Vise Choice for an Aussie?

[grumpah 0]

Sorry this is actually an old topic but hopefully this is a new twist. Over here in Oz we have to pay through the nose for vises you get quite cheaply in the US of A so I'm thinking of buying from the US and shipping back. It cuts out the middleman to some extent and means I can get a good vise for a bit less than retail prices here. My dilemma is: I like the look and reviews of the Peak Rotary but it does not seem to have adjusibility in the jaws to compensate for hook sizes for centering the hook. I like the HMH Standard and its versatility for tube flies etc, but it is not a true rotary vice which I believe I would like to have. I also think the Dyna-King Barracuda Deluxe is the ducks guts (That's Aussie for really great!!) but I can't get to se these vices as there is no fly fishing shop within cooee of my place and even those on-line stores here do not stock the Peak or the D-K deluxe. I don't want Renzetti, I have considered and taken off my list the Griffin Montana Mongoose cam, Anvils, Thompsons, etc, etc. Now you know what I'm gonna ask! I am a new tyer, have currently a very cheap (for Oz) Snowbee Flymate Rotary which is near impossible to centre accurately. I will mostly tie larger flies - Bass, small saltwater etc but once more competent will certainly look to chase trout as well. I want to spend a maximum of $US400 and would happily pay less if sage and learned advice indicated doing so. I have been researching this for quite a few weeks now so any help would be appreciated.

 

Cheers.

[JSzymczyk 0]

Can't go wrong with a Peak, in my opinion. I've tied everything from 20 to 3/0 with no prob on the standard jaws, fresh and salt. In my experience there is no need to mechanically adjust the jaws to center the hook shank. Just position it right and go. Peak is bombproof.

 

So is HMH, and Day5 will give you all kinds of hell about saying it's not "true rotary"...

 

Good vises in Australia must be like Vegemite in the US. Rare and expensive.

[grumpah 0]

Thanks JSzymczyk, certainly think the Peak looks the goods - and "whoops" about HMH - just doesnt have that hook shank axis "same plane" ability to my mind but again looks the goods. That's what makes it so difficult not being able to drive one before purchase.All three have such great credentials.

 

cheers,

 

Grumpah.

[lykos33 0]

How about the Snowbee / Waldron rotary? I have no experience with it , but if the other Snowbee is available to you, maybe this one is too?!?!? It is a nice looking vice, but that really doesn't mean much ....

here's a link to it:

http://www.veniard.com/search_results.asp?section=19

[cussfly16 0]

Are they still producing the Dingo vise in Australia? It looked like a decent vise....... have never tied on one though. :dunno:

[grumpah 0]

Thanks to lycos33 and cussfly16.

 

I have seen the Snowbee Waldron and as you say it looks good. It costs 249 pounds sterling for the basic vice which is $A400 before freight so is not as good an option as any of the US made vises.

 

The dingo vice is available in Australia at $670.00 delivered. Not a good proposition - and I have read bad things anbout its hook holding capacity. Not really an option at the price - the DK Barracuda base model is $A599 and the HMH Standard is about $460 so the dingo is not in the race.

 

I look forward to all contributions and will exhaust this forum before making up my mind.

 

Cheers

[Firetiger 0]

It is amazing how tiers in different parts of the world face similar problems I had a great trouble finding a good rotary vise in the Czech Republic. We have a guy who produces very good basic vice, but rotary is a problem. The imported vices cost arm and a half and the choice is very limited.

 

At the end I decided on shipping from the US and bought a Renzetti Presentation 4000. At just below $400 for the vice + yet more for shipping it came a bit pricey, but the spectacular fall in the value of US Dollar in the summer of 2008 made the price tag a bit easier to swallow.

 

You already decided you don't want a Renzetti, so I will not go recommending it (though it it a good vice). One feature I would like to mention is that it has the option to adjust the plane of rotation in three steps for small, medium and large flies, but I have it set on the medium for about a year now and it makes no difference to me while tying. Many other things - such as whether the vice is big enough to fit your hands - are more important than this.

 

So if the only thing that keeps you from ordering a Peak is lack of this feature my advice would be to go ahead.

 

Cheers!

 

J.

[fly_fischa 0]

Gday Grumpah,

 

I hear you on the paying through the nose deal my friend from one Aussie to another

I think it's important that you get the right vise and don't end up with a another dud. Your interested in a true rotary vise, do you intend to tie with the rotary function or are you more interested in accessibility to look and turn, be able to mount materials on the far side of the hook by rotating the jaws? If the latter is the case you have far more scope, no point having an inline rotary if you don't use it, food for thought anyhow.

