Scissors ???

[SCOwens 0]

Has anyone found anything comparable to Dr. Slick scissors at a lower price point ?? I know this is petty but wanted to know if anything that was comparable at less than $15 to $20 a pair.

 

Thanks for the input guys/ladies

[Piker20 0]

For scissors to trim close on small hooks I haven't yet found anything other than a scalpel. On bigger flies I am using a cheap as chips pair that Crackaig picked up in the supermarket. Think they are 3 or 5 pairs for £2 or something like that. They are sharp enough for my feathers and if they wear out they are cheap enough just to bin.

[flytire 0]

GOOGLE "gingher sewing scissors" and youll get some scissors lots of tyers use

 

there are brands out there other than dr slick that are very good tying scissors

[SCOwens 0]

Thanks Guys

[mikechell 0]

I get scissors from the cosmetic department. the cuticle and nail scissors come in a good variety of sizes and are as sharp as anything else I've tried. I will admit, I've not yet tried Dr. Slick scissors. They still aren't cheap, but they're usually under 10 bucks.

[JSzymczyk 0]

Good fly tying scissors, when used correctly, last a LONG long time. Spend $15 once, or $10 twice, which is cheaper?

 

I have a few different types of Dr Slick scisssors, and I consider them well worth the price.

[phg 0]

It took me a long time to buy my first Dr. Slick scissors, because of the cost. After using them a while, though, I understand why. Suck it up and get what you really want.

 

By the way, I have been told that Dr. Slick offers lifetime sharpening on their scissors. You might check into that.

[dontheo 0]

I have used some anvil ice midge scissors but doc slicks are hard to beat. I think the best thing to do is swallow the price but take care of them. I like carbon steel and am always on the look out for any older pairs for embroidery. Then you can find someone who knows how to sharpen them.

 

I think just about everyone keeps several pairs and one beat up pair for cutting things hard like wire. Office depot scissors work well for that kind of thing.

[Piker20 0]

Is it true cutting tinfoil puts the edge back on your scissors??

[Flyman416 0]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Piker20" data-cid="535484" data-time="1359924682"><p>

Is it true cutting tinfoil puts the edge back on your scissors??</p></blockquote>

 

If you have a glass bottle and you "cut" the bottle a couple times it'll put the sharpness back on your scissors. True story.

[Piker20 0]

So just cut the neck couple of times. I'll try that.

[mikechell 0]

I know this isn't the kind of scissors we were talking about, but I just picked up this cool "pair" of scissor for 4 bucks. I am going to try them for cutting latex into strips.

 

 

 

[Piker20 0]

They are awesome for chopping garden worms to bait up when bait fishing. Can do a kilo of worm in seconds.

[Crackaig 0]

There are two views on scissors. As JSzymczyk says you can buy the higher priced ones, or you can view them as a consumable.

Points to consider.

 

The Dr Slick scissors are made for surgery (there are very few scissors made just for fly tying, the market isn't big enough) These days surgical tools are not sterilised and re used. They are simply thrown away. So how long will they last? The last pair I had lasted me about 3 months.

 

The ultimate scissors (though inappropriate for general fly tying use) are hairdressing scissors. A really good pair of hairdressing scissors will cost you over $1000. Yes they are larger but even scaling that down (which really wouldn't happen) you'd be paying over $500 for top notch scissors.

 

Unless you are going to pay an excessive amount for scissors they will be pressed mild steel, perhaps case hardened. Case hardening, at our end of the market, doesn't penetrate more than 0.001". How many times can you sharpen your scissors before you have taken a thousandth of an inch off them, and are then trying to cut with the soft steel? If you are lucky, and very careful, twice. Yes you can get the tungsten carbide ones, but they cost even more and they are still only made for single use in surgery. That's why they have black loops. to indicate to the surgeon they are tungsten carbide.

 

If you only tie a few flies for your own use then this isn't really going to matter very much. If you tie thousands then the decision is either buy cheap and often or to splash out.

 

As I don't have the cash to splash out on hugely expensive scissors, I usually go for the cheap and often option. I pay £1.42 (about $2.50) a pair for Bexfield Embroidery Scissors. I find I can get 9 to 12 months out of a pair. Longer than I have ever had out of Dr Slick scissors. The only ones that have a significantly longer life have been Tiemco Deer Dressers. But at more than 10 times the price they would have to be much better than they are to justify the expense.

 

These are the ones I use

You can get them from Amazon. If you shop around, for very little money.

Cheers,

C.

[Chefben4 0]

@Simon. I was pleasantly surprised at the Orvis Economy scissors. They are well priced and have lasted for me!