As the title says, I tie on my dining room table. As you can imagine the wife likes that I clean up after every session, which necessitates filing all the different tools and material etc in all their various storage containers a laborious and annoying process. Anyone have any ideas of some type of small set up which coul hold my vise and tools and material that I need immediately that I could just whip out and tie with whenever I want.
The Oasis desks arent good because the hold everything out in the open and I have nowhere to put them when I am done tying on the table
I am sure someone has a great Idea.
Thanks
rawfish,
When I first started I bought a simple plastic box in the nuts and bolts section at Wal-Mart. It has about 24 drawers that will actually hold alot of your smaller materials. These boxes come in different sizes and there were a couple that were bigger than the one I bought. I think I paid around $7 for mine. It worked for about a year and then i had to find something bigger. You can’t store your vise or necks in it. I used the plastic shoe boxes for that.
You might consider picking up an old hardsided briefcase. It should hold everything you’ll need for one tying session and you can “sweep” everything back into it in about 10 seconds when you’re done. You could even mount a piece of plywood on the inside of the briefcase that will allow you to mount your vise. The pockets intended to hold pencils and pens, etc. should hold your tying tools fairly well and perhaps some capes and other tying supplies.
Just a thought…
Jim Smith
How about the “Fly Hive”
How about something like this - scroll down to the fly tying station near the bottom of the page:
Inform your wife that, effective immediately, the dining table will be unavailable for dining usage. When she gives you “the look,” show her the new TV trays you just picked up and remark on how wonderful they compliment the other furnishings. 8)
Or, in the interest of a happy marriage, go the wallet-friendly route gqualls suggests. If you go with plastic, consider buying several smaller containers; it’s easier to keep your materials and tools sorted and separated that way. Also, by covering the work area with a small towel, you can prevent those bits of hair and feather from drifting all over the place. A quick shake outside after tying makes cleanup simple.
The big{read huge}Plano tackle boxes work great also.
I received one for Xmas last year but didn’t have a real use for it until I was packing for a trip and wanted to take more tying stuff than I could cram into my old travel case.
Try JoAnn’s Fabrics. You’ll be amazed at the assortment of good quality plastic boxes available. Also the Rubbermaid boxes in many sizes, those seal up better.
But do put some insect repellent in whatever you choose.
There are some warddrobe tidies that hang on a coat hanger and have all sorts of little to large pockets with flaps held by velcro to keep the pockets closed. When not hanging they roll up into a neat parcel, and with luck your gear will be pretty secure.As LadyFisher says. Don’t forget repellant for the creepies.
If you or your good lady can find one. I think it could help while you make other plans. Good Luck and Have Fun. Jax
yup - had that problem too. Then got the tying room - and end up down there until all hours of teh nite (or until she comes to ask me ‘when are you comeing to bed’) …
So - I gather up the materials for 2 or 3 flies, put them in my tin. Take my tool box and set up in my comfy-station.
All it is, a 3/4 inch piece of plywood, with a c-clip on one end that allows it to fit snug on a t.v. tray. You can dabble it up or down - your choice - but real easy (and cheap).
just one word of caution … watch the ceiling fan :oops:
darrell,
I pack my big stuff in those plastic containers like you buy cheap at wally world. The bulk of my stuff including vice, hooks, and my main materials go into one of those large plano tackle boxes. The one I have has a crank bait top on it that snaps open and it holds hooks and beads in about 20 different compartments meant for crank baits. I think it is a Plano 777.
i tie at my table too and i use a block of wood that i drilld varius size holes in to store my tools .
for other suplies there in rolling plastic storage containers that slide under the table just her and me at home .
my one friend uses a kniting needle case for his tools
and a rolling travel bag with plaino boxes for his gear he travels alot so it works good for him
We are all little children in big peoples bodies, we never put anything away when we are done.
When working in the Army Motor Pool, I taught my mechanics to put their tools back when they were done, not to leave them scattered on the floor or bench. Then when you need them again, you do not have to go looking for them.
Tying in a public area of the house? Choose a pattern, put all the materials for that pattern in a box. Put all the tools you will need for tying that fly pattern in a second box. Bring a third box for the flies you will be tying. As you tie the flies, place them in a third box.
When you are done tying, place the materials in the first box, the tools in the second box, and take the three boxes back to where you got them from and place the item back in the boxes you took them out of.
