Who is tying with a Ekich Bobbin, are they worth their weight and gold??
A little pricey for me @ $100 Click Here
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Who is tying with a Ekich Bobbin, are they worth their weight and gold??
A little pricey for me @ $100 Click Here
I liked it enough to get a second for my other tying station located in another state....there's a learning curve.
Don't know if a Rite would compare????
Bugman is the only one I know who uses an Ekich bobbin. He loves it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by popperfly
popperfly,
That is one fine tying apparatus! Have waaay too many bobbins now! If I had not accumulated so many, I would consider this one, or a Rite bobbin. Was in a fly shop with my dad awhile back, and he offered to buy me one of the Rite bobbins! I told him that I just didn't need it - which is true. Oh well!! I am going to pass this on though. Thanks
Best regards, Dave S.
I have a Rite bobbin that I use for spinning deer hair.
It's not in any way an Ekich Bobbin, though.
The Rite maintains an adjustable tension on the thread. That's it's prime feature and one that I like because I can set it for heavier threads.
The Ekich will rewind the thread, which is it's prime feature. The literature says that this is 'essential' for rotary tying, but I use a rotary vise and so far I've not had any trouble with using a standard bobbin. I can see where the rewind capability would be nice, though.
I do like neat tools, though, and the Ekich certainly meets the 'neat tool' criteria for me. I've been considering one of the NorVise bobbins, but the Ekich will use standard spools where the NorVise one won't. Might be fun to have one, someday.
Buddy
I have and use an Ekitch bobbin. Nice tool, fits the hand well and operates as described. As stated, there is a learning curve. I'm used to managing the thread tension with my hand, this is a no-no with the Ekitch. It regulates the thread tension for you. That is a bit uncomfortable for me, but seems to work well. One advantage of the Ekitch over the other automatic bobbin is that you can use the thread spools and not reload the thread on special spools. Be aware that not all thread spools are created equal. The Ekitch works like a champ with Danville spools, not so well with Gordon Griffith spools. As a result, I use Danville's with the Ekitch and my Nor-Bobbin with the Gordon Griffiths thread.
Threading the Ekitch requires a dental floss threader with a slightly singed end because of a bump where the ceramic tube starts. Metal bobbin threaders can damage a ceramic bobbin tube, so all I use are the dental floss thraders. However, locating the one with the slightly singed end on my very messy tying desk can be a pain.
Is the bobbin worth the money? Jury is still out for me. I've only been using it for a year, still haven't made up my mind.
REE
JC was a believer, we visited Faruk Ekich at his summer home in Quebec a couple of years ago and JC got the full instruction from him.
It is a terrific tool, he was a Sponsor here for a couple of years *S* and you will find a fly or two from him in the Fly of the Week, do a search on Faruk Ekich...tube flies too.
REE...I don't know the singed thing but I find that cutting the end of the dental loop threader on the bias...pointed...works quite well and I keep it hung on a hook near my vise:D
ducks,
My problem is that I only use the dental loop threaders for all my bobbins, 16 that I use on a regular basis. When I lay the threader down it usually gets buried under more tying stuff, so I just grab another from one of the three or four packs I have on my desk. Then, when I need to thread the Ekitch, I have to search through all the threaders on the desk to find the right one. More my fault than the bobbins.
REE
C'mon ,REE, Just cut them all on the bias and you can use any of them....cutting them all would take ....how long?...seconds not minutes.......hey, you could even spread them over your breakfast food....sorry ....an inside joke.
The competitor to the Ekich is the Nor-vise bobbin. If they were the same price, I'd buy the Ekich. But they are not.
I use the Nor-vise Automatic Bobbin. I can get 3 of them for $115.50 rather than 1 Ekich for $100.00. Extra bobbin spools are 10 for $24 with free shipping.
I have 4 Nor-vise bobbins and all my treads on Nor-vis spools for less than 2 Ekich Bobbins. I've found that the Nor-vise spools are more compact that the commercial thread spools so I can fit all of them in a zip lock sandwich bag.
