Best bobbin?

[ChromeAddict 0]

I also use Griffin bobbins without issues. I have a Dr.Slick midge bobbin that I keep spooled with wire - I guess short bobbins aren't for me.

[Foxy 0]

i dont think there is one "best"

 

tiemco ceramic bobbin holder - heavy duty

 

ive used tiemco bobbin holders for 25+ years with never a problem

 

i just cant agree with you anymore!!!

[flytire 0]

i just cant agree with you anymore!!!

 

ok. so what!

 

you wont be the first and you certainly wont be the last

 

i wont lose much sleep tonite

[SBPatt 0]

I've been using S&M bobbins a long time and have never felt the need to change.

 

Regards,

Scott

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

Before I comment on bobbins you need to remember that I'm a saltwater tyer and use my gear for production work (hard usage, flat-waxed nylon from Danville mostly, small thread for me is 3/0 monocord for bonefish bugs...). The smallest hook I ever use is a #8 (and very few of those). Since I'm also doing bucktail jigs commercially I even have one or two very heavy custom made bobbins (if you can call something with an 1/8" SS tube that's around seven inches in length and uses a machined aluminum spool from an old Ambassadeur 6000 reel loaded with 10lb mono a "bobbin"...). Some of my jigs range as heavy as six ounces or more (haven't done any that big in years....) but mostly they're in the 1/8 up to 1 oz. sizes and use flat waxed nylon to secure the tails -with the same bobbins I use for fly tying work

 

Now for the fly tying stuff. My oldest bobbin is nearly forty years old - a small Matarelli that I still use whenever I've doing bonefish stuff... I have several nice Tiemco bobbins and like the one with the ceramic tube best, but my day in and day out "users" are all Griffin bobbins that have held up surprisingly well in the last twenty years or so - I keep a half dozen of them, loaded in a stand, ready to use when I'm at the bench. Haven't broken one yet (although usually my older bobbins will need some "reinforcing" as solder joints begin to loosen). The reinforcing is simple multiple thread wrappings around the loose joint which are super glued. When everything is dried, a small piece of heatshrink tubing over the thread wraps completes the repair....

 

I long ago vowed to avoid the really cheap bobbins since most of the ones I've tried don't have particularly smooth edges for the tubes and will easily fray thread (a serious problem if you're like me and a bit heavy handed when tying....). Hope this helps.

[johnnyquahog 0]

I responded to this subject about 20 months ago. I can't imagine only having one "best" bobbin.

 

Bobbins are like fly rods; you can't have too many and one may be more suited for a particular job than another. Most of these are on my tying desk and get used a bit, some much more than others. A couple rarely see the light of day. On the top row left to right is the (Frank) Matarelli wishbone. These are considered high quality and Frank made each one. Next is the Griffin. I think this one has the ruby tip. The red bobbin is the Chase. I believe Lefty uses this (or used to) when building a loop in the end of a fly line. Due to the weight and adjustable thread tension you can spin it between your hands as long as you don't hit yourself on the chin. Next one is an easy threader. Notice the thread enters the tube near the tip. Next is a Long tube Thompson which is old. The last one on the top row is a Gudebrod. These plastic bobbins came loaded with the thread. On the bottom row from the left is the smaller wishbone required for the small machine spools. Next is a cheap small wishbone. If you are tying an "orange and partridge" you need one of these for Pearsall's silk.. The next two are the S&M short and long bobbins which were highly regarded by A.K. Best. Next up is the Rite standard. When I first got this Rite bobbin there was a burr in the ceramic tube. It shredded everything that went through it. I'm glad I returned it and gave it a second chance. The last is the Rite CerMag loaded with GX2 gel spun. If you are working deer hair you will appreciate the benefits of the CerMag. When ever the topic of bobbins comes up I always recall tying sessions with the late Jack Cooper. Jack tied wet flies for Hunters. He could crank out one of his "Cooper Bugs" or "wood duck" patterns in about three minutes and never used a bobbin.

 

 

[rstaight 0]

This is the type of question that could start a good argument.

 

The best bobbin is the one you are useing at the time. The only riquirement for me is that it fits in my hand comfortably and has a ceramic tube.

 

I have used various brands at one time or another and my only complaint is the squeak that I get from the Tiemco bobbins.

[Adam Saarinen 0]

Tiemco = squeak! But that is the only problem i have too!

[Capt Bob LeMay 0]

End squeaks (and stiff bobbins) -simply rub the buttons (the actual part that comes in contact with the thread spool...) against the side of your nose before starting work.... That tiny sheen of "nose grease" is how I was taught all those years ago (and by a contemporary of Joe Brooks, a guy named Harry Friedman, who was an old dude when I met him in the seventies....). Works like a charm (and allows you to keep the tension on that bobbin the way it should be....).

[Striperknight 0]

I responded to this subject about 20 months ago. I can't imagine only having one "best" bobbin.

 

Bobbins are like fly rods; you can't have too many and one may be more suited for a particular job than another. Most of these are on my tying desk and get used a bit, some much more than others. A couple rarely see the light of day. On the top row left to right is the (Frank) Matarelli wishbone. These are considered high quality and Frank made each one. Next is the Griffin. I think this one has the ruby tip. The red bobbin is the Chase. I believe Lefty uses this (or used to) when building a loop in the end of a fly line. Due to the weight and adjustable thread tension you can spin it between your hands as long as you don't hit yourself on the chin. Next one is an easy threader. Notice the thread enters the tube near the tip. Next is a Long tube Thompson which is old. The last one on the top row is a Gudebrod. These plastic bobbins came loaded with the thread. On the bottom row from the left is the smaller wishbone required for the small machine spools. Next is a cheap small wishbone. If you are tying an "orange and partridge" you need one of these for Pearsall's silk.. The next two are the S&M short and long bobbins which were highly regarded by A.K. Best. Next up is the Rite standard. When I first got this Rite bobbin there was a burr in the ceramic tube. It shredded everything that went through it. I'm glad I returned it and gave it a second chance. The last is the Rite CerMag loaded with GX2 gel spun. If you are working deer hair you will appreciate the benefits of the CerMag. When ever the topic of bobbins comes up I always recall tying sessions with the late Jack Cooper. Jack tied wet flies for Hunters. He could crank out one of his "Cooper Bugs" or "wood duck" patterns in about three minutes and never used a bobbin.

 

 

I have the plastic red one as well.

[sammothner 0]

So I ended up getting the rite half hitch. Good choice? Do those of you who have it like it?

[add147 0]

I have 2 of those and I like them...Bobbins are like vises everyone had their own preference and opinion.

[djtrout 0]

I have the Rite mag and standard. Love them both. You will be happy with the half hitch.

 

all my bobbins from cheap and first love 20 years ago to my now favored Rite bobbins work fine. What I do love about my Rites is the adjustable thread tension. I really do use it. Although the cheapos do fine bending the arms to adjust tension, the adjustment on the Rite is more precise and holds consistently.

This is an issue for me, not having the bobbin slip down when I'm not holding it, assisting in maintaining good and consistent thread pressure when I wrap, and not breaking 8/0 thread. If I'm tying an eclectic collection of flies, which I sometimes do for swaps on this forum, and using a variety of colors and weights in thread, I'll load up my Rites and all my cheapos with different thread, and they all do fine.

I do enjoy tying more with the Rites.

[oldtrout58 0]

Nor for me. I have tried most of them.

[retrocarp 0]

Yes I have the half hitch one and I love it also ...... It's my go to bobbin , but I'm not a production tier so time is not an issue when changing threads.