First of all, I’ve been watching from the sidelines on here for a while, just never posted. Have been tying for around 20 yrs on old hand-me-down equipment and think it is time for some upgrades.
I am in need of a new vise, have a pretty cheapy one now that won’t hold a hook without some help, so anything is better. Been looking at the Griffin Odyssey Spider. Anyone on here use one or know it? Would it work ok for both jigs and flies, mostly fishing for crappie, gills and sm/lm bass? The cost is around $80, wanted to stay under $100, but the next level of rotary is a big jump in price… what’s different about the Spider?
No rotary now so didn’t know if I should just stick with a straight simple vise and save my money… well, use it for other materials anyways.
AtticaFish, Hi and welcome from So Cal.
I bought a Danvise from BT’s, a sponsor on FAOL. It is a true rotary vise and about $95. delivered to your door.
i dont know if there is a fly shop in your area or even nearby, but that would be a good place to go and try out some vises for yourself and see which ones fit your tying style.
you will be getting plenty of opinions on which vises you should use but probably not many opinions on the vise youre asking about. ive never used one, so i cant really say much about it. (i went and looked at cabelas web page for the odysee spider and it gets alot of 5 star reviews)
there is absolutely no need for a rotary vise if you dont need one and are comfortable with tying on a stationary vise. some of the best tyers still tie on stationary vises.
AtticaFish,
First of all, welcome aboard. I tie on a Griffin Spider. I find that it does all I ask it to do. It was a little bit difficult to tune it in to the way I tie, but once I got it where I wanted it, it has performed very well. I tie right handed and find myself often resting my left hand on top of the vise while tying. That’s not as good an idea as it is with my Danvise. That’s the other vise I use and I find nothing wrong with either. Both vises do what they say the will do and at their respective prices, I find them both to be a real bargain. If I was asked to choose between the two, I would have to go with the Danvise. It’s a bit beefier and I like that aspect. But either vise is a good choice.
I’d been looking at that same vise about a year ago, when I started to tie. I’d read many reviews and even asked around a few other message boards, and general consensus seemed to be that it was a good workhorse vise. Nothing especially fancy, pretty, or refined, and, to many, the vise has “more plastic than they thought” (mostly on adjustment knob handles), but even at that, most also added that the extra plastic “doesn’t take away from the function of the vise in any way”.
As it turned out for me, I never needed to get one and try it. A fly fishing/tying mentor of mine offered a spare Sunrise vise he had and wasnt using for me to tie with, for free. I took him up on that offer and tied hundreds of flies on that little, inexpensive vise with surprisingly few issues (occasionally an especially large or small hook would slip). Just recently, I’d been saving up to get a kayak, but when my friend suddenly decided he wasn’t going to get one, I was left with a small stockpile of “spare fly fishing money”, and put it toward a good vise that I’ll hopefully never need to replace. After talking to the owner of my local fly shop, I took home a Regal and have be highly satisfied.
One note on the rotary feature…I got used to tying on a stationary vise. Though the Regal isnt “true” rotary, it does rotate to give you access to the top, bottom, and far side of the hook. Though I have this option, i find I rarely take advantage of it. I’ll probably learn to use it more as time goes on, but as of now, I feel that for all the hype “true rotary” gets, its probably not actually used as much by the end user as the vise manufacturers would like buyers to think. Just my 2 cents.
I first vise was a Spyder. It held up well and could ties flies in a variety of sizes. The only reason I sold it and bought a different vise was because I started tying tube flies and the Spyder could not accommodate tube fly attachments. If you plan to tie tube flies, make sure that the attachments will fit on the vise as they do not fit on quite a few common vises.
Thanks for all the info guys! Ended up getting a great deal on a Griffin Odyssey Cam that I couldn’t turn down. Can’t wait to get it and figure it out… looks like it will be much different than the straight vise I use now. Will be nice not to have to stuff paper in my jaws to hold a hook.
Got mine from Laser Jigs & Blades, he is working on putting them on his site now, but if you send him an email, he will give you his pricing. Thanks again - AtticaFish
Your Odyssey will give you many great years of tying. I have used one since it came on the market,before that a Griffin 3Arp that I now use for tube flies. Also seven more Griffin model 2As that have been used by hundreds of children in tying class. If the children cant break them no one can. Lifrtime guarantee that Ive never had to use----BILL
Hi Guys,
I also started on the Spyder about seven yrs. ago. I still have it but now have a
Peak. The Spyder was great, except the 2 little knobs that secure the hook, after
several hours your fingers will get very tender, at least mine did. Just enjoy tying,
I can get my mind off of everything else, it’s really relaxing.
I’m not familiar with the Spyder but I can confidently endorse Griffin products. I’ve been tying on a Montana Mongoose for a while now and I really like it a lot. Best Regards…
