In response to the tying tips article about the wood block for painting dumbell eyes, I’d like to share an alternative method that was taught to me by my tying mentor.
His solution was to use a cheap plastic comb. He’d take 5, or 10, or 20 sets of lead eyes and press them, evenly spaced, down between the long rakes of the comb. This was tight enough to hold them securely for the painting process, but light enough to surrender them easily when they were dry. It also enabled the painting of both sides, which cuts time in half over the wood block method. Its also fairly easy to find a way to hold the comb upright somewhere on your tying bench for drying while you busy yourself with other things.
For me, using a comb as a painting/drying rack is cheap, convenient, easy to use, and gets the job done well. I couldnt ask for more in a tying aid.
