Wapsi beginners kit

[jonathan creason 0]

Anyone have strong opinions on this kit, one way or another, for a rank beginner? It's been several years since I fly fished heavily and would like to get back in the game and include a little tying in the mix, but my budget is pretty tight. I'll mostly be fishing for bass and panfish, with the ocassional trip to the mountains for trout and smallies.

[singletrack 0]

I like kits. I know this opinion is not shared by everyone here. What I found with the kits is the tools and materials are not that great but it is a start. I just went through this myself. I wanted to start tying after years of not tying. So I but a kit just to make sure I was committed to tying before investing really money in tools and materials. The best part of a kit is it gives you examples of things you don't like. I think if I was to just by good tools out right I would buy a few I did not like would have to re-buy anyways. I also found there are always nuggets in kits things you will hold onto for awhile in till you need an upgrade. For a true beginner I like kits. I would focus on kits with nice tools. I saw a kit at my local fly shop that had a dyna-king kingfisher vice in it. It was very reasonable priced maybe $150. If you can find this kit on line this would be a great place to start.

[jonathan creason 0]

Thanks singletrack (MTBer?). At this point I'm just looking for something to tinker with in the little free time I have, so I'm not really wanting to invest a ton just yet. I appreciate the advise, it sounds like it'll be a decent way to dip my toes in and see if this is something I want to continue persuing.

[shoebop 0]

This topic has been debated many times here and the opinions of many can be found in the archives by doing an easy search. I would start there.

[ecberr 0]

I've had the wapsi deluxe starter kit for a month now. I am glad I bought it. You should see if there are any tying classes offered in your area, as the instructor will provide the tools/materials or info on what to get. The classes in my area don't fit my schedule, so I bought the kit, which comes with allot of useful stuff. I don't know if it is worth the $80 i paid for it, but I have been using it every night since I got it. The dvd that comes with it is very useful in developing the skills needed, but youtube and forums provide all the patterns I want to tie. If you get the kit, you may want to buy a whip finish tool, hair stacker, deer body hair, and peacock herl. The kit comes with the deer body hair and peacock herl, but I ran out of both quickly.

 

Have fun

Ed

[phg 0]

Kits get very mixed reviews. You'll find this same topic on every forum that caters to fly tiers. On the one hand, it gives you everything you need to get started in one convenient package. On the other, the quality of tools and materials are "entry level" at best. The other aspect of a kit is that, at least 50% of the materials will never get used. The less expensive kits, obviously, are less wasteful, simply because the initial outlay isn't as great.

 

That said, the Waspi Starter Kit, for $55 to $60, isn't too bad a deal. The other option is to buy just a basic tool kit, and then get the materials you need as you need them.

[ikerajala 0]

I started with the wapsi kit in question. I find my self going back to those same flies all the time. When ever I put my fly box together for an outing I always include the kit flies. You might belive the kit ties crappy flies because of the tools, materials, etc. etc. But really beginners are too hard on themselves. The flies are just fine and fish love them!

[jonathan creason 0]

Thanks, everyone. I'm not quite ready to pull the trigger on anything, just trying to do my homework on all the possible options in my price range. This info is helpful though.

[spinsheet 0]

I have mixed thoughts about kits. When I first started off I had a friend that was an accomplished fly tier so he guided me in my choice of tools and materials. He did insist on quality tools and five years later I'm still using the same tools although I have added a lot of nonessential but nice to have tools. Not everyone has the benefit of a friend that can guide you like that so a kit may be a good way to start.

 

I bought my daughter a $90 kit and it came with all of the essential tools and materials but after looking them over I felt that I could have done better with the same $90 if I had simply picked out the tools and materials from the shelf. The scissors were of rather poor quality, the material was OK but could have been better, etc. I'm not saying I wasted $90 but I feel I could have done a bit better, of course that's with the knowledge of five years of fly tying. With no knowledge and no friend to help guide you a kit may be the way to go. Just be ready to eventually replace everything in it...

[SilverCreek 0]

I have found the major problem with kits are the materials. To tie quality flies requires quality materials.

 

An expert fly tier can use technique to make up for a lack of quality materials. However, a beginner requires, at the very least, a quality of materials that does not make tying more difficult that it should be. Poor materials do just that.

 

It is analogous to a beginner trying to learn to fly cast with a poor quality fly rod, and fly line.

 

Having said that, it is quite daunting for a beginner to buy tools and materials on their own. If they do not have a mentor to help them pick the tools and materials, the path of least resistance is to buy a kit. Place that beginner in a location where there is not a fly shop or even a local TU chapter to lean on and the default choice is to buy a kit. I understand that.

 

However, for those beginners that have a chapter of TU, FFF, or a mentor; do yourself a favor and have someone help you buy individual tools and materials.

[mikechell 0]

It's been mentioned before, this is a subject that has both pros and cons.

I happen to be a "Pro" ... not a professional ... but I am for kits for beginners. SilverCreek talks about the beginner needing quality materials to prevent the tying from being any harder than necessary. Although I agree with this sentiment to a point, I also see, time and time again, advise that centers on learning the basics before trying harder patterns.

If you want to learn the basics ... getting the thread on the hook, lying the wraps side by side, half hitch or whip finishing, getting materials to stay where you want them while learning proper thread tension. These things do not require top of the line equipment. I've got a $30.00 vise that I've had for a very long time. I've never felt the need to "upgrade" or buy a "better" one. (I won't say I haven't wanted to)

 

A kit will get you into the groove ... and if you like the groove, you'll upgrade or continue as you see fit, and as you can afford.

[FlaFly 0]

Hi Jonathan

I'm a tad late getting my two cents worth in... hope you're still following. When I started out I didn't want to spend tons of money (still don't). I intend to tie almost entirely for bluegills, and they don't care if you use a hackle from a rare Eurasian goshawk (male only) or a bluejay feather you found in the yard. I use may cat's fur for dubbing. Get rayon floss from a sewing center... etc.

Anyway I started by purchasing an inexpensive vise and bobbin from Bass Pro Shop. Sent off for Wapsi (I think) beginner kits for tying rubber spiders and ants (included hooks, bodies, silicone legs). After a while I bought a reasonably priced kit from Cabelas that contained several tools I didn't have, but mainly to get a whip finisher and hair stacker. I also got from Cabelas a package of hackle throat patches.... enough to last me a lifetime. Not the highest quality, but again, good enough for a bluegill. I've enjoyed going through the fly patterns on this site and trying my had at some of them... always aiming for the ones a bluegill would like. I life in Florida and we don't have brook trout!

I think kits are great for starting out on a budget. I wish my vise was rotary but I'm not willing to pay that much for a hobby, at least yet. I'm not a pro-tyer, and getting them done fast isn't an issue with me. Having fun is.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

[RedneckArt 0]

When i started tying a couple months ago the first thing i learned to tie were ants. they teach you how to use dubbing, spin hackle and work with foam depending on how you tie them. super cheap when it comes to materials. about ten dollars to tie almost an infinite amount not counting the hooks of course. a lot of pan fish go ga-ga over them sitting on the surface.

 

Materials:

black or white, hackle

black thread

black foam

 

^^^^^^^^^

thats it... easy to tie and results are fun to look at.