92Esquire

twohearted, you're right. I'd been tying on a PEAK for a couple of years and it did very well for me with a couple small exceptions. That lead me to getting a Dyna King Barracuda Indexer for Christmas. And while "vise fever" was still in full-force, I got a great deal on an HMH Spartan vise to use for travel. I've now tied many dozen flies on the DK, a few dozen on the HMH. I like them all. Every one of them has things it does very well, or is a step above in. But each of them have their idiosyncrasies that you learn to work around. I think I will still do 90% of my tying on the DK (and I don't seem to have problems with smaller hooks), but I'm glad to have all of them. There are bad vises out there, but you either have to go pretty cheap or get pretty far out of the mainstream to get one now.

I've not owned a Regal, but I tied on a PEAK for about 2 years. It's a fantastic vise and will get you through many tens of thousands of flies. Another vise worth looking at is the HMH Spartan, which can be found inside your price range. I have one of those and it is an exceptionally well made vise. On the rotary vs. non-rotary, I have tied on both and much prefer having the capability to tie rotary. I may not use the full functionality on every fly, but the ability to quickly tilt a fly to ensure materials are centered on top, or to flip the fly over to cement the whip finish at the tag end is just part of how I tie. I suppose we all become accustomed to what we have.

Mike's got the right of it. It's similar to another of my hobbies - guitar playing. As 25 different guitar players which model of Fender Stratocaster is best (Fender's made about 150 different models, FWIW), and each of the players will tell you (for the most part) a different one. In almost every case, it's either a guitar they own, a guitar they sold that they wish they hadn't, or a guitar that they aspire to own someday. The truth is, every Fender Stratocaster makes music. Vises hold hooks so that you can tie materials on them. It's as easy (and as hard) as that. Every vise is a tradeoff - either in ease of adjustment (screw vs. cam), functionality (rotary, rotational, fixed), materials (aluminum, steel, titanium), or finish quality. That's where the differences in brands (and prices!) come in. Every one of the vises on the market today is the result of a tinkerer somewhere saying "I can do that!" and trying to make a better, or cheaper, or easier to use vise. Each and every one of us on this board has access to a vise. We get used to it, we get used to working how the vise needs to work. If we can't get used to it, we get a different vise. But none of us wants to think (or admit!) that we're foolish and spent money on the wrong vise - if ours works, it's the best out there and we did the research to prove it. One more thing to consider - if you do have a local fly shop, go there and see what THEY tie on. Some shops tend to be Regal, some are Dyna King, some are Renzetti, etc. See if you can try their vises. I'd suggest you consider (if it works for you) buying a vise that your local shop stocks and uses as the "house" vise. Preferably, buy your vise from the local shop, even if it costs you a bit more. The benefit there is that the local shops are the first line of defense for problems. If you have an issue with your vise, that local guy will often bend over backwards for you while the problem gets worked out. He may loan you repair parts, or a whole new vise until yours gets back. Also, you'll be able to bring your vise in if you're struggling with it in any way - and getting hands-on help from guys who know a vise beats text based 'net help any day of the week.

I own a Dyna-King Barracuda Indexer, a PEAK, and an HMH Spartan. ANY of them will be a great vise for trout flies. The HMH has the benefits of being very small for travel, and the vise holds hooks very, very well. The negative with the HMH is that in order to really tie in rotary, you have to set the hook so that the shank is parallel with the axis of rotation (i.e., the jaws are holding the "middle" of the hook bend). This works, but you lose a LOT of space with trout flies. However, I rarely tie rotary fashion with trout flies (other than woolly buggers), so this is not a huge issue. It might be if you find yourself tying streamers, however. One problem that I do see with tying on the HMH with small flies is that I'm always running out of space BELOW the hook - between the vise shaft and the bobbin, I seem to get claustrophobic on size 16's and below. Between the Dyna-King and the Peak, it's a tough call. The PEAK midge jaws are better for a lot of what I tie than the Dyna-King. The PEAK also approaches the hook from a steeper angle below the fly, which gives the tier a bit more room behind the hook (especially with the PEAK midge jaws and their deep cutaway). For trout sized hooks, either vise will hold extremely well. I do like the fit-n-finish of the Dyna-King a bit better, but the PEAK is still a very well-made vise (and about half the cost). Another vise to consider is a Regal with stainless jaws. Regals are also very well made, and the stainless jaws have a finer point that will cover your tying sizes very well. Lots of guys have been tying for decades on the same Regal, and never want for another vise. I realize that I'm not giving you the one great choice, but the truth is you really need to go and lay your hands on a bunch of them. If I were making a short list, I'd include the Dyna Kings (Barracuda, Barracuda Junior, Barracuda Trekker, Supreme, Pro), the PEAK vise, the HMH Spartan and Standard, and the Regals. Get to a fly shop. One of them will scream "MINE" to you, I bet.

