head cement and thinner

[riverwhy]

How do you thin out head cement that has gotten very thick and gloppy? I bought some thinner and added a bit. Then applied to fly and it left a white residue on the bead and some of the hackle fibers on my wooly bugger? Maybe I just didn't have enough thinner and it was too thick?

I never saw the white residue like that before, could it be the thinner that made the white color?

Any suggestions on getting rid of the white residue? I am frustrated because I spent a lot of time and came up with some decent flies that now look like crap!

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[outsider]

Did you buy the same brand thinner as the head cement? I never had that happen although the brands I used are the same. I don't use head cement anymore, I use Sally Hanson's Hard As Nails. Inexpensive, can be purchased at any big box store or at a pharmacy.

 

[dryflyguy]

That same thing happened to me just this past spring.
After thinning the head cement out with a new bottle of thinner - Rumpf I believe was the brand - it gunked up my flies with a white residue. ( I also covered the bodies of my BWO's with it, to make them last longer - and it sure didn't look nice)
Never had that happen before.

Add in the fact that most of the oil base glues and thinners now warn that's it's a cancer hazard - and that was the last straw for me.
I threw it all out, and switched to water based glue.

Seems to be working fine so far

 

[poopdeck]

I also use sally Hansens hard as nails. Either way, head cement or whatever you use is cheap and last a good bit of time so I don't bother with thinning. Simply chuck it out and get another when it gets thick.

 

[bigjohn58]

As cheap as head cement is I'd just buy another thing of it. The thinner is almost as much as a bottle of the cement.

 

[Fredrick]

I use this stuff and haven't looked back since

 

[riverwhy]

I hate using materials that are toxic so what are the water based glues that are best? I can't tell if the WASPI one posted is water based or not? Is Sally Hansen's hard as nails?
I can happily report that my olive buggers caught some brookies today regardless of the hardened white pieces. They looked less visible when wet also.

 

[Sruflytyer]

Loon Water Based Head Cement is pretty good and they are an "environmentally conscious" company. Honestly I usually just double whip finish and call it a day on most flies. If not, I'm using super glue.

 

[lestrout]

Yo riv

The white residue is resins from the cement/varnish precipitating. A lot of thinners have several solvents. For cost and other reasons, some of the component liquids aren't good at dissolving some resins on their own, so when the 'stronger' solvents evaporate during the drying process, the resin's 'kick out'. The best solution is to add a slower strong solvent like butyl acetate so the solution won't kick out as the cement finishes drying.

The great guide Mary Kuss put me on to a trick that I now use: I bought a lifetime supply of acetone from the hardware store and cut Sally's 50-50 at the start. I don't like thick cement buildup and the thin cement wicks better into the tying thread, giving a more secure hold. I'm not usually looking for a nice shiny built up head, unless I'm doing big salmon flies or the like.

 

[CRB]

Do you really need head cement on flies?

I eliminated it for the past 15+ years. Just a double whip and the fly is done. Usually use the thinnest thread I can get away with. My flies last year after year..

Am I missing something?

 

[afishinado]

CRB wrote:
Do you really need head cement on flies?

I eliminated it for the past 15+ years. Just a double whip and the fly is done. Usually use the thinnest thread I can get away with. My flies last year after year..

Am I missing something?

^ me too.

Other than to finish a built-up head on a fly like a streamer or wet, or maybe coat a wingcase, I rarely use head cement on my flies.

Like CRB said above, just whip finish with a few wraps twice to finish the fly. I can't remember the last time I had the head of a fly unravel.

And when/if I do use head cement, like Les, I use Sally Hansen's cut with acetone.