Fly Tying, Five tools to make you a better fly tier!

In this video I will be going through some of the fly tying tools that I find essential.
Tools are a very personal item and it may well be that your favourite tool is not on the list. Please feel free to let me know which tools you couldn't live without in the comments section below.
I have added some of the tools shown and links to where you can get them. It maybe that they are available elsewhere at a cheaper price. I am not affiliated with any of the companies I have provided links to.
Kopter Scissors www.upavonflyfishing.co.uk/pr...
Troutline Tier Master Scissor with Open Loop Handle www.troutline.ro/troutline-ti...
MM Adjustable Extremely Sharp Scissors for Fly Fishing, Fly Tying amzn.to/389lNzo
Tiemco Fine Ceramic Bobbin www.troutline.ro/tiemco-fine-...
Stonfo Elite 2 Bobbin Holder for Fly Tying www.troutline.ro/stonfo-elite...
C&F Standard Bobbin Holder - Regular www.flytyingcompany.co.uk/c-f...
STONFO PETTINE COMB (DUBBING RAKE/TEASER) STF645 www.flytyingden.com/collectio...
Stonfo Classic Fly Tying Bodkin Needle www.flytyingden.com/collectio...
Hends Rotary Whip Finisher www.troutline.ro/hends-rotata...

[@jimflynn466]

Hi Lindsay, I agree, you can’t have enough fly tying tools to make life easier, but the most important one for me is the bobbin threader. You can get them on eBay for about a £1 and they save me pulling my hair out trying to get silks through the bobbin. Thanks again for another great video Jimf

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Great tip! I really should pick one up. I think I had one once and broke it never replaced it.

[@terryblagburn6644]

dental floss for dentures has a loop and is long enough to reach through every bobbin holder used. They come in pack of 25 in the holder. Great if go to fly tying classes either as mentor or as student

[@kerrypitt9789]

With my Nor-Vise Autobobbin I have not found a wire bobbin threader that will fit down the tube. I bought a package of mono threader loops that are apparently used by people with braces who use the loop to pull floss through their teeth. They are a mono loop with a tail, you get a great lot of them for £1 and you won't wreck a tube with wire. My two cents worth!

[@jimflynn466]

@@terryblagburn6644 hi terry I’ll have a look for these and give them a try cheers Jimf

[@terryblagburn6644]

@@jimflynn466 they also work for pulling legs through poppers

[@robgreen6697]

While it’s not tools specific, I found hackles for dries can be a real game changer when you tie for the love of creating the fly. Having quality hackle feathers makes a huge difference. It’s not necessarily required to buy an expensive whole cape, opt for better quality and fewer feathers. Prepare your materials in advance and have your tools ready to hand. Use a pen to mark your hook and tying thread to get proportions right. Untwist your thread to lay flat when needed to reduce bulk. Use wax for grip of materials and also untwist (Counter clockwise) wind your thread to make it easier to pinch and loop. Thanks Lindsay for the content you out out. You and a few others have really helped me improve after a number of years of not tying any flies. When I started I only had books to learn from, these videos are great to see how things are done.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

I think it’s a great way of passing on a passion for tying. I wished the resource was available when I was learning.

[@FlyTyer1948]

You are quite right about fly tying & fishing being separate hobbies. For much of my adult life, I thought my tying was just to service my fishing. About 9 years ago, my back got so bad, I could no longer stand up long enough to fish & gave up tying thinking I had no use for my flies. I really missed both. Recently, I found out there are charitable organizations that really want flies to use in therapeutic fishing programs. Now that my flies have a purpose, I have happily resumed tying & feel much better for it. My wife is happier too. Although she can’t shoo me out of the house to go fishing, she’s glad to have me occupied tying at my corner desk & out of her hair. She even bought me a new vise.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Really pleased you are back enjoying fly tying. They certainly are two different hobbies.

