I’ve been trying to find a way to organize my tying materials into a compact but usable system as I am beginning to realize that much of my tying is done away from home. Has anyone found a good system for this? I was hoping to find a drawer like setup to store my hooks, beads, dubbing and feathers but most of what I’ve seen doesn’t have compartments that would accomodate this variety of materials and would likely cause the hooks and beads to spill into the other compartments. I’ve been looking but still haven’t found it yet. Any one got suggestions?
I received from my mom a (No Spill Organizer) by Darice. It is specifically made for jewelry designers’ It works no spill over into other compartments.
For me I like those 6qt. sterite boxes you can get from places like Wal-Mart. They are tough and they are cheap and they stack, and are relatively vermin proof.
Individual items go inside ziploc freezer bags which go inside the sterite boxes.
Any chest type box I have ever tried to use soon ran out of space and the materials in the compartments would jump to other compartments making a mess.
I’ve got 10 of the 6qt. in use now and If I need more I’ll run up to kmart and get some more, and stack the new ones on top of the old ones. I’ll also pack reels, tippet material, etc. in these boxes for a safe trip in the duffle bag for a trip to the hills fishing. Same thing goes for fly tying material and tool forays, either on a fishing trip or to a buddies house for a fly tying get together. You can fit alot of stuff in one of those boxes!
I’ve been looking at tool boxes for a while but haven’t seen the one by harbor freight. It looks like it might just do the trick. Thanks for the link Jim. I’m currently using a system that sort of combines the darice boxes and the sterite 6qt boxes, stacking the darice boxes into the sterites, but I don’t like having to unpack and repack each time I tie. I can see that running out of space with a tool box type idea may be a problem, but maybe it will help to keep my tying supplies from growing to unmanageable levels. Thanks for all the ideas.
Here is a fly tying box I had made up for me to use to transport my fly tying to another location for teaching fly tying which worked out fairly well. You just need to add/remove the material you will be using at the class. It is 20 1/2" wide, 25" tall and 7 1/2" deep. The front of the cabinet slides up and off to expose the 2 Stack-On boxes that are mounted inside the box. I will apologize for the picture sizes because I am not sure how large they will come out since I was in a hurry to post this and forgot to edit the pictures first.
I started out with exactly the same model chest for my fly tying materials. I never tried to carry it around and it stayed in the same place in my den. It will hold a lot of material and keep it organized quite well. If you love fly tying and fly tying materials, this chest will be a temporary solution. It might work well for the materials that you need to from place to place but you will outgrow it. I’ve gone from this chest to a wheeled, wooden, tool chest three times size and then to the traditional plastic containers in the closet. I now use this lovely little chest just for hooks, beads (metal & glass), lead eyes and cone head. Of course, you could just say “No” repeatedly anytime you’re in fly shops. Seriously, Jim’s suggestion, would give you a very classy, portable, highly durable and roomy material box. 8T
Thanks Jim! I’ve been looking for something like this for months, but nothing this affordable was around. I checked this out on the net and less than an hour later it is in my kitchen. It is perfect. Greg, if this is the size you are looking for, it is nice for the price. You can’t see it in the photos, but it has a carry handle on the lid. If I outgrow it, then I’ll just get a second…then a third, maybe…
Hopefully I’ve copied the right URL - I’ll test it after I post. It should be a bead organizer that could also be used for hooks etc. This is a very , very nice container to put in your kit/travel box. BTW, this URL is to show the product. It is waaay cheaper to buy this exact product at Walmart or maybe(?) Michaels Craft store!
Ok, test shows correct product. This is an exceptional fly tiers organizer. I would encourage everyone to take a look at it, even if you are not in the market for one. I have no personal interest in this product other than I got two of them at Wally World for about 10 bucks each and think they are the greatest thing since sliced bread!!!
I have been using various Dewitt compartmentalized boxes for years for glass & metal beads, cone-heads, etc. While they are far from the cheapest solution, they have real metal hinges that won’t crack over time, positive latching when closed and they last forever.
Thanks for all the ideas.
