"Mark67" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi Folks,

Been reading the posts about different commercial floatants, and it
reminded me of a technique I picked up in my days as a young buck
flyfisherman (I was 17 or so). Wondered if anyone else had heard of
it.

Back in those days (1980s) I had some type of silicon-based floatant in
my vest that I used fairly regularly. But often as not I would just
dab my finger on my forehead or nose and use that natural oil/grease to
dress my fly. Quicker and easier than digging out the synthetic stuff.
Anybody ever heard of this? I can't remember if I read it in a fly
fishing mag, or if it was something that my grandfather (a master with
rod, leader, and fly) used to do.

Never heard of using that method for floating flies, but it used to be
commonly recommended for lubricating ferrules. Modern composite ferrules
don't need lubrication and doing this just gives dust and dirt something to
stick to. The salt excreted in sweat will corrode metal ferrules.

As for waterproofing flies, I suspect it's just about useless. Natural skin
oils aren't viscous or stable enough......know anybody who repels water?


I learned in a video about flyfishing in PA recently that trout have an
advanced sense of smell, or that they can detect odors/chemicals in the
water, and that comes into play with food selection. Are floatants
odorless? And, I wonder, was my homegrown method stinking up the fly
with odors (most likely pizza and beer at that time)?

Trout certainly do have a sense of smell. How acute it is is a matter of
some debate. Whether or not it matters to fly fishers is often hotly
debated. Personally, I've never paid any attention to the matter of smell
out in the stream. I catch my share of fish.

Wolfgang