Tying in the recliner

[358 0]

How many tie in your recliner watching tv?  What do you set your vise on?  Do you use a fly tying station or just a tray?  Just started tying and wanting experienced opinions.

[flytire 0]

i tie on a flat table and relax in a recliner 😁

[flyflinger 0]

Amen! 

[mvendon 0]

An idea that really never took off from around twenty years ago. Trimming deer hair patterns would be fun ! 

[mikechell 0]

Welcome to the site, 358. 

To many of the tiers here, fly tying is not something you do while also watching TV.  It's an engrossing hobby that takes most of your attention to the details.  I'm like that to a small degree.  Distractions are not welcome.

That said, I've seen a lot of members speaking of having a computer showing fly fishing or tying videos while they're tying.  I don't even have music on, usually.

I think the main reasons people don't tie in the living room while watching TV are the amount of "stuff" that ends up on the desk top and the mess of trimmings and cut offs.  Pretty hard to keep track of all that on a TV tray or other small table.  It's done by some, for sure, but I don't think many do it.

I rarely tie "just for fun".  I tie what I need for my fishing.  In that vein, I sit down with all my attention on the "task" at hand.  No distractions, just fly tying until I have enough of the pattern(s) I'm needing.

Good luck on your journey into this hobby/addiction.

[gadabout 0]

My fly tying desk is in my living room, so when I’m tying, the TV is usually on and my wife will be watching it.  If I want some other background, I’ll play YouTube videos on my iPhone.

The scenario you’re suggesting is not ideal for fly tying, as you’ll usually want some kind of light-colored solid background in your tying space to view the fly against.

 

That being said, when I first started tying years ago, I made a portable fly tying station and set it up on a TV snack table in my living room.  While the TV was usually on, I don’t think I was literally trying to watch TV while tying.

[Poopdeck 0]

I don’t own a recliner but tying in a recliner just sounds like a bad plan. If you don’t have to sit in a recliner I would recommend exploring other options. I sit at a bench on a shop stool. I frequently have a TV on at the bench because I enjoy tying and watching/listening to baseball games. My style of fly tying does not require a high level of concentration, attention to detail or a distraction free zone where I cant have a T.V. on.  It pays to be simple minded. 

[cphubert 0]

I don't tie in front of the TV but if I'm tying a lot of a pattern I might sort and prep materials on a tray from the couch coffee table to take to the bench after. I listen to a radio most often while tying usually for background noise without my hearing aids in.

[MuskyFlyGuy 0]

I tie at my tying desk and have Classical Music on to help organize my brain. 

[TSMcDougald 0]

I don't. I am constantly dropping materials on the floor. I can't imagine trying to find material I dropped in a recliner.

[niveker 0]

10 minutes ago, TSMcDougald said:

I can't imagine trying to find material I dropped in a recliner.

LoL, exactly.  

Occasionally I'll take my vise out onto the deck if there's no breeze, but other than that I'm at my desk. 

[DFoster 0]

10 hours ago, mikechell said:

Welcome to the site, 358. 

To many of the tiers here, fly tying is not something you do while also watching TV.  It's an engrossing hobby that takes most of your attention to the details.  I'm like that to a small degree.  Distractions are not welcome.

 

Well said Mike,  I prefer to be focused on the fly- distractions are not welcome. When I'm focused the cares of life fade.  For me that's the whole point of having a hobby.  

[niveker 0]

14 hours ago, 358 said:

Just started tying and wanting experienced opinions.

My advice, if you're just starting out:

If you have the space for it, pick up a small, used, wooden kneehole desk (the type with a center drawer under the desktop and 3 drawers on each side).  They're a dime a dozen at yard sales and thrift shops.  I got mine for free on the side of the road.  More than enough storage space when just starting out, before the addiction becomes a sickness.  

[TSMcDougald 0]

46 minutes ago, niveker said:

My advice, if you're just starting out:

If you have the space for it, pick up a small, used, wooden kneehole desk (the type with a center drawer under the desktop and 3 drawers on each side).  They're a dime a dozen at yard sales and thrift shops.  I got mine for free on the side of the road.  More than enough storage space when just starting out, before the addiction becomes a sickness.  

That is what I started tying on. Now I tie on a small (3×4) kitchen table. Materials are kept in plastic bins on a bookshelf - and I am running out of room on that

[niveker 0]

1 hour ago, TSMcDougald said:

Now I tie on a small (3×4) kitchen table.

I'm still using mine, though I long ago outgrew its storage and went to plastic bins. 

Looking to upgrade to a secretary/drop front type desk with a hutch within the next few months.