[@mikelundrigan2285]

I still have my original small dowel with needle in it after 55 years…still works! Like you, I didn’t like the whip finisher you showed but I recently bought an Italian one (begins with an S) of a much different style! I found it is much more intuitive to use and for me, that made all the difference! As for scissors, I learned how to sharpen them but also have quite a few for various purposes! Use an old tooth brush for my dubbing!! Have about a dozen bobbins of various types, loaded with treads of various weights and colours!

[@lindsayiflyfish]

I think you find tools you like and come to rely on. I try lots of different tools and always find myself coming back to the tried and tested.

[@chstiger]

Well said Lindsey. Your comments are spot on.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Thanks buddy.

[@GeorgeSemel]

That Stonfo velcro bush is the best little tool I bought in a very long time. Didn't cost much either. As for fly tying, in many ways, it's worst than drinking as a hobby. There was a time when I was really on a Single Malt Scotch kick the really good stuff. I don't drink anymore and it's march I am just about finished tying what I call junk flies that I fish in winter. My junk fly boxes are full, so it's on to Blue Wing Olives, March Browns and Hendricksons, Sulfurs, etc for the next three months. Ending with Christmas in May, The Mothers Day Hatch- Caddis Flies. The one thing that the kids have that I didn't start with was the easy access to very very good instruction. I was pretty much on my own. You forgot hackle pliers. And maybe a good hackle gauge is a must-have in my opinion. 2021 is going to be a great season.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

George if it was top six hackle pliers would have been on there! I still have that annoying single malt habit but you can't spend it when you're gone! I have tied so many flies during lockdown it makes my head spin. Still has kept me busy and stopped me bouncing off the walls. Thanks for looking in George.

[@GeorgeSemel]

@@lindsayiflyfish Not a problem. The funny thing about Single Malt, it's an acquired taste. My father instructed me when I was very young is to try something three times on three separate occasions before you decide you don't like something. This holds for lots of things like clams on the half shell a full English breakfast ( I really can't eat that much but I do, Lobsters and not just the tails, and I can go on. I'm pretty lucky, I live very close to the best Irish Pub in the State of CT. And I do indulge, they do pretty good bangers and mash.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

@@GeorgeSemel Sounds like we have similar tastes, with Whisky its amazing what a little air will do for a dram.

[@kentw.897]

Good Video Lindsay. I enjoyed watching it. I just bought a few Tiemco Ceramic Bobbins myself. So far I really like the way they feel in my hands, they're very comfortable and they perform well . I'm glad I switched. Thanks for sharing this video with us, You Take Care.🌴🏄‍♂️🎣Aloha🤙🏼

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@kentw.897]

@@lindsayiflyfish Lindsay could you please tell me which company makes that vise shown in this video. Thankyou. You Take Care.🌴🎣🏄‍♂️Aloha🤙🏼

[@lindsayiflyfish]

@@kentw.897 Its an FNF Talon, I did a short video of my first impressions, got it for Christmas. kzbin.info/www/bejne/sIPZeqOrfNOdeK8 The company website is here www.fnflyfishing.co.uk

[@epsieblaine9558]

I enjoyed the video,brough back old memories. Got my first kit back in 1970,cost $8.50,.I have been tying ever since ,have learned all of this.The video brought back good mermies.THAKS

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Very welcome, I think my first kit was very cheap none of it survived as I bought better quality I passed on my old stuff to guys just getting into tying.

[@robgreen6697]

I like the Renomed scissors and can highly recommend them. I would however avoid buying a dedicated thread splitter tool, looks good yet not as simple as a needle as per the recommendation in the video. Good stuff here in this video.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Thanks Rob 👍

[@derekcunningham9993]

Good stuff , again, Ta. I have an excellent pair of material scissors, by Dr Slick, that I use for deer hair etc. I also use a cheepo pair of nail scissors for wire

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Good stuff!

[@leemowers9395]

Great reasoning behind your tool selection, thanks Lindsay

[@lindsayiflyfish]

I think once you have been tying for a while you know what you like.

