When using a spinning block what "rule of thumb"dictates what silk color to use?


Rex

I thought that one of the objectives to using silk was the opaqueness of the material when wet. When I've tried to put hard as nails, crazy glue or epoxy on the body of the fly it the color was fixed, darker than I had planned and not worth the expense of the silk. Tying thread is just as good as si...

He use{d} a “sunshine oil” (which might have been an oil for miners head lamps. The book is being shipped to me, in print, from an online seller (Abes Books). So I ask. What is sunshine oil ? The best internet search suggests Sunshine Oil is a brand name for cottonseed oil. It was used in miners la...

A number of years ago a fellow tyer showed me SortKwik. This is an item they use at banks and the Post Office to make sorting papers very easy and quick. It comes in a container that has a pad on the back so it does not wander around my tying bench. I just touch it with my fingers and dubbing goes ...

I know there is/has been some discord about certain opinions regarding the history and mechanics of fly tying and fly tyers of North Country Flies. Tyers on both side of the Atlantic often have opposing thoughts and styles to express those views. I take no sides of the discussion. And I am not wishi...

The great enemy of waxes that contain any kind of oil is oxidation. Factors that lead to oxidation are moisture, air or even light. Does this mean storage in water is a no-no? My Baileys wax certainly was pliable after I cut a piece off and hand rolled it. No extra heat needed so no water. I apprec...

The Baileys is in the tin.

I used warm water and both warmed up, became pliable. Stored them in air tight containers. I'll continue to evaluate my skills to learn new things.

Considering the age of the wax is 4-5 years, is there a particular way to warm the wax if storing it in water is my chosen style? Do I warm it in hot water, in an indirect water bath, direct heat, in my armpit? I have tried the "holding the wax in my hand to soften it" but have never found...

I have two (2) different tying waxes. That is, Bailey's and the type Jim Slattery sells. Each is as hard as a frozen hockey puck.

How do I work with the waxes to regain the pliability and stick?
How do I store the waxes?

Thanks!

Rex

Thanks for the information. Just a bit of a history buff, fly tying is no exception. I have not heard of this system of hook sizing I was attracted by the title. Catechism of Fly Making Angling and Dyeing https://archive.org/details/wblackersartofan00blac/page/28/mode/2up by William Blacker (1843 ed...