Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Post by **BLUEDOG143** » Sun Aug 18, 2019 10:47 pm

I'm late to wet flies. Are there any adequate replacements for the original Pearsall's silk?
Thanks for any help.

Post by **Mike62** » Mon Aug 19, 2019 5:01 pm

BLUEDOG143 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 18, 2019 10:47 pm I'm late to wet flies. Are there any adequate replacements for the original Pearsall's silk?
Thanks for any help.

Just my opinion but I think the Japanese silks sold by YLI are very good.

https://ylicorp.com/products/silk-100-t ... 5612391758

Post by **ronr** » Mon Aug 19, 2019 6:30 pm

I too find the YLI silks to be very close to Pearsals in color and texture. They can be found in some quilt shops and online at reasonable prices.

Post by **BLUEDOG143** » Mon Aug 19, 2019 7:51 pm

THANK YOU BOTH. I WILL FIND THEM ON INTERNET. ESPECIALLY WITH THE NICE LINK.

Post by **BLUEDOG143** » Mon Aug 19, 2019 9:55 pm

Just purchased 6 spools and can't wait to try them. Just discovered this forum a week ago and can't believe how informative and helpful everyone is.
Thank you everyone

Post by **wsbailey** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 1:24 pm

Is the chart still available on "box"? My account now says "no preview available".

Post by **letumgo** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 1:32 pm

Bill - I just tried both of the original links (in the first post) and was able to view and download the charts to my computer. I did need to wait for a minute, while the PDF file downloaded, but it did work fine for me.

Post by **wsbailey** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 1:59 pm

Thanks Ray! It worked fine after I logged in to box.

Post by **letumgo** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 2:25 pm

Hmmm. I did not need to log in to download the PDF. I simply clicked on the links, and chose download from the top corner.

Glad it worked for you. These are nice references. I've saved them to my iPad library. Very handy. (Thanks Phil)

Post by **joaniebo** » Sat Feb 08, 2020 10:22 am

Re: waxing threads whether it be silk or synthetic - during some fly tying sessions, I've often showed the difference of how waxed threads cling to the hook better than unwaxed threads.

I simply take several "locked in" thread wraps of unwaxed thread and then pull on it as it slides off the hook. I then do a couple swipes of wax on the same thread, do the same number of "locked in" thread wraps and then pull on the waxed thread ..... which holds strongly to the hook. The demonstration is done with both synthetic and silk threads.

As a personal opinion, with no scientific proof just a personal opinion, I believe that the old fly tyers, when dressing by hand, realized that a waxed thread held on to the hook better than unwaxed threads and also added a little more durability to the dressing, as I would think that waxed silk threads might not rot / weaken as quickly as unwaxed silks.

Bob

Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry

Re: Pearsall's Gossamer Silk Colors – Wet and Dry