Marc Veeneman

Already have some. We use it on the bottom of the pedal boat and the sailboat to prevent algae buildup. It's the best thing we've found for that, and very affordable. So, yes, it does have even more interesting uses -- besides diaper rash.

I have it. It's an attractive piece and usable to tie with. You can cover the sliding work surface and hide everything, but to do that you must: 1) take down the vise. Mine is the C&F Reference, so it means popping the stem from the base and then folding up the backdrop and bobbin rest and hackle rest. Kind of a nuisance. 2) move the work light from the (temporary, open position) top and find a place for it. I end up putting it back on the closed desk after the cover is folded down. The drawers fit well and look nice and will hold a beginner's collection, but if you've been at this awhile, you're going to need considerably more storage than this desk provides. The lower shelf is handy for books and will hold a pretty large collection, certainly more than reasonable tiers own. It came packed well and my wife and I set it up in less than an hour, but it wasn't as easy as falling off a log. Once built it's sturdy and a step up from most of the purpose built furniture I've seen at the big (fishing) box stores. I often find you have to pay more for quality.

I commend you on your choice of frameless cabinets. Too many people don't even know they exist, but the storage area in those drawers may be 25% more than in framed cabinets. Home builders don't like those cabinets because they're so heavy; it takes extra effort to get them off the truck and into place. But they're strong, they'll last a lifetime of tying. And the surfaces are super easy to clean -- inside and out. Nice going!

I finally swapped my old Terra (from Marriott's store on a visit to Riverside, California many years ago) for a Marco Polo to use for club tying and traveling. I started on a Thompson's A from Elgin when I lived there in the late '60s. Upgraded to a Regal Inex when they first appeared and still think the Inex is a terrific vise. It just works. Even took it to the club off and on, but preferred the little Terra because the whole kit was so small. small enough to fit in a, sort of, not really, but almost, man bag. The Marco Polo box fits in that same bag, a little stretched from years of use with the Terra wooden box. I don't think Terra was the brand back in those days, but you've probably seen similar before. The vise in the Marco Polo convinced me to try the C&F Reference. The Reference head is the same as in the portable but on a full rotary mount. Along with the vise, I learned to like the C&F bobbin, there's a plug of sponge at the spool end of the tube that keeps my thread from slipping out (no more sucking the thread through the tube, though). The same sponge provides a bit of additional tension when I let the bobbin holder hang; I've since bought a half dozen of them along with the clever 3-thread bobbins and they'll eventually replace my old S&M bobbin holders, my favorite ever since reading about them in Best's Production Fly Tying. The other C&F tools have a nice feel to them, so I splurged and picked up a second setup for our summer home in Vermont. My old Thompson went to my 9 year old grandson a week ago. He's hooked already, caught a rock bass on the first cast with his first fly. I decided that deserved a step up from the cheap kit vise he got for Christmas from TJMaxx.