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I'd completely forgotten about the Sunrise & Universal vises, along with one of those little streamside thumb vises ! Similar to 45 rpm records with the plastic spindle inserts in this day & age; just a faded memory of tying flies in days of old :cool:
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I started out tying about 13 years ago on a sunrise and used it for about 6 years. Decided that I wanted a vise that was rotary and went with a griffin. Finally retired it last year and bought a Renzetti presentation 2000, couldn't pass the deal up. Brand new in the box for 200.00. I use it the most. Also bought an HMH spartan about 3 months ago, like brand new, that I use for my articulated streamers and the bigger bass bugs. Have a set of the small jaws on order and may use it more once I get them. I have tied on all kinds of vises...Dynaking(loved how smooth the rotary function was, a tank but just to big for my likeing), Regal standard( the ease of it is awesome but I use rotary to much), Peak( jaws to hard to replace), anvil( actually thought about getting that one but never did), LAW(if I only had enough money..What a machine..No cons, just don't have enough dough to get it..yet), and finally Danvise( again a little to bulky for me, and although seemed like a well bit machine I just don't trust the plastic). Besides the LAW my favorite would be my Renzetti.
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I've been tying about 18 months. My first vise was a Thompson that a buddy loaned to me. I the only vise I've ever owned is a Peak. So far, it has done everything I've wanted it to do.
Jeff
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"Plastic" Vises
A little background :
The company I used to work for manufactures fire fighting equipment. One of my projects was to create a light weight nozzle for fixed equipment installation. We already had aluminum nozzles that that were about 1/3 the weight of a brass nozzle, but still weighed 18 to 20 pounds, depending on configuration. That was still to heavy. We started researching composite (plastic) materials, and found a glass-filled Nylon-6 material with a shear strength that exceeded that of carbon steel, but only weighed 1/4 as much. This stuff is strong, resilient, and light weight. It machines like steel, producing a clean, smooth surface.
I guess us older folks mainly have a problem with plastic because of our experiences in the earlier days of the technology. Plastic used to be an inferior material for all but the least expensive of products. Modern composite materials are every bit as good as the brass and steel products they are replacing.
As you can probably tell, I'm a convert. And yes, I own a Danvise.:D
Kirk
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I started out with a tying kit I bought back in the late eighties. The vise that was included in the kit I still have and use. It's the most basic of vises. After a year of use my wife gave me for my birthday a DK Barracuda outfit. A great vise, but a bit to much at times so I bought a DK Voyager II. After that the Barracuda collected dust most days. The Voyager II fit me like a custom made glove. It packs down nicely into a small travel bag including the base. With base, the vice is heavy for a so-called traveler vice, but manageable. About a year ago, I got to corresponding with one of the guys on the board here and long story short, traded the Barracuda with accessories for a Nor-Vice outfit. Best trade I ever made. The Nor-Vice does both stationary and rotary tying very well. The Voyager II still gets plenty of use. These two vises serve me well and will probably be the last vices I buy. :rolleyes:
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I started tying on my dad's thompson A and after he quit tying sort of took it from him when I graduated college. I've tied on it for about 6 years now and it's served me well, but the jaws are starting to slip regularly. It's over 15 years old. My wife just got me a graduation present and am looking forward to tying on it. It's the C&F reference vise that was posted on the "for sale" board. I haven't tied with a rotary vise before, but as my thompson A had trouble even turning at all, I am sure I'll love it and will enjoy many years tying with it.
Greg
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I started with a rotary vise. I not only bought the vise, but two DVDs. One from AL Beaty and one from Mike Holt of Rotary Fly Tying. Incorporated many techniques right from the beginning and have never looked back.
First vise was a DanVise. Bought it on solid recomendations and it functioned fine, but was looking for something else.
Bought a Peak, recomended winning vise in a review of vises under $150. Good vise, solid, Made In Good Ole USA.
Bought a Dyna King Barracuda. Hopefully have arrived at the promised land. Next stop is Law or I'm retiring with this one. Hopefully the latter of the two.
Note on buying vises - just buy the one that you want to begin with and save yourself all of the shopping and start enjoying the one you want right from the beginning. Sure I could sell one of the other vises, but I keep them for my family or friends to tie on when they come over.
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I'm a DanVise guy
Positives:
1) Solid hook holding power from size 2/0 to 20.
2) The tightening screw is in a perfect position to hang my thread and bobbin over it. This always me to have two hands free to whip finish while holding hackle back out of place.
3) True rotary
4) Price.
Negatives:
1) I've tied 22s and 24s on it, but one has to be careful that the hooks are seated properly. If not, one has a tiny, barbed projectile on one's hands.
2) The shaft is slightly larger than standard - that means parachute posts and clipping bags don't fit.
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I've tied on quite a number of vises since I began tying.
My first "good" vises were a Renzetti Traveler followed by a Dyna-King Barracuda. I liked both vises but the whole "true-rotary" thing never really caught on with me. I've also got some nerve damage in my hands and it became painful to hold my left hand in the position that these two true-rotary vises forced me to.
Next I moved on to an HMH Standard Bench Vise. I loved this vise very much and tied on it for about five years. It's not true rotary but it allowed me to hold my hand in a position that didn't cause pain. It was/is a great vise, but after several thousand flies, larger hooks (#4 and bigger) began to slip a bit.
I currently tie on a Regal Medallion with the optional stainless steel jaws. This one is by far my favorite of the vises I've owned. There is no messing around adjusting jaws between hook sizes and it holds hooks solidly. I've been tying on it for almost six months now and have not experienced the "shooting hooks" some mentioned. I've tied the full spectrum of hook sizes from 2/0 salmon flies down to #26 midges and have had no problems with either hook holding or hook access. I love my Regal!
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I can only say...."Griffin Rules!!!!".
I started out with a Thompson vise that came in a Herter's Fly Tying Kit that I got for my 6th Birthday. That was in 1969. I used it up until about 6 years ago, then I got a Griffin Montana Mongoose on EBay. It opened up a whole new world of tying for me, and I've seen no reason to get another vise. I sold my Thompson on Ebay, cheaply, to give someone else a chance to get started, at a modest cost.
Things I like about my Mongoose:
The option of using the pedastal, or the clamp. It lets me take it with me to fairs, and Sporting Goods places to do demonstrations.
It clamps all sizes of hooks from #22 to 4/0, with no modifications, or changing anything.
It spins easily, and almost everything on it is adjustable, allowing me to fully customize it to my tying style.
I got it with the optional Parachute attachment, clamp on Magnifying Lens/Light, and the attachable Waste Basket. These options make tying, tiny flies, and Parachute Flies mere childs-play, and keeps my work area clean (most of the time).
I love my Mongoose!