[@rogerjones3038]

Hi Lindsay and all, 1 tool I have found a dream to use is the Stonfo Half Hitch Tool 441 just over a fiver. I use it for flies with chain bead eyes and Boobys. Works a treat, give it a look comes with three slip in/out different sized heads. Three to five wraps round the fly when finished seats threads a dream. Good if anyone struggles with a Whip Finish Tool. Regards Roger

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Thanks for the tip! Rodger just learned how to use the whip finish tool not going to push my luck with a new tool.....lol.

[@MrJimmuck]

I started tying when I was 10 years old, thats 56 years ago! No I really would not want to guess how much I have spent on gear and materials over the years ... it might make me cry!!! I do tie many flies each year and hey long may it continue!! Atb Jim

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Always makes me laugh when I walk out of a tying shop with a tiny bag of stuff and an empty wallet! ......lol.

[@MrJimmuck]

@@lindsayiflyfish frequently!! lol

[@kerrypitt9789]

Hey Jim I can tell you we started nearly the same time. I started when I was 12 August 01/69. Dad bought me a kit. When I was 35 I phoned him up and forgave him! LOL. Have we seen changes both for the worse and for the better!? Did you have someone to help you get started? I had the crappy little pulpy book that showed a Halfback, a Fullback, a Black Gnat and maybe a really bad sketch of how you spun Deer Hair! No bobbin, which actually I did not discover for eight years! LOL. Anyway, nice to meet you!

[@kerrypitt9789]

@@lindsayiflyfish right???

[@lindsayiflyfish]

@@kerrypitt9789 Bang on, I learned myself pretty much.

[@chriscahill2642]

Enjoyed the video. Might want to cover hackle pliers in another. Thanks

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Perhaps in another video "Five other tools to spend your cash on" ....lol. Thanks for watching buddy.

[@blackfur241]

Number 5 yaaaaas lol feel proud😆been watching you since day one pretty much and your now a dab hand with using a whip finisher 🥲👏🏻👏🏻

[@lindsayiflyfish]

🎉 Bloody thing still gives me bother now and again ;-)

[@kimpeterlarsen]

Good little video 👍

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Glad you enjoyed it, hope it was of some use.

[@fliesbychris]

I use the exact same whip finisher, but I sharpened the butt end with a dremel to get a wood chisel like blade and use that to cut my thread after whip finishing(doesn't work too well with nano silk or veevus GSP). Cracking vid Lindsay!! ATB Chris.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Hi Chris, I have been meaning to do that, just one of those jobs I have not got around too. I have a memory like a sieve.

[@dazzyd1964]

Scissors - sooooo many scissors and so little time! After working through over 40 different models I came across some great ophthalmology “squizzers” with blades only 10mm long and perfect for getting in really close to get those pesky stray fibres! 100% with you on materelli whip finish tools - i’ve used the C&F version for over 20 years and is in my opinion, the best on the market. Roll on BFFI 2022!

[@lindsayiflyfish]

I totally agree, really missed the show this year, actually really missed a lot of things.

[@kerrypitt9789]

Have you seen the squizzers with the little notch in the blade that allows you to pick out and snip individual fibers?

[@lindsayiflyfish]

@@kerrypitt9789 NO! and I best not....lol.

[@markm668]

Gotta agree Lindsay, buy lots of bobbin holders rather than one expensive one, it speeds up tying no end.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Hi Mark, having never owned or even used a really expensive one I can't see how it would improve my fly tying. Happy to be proved wrong though.