A half a dozen turns of .025 lead wire pushed up into the cone and a drop of super glue seems to do the trick for me. Of course, I'm one of those freaks who is always on the lookout for ways to add more weight. I once met a guy who tied his buggers with coneheads, lead wire all the way back the bend, and lead dumbbell eyes. He liked fishing buggers on floating lines in about 6 - 8' of water.

I got a Columbia wading jacket, two bobbins (Rite and Griffin Supreme), some Frog's Hair tippet, a rotary fly drier, Fishpond nippers, and from my long-suffering wife a Dyna King Barracuda Indexer.

I've got three vises, the PEAK, the Barracuda Indexer, and the HMH Spartan. I've tied for two years on the PEAK, with at least 50 % of my tying being size 16 and smaller. I've tied a few dozen flies so far on the 'cuda, and only got the HMH yesterday. I've got the midge jaws for the 'cuda and the PEAK. Of the two, I give a slight edge to the PEAK, but only due to the nature of a couple of small patterns I tie on scud hooks (16 - 22's) that the PEAK gives better access to the tip of the bend on. But the 'Cuda with midge jaws is just fine for that. In fact I could tie them on the standard jaws just fine as well. I do think that the best of the bunch would probably be the HMH midge jaws, but I don't have those yet. There's nothing about the HMH that would keep you from tying any pattern you wanted to. However, I have developed the habit of rotating the fly 45 degrees towards me when tying in parachutes, eyes, wing cases, etc to make sure that the material is centered on top of the hook. The HMH does not allow you to do that very well unless you commit to a horizontal vise angle, which robs you of space behind the hook. I really think that you will quickly become accustomed to whatever you buy, and it will serve you well. I would not shy away from Dyna-Kings and small hooks (plus you can get the V II and a spare set of midge jaws, and still come in under your budget). In that price category, I really don't think there is an incorrect choice. You either try before you buy, or buy one and see if it feels right. One final thought I had while reading your post is that you may be the ideal candidate for the Regal with stainless jaws. Finer pointed, with plenty of space on either side of your hook range to accommodate your tying (something that the DK or HMH midge jaws may not allow). Plus the stainless jaws don't appear to have the chipping issues that the older steel jaws occasionally had with smaller hooks. Just a thought. I think of the Regal as the "bamboo" of the vise world. It always seems to me that the same guys who have been tying on Regals for a billion years also fish bamboo.

I have a good friend who is a dealer for Renzetti. Although some folks have extremely good things to say about their customer support, what this guy has gone through trying to help customers get service has brought me to the conclusion that I'd rather not take that gamble. Not that I'd ever need the service, but if you happen to be one of the ones that Renzetti decides they don't want to help, you're pretty well out of luck. The vises are gorgeous, and seem to be well made (although you do hear the occasional problem). Some folks get bend-over-backwards service, others end up paying full retail for any replacement part.

I don't think that anyone is threatened by the search for a "reference" vise, rather they respond to the question not necessarily being phrased correctly. If someone finds the "perfect" vise - that just means that it suits their aesthetic, tying style, hook selection, and pattern choices the best. I currently own three (well, four) vises. I won't even count the Herter's Thompson copy in the list of "best". I have tied on a PEAK for the past couple of years, and it's given me exceptionally good service on trout and steelhead flies. However, I've had a couple of issues with saltwater hooks. So I "upgraded" to a Dyna King Barracuda Indexer - a vise that many consider to be the best. However, for some of my patterns on smaller scud hooks, the PEAK with midge jaws is much easier than the Dyna-King with midge jaws. But over all, I've come to prefer the Dyna King. Except for the size. This past week, I traveled and tied in 5 or 6 different locations. The 'cuda is rock solid, but it's just too danged big to be a travel vise. So today I got a bit of a deal on an HMH Spartan. The jury is still out, but so far I can tell you that the HMH would in no way limit my ability to tie anything that I'm likely to tie. It's a great vise. But maybe not the best. I dunno. I think that we as a species always seem to search for the best, when it may be that each individual needs to make that choice. I see some guys tying on Regals for decades, and they don't seem to miss any of the "true" rotary features of other vises. Renzetti guys love their vises to death, and rightfully so. And much like never betting against the hunter with a well-worn 30-06, never bet against a tier with a tarnished-with-age DK Pro. The LAW might be the ultimate in some folks eyes, but does that necessarily make it the "best"? For what pattern, style, or hook size?

