That is what we always used when I tied with the Darbee's. It combines very well with the home made tying wax of 50/50 beeswax and rosin and I believe they softened it a bit with a little castor oilfor the past twenty years I've been using Ambroid Model Airplane Cement thinned with Acetone. It penetrates very quickly and dries fast. It is not a great finish cement, for that Sally Hansens is great or Cellire is also very good but tough to find in the USA. Its been a little tough finding Ambroid but Ebay always has a bunch of it available. A tube will last several years.
I want to second Silvercreek's UV resin. It's very easy to work with, even for a newb like me!I generally use epoxy on larger flies & Sally Hansen's on everything else. IMO, the SH is very good as a finish. I've never had any issues with using it.
The UV cure acrylic's are popular now too. I've not used them myself, but it's another option. I believe that Silver Creek, a member here, markets a good one.
There's also some urethane products such as Fabric Fusion or Liquid Fusion that some are using. They cure clear & are good for attaching eye's, so may also be used for heads, particularly on bigger flies. They don't cure hard or glossy like SH or epoxy however.
That's why I usually have two bottles of cement along the tying bench, one thinned for penetration and the other for build.grifs thin but that's no longer available
automotive lacquer is supposed to be pretty good and will last lifetimes
head cements should be thin to penetrate down to the hook shank
everything else is just a coating material
Hmmm...I did not know that...my Dad used that and by osmosis so do I. I just realized its all but impossible to find Ambroid any more, even online. Lucky for me I bought a half dozen tubes of it when it started becoming difficult to find. About 6X More than a lifetime supply. I tend to do that with my fly tying supplies...wood duck feathers, martarelli bobbins...That is what we always used when I tied with the Darbee's. It combines very well with the home made tying wax of 50/50 beeswax and rosin and I believe they softened it a bit with a little castor oil
What Harry had came in little jars.Hmmm...I did not know that...my Dad used that and by osmosis so do I. I just realized its all but impossible to find Ambroid any more, even online. Lucky for me I bought a half dozen tubes of it when it started becoming difficult to find. About 6X More than a lifetime supply. I tend to do that with my fly tying supplies...wood duck feathers, martarelli bobbins...
What do you use to thin it, lacquer thinner or something else?Thinned down SH. Penetrates better
acetone or nail polish thinner (might be one and the same)What do you use to thin it, lacquer thinner or something else?
Thanks,