[@kerrypitt9789]

Good Morning Lindsay! Having a hypoglycemic moment and crap my back hurts, so I am in the Jacuzzi watching this and remembering last year when you were fighting with the Whip finisher! The reason I went to one was because I worked in the oil patch and my hands were always calloused, chapped and bleeding. My thread would break when I tried finishing by hand. My first whip finisher was the old Thompson, which I really liked, but the Materelli style you show is what I use now and it makes placing my wraps easier. The two things I would add here if you don't mind and I am not criticizing, I hope you know me well enough now to know I will not do that. Is a hackle pliars, for people with huge fingers they are helpful, annoying as hell but sometimes you just need them. The other has to do with bobbins. There is one exception to the rule and that is the "Spinner" style vise and bobbin. I am not really adding this for the Newbie, please bear with me. Because the Spinner vise is more than a rotating vise, a standard bobbin will not give you the full use of a Spinner vises ability. I am speaking of the Nor-Vise on which I have tied for the last 15 years. I only bring this up, because there are people out there who use it without an Autobobbin. Maybe some of your viewers. Sadly, by skimping on this piece of kit, they will never see the full potential of the Spinner style vise. So thanks for allowing me to say that. I never even heard of bobbins until 1978, about 21 years after I started. I learned from a great book by Helen Shaw and she never used a bobbin. I was on our Honeymoon and stopped to see an old friend and he was using one!!! Changed my life! You are right, Fly Tying is seperate from Fly Fishing and it is more than a hobby to many of us, it is a lifestyle. I hope someone is working on your back sir, I really enjoyed this video!!!

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Kerry as always thanks for tuning in. I have never tried a Nor-Vice but I know folks swear by them. I did toy between the bodkin needle and hackle pliers, perhaps I should have made it the top six.....lol.

[@kerrypitt9789]

@@lindsayiflyfish I don't know, you did a good presentation, I think the bodkin is at least as important. The Norvise is a great vice but it is a learning curve that not everyone wants to follow. I guarantee not everyone who owns it, uses it to its fullest advantage. Sometimes there is a little bit of "Status" involved in the tools we buy and that can get pretty expensive!

[@lindsayiflyfish]

@@kerrypitt9789 Totally agree can't tell you how much shite I have bought over the years because it looked good.

[@gregorydeangelis8891]

To clean my bodkins, i burn off the glue and use a 35mm plastic film canister filled with steel wool. Just poke the bodkin through the plastic lid a few times.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Gregory, I actually have a similar gadget that I bought but never use it just find the lighter and brush a bit quicker.

[@ghart91]

TRy sharpening the end of your whip finish tool and use to cut thread.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

On my to do list buddy.

[@corgiw6859]

Hi Lindsay, watch your videos alot! I struggle with my vice which don’t seem to hook my larger hooks in place. No matter how tight I tighten the vice, hook still moves. Please advise what is a very good vice for holding size 10 and 8 hooks without them moving! Can’t afford really one but will to pay more than the cheap ones.

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Corgi, you did not say what kind of vice you are using currently but if you are after a reasonable vice for around the £50 mark I used one of these for close on a decade. scottieproducts.co.uk/product/the-ultimate-no-1-vice/ I think I might well still have it somewhere. As long as you are not looking for inline rotary this will hold your hooks solid.

[@brianwilson2494]

As I'm fairly new to tying what would you use curved scissors for and are there any benefits from curved or straight edged scissors I still love the tutorials they are so informative and have helped my improve immensely

[@lindsayiflyfish]

Thanks Brian, the reason to my mind for curved scissors is when tying flies like muddlers. This helps with shaping the heads with deer hair.

[@mazman8343]

💯👍

[@georgewocosky]

