![]() Look for foam that is dense and harder to compress. This holder was once a beautiful looking accessory on my fly tying desk, but it looks pretty gnarly these days as it is covered with dried specks of super glue!Ĭhoosing The Right Foam: As I mentioned earlier, all foam is not created equal. I use so much of the stuff I had a friend of mine make me a wooden holder that prevents the bottle from tipping over (which makes an awful mess) and allows me to open and close it with one hand. I prefer to use super glue that comes in a bottle with a brush applicator when working with foam. If you are not tying dozens of flies at a time, it may make more sense to eliminate this step and just stack your foam on the fly as you build it. I find it easier to glue entire sheets of foam together then cut them to shape rather than layering the foam on the fly. It is easier to apply over a large surface and dries a little slower. When creating stacked foam bodies made of different colors of foam, I will use a glue designed specifically for foam. Both thin liquid types of glue and gels have their uses when fly tying with foam. Superglue works well for fusing pieces of foam together and setting various components of the fly in place. Use of Glue: Superglue (Cyanoacrylate adhesive) and glues designed explicitly for foam are very useful in fly tying. This gently coaxes the foam into position without cutting or distorting it. At times light thread tension is needed to softly compress the foam, increasing the pressure with subsequent wraps. Thread Control: When working with foam, the proper use of thread tension is essential. The thread will not break as easy when applying the tension necessary to do this. A heavier thread will allow you to compress the foam easier and with fewer thread wraps. The heavier thread has other benefits besides not cutting through the foam. In many cases, you can get away with heavier thread. ![]() Fortunately, when tying warm water flies, we are not as concerned about bulky thread build up like we are when tying trout flies. If you don’t have a thread that will flatten you can reduce this risk by using heavier thread. Fine corded threads can cut through thin foam like a hot knife through butter. By untwisting the thread, you flatten it increasing its surface area and reducing the potential for the thread to slice through the foam. I prefer a thread that can be flattened like UTC or Danville and tend to stay away from a corded thread like Uni. Thread: All thread is not created equal when working with foam. You are not likely to be mass-producing foam bodies like me, so any old sheet of foam will get the job done in most cases! Tips for Fly Tying With Foamīefore I get into some of my favorite foam flies for warm water, I’d like to mention a few things that make your fly tying go a little smoother when working with this great material. ![]() Over time I have learned to pick out foam sheets that suit my needs as a fly tier. If you look through the stacks of foam in your local craft store, you will see the differences for yourself. I am not sure if this is a result of the dying or manufacturing process. Some foam sheets (denser ones) cut better than others, and sometimes one particular color performed better than others. I did not pay much attention to the differences until I started mass producing bodies for my Triangle Bug pattern. In addition, the only way we can keep these places around is to spend a little money in them from time to time! However, if you spend some time looking around, you can also find these products locally without the fly shop prices.Īll foam sheets are not created equal, but most will work just fine for your fly tying needs. One benefit of patronizing your local fly shops is you can also find foam of varying thickness from 1mm sheets of Razor Foam to big blocks used for popper bodies. That being said, craft store foam will work just fine for your fly tying needs. Is there a difference between the foam you see marketed as “fly foam” in your local fly shop and the stuff you find in the isles of your local craft store or Walmart? In some cases, yes, but that does not justify the exorbitant prices! The foam I have picked up in fly shops over the years seems to be denser and a little more durable than most of the stuff found in craft stores.
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