An impressive piece of engineering and congrats to those who are able to enjoy such craftsmanship. However, I cast my lot years ago with the S&M bobbin; it's always been faithful (with maybe a little coaxing from some 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper on one or two of them), never let me down, and just feels like a part of my hand. At $4.50 a pop they were worth the investment; I think I ended up with 10 of them, which is probably 7 too many since I've never worn one out, but at that rate I figure I can tie until I'm 173.
Regards,
Scott
REE,
I use the dental floss threaders occasionally, but prefer a Surger sewing machine threader. Longer, rigid
and fits through all my bobbin tubes. Ever try one??
SweetS
The Ekich is almost essential to obtain the maximum benefit and potential from your rotary vise. In spite of utilizing every 'speed technique' out there, (loading wraps ahead, a second rest, numerous finger+/-thumb dexterity tricks, etc.) going to the Ekich will allow you to be at least twice as productive for your time at the vise.
The "learning curve" is quite rapid if you use the Ekich to the exclusion of the others. Your finished flies' quality will improve considerably. Do start a little slowly to retrain your dominant hand and then speed up as the new 'muscle memory' develops. Give your broken-in and well trained bobbins to your students as you school the next generation to the enjoyment we inherited.;)
Two friends of mine have them. I have tied quite a bit with one. They are a superb piece of engineering, beautifully put together. There is a but however.
Mostly I tie non rotary. I do use a lot of split thread techniques, this means spinning the bobbin a lot. I found it just didn't have the balance for a good spin. I have been told to place a finger along side the tube while spinning it. That does help the balance, but slows the spin. The result is that I have to spin the bobbin two or three times to get the same twist I get from one spin with the TMC ones I use. This extra time more than takes up any time saved rewinding the thread onto the bobbin. For the way I tie now there is no gain. There may even be a loss.
The other friend tells me, and I'll accept his word, that the Ekich does not have enough "travel" to use on his Nor Vice. He uses the Nor Bobbin for that. I have been considering a Nor Vice myself, and will, if I do get that, learn from his expensive mistake. As both he and I buy thread on 10 000 meter spools re spooling is needed for any bobbin holder.
Though I am impressed with it as a piece of engineering craftsmanship, it doesn't offer me anything for the extra expense.
Cheers,
A.
Revisiting a year old thread to sing the praises of a bobbin of debatable merits. Really? What, you have stock in the company?Quote:
Originally Posted by gordo7
But seriously folks, this is a pretty bold assertion, and I'd argue that the Ekrich bobbin actually reduced my productivity by at least half. Personally, I do not have AlanB's issue, but I do dislike how hard it is to load, how it designed to be held on a single plane, how it feels to the hand, too expensive to have more than one, heavy, etc., etc., etc. Bought one a while ago, tried it for a time and now keep it as a reminder that just because something is nicely engineered, it does not follow that it is better. A nice toy but definitely not worth the money, IMHO.
YMMV.
I received one when I traded my Dyna King Barracuda for a Nor Vise with a member here on the bb. I found it awkward to use. I find the Nor Vice Automatic bobbin to be superior. I have used the Automatic bobbin on both the Nor Vise and a Dyna King Voyager II and come to appreciate the take-up feature and spin balance of the bobbin. I have since given the Ekich bobbin to another member here.
My bad....didn't realize the antiquity of the thread....I was just stumbling (link to link liked) around enjoying the reading and overlooked that little facty.
But will stand by my assertions....afterall they're mine. :-)
Gordon, not to worry.....
I don't think Ekich is a publicly traded company, so I'm sure you own no stock.
LOL!!!!!!
I bought the smaller Ekich and after a month or so decided to try my old Rite bobbins again. It made me realize how much I relied on the features of the automatic bobbin and I have not touched my older bobbins after that, and I also ordered the larger one for steelhead. I still use a conventional bobbin when I am using the smaller spools of silk, but the Ekich has been worth every penny to me. Great bobbin. I like the fit in my hand better than the Nor.
I've never used one but it appears that the "flat" that you would hold between your fingers is 90 degrees out of the customary position you would expect. To me, I would call it an "overextension of inovation". :(