Sally Hansen

[ShaunF]

Hey guys,

Just a quick question here. Am I missing something here, or can someone please tell me why they are using a chick's beauty product as a head cement, because I never found any actual benefits to using it. I tried the whole Sally Hansen's thing a couple of years ago coz someone on the internet said it was good, but to be honest I just can't see why guys use it.

For a start, it costs about the same as proper fly tying head cement, but has a tendency to dry out quicker, even if you're careful about closing the container in between uses.

When it dries it goes hard and brittle so its useless for coating feathers with. I've also found it to crack off when used to coat heads in some cases too.

I eventually tossed it and now use 2 types of head cement on my flies and haven't looked back since:

First one:


This stuff is fantastic. It comes in a squeeze bottle with a hypodermic needle applicator, so applying even to tiny flies is a breeze, with no mess, no fuss. It's water based and not much thicker than water, so it soaks right into the thread, making for well cemented flies that last. Also, being water based, there are no solvents to evaporate over time, so it never needs thinning out, and it also has no discernable odour. It also stays flexible once dry and doesn't go brittle. I bought mine about 3 years ago, and after a thousand or 2 flies, I'm about 1/3 down the bottle, so it lasts ages and ages. I use this stuff for 90% of my flies.

Second one:


I use this on flies where I want to build up a bigger, shiny head, as well as for coating feathers to make wing cases etc. Wonderful stuff to work with, with just enough handling time, and dries to be flexable too. It can also be used on small flies and applies very nicely using the tip of a bodkin.

I'm on my second bottle of Flexament, as my first recently went hard, but that was my own fault as I forgot to close the bottle one night after tying, and left it open all night and the following day.

Both of these cost in the region of R40.00 each and will last for ages if you close the container in between uses, and won't require any thinning.

Anyway, thats just my 2c that there are better products out there for similar money, and maybe we should be leaving the nail varnish to the chicks.

[wernerm]

Thanks Shaun for an informative post. Agreed the real Mcoy is the way to go.

[MyWorld]

Could you mirror those images locally please, my intl. bandwidth isn't up to par...

Where can one then get this head cement? Which shops in and around JHB so that I can mail order a bottle or so?

[ShaunF]

Could you mirror those images locally please, my intl. bandwidth isn't up to par...

Where can one then get this head cement? Which shops in and around JHB so that I can mail order a bottle or so?

Loon's Water based Head Cement is the first one and Dave's Flexament is the second. Frontier Flyfishing in JHB should have both.

[MaXiMuM]

Sally Hansen is Nylon based... thinners of any sort degrades the finished product and it will not be nearly as hard as it should be.

You should get the Sally Hansens Hard as Nails thinnners...

Mike

[MaXiMuM]

Hey guys,

Just a quick question here. Am I missing something here, or can someone please tell me ...........

...................ey, and maybe we should be leaving the nail varnish to the chicks.

Because its better... I love it and have been using it since I started tying... cant ever remember a fry coming apart on me... even Dean uses it...

I find it best to keep it in the deep frezze next to the Supperglue and the Loons dry fly dip.

Mike

[Yellowfever]

I find that a good whip finnish don't even require a head cement. On small flies I whip finnish the head.

Don't confuse this with a good whipping I don't go for that.

[Michael]

I know from using the nail polish remover that there are stuff like moisteriser added. You need a pure thinners/acetone available from pharmacies.

Buy thinners or acetone from a hardware...it's cheaper.

I've thinned my varnish with thinners many times, never gone white. But you need pure thinners like YF said, not nail polish remover. And use a toothpick to apply the varnish to the thread head, instead of a needle or bodkin. This way after a tying session, just chuck the toothpick away and use a new one your next session.

And I agree with Shaun...buy real head cement, it's even cheaper than Sally Hansens, and I've used both products, and the fly tying head cement is better to me. No need to keep it in the fridge, doesn't go hard or yellow.

[ShaunF]

Because its better... I love it and have been using it since I started tying... cant ever remember a fry coming apart on me... even Dean uses it...

I find it best to keep it in the deep frezze next to the Supperglue and the Loons dry fly dip.

Mike

See signature !

[dlampert]

I find that a good whip finnish don't even require a head cement. On small flies I whip finnish the head.

Agreed, I can't remember the last time I used head cement - I just whip finish twice on larger flies and for dries I finish them with a couple of half hitches.