Plan D Fly Boxes

[fiveonomo 0]

Hello all, I am still new to the fly fishing world and a friend of mine is breaking into the saltwater fly fishing scene and taking me with him, well I really want to go.  I tried my luck at tying Lefty's Deceiver the other night and it turned out ok, I'll improve as I do more of them.  I started thinking about how to store these salt water flies and what to do with them once I had them tied, they are a bit bigger than the trout stuff, a lot bigger.  I did some research and I kept coming back to the Plan D boxes, anyone use them?  I do not have any articulated fly's right now, however that may change, but I see no reason why the Pocket Max Articulated Plus can't be a great option for the Deceivers, Surf Candy, etc.  The only negative I see now is the cost, but what doesn't cost, and you pay fro what you get.  I also wonder why the same box wouldn't work well for Bass and Muskee, those flies are bigger as well.  Anyway, thanks in advance.

[Poopdeck 0]

I just use regular old Plano boxes. I agree you get what you pay for but im not so sure what your paying for and why. Sorry, I'm cheap and practical and there's no way I would pay for them even if they were half the price. 

[niveker 0]

27 minutes ago, Poopdeck said:

I'm cheap and practical

Me to, but I'm not sorry about it!

@fiveonomo,

I don't fish salt, but I have some larger flies for when I occasionally flyfish the lake.  Here's my panfish box:

 $1.99 photo box from Michael's, 1/4 inch sheet foam cut to shape, slots cut with an x-acto knife, glued into the top and bottom.  They come in different colors, I have two, one color for top water, one for wets.   Not water proof, but the top of the box is shallow and with the lip on the bottom presses into the top foam when closed, making it 'water resistant'.  

[skeet3t 0]

I'm so cheap, they have my picture next to the word in the dictionary. A plastic box of the appropriate size and strips of foam weather stripping work, too. A friend used snuff cans. Flies smelled like wintergreen. Always a supply at any fishing spot.

[fiveonomo 0]

Thanks everyone for the replies.  I am not much of a cheap skate..maybe on some things,  but to each his own I guess.  With all of that said, these boxes are really expensive.  I am gonna take a look at them tomorrow in person and make a decision, my shop carries them.  I have every kind of box you could think of laying around here and could make one of them work if I wanted to, so i may go that route. 

[cphubert 0]

I use Plano  waterproof boxes or the 6 compartment boxes $5 and under, for wading in the surf & shoreline casting. For trolling in my canoe, boat, or kayak use I like  the bass pro/ cabela's streamer boxes $20 in freshwater. I usually stick with the Plano's in the salt (kayak) and store used flies stuck in piece of foam pool noodle until I clean & dry them to avoid salt contamination in my boxes. looked at the plan D they are pricey but to each his own I'm no one to question another addicts choice. When I was working I might have picked up nice mahogany boxes a time or two.

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

I long ago pretty much gave up on boxes for the flies I use for the salt (the only exception are bonefish and other small flies that do lend themselves to boxes..).  Instead I sleeve each fly individually in the same sleeves I've used for many years back when I was tying for shops... Each sleeved fly is then placed in a one quart ziplock bag - and those bags all go into a small cooler that is what I use instead of a tackle box on my skiff (coolers actually work well as dry storage - much,  much better than any tackle box I've ever used.

Just another of those "ask me how I know" propositions since some years I swear I'm in my skiff more than I'm out of it working as a guide... Here's a pic of the plastic sleeves I mentioned... At a glance you can see if any water has gotten into one... Any fly that's been used gets rinsed off in freshwater then allowed to dry thoroughly before going back in a sleeve and into the lineup... 

[BHouk 0]

I bought a gross of plastic snuff cups with lids about ten years ago.  Still going strong.  I grab the cups I think I might need for each trip...

[Philly 0]

I've been doing pretty much the same thing, as niveker.  Picking up the photo boxes from Michaels.  So far two different sizes.  I've also been doing the same thing to some old  Perrine aluminum fly boxes I have.  The only difference is I'm using 6 mm foam for the liner and cutting slits the length of the box.  I've also been lucky over the years to find Plano boxes without compartments, at fishing flea markets so it's easy to lay the foam down. Here's a couple of the larger boxes with salt water flies in them.  They are lined with ripple foam.  Years ago I brought a ripple foam patch the was designed to be attached to the center console of a boat.  It was a 2' x 3' piece.