May seem like a lot of bother, but this stuff cost you a lot of money (totaling the cost of everything). How do you save time? Next time you want to tie some flies, the stuff will not be missing, or because you forgot where you stashed it, because you were too lazy to return everything to its proper place. [b]~Parnelli
“A Place for everything, and everything in its place!”[/b]
Something else to do to keep the mess in line and something I like to do at freinds and families houses when visiting them in Idaho and tying in their living room or dinning rooms.
Use a shallow cardboard box to catch all the trimming etc plus to keep the material in you are currently using. The best source for the shallow cardboard boxes are the cardboard try from the inexpensive 24 packs of pop from your local grocery store. When You are done tying for a time just pick up the pop tray with all its content still in and put on to a high shelf out of the way. Ready to tie again just pull it down and start tying right were you left off. I also used to do this before buying a house and finally getting the tying room I always wanted.
I’m sorry i can’t paste the photo but it is in the FAOL archive of hints.
Trucos de montaje
My Evolved Workstation
By Ray Kunz
My workstation is not a dedicated area. Our family desk must share multi-tasking with domestic business and my model railroading. Tidiness and portability are paramount. To improve the utility and portability of my workstation over the years my ideal has evolved. I can set up more quickly at home and find it a great aid in transporting to the classes I teach at the local school. I’m not suggesting that these ideas are the best for all folks but just things to consider as options.
- I replaced the platform part of my metal pedestal base with a 8’ x 11’ piece of 3/4" plywood that is covered with WHITE MATTE Formica. This greatly improves visibility and poses no problem in stability with rubber buttons on the underside to prevent scratching as well as adding friction. (The Formica covered wood was a sink cutout from a kitchen countertop shop.) An outstanding advantage of the Formica, or equivalent material, is that it is immune to lacquer thinner that can be used for cleanup of paint and cement drips etc.
- Along the back edge I have attached a strip of wood into which I have drilled holes to support the basic tools. At the end of this strip I’ve included two small square “wells” to hold small square bottles of head cement and dry fly silicone. (The square config. allows the bottle caps to be removed with one hand and they can’t be tipped over.) The bottles I use are the small Testor’s paint bottles that allow me to replace them with color paints for poppers or eyes.
- I cut about one inch off the vise column so I can rest my elbows on the desktop. This relieves muscular tension in back and arms as well as steadying my hands since tying motions are now hand motions and not arm motions.
You will note that the bobbin is a Materelli mini-bobbin. For the sake of compactness and portability to classes I use sewing machine bobbins for thread and floss which allows me to carry 8 thread and 8 floss colors. All material for immediate use, except for hackles, I carry in a small 12 drawer plastic parts box.
The pedestal base adapter you see here, was made of aluminum by a class member who has a shop. My original was a Thompson but he made one like this for each class member.
The nearly invisible item between the scissors and the “electronic clip” hackle pliers is an oversized corsage pin that replaces a bodkin.
Sorry Ray, I spent about 20 min trying to find the photo you mentioned but no success. I used both BB search function as well as just thumbing through different topics.
If anyone can post a link or a picture of Ray’s contraption I would greatlly appriciate it. It at least sounds very niffty.
Thanks,
Jonathan
helps to know where to look.
hint he told you where it was.
Thanks blur :oops:
I was doing searches for “hints” not “tying tips” I guess I was too literal.
And, wow! Nice little set up. I like it.
By the way. Ray are you left handed? Did the guy in your class make ones for right handers too?
Jonathan
Gonfishn has the right idea.I used a hiproof Plano tackle box for years. It will hold all your tools,a ton of material and all the hooks you can handle. The best part it is also a great traveling kit. There only about 30.00 at the local wally-mart.
I got very lucky and found a roll top desk that someone was throwing away. It was in decent shape, suprised they didn’t try to sell it but good for me. A little cleaning and a coat of the right shade of varnish to match the living room funiture and you got a permanent tying station that hides the mess when not in use. Now the traveling kit stays in the car.Look for yard or moving sales.
Tom
Rawfish, I bought my wife a rolltop desk, approx. $199.00, Oak finish. It goes well with her Oak computer desk and she can roll between the two if she needs, OH AND SHE NEEDS, she pops in her favorite movie in her computer and away she goes, when she is done tools go in the tool block, materials go into the drawers and the vise lays on the writing area. Roll down the top. Nobody knows the diff :lol:
Neal