Tenkara ESO Wax is changing the way we think about detecting bites in Tenkara
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Tenkara ESO Wax is changing the way we think about detecting bites in Tenkara
Fishing for grayling in the Welsh Dee in Llangollen and Carrog.
Tenkara fishing in two rivers on the Isle of Man the Sulby and the Druidale. Testing the new Strooan 2 rod.
Testing available powder fishing floatants and desiccants against industrial samples. Seeking the best of the best.
It's no secret I've been working on floatant and desiccant powders. I've already put out one article about it; Hydrophobic Powder Floatant. I completed the testing on 10 commercial samples from various factories. My top two came from different factories. One of them is not available in the UK and was a special import just for the testing. Samples "A" and "B" were put out for testing on the rivers and both were well received. One was quite course, the other fine. How about a 50:50 split and call it "C"? Best of both? Re-testing and yes, it works well on both large parachute files and more delicate CDC.
What testing did I do?
My test rig needed to simulate real conditions in a controlled and consistent way. My first attempt at a mini river was just too gentle. The flies simply would not sink. Ten minutes and it's still bobbling round like a cork. More power needed! Here's the result.
As you can see it's a pretty churned up bit of water that the flies would have to bob on. You can see the untreated control fly didn't last 30 seconds! The same flies was used for each powder. Properly washed and dried between each test. A standard dry, and a CDC F-Fly style. Tied to fluorocarbon and tethered the same distance from the agitator. How long they stayed floating was timed. Some of the factory powders were very disappointing. The chosen powders lasted almost a quarter longer than the others.
Repeated tests and the results could be reproduced.
The other test was a suspension test. Load up a parachute indicator fly with glass beads. Keep adding beads till it sinks. A simple test that worked really well splitting the factory powders up. The best handles 10 beads. The worst 6.
Under the Microscope
Putting the powders under the microscope was interesting. They all look very similar, but there are differences in particle size and how they clump together. I had a look at a few other candidates as well.
Aerogel
Lycopodium Powder - Plant pollen that is massively hydrophobic but turns your fly yellow. You can do fun fireball tricks with the stuff. It's highly flammable.
Candidate B.
Commercial Floatants
The market is now pretty awash with commercial powders that all claim to be the best floatant out there. Bringing any new product to market of course you have to get samples and do the testing.
That's what I did. I put them through the same tests above. I compared them with the factory samples I have and I can be pretty sure I know exactly what each one is. Some of them are using my sample "B", another is using a slightly different formulation of my sample "A". One is using a product I rejected because although it floats really well, it washed off easier then the other so didn't survive the "river" test.
There is one exception. The Vision product looks like nothing else.
Vision
The smooth, clear, and rounded crystals are totally different to every sample I have. That's not quite true. It looks like a couple of sample I have that tested really badly. One sample was a pure silica desiccant, like you find in the little baggies with electronics. the other was a Super absorbent polymer (SAP) that is used in nappies to lock in the blue pee you see on the adverts.
In testing the pure silica didn't act fast enough to dry the flies, or penetrate deep enough into the dressing. The SAP formed a globby mess around fly which was a nightmare to clean off. The fly was left dry though!
The Vision product didn't act like either of these test samples. It did as it should. Dried the fly, made it float and did a good job of doing it.
Testing
The "river" test held out my conclusions on what each powder was. All of them kept the fly floating, for over 5 minutes, consistent with the factory powder results. The "B" sample powders did really well. The "A" variant was close and the other didn't perform quite so well. None of them are "bad" by any stretch. You probably wouldn't notice the difference in the real world. This test is all about how well the powder stays stuck in the dressing and provides the effect.
It can be the most hydrophobic powder out there (Aerogel) but if it doesn't say in the dressing then it's not going to be effective as a floatant. A combination of properties needs to be balanced.
The suspension test was similar but one product didn't make the cut. It could only handle 9 beads instead of the 10 the others could handle. The same powder that was behind in the "river". In fact, I don't think any of the remaining powders were to blame for the sinking. I believe the fly I used had reached it's limit. Have a look at the picture:
The parachute part was folded into a cone with a huge dimple in the meniscus of the water. I think the weight reached the limit of the fly. The failing product wasn't the Vision either. It was one of the other well known brands. Taking the 11th bead off and the fly went back to this, on the edge, cone configuration.
Conclusion
I've not put the timings up. I've not said which are the better products because in the real world you'll probably not notice much of a difference. I'm not out to "put down" or "rubbish" other manufacturers or innovators. Perhaps there is a difference between water types and some might work better on the "hard" waters? I don't know. I haven't tested for that so can draw no conclusion. Esoteric Tackle is about bringing the best to market it can, not stirring up a fight between anglers with their own preferences or loyalties.
Not all powders are the same. However, they all come from a similar branch of chemistry (except the Vision product.) The powder combination I've selected is as capable as any of the best powders out there. By combining the large ("B") and small particle ("A") top performing products. I think Esoteric Bob-It has been optimised as a well rounded powder floatant for large indicator flies and more delicate CDC flies. It is easily a match for the best out there.
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