Buy which vise?

[ggh]

Hi folks,
My son gave me a beginner's fly-tying kit for Christmas which included a cheap vise; I have been bitten by the fly-tying bug, and I am more than ready to buy a better vise. The current vise is a real pain in the neck when I try to adjust the jaws for different size hooks. The Regal (with stainless jaws) looks like the simplest hook-clamping vice, but I also find the Dyna-King Barracuda or Barracuda Jr. an attractive alternative--just in case I want to use the rotary feature--this will be the last vise I ever buy, so I thought I would buy something that would have any features I might ever want to use. The only thing I wonder about is the ease of locking different size hooks in the jaws. Unfortunately, there is not a fly shop that carries different brands of vises near me, so it would be very difficult for me to do a hands-on evaluation/comparison. What do you folks think about 1.) ease of hook placement in the jaws and 2) would you go with the Barracuda or Barracuda Jr. model (and why)? I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has had experience with these vises.
Many thanks,
George

[Betty Hiner]

George,
I would venture to guess that everyone who answers your post will suggest their favorite vise. One way to determine YOUR favorite, would be to hit your nearest fly shop, sit down with each vise you think may serve your purpose, and TRY them. OK ... let the onslaught begin!

[James Smith]

George,

To Betty's point, I suspect that the input you'll get will be somewhat biased as there are a number of "favorite" vises out there. You might check online to see if there are any fly fishing clubs in your area of Texas as a starting place. Many clubs have monthly meetings where members bring their fly tying equipment to swap ideas, materials, and flies. Perhaps you could get some more direct input and get to try a couple of differnt models that way.

Like you, I started with an inexpensive vise, since I didn't want to spend too much mony on something I may not enjoy doing long term. Well, it turned out that I really enjoy tying, so my next vise was a Regal. I liked the Regal vise because it holds the hook very well and you don’t have to adjust the jaws when switching hook sizes. The Regal worked great as long as I didn't tie on tiny (size 18 or smaller) hooks. With the very small hooks, I tend to try to place the hook near the tip of the jaws to give myself as much access to the hook as possible. The very strong, spring-loaded clamping action used with the Regal can spit out tiny hooks like little bullets if they are too close to the tips of the jaws. When the hook shoots out, it causes the jaws to snap shut, which can cause the jaws to chip and they have to be replaced. As I became more comfortable with tying, I wanted to try a vise with rotary capabilities, so I bought a Dyna-King Barracuda. This is also a very high quality vise that will last a lifetime, but I found the rotary feature cumbersome to use because the shank of the hook wasn't easily aligned with the rotary hub on the vise. Still on the hunt for a rotary vise, I tried a a Nor-Vise and I stopped looking. All that said, there are plenty of people a whole lot more talented a fly tying than I am that will swear by any number of other brands and models.

Good luck in your search and if at all possible get some bench time with a few of the brands you’re interested in before you make your purchase. Remember, you said you want this to be the last vise you ever have to buy so pick carefully.

Jim Smith

[Uncle Jesse]

This is the best comparative review of vises I have seen. It give a good side by side $ for $ type review. There may be some, I don't know if they cover the Norvise, they did not consider but nothing is perfect. If money was not object I would get a Norvise. I would love to have access to a machine shop to try building my own with a old time treadle from a sewing machine.

http://www.flyfishohio.com/Vise%20Re..._Shoot-Out.htm

[Silver Creek]

Get a true rotary vise the rotates the fly with the hook shank at the center of rotation rather than one which rotates the hook along the circumference of a circle as many "rotary" vises do.

You will find fly tyers using all kinds of vises at a tying exposition but most trout fly tyers will be tying on a Renzetti. 'nuff said.

[whatfly]

[snip] What do you folks think about 1.) ease of hook placement in the jaws and 2) would you go with the Barracuda or Barracuda Jr. model (and why)? I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has had experience with these vises.
Many thanks,
George

Simple enough questions, not sure why previous posters are spinning off in all directions. Fundamentally, "ease of hook placement" only really matters to a point. For a commercial tier this is going to make be a key issue, hence why they like Regals so much. For a normal tier, most decent vises load fast enough these days with some sort of lever. Dyna-King makes very good vises so the only distinction I can think of between the Barracuda and the Trekker are weight. If you plan on travelling with your vise, you might like the Trekker better. The jaw design is identical, so "ease of hook placement" doesn't really come into play.

Luck.

[CoachBob]

Renzetti Traveler.
I own two and have zero complaints.

[Ray Kunz]

I agree with CoachBob. A Renzetti traveler is great as is a Peak and they both are made in the U.S.A.

[Beaver]

To answer your question, I have the Trekker vice. Its about 15 yrs old and I have never had a problem with it. I've tyed both saltwater and freshwater flies from size 2 to 22. Every once in a while tying a really small fly and pulling the thread to tight I will pull the hook out, but I think any vice will have that problem. The rotary function work well and I would buy one again if I had the choice. But I haven't used a Regal yet so can't help you there. I bought the Trekker because it was lighter and cheaper than the Barracuda. My friend just bought a new Barracuda and he has some nicer features on his but the vice is basically the same. Hope that has helped with the Dyna King part. Good luck with your search.

Beaver

[TyroneFly]

If this is going to be the last vise and you are looking and you like for it to do many things, I would suggest looking at the Nor-Vise. I had the Barracuda and traded it for a Nor-Vise. While the Barracuda is a rock solid vise, it could not come close to flexibility of a Nor-Vise. The one drawback I find with the Nor-Vise is portability. For that I have a Dynaking Voyager II.