UTC UTC Ultra Thread 280

Designed for tying the largest saltwater flies, spinning hair on bass bugs and as a substitute for floss for bodies and ribs. Use 280 on any large fly where you need the thread to be very bulky, such as building up a tapered head on a large saltwater streamer.

Carefully developed to enhance tying performace
Ultra Thread has been engineered as a fly tying thread from the beginning. It is not an “off the shelf” thread as are many others. All of Ultra Thread’s characteristics were carefully chosen to enhance its tying performance.

Here are a few of the thread characteristics that make Ultra Thread ideal for fly tying:
- UTC chose nylon over polyester because nylon will stretch and grip materials better. This allows for more uniform tension and gives the tyer the “feel” for maximum tension. Nylon is the same strength as polyester (given the same denier) and offers the added benefit of more intense colors and a larger range of colors. Because nylon stretches, it grips material tighter and makes the fly more durable.
- Their thread is flat with only the minimum number of twists needed for production. This is important because the number of twists in the thread determines how flat it can be wrapped on the hook. The flatter the thread is wrapped, the more slowly it builds up. This is a huge advantage when tying small flies or when tying close to the eye of the hook. A flat thread also grips and covers materials with fewer thread wraps.
- Ultra Thread has been lightly waxed. This also limits thread build up and gives the thread a smoother, slicker feel. The added benefit is that head cement fully penetrates the thread which equals more durable flies.
- Ultra Thread is a multifilament thread that is not bonded. Bonded threads are oval in shape and are stiff or coarse feeling. Bonded threads also build up fast which is a significant concern when tying small flies. Since Ultra Thread is not bonded, it is the best choice for split thread tying techniques.
- Their spools are sized and designed to turn smoothly on standard bobbins. Each spool has a color coded end cap for product identification and to secure the tag end of the thread. In our opinion the best thread made deserves to be spooled on the best spool.

How thread is sized:
Denier is the textile industry’s measuring standard for filament size. To measure a thread’s denier, 9,000 meters of the thread are weighed. If the weight (calculated mass) of the thread is 140 grams, then that thread is considered a 140 denier thread. Using this system it is easy to understand that a 280 denier thread is twice the mass of a 140 thread and, thus, is larger in diameter and stronger.