrs ago found two small holes. Used Liquid Stitch from Wal-Mart fabric department. Simply squeezed it out of the tube and spread it a bit with a toothpick and let it set overnight. No sure it would work so did the same on the inside. Now six years later have new leak. Thought my patch work failed. Nope! Two new holes. So the old patched with Liquid Stitch held up well. So simple and easy. Doing it again on the two new holes. Not going to bother adding to the inside. Gonig to incorporate it into flies. Just haven’t done it yet. Comes out white but dries clear and flexible. Should be good and rubbery feel to the fishies…
just fyi
I bought a tube of UV Aqua Seal in Hamilton Mt. three years ago . Worked great in a pinch. Have not seen it again .