I've got 6 to 8 and love 'em all! I line them up and get a tying project going. I've got nothing against the design or execution of the vise. They're certainly well thought out and successful designs.

Yes, but Renzetti is the one company I don't intend to ever own a vise from.

When you were talking to them, did they happen to mention price? That black vise looks dead sexy.

If you could only bring one color combo to the salt, I'd say you picked a good one. Those will certainly catch some fish.

When you said "tying flies with a bird dog", I thought you meant like this: That's the fly, and that's the bird dog!

Yeah, I'm pretty lucky with that Dyna-King, it's a Barracuda Indexer that I got a "couldn't pass up" deal on. I'm still getting used to it, but I like it very much so far. The hopper is from Charlie's Fly Box: Charlie Boy Hopper. The only differences on mine are that I'm using brown web-wing (couldn't find tan at the shop), and I put about 8 strands of "Fire Orange" Fluorescent Krystal Flash between the web-wing and the deer hair. They're a pretty quick tie and float like a cork.

Here's this weekends playing around with my new vise. Front left is a pile of BH Prince Nymphs (16 and 18s), Zebra Midges (22's), Serentipities (22's), and Craft Store Midges (18's and 20's), Front center are some BH Sparkle PT's in olive (16s), Back center are bendbacks in 4 and 1/0, and the center of the frame is the start of trying to tie 14 dozen flies for a Casting for Recovery event. These are Charlie Craven's CB Hoppers in size 10. None of them are spectacular, but a few of 'em should catch fish.

Lots of folks swear by the Copper Head: http://www.saltyflyrodders.org/index.php?o...8&Itemid=29 I'd also bring some clousers in chartreuse/white and maybe orange/brown. Maybe a bendback or two as well.

My wife has tied a few flies with me over the past couple of years. She says she likes it quite a bit because it's the first "craft-type" activity she's ever done where you actually use what you make, and you can be done with a project in a few minutes. She says she wants to start tying more when she's done with school. She's fished with me a few times, but is much more interested in being in the water than catching a fish.

Very nice. I've been thinking about picking up one of the "Orvis" edition Spartans next time they send me a $25 off coupon. Not sure if it will be the next time but that's certainly opened my eyes a bit to the capabilities of the vise. Thanks for posting!

Need to change my vote. This weekend I got a Dyna-King Barracuda Indexer. Holy heck, what a machine. Nothing really wrong with my old vise for trout/steelhead/salmon flies, I just started tying larger flies and thought a different vise might help. I've tied from 20 up to 1/0 on the standard jaws this weekend with no issues whatsoever. Great vise so far.

This summer I started fishing for tailwater Stripers, which meant lots of Clousers on sinking lines with my 8wt. However, when I had company on the boat, I'd use my 5wt (as I only have one rod over 5wt). Overlined with a 6wt sinking line, I was able to make some reasonable casts with Clousers up to a size 4. With a floating line, I could get pretty decent casts with some crease flies and gurglers. I think bass fishing with a 5wt can be done, but you might be somewhat limited in fly size and cast distance.

I've been trying out a new vise today, so I've tied a little bit of a this and a little of that. Size 18 and 20 Zebra Midges, size 16 Prince Nymphs, size 1/0 Clousers.

I've been tying on a PEAK for three years now, and I think it's a fantastic all-around vise. I've tied size 22 - 10 for trout, 10 - 6 for Steelhead and Salmon, 6 - 1/0 for Stripers and Redfish. It will do all of this pretty well with the standard jaws. I have the pedestal version and like it very much. Consider getting him the handle extension, brass screw kit, and material clip. All of those are useful.

Another vote for the Craft Mate.

Not to take anything away from Wasatch, but I have found that the majority of companies in outdoor recreational industries are spectacular as far as customer service. Companies like Peak, LL Bean, and others have all done bang-up jobs of helping me when I've had problems or questions with the gear they've provided.