Floating Eyes Foil

[Bucho]

Fly tyers glue 3-d eyes onto heavy mono and tye them in as "floating eyes". This saves them the trouble of soaking streamers in glue. I recently started using zander jigs with head shapes that offer certain advantages at the cost of enough space to accomodate large eyes, which puts me into the same dilemma and got me looking for similar solutions. cleaning 3-D eyes of the glue and fix mono on them is too troublesome for commercial application, and using large amonts of glue to fix 3-d eyes onto the collar (two left jigs) is not ideal, either.

two mutual friends of mine, fly guy and foil guy, have come up with a simple alternative: tear-shaped foil dies that can be tied in and carry either a printed eye or a stuck on flat eye (right jig). The flexible foil is surprisingly durable and much harder to rip out or squeeze off than a glued on 3D-eye. The die should be quick work for any small time foil guy near you dealing shop window ornament or truck cover etc.

 

[Fatman]

Cool!!! Something new to add to the list of try mes!!!LOL

 

[Barefoot]

That is very interesting. Let me see if I understand it. You just glue the eye to the foil cut out and tie it on with no need to glue the foil to the head?

 

[Bucho]

Actually I had the dies pre-cut on fat paper but basically yes. For homeshop use in small numbers that would be the way. The self-sticking flat eyes seem to hold very well on the foil without further glue. Haven´t fished them yet but it appears to bond very well.

 

[duffy]

Good Idea! Might have to try that. Some of those glues seem to really adhere to certain plastics better than other materials. I wonder if a person could maybe use that clamshell plastic that everything is wrapped in now days or even water bottles if you wanted a curve to it.