Head Cement

[hooker-of-men]

Opened a brand new Wapsi head cement jar and it's 1) really liquid with little viscosity and 2) leaving a white residue on some materials.

Has it... gone bad? Seems like an odd product to have a notably limited shelf life.

Maybe it's time to just go Sally Hansen? What's the deal with Hard as Nails? Readily available at CVS, etc.? Do I have to do annoying science projects to thin it / cut it with another product, or is it good to go out of the bottle?

 

[lestrout]

Yo ho - SallyH is easy to find. Around Chester County I've seen various flavors in grocery stores, WalMart, drug stores. When I used to favor the shiny head look, I used it full strength. But especially with tiny flies (with tiny eyes), I took the hint from someone to thin it with acetone. Maybe wifey's fingernail polish remover might work, but if it has lanolin or something like that in there too, I don't know if it will work for flies, especially when they get wet.

 

[riverwhy]

I had the same problem and posted about it a while back. For me it happened when I added the thinner to it. I picked up the Loon water-based head cement. Works great and better for your health!

 

[salmo]

I have be using Sally H for years. Never a problem. I actually use it to top UV finished flies and wing cases to keep them from getting dull.

 

[coyoterahn]

+1 for the Sally Hansen

 

[Tigereye]

Wild guess but the white residue is from lower quality acetone ( thinner). It probably has some water in it. I find I get the same when using wifey's nail polish remover as a thinner, that is scented. The scent being water based. A cheap way of diluting product and making you think you got something extra.

 

[phiendWMD]

SH is too thick IMO. I thinned it with head cement thinner, whatever that is. I have some but haven't used it in forever. I've been using loon water based head cement recently. I'm not sure I'd buy it again. It's too thin. I'll use it until it's gone though.

 

[RLeep2]

If you're going to use nail polish (and pretty much any brand is fine..) get a bottle of pure acetone (no additives) to use as thinner. You can usually find it right next to the nail polish at CVS or wherever. This way, you won't have any discoloration issues. I haven't bought fly tying head cement in 20 years. I use nail polish for everything..

 

[poopdeck]

SH right out of the bottle for me. In 6 months when it starts to get thick I throw it away and go buy another bottle. Can’t tell you the last time I bought overpriced overhyped “head cement.”

 

[WWKimba]

I mostly use SHHAN but I also use Dave's Flex and Loon's water-based, depending on what I'm doing. I like Dave's when I'm tying with lead wire to seal it, Loon's I like when tying with bucktail or (especially) squirrel tail to penetrate and fuse the hair fibers.

Kim

 

[dryflyguy]

I've been using something called Miracle Nail, that my wife gets from the dollar store.
It works fine

 

[falcon]

Sallys or Wapsi water base

 

[bassfanpa]

Go buy yourself a quart of Minwax brushable lacquer. That should last you a lifetime.

 

[shakey]

I use sally Hansen most.
I also use regular old spar varnish .

 

[GStan]

I use water based Fly-Tite.

 

[Bamboozle]

First it was Phamacist's Formula then that went away, after that I was a huge fan of Griff's Thin until it too was discontinued.

These days I use the stuff that Harry Murray makes and sells in his shop and online.

I also use Pro Lak for the fancy stuff.

 

[Trapshooter]

All I use is Sally Hansen.

 

[JeffK]

I mostly use Sally Hansen, but used dollar store nail polish for years and didn't have problems. All nail polishes get thicker with time as the solvent evaporates.

 

[salmo]

SH is too thick IMO. I thinned it with head cement thinner, whatever that is. I have some but haven't used it in forever. I've been using loon water based head cement recently. I'm not sure I'd buy it again. It's too thin. I'll use it until it's gone though.

There is actually an unscented nail polish thinner that I use. I use various colors of very cheap nail polish to paint various bead heads. Chartreuse, bright yellow, black, red and fluorescent fuchsia. I usually spend about .99-1.99 per bottle. If topped with Sally H, they actually last a while in the water.