I am going to take up fly tying. in the hope to eventually get a decent standard at it, and secondly to keep me from raiding the fridge and biscuit tin!
i have no materials, knowledge or anything to do with this so far.
could somebody point me in the direction of a decent starter kit?
i dont want anything too cheap, as im a great believer of buy cheap buy twice..........
or any decent dvds or links on the net, book etc for instructions.
or would i be better getting a decent vice and just build up my collection bit by bit?
many thanks

Don't buy a kit. You'll have materials you never use. Join a fly tying club if you can. Learn about tying and get an appreciation of what you need to start. Then buy the best vice and tools you can afford. As for hooks, fur ,feather, and other materials, only buy to start with what you need to tie specific flies.Over time you can expand you collection of fly tying materials.

BK

Cheers BK, i dont really have the time to join a club, do these type of things ever get reduced in price? sales, promotions etc.
would a £100 vice be too much to spend?

No £100 is not too much to spend but you have choice of about at least a dozen models at that price some with swivel heads and extra features.Do you want a pedistal or "C" clamp model? The point I was trying to make was how do you know what you want until you have had some experience?

BK

I have a copy of 'The fly -Tying Bible' for sale in the classifieds at the mo. You could do worse than that for a starter book. Easy follow and good illustrations, all the classics. Give me a shout if any use to you.

Chris.

As for hooks, fur ,feather, and other materials, only buy to start with what you need to tie specific flies.Over time you can expand you collection of fly tying materials.

BK[/QUOTE]


Great advice I bought everything and anything at the beginning and used a quarter of it, the rest I ended up giving away.

As for the vice £100 is not too much to spend. But do you want to spend a lot of money when you're just starting? I'm about to spend roughly £400 on a Jvice and other bits but that's only because I've had and tied on a wide variety of vices and this will be my last one as it's the right one for me.

£50 will get you a Snowbee which has the bells and whistles so you could start with that.

Stuart

If you post a list of flies you are likely to use/want to tie I am sure we can give you a breakdown of materials.
Better that than buying a load of dross you will never use.
ATB
Graham

__________________
It is in truth not glory,nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting,but for freedom - for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with his life.(Declaration of Arbroath, 1320)

I've recently started tying and I sent Grommit a message and a list of the flies I wanted to tie and he sorted me out with a selection of equipment and materials which I have used since. I will probably use the vice and tools I have now for a year or so and progress onto something more expensive. Grommit is a trade member on this forum. Can't beat catching on your own fly.

__________________
"It is not how abundant nor how considerable our catch be, but rather to the sport, and manner in which our quarry, the noble trout is angled."
http://geordietrout.blogspot.com/

Thanks for the advice so far chaps.
id be looking to tie
diawl bachs
buzzers
emergers
crunchers
lures, weighted/unweighted
thats pretty much what i tend to use whilst fishing.
as for the vice, well my kitchen table is glass so maybe a clamp wouldnt be very clever idea for me.
id appreciate it if somebody could tell me the most used tooling in fly tying also. drying machine? uv laquers?
any website that are decent stockists also.
Basically if you had £300 to get started, what would you buy?
im maybe being a prat but i have a vision of me at the table doing my flies with a johhnie walker double black on ice.............

Here is a list to get you started.
The Classics: Diawl Bach
Classics: The Cruncher
The Classics: Buzzer (Wet)
The Classics Viva
The Classics Cat's whisker
The Classics: Woolly 8ugger
The Classics: Damsel nymph


You will need 2 pairs of scissors. One fine, the other for cutting wire etc.
A ceramic bobbin holder is a good buy but a cheaper brass one will work fine. Hackle pliers are next and a good stout needle.
Vice. You will get a very good one for around £100.
Have a look at the likes of Dyna king and Scottie.
Any of the good retailers on here like.
http://www.spidersplus.co.uk/
http://www.wellbanklochans.co.uk/
http://ian-woods.co.uk/
http://www.fordsflytying.com/shop/

To name but a few will keep you right regarding materials

ATB
Graham

__________________
It is in truth not glory,nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting,but for freedom - for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with his life.(Declaration of Arbroath, 1320)