are we being duped, cheated, fooled, mislead to get our hard earned money

[flytire 0]

into buying specialty tying tools when cheaper tools exist that are essentially the same thing

$30 fir 2 clips

Medium 1.5 Inch Hareline Material Clamp Set - Hareline Dubbin Product Lines

 

$3.79 for one or $3.75 each when buying 2 on ebay

Dental Articulating Paper Holder Handling Holding Forceps Straight Tweezer Tool | eBay

$4.90 on ebay

Articulating Paper Forceps Curved 6" Dental Surgical Holding Instruments | eBay

[mikemac1 0]

You could say so!

 

UV Resin-Resin UV 105g (3.7 oz) Hard Transparent Crystal Clear UV Curing Ultraviolet Cure Resin,Clear UV Resin Hard Glue Solar Cure Sunlight Activated Resin for DIY Jewelry Making,UV Resin Kit (Upgrade)

$ 11.99  - Amazon

Loon Thick UV Resin - 2 oz (56.7 grams) $60

 

[niveker 0]

Too funny.  

Thanks for posting that, flytire, I could use a pair of those.  

[Poopdeck 0]

I’m not but many are. 

[Rocco 0]

This is good stuff!  I bet most of us have found similar excessive costs in the exclusive for fly tying world for materials and tools available much cheaper elsewhere. I'll look into some I've come to rely on and share them here too.  

[hopperfisher 0]

How does the $12 UV resin stack up? My guess, same formula

[mikemac1 0]

13 minutes ago, hopperfisher said:

How does the $12 UV resin stack up? My guess, same formula

Super clear, super hard, no fumes, no residue.  Long lasting in the bottle.

[hopperfisher 0]

Nice! I'm getting that FO SHO! How is the viscosity before curing?

[mikemac1 0]

1 hour ago, hopperfisher said:

Nice! I'm getting that FO SHO! How is the viscosity before curing?

Most of the Jewelry UV resins are somewhat thick but they work just fine for me.  But there's a bunch of different ones on Amazon.  Shop around a bit.

[tidewaterfly 0]

Norm, I think that you knew the answer before you posted. What surprises me is many products sold for fly tying or fishing, can be found from other sources and are just marked up with higher prices because they're being sold for tying or fly fishing and very few question it.  

Even here in these forums, folks have posted in response to questions, to go to a fly shop and buy, when the people asking the question has found a similar or the same item for a lot less from other sources, and are often told it's not the same. In some cases it may not be, but there's various products that are exactly the same. 

I think some dupe themselves at times or may simply be too stubborn to admit they paid too much.   🙄

How many folks think that "leech yarn" for example, is actually produced specifically for fly tying?  Same with these UV Resins. It's more probable they're rebranded, produced for other uses and adopted for tying. Threads are another good example. While some may be produced for tying, all are not. The older folks here who used Nymo & Monocord, those were sewing threads, adopted for tying. Head cements are another that are more than likely, purchased from a large manufacturer, such as those who produce finger nail polish, and repackaged & rebranded. It's possible the formulation is different, more specific to use for tying. That would be no different than going to a hook manufacturer and having hooks made to your specifications, if you're willing to buy a minimum quantity. 

There's nothing wrong with this, as some products may not otherwise be readily available to tyers, but the differences in prices can be hard to swallow. 

This adapting products is also not exclusive to fly fishing. I've had folks argue with me about powder coat paints, that a certain company produces them specifically for painting lures and to me that's improbable. The manufacturing process is rather involved and I can't see it to be profitable enough to only manufacture for fishing lure use. I don't buy that brand, I buy my powders in bulk, and what I use certainly doesn't look or perform any different than what that other brand sells, and at a big price difference. Just like with hook manufacturing, there are many more brands than there are actual manufacturers. 

 

[Poopdeck 0]

[DarrellP 0]

We are too small of a market for much to be made just for us.  Most of it is a spin off.

[utyer 0]

One of the biggest ways we can save money is in Thread.  The big cost in thread is the re-spooling onto 100 yard spools.  Most thread is made in much bigger lots.  I simply cut out the middle man and save money.

I have not bought "fly tying" thread in over 12 years.  I started using Gutermann Skala and Gutermann Bulky Nylon threads.  I recently found a new source, and have just picked up a few more sizes.  My cost per 100 yard spool is less than .20, and that includes shipping.  The threads I use do have a couple of drawbacks:  The Skala only comes on large spools from 5000 to 20,000 meters (that 5468, to 21872 yards.)  I re-spool all my thread to fit on my Nor-vise Auto Bobbin spools so there is no added work for me in doing this.

I now get these from Wawak.com and their shipping is $5.95 for any size order.  I usually buy 2 or 4 spools at a time.  I have a list of about 6 other threads I want to try.  

[Jaydub 0]

9 hours ago, flytire said:

into buying specialty tying tools when cheaper tools exist that are essentially the same thing

$30 fir 2 clips

Medium 1.5 Inch Hareline Material Clamp Set - Hareline Dubbin Product Lines

 

$3.79 for one or $3.75 each when buying 2 on ebay

Dental Articulating Paper Holder Handling Holding Forceps Straight Tweezer Tool | eBay

$4.90 on ebay

Articulating Paper Forceps Curved 6" Dental Surgical Holding Instruments | eBay

But the Hareline one have red grippy stuff on the handles. That's got to be worth $25. 🙄

[tidewaterfly 0]

 

On 9/20/2021 at 5:00 PM, utyer said:

One of the biggest ways we can save money is in Thread.  The big cost in thread is the re-spooling onto 100 yard spools.  Most thread is made in much bigger lots.  I simply cut out the middle man and save money.

I have not bought "fly tying" thread in over 12 years.  I started using Gutermann Skala and Gutermann Bulky Nylon threads.  I recently found a new source, and have just picked up a few more sizes.  My cost per 100 yard spool is less than .20, and that includes shipping.  The threads I use do have a couple of drawbacks:  The Skala only comes on large spools from 5000 to 20,000 meters (that 5468, to 21872 yards.)  I re-spool all my thread to fit on my Nor-vise Auto Bobbin spools so there is no added work for me in doing this.

I now get these from Wawak.com and their shipping is $5.95 for any size order.  I usually buy 2 or 4 spools at a time.  I have a list of about 6 other threads I want to try.  

I still use Danville's flat nylon thread for a lot of tying, but buy it on 1 ounce spools. Also use other nylon threads that I buy in bulk, and primarily for tying large jigs, as it's a lerger size than I would want to use on flies.  I'll have to look into the Guterman threads as I've seen it mentioned before.