Durability of a no whip finish?

[skiltonian]

So, for BHs on occasion I’ve just put some super glue or EV resin behind the bead without a whip finish with no issues and today tying parachutes I fiinished the hackle tie off by lightly coating the thread with EV and taking my last few wraps on the post below the hackle, zapped it, and snipped the thread without a whip finish. I like the clean look, but will it hold up?

 

[dudemanspecial]

Yes I think it is pretty common for people to do this.

 

[KELORGO]

I like to put a few very small drops of super glue on the thread before I whip finish. Then I only need to whip finish once or twice and I’ve never had the thread come undone 👍.

 

[tomgamber]

Do you at least throw a half hitch onto it? It?

 

[PennKev]

I finish all my parachutes with a touch of CA glue at the base of the post after a few wraps around the hackle and do not whip or half hitch them. I've never had one fall apart that I can recall. It is much easier than trying to whip finish at the base of the post or at the hook eye.

 

[gfenlikestolosepasswords]

I got tired of superglue bottles drying out all the time.

 

[Bamboozle]

I don't like the white residue either.

3 - 4 wraps with a whip finish tool, a dot of head cement and I'm done. No lights, CA sticking to stuff I don't want, not white residue.

If I have issues whip fishing a parachute post, I put the fly in the vice at 90 degrees.

 

[PennKev]

If you are getting white residue or any real build up of glue, you are using way too much.

 

[poopdeck]

Im the opposite, I rarely use any glue just a whip finish knot or two. On small flies I don’t use glue at all but will use some on the biggest of flies.

 

[Bamboozle]

If you are getting white residue or any real build up of glue, you are using way too much.

I tried CA when it first became a "thing" in fly tying...

Possibly because I use covered compartment boxes for flies and the curing was incomplete, but I noticed out-gassing issues often enough to decide CA, like most glue is not necessary on MY fly tying bench...

But especially as a substitute for something as simple and 2nd nature to me as a couple of whip finishes and drop of head cement.

 

[Trapshooter]

If think I need glue. I use Hard as nails.

 

[PennKev]

If think I need glue. I use Hard as nails.

it depends what you are doing with the glue. If you are covering a whip finish, half hitches, or building up a traditional glossy head HAN is a great choice. The original post references the technique of using CA and only CA to secure the final wraps of a parachute style dry. For that, CA is the only practical choice.

 

[PennKev]

Possibly because I use covered compartment boxes for flies and the curing was incomplete, but I noticed out-gassing issues often enough to decide CA, like most glue is not necessary on MY fly tying bench...

I definitely do not put freshly finished flies with CA in a closed box. Even flies finished with conventional head cements will continue to release fumes and make your boxes stink. So regardless of finish, I just leave em out for a day, or two, or 30, or whenever I get around to putting a batch of flies into boxes.

 

[nfrechet]

i half hitch and uv resin all my heads

i have used the old trick of swiping the thread with super glue behind the bead

 

[Bamboozle]

it depends what you are doing with the glue. If you are covering a whip finish, half hitches, or building up a traditional glossy head HAN is a great choice. The original post references the technique of using CA and only CA to secure the final wraps of a parachute style dry. For that, CA is the only practical choice.

Maybe I am misreading the OP and I'm stupid but...

...I fiinished the hackle tie off by lightly coating the thread with EV and taking my last few wraps on the post below the hackle, zapped it, and snipped the thread without a whip finish. I like the clean look, but will it hold up?

What is EV and is it some kind of UV glue because of the term "zapped?"

If so, it wasn't about CA in regards to parachutes...

My comments were only related to CA. In my case, the flies I tied with CA were left out as long as I leave out flies tied with head cement which is anywhere from a few hours to a day if I am tying more of the same the following day.

I am not a production tier, but I don't have to spend even close to an hour at the bench to make a dozen of most flies I tie. If the time it took me to tie a fly from the time I put the hook in the vise to the time it went in my fly boxes was measured in days...

I'd give up fly tying.

 

[PennKev]

What is EV and is it some kind of UV glue because of the term "zapped?"

If so, it wasn't about CA in regards to parachutes...

It was about securing thread without whip finish. I stand by my comment that CA is the only viable adhesive for this purpose. UV, while useful, does not, in my experience, hold up well as a thin thread coating. I've found that you need a really good mechanical bond when using UV, it's adhesive qualities are poor.

 

[Dr.J 1952]

I can whip finish both by hand and with a tool. I tie all my mayfly duns parachute style. It is difficult for me to whip finish on a parachute style fly. I finish mine off with four or five half hitches( I use an old ball point pen with the ink cartridge out. This fits over the eye of the hook). I have tried coating the thread with UV resin but I prefer using regular old head cement. I rarely have a problem with the thread unraveling. I also allow the cement on my flies to dry before putting them in a box. Didn’t have a lot of the products out there now when I started tying flies but old methods and products still work. Regular head cement is also a lot easier to get out of the eye of hook streamside.

 

[kbobb]

I've been using CA glue to finish off beadhead flies mostly because the whip/hitch behind the bead takes up space, looks bad and is really out of proportion on a small fly.

Flies with a traditional "head" get a whip finish and either nail polish or water based polyurethane for glue.

 

[kbobb]

I definitely do not put freshly finished flies with CA in a closed box. Even flies finished with conventional head cements will continue to release fumes and make your boxes stink. So regardless of finish, I just leave em out for a day, or two, or 30, or whenever I get around to putting a batch of flies into boxes.

I got a 6" magnetic "ash tray" thing from harbor freight and stick my flies in there til they dry - this way they don't fall off the bench or end up in my foot!

 

[Bamboozle]

I got a 6" magnetic "ash tray" thing from harbor freight and stick my flies in there til they dry - this way they don't fall off the bench or end up in my foot!

I have a larger clear plastic 12 compartment fly box attached to the top of my fly tying desk with Velcro. When a fly is done, I just hang it by the hook bend over the edge to "dry." Before I retire from that session of tying, I'll knock them over the edge into the compartment they were hanging over.

The next day or after a complete session on one fly, I'll transfer any needed quantities to my fly boxes or Richardson box and put the rest in my bulk fly storage boxes.

I also have a MUCH smaller & shallower clear plastic fly box that is attached to the lid of the larger box that I use for midges. Because I always tie a minimum of 12 flies of the same size and never tie midges in the same session as larger flies. There is never a time when I need to hang flies over the edge of both boxes at the same time.

If flies I tied are for an upcoming trip, I may just leave the flies in the "drying box(es)," detach them from the desktop and take the loaded boxes with me. If I am tying on the road, I also take the boxes off the desk and use them for finished flies in my hotel or cabin.