 

One shop that has quite reasonable prices is flyworld, you might pay a bit more, but shipping is free and you are dealing with a shop in the country. One consideration might be the Barra Junior, sounds like a pretty versatile vise and a good compromise from getting the standard barra. It's listed on the Dyna King site for $339US not including shipping, well within your budget. Chris at flyworld has it listed for $469AU including shipping, might be worth giving him a call and seeing if he can do better. Personally I would prefer the professional for churning out bass bugs, more bang for your buck, very sturdy, it'll cope well if you start spinning hair you can still rotate the hook, it's bullet proof. It's listed on flyworld for $395AU including shipping. Here's a link to the Dyna King Vises on Chris's site http://www.flyworld.com.au/view/20070221205417/

 

 

If your interested send me a PM with a phone number and we'll talk about it. My best friend used to manage a fly fishing store and I've tied on lots of different vises, I'd be happy to offer advise if your interested.

 

Cheers

[cussfly16 0]

Dyna King Pro is bombproof, but not inline. Watching Charlie Craven tie on one convinced me it would fit my style of tying, and as he said when I asked him what he thought about an inline rotary vise, he said some people love them but his arms weren't broke!...lol. Funny guy.

[grumpah 0]

Thanks to all who responded to my post. I realise it's a personal thing but your advice has been helpful. I have decided that I will buy an HMH Standard or Spartan - not quite sure which yet. I like this vise for its simplicity and the fact you can simply add a tube conversion and make it a very useful bit of kit. I can live with the fact that it is not "true rotary" as I have seen some demo's of the rotary function in action and believe it will be fine for me. My second choice by a very slim margin was the Dyna King Barracuda Deluxe and no doubt if I stay enamoured with fly tying I will end up with one provided I have sufficient funds and can convince she who must be obeyed that it is essential. Until I tie a few on - cheers and thanks all!

 

Grumpah.

[JSzymczyk 0]

you might want to PM Day5 here on FTF, and see if he is still selling the HMH vises. I have an HMH Spartan, and it is great. It's a precision instrument, and TO ME just feels a little small. I quickly get used to it though when I switch to it from my Peak. The head angle adjustment of the HMH makes it the best vise for tying streamers, bucktails, and other long flies that mount flowing material on both top and bottom of the hook shank- - - Tie with the head angle flat or 0-180 degrees and just flip the fly over for the other side. Nothing changes or gets in the way.

[grumpah 0]

I was going to email HMH before I actually order one - just to ask the difference in size between the Standard and the Spartan. That's the only reason I'm tossing up between the two - I'd like to know it is not too small for my fairly large hands. I have corresponded with HMH and they were very helpful and I can purchase direct from them but I think I might go for the standard if it is bigger.

 

cheers,

 

Grumpah

[moabbiker2 0]

hi mr.aussie, i say you go with the renzetti traveler vice. it is a rotery and i got it for $125. its super reliable and has not failed me yet!

[92Esquire 0]

I've owned the PEAK, the HMH Spartan, and the Dyna-King Barracuda Indexer. I no longer own the PEAK. It is a very well made vise (best base in the industry), and it did a great job for me before I got my Barracuda.

 

All of them are well made, highly functional vises. The PEAK with the midge jaws and the HMH with their midge jaw are about as good as it gets if you tie dinky stuff (I tie a bunch of 20 and smaller beadhead midges). The Barracuda is the absolute bomb for bass and saltwater tying - I love tying clousers on this vise. Any of them will give you years of service and do what they are supposed to.

[grumpah 0]

Well, I've done it! Made my choice and made the purchase. Hopefully my new HMH Standard vise with bobbin rest, Omni Jaw, Mag Jaw and tube fly conversion kit is now on its way to sunny Queensland. After weighing up the pros & cons of all vises and taking into account the very helpful advice offered from those who responded to my posts here - I think the HMH is the one for me. Boy, what a tough decision. There are such great sounding vises out there. D-K Barra Deluxe, Peak Rotary, Snowbee Waldron, Norvise - just amazing! No wonder it is so hard to choose. If I had the money - I'd probably have one of each but we all know that's not gonna happen. Yet - anyway. So a great big thanks to all those who offered advice. I look forward to posting a pic or 2 of my first flies on the HMH - no matter how rough or amateurish they may be. I think I'm gonna have a ball tying on my new vise.

 

Cheers,

 

Grump- aaahhh!