I'm a silent subscriber, this is my first comment . . . I have no use for commercially made, generally overpriced JUNK for tools. I've made my own tools for fly tying , including custom ground scissors from 'junk' ! My working background has been mostly in machining , which covers tool making as well as nearly every aspect of manufacturing ! My vice/ vise is nothing more than a pair of hemostats - * which fit into a device that looks like a hangman's gallows. The 'gallows' holds the hemostats at any angle, with just a quarter turn of a knob. I find whip finishers to be a pain, & generally much slower than several half hitches by hand , followed by a quick dosing of UV resin, and / or fast drying nail hardener. My bodkins are made from 5/0 hooks , heated , straightened, then ground & polished, after fitted to hardwood handles . I made my hair stacker from scrap steel on my lathe , same with my dubbing spinners . . . I live in a small rural town in southwest Missouri, U.S. , which is very agricultural ; with many small farms - THAT is a main PLUS . . . Turkey , Ducks , & fowl of many types are plentiful enough that I don't have to BUY feathers . . However, when a bargain comes along , I'm a sucker ;) I have a wall in my livingroom that is covered with ring necked pheasant hides ! I got a box of treated skins , (whole birds) for a mere 2 dollars each ! *Many lifetime supplies , from 30+ birds , , , I bought a length of 'rope' that was made in Mexico . . . made of polypropylene - upon close examination, I found that the fibers are EXACTLY the same as 'floss'. So I unraveled a short section to see how viable it would be as a tying material. . . Hmmm for 3 dollars' worth, I have a lifetime supply of bright yellow , crimson, & emerald green ! I chopped some of the fibers to 'dubbing' length , & mixed rabbit fur/hair , (that I also sheared from the hide), & NOW I have a source for quite a range of essentially 'free' dubbing ! I appreciate your teaching ability to show how many patters are tied - conventional & otherwise . . . you've helped inspire me to realize that merely observing bugs & fish in the wild can lead to making very good imitations as flies ! Sorry to be so long winded ! (not really) ;p There is a world of material & tools available to us all . . . some reasonably priced, some overly hyped , while the best of the best is hand made for nothing but TIME ! Thanks for your take on what tools are important to you . . . I can't pick a top 5 list , I need ALL MY TOOLS , since THEY are the key to making all others ! CHEERS !

[@lindsayiflyfish]

George, that is awesome! I would love to be able to make my own tools but just don't have the skill set. There are lots of things out there that you can use for fly tying and you seem to have made the most of what you have available. Toy stores and craft shops are treasure troves for fly tying bargain hunters. Thanks for taking the time to comment.

[@georgewocosky]

@@lindsayiflyfish Thank you for the reply ! After doing a lot of thinking , the conclusion for tools & materials for fly tying boil down to just a couple factors - time vs MONEY . Re-tailers: *add zeroes to the PRICE (for convenience) ! 'Lowlands' are generally FLOODED with products, with many of them being sold on the common market - 'value' being subjective to marketing whims / marketing wank ;p One aspect that I find incredible , is the massive difference in price between retail and SOURCE. . . *the more a material is handled in distribution , the higher the cost . Materials such as angel hair / gliss 'n gloss , lite bright , (and others) . . . are generally synthetics . . . mylar , tri - lobal fibers , etc . To finish my analogy of UPSTREAM vs 'lowlands' , I looked for SOURCE of materials , & found a fabrics distributor that sells RAW materials . From holographic mylar, to angel hair ; to wools & many other fibers. . . This source is basically a distributor that deals with home crafters that make custom fabrics / woven goods . Full OUNCES of these materials are a mere 5 to 7 dollars (3 1/2 to 5 pounds) ! UPSTREAM ! Considering the miserly amount of material had in tiny packages / packets , I refuse to pay for 'name brand' / rebranded / packaged material that is IDENTICAL ! Maybe I'm just CHEAP ? ;p Seriously, our BRAINS are our best , most useful TOOLS ! * Very likely , a similar source must be available in Europe ? ! I would think that a CLUB or other organization/ organisation would be / SHOULD BE buying in bulk for member $aving$ ! Paying 3 to 5 pounds for a tiny packet of maybe 5 grams weight vs the same cost for 5 times more product . . closer to 6 times more ! Just a bit of food for thought ;) "We are LORDED over by land(lords) , taxation ) governmenttal (lords) - even WORSE : N.G.O.'s non - government organizations, that have no right to push their nonsense on the world's population ! ( the U.N. < etc. ) Free opinion , which is our sovereign human right ! The weather here is changing . . . I"M GOING FISHING ! 70 degrees F today ! ;)