FLYMPH FORUM

I've spent the past two days pulling together a compact, easily portable, fly tying kit so I don't have to carry a trunk load of tying materials to events/demo/etc. Here is what I have come up with. The main components are as follows:

Mead Platinum Pro Zipper Three Ring Binder ($20.00)
Three Layer Pocket Binder Inserts (set of ten / $5.00)
35 mm Film Negative Holders - Each Sheet has 7 Strips for holding materials (ten sheets / $4.50)
2"x2" Pocket Overhead Projector Slide Holders - Each Sheet has twenty pockets (ten sheets / $6.00)
3 Ring Plastic Zip Pocket ($2)
2 Packs of DMC Floss Bobbing Cards (56 cards per set / 1.50 per set)
Total Cost = $40.50 (tying materials not included / Only includes binder and component for storing the materials)

Here is what my kit looks like (The binder has a zipper that goes around three sides. The zipper will hold materials in place during transit, or in the event the kit gets dropped. It will also help keep materials safe from insects, while the kit is not being used.):

Outer flap opens and has pockets for pens / tools / Identification Card. I've added a couple Sharpie permanent markers, which are handy for some patterns.:

Unzip the binder and open it up. On the right-hand side is an expanding file section. On the left-hand side is a three ring binder (removable from case). I have added a plastic zipper pocket and multiple sheets for holding materials.

View down into the expanding folder section. Perfect for holding a few small capes/saddles/etc.

These necks/skins cover a range of patterns. The materials in the kit can easily be swapped out to suit the type of tying that I will be doing.

Large three-section pockets for holding hooks / etc.

Flim strip Negative holder sleeves are perfect for holding sections of longer materials (i.e. - pheasant tail/peacock herl/flash/zonker strips/etc.)



Overhead slide holders are perfect for holding small patches of fur, dubbing, carded silk, yarn, wool, ribbing material, etc.






The whole kit weights only a few pounds when it it full, and has a little bit of everything needed to tye a range of patterns (soft hackles/streamers/steelhead patterns/tube flies/etc.). It took me many hours to fill the binder with small bits of material, but hopefully it was time well spent. I have some other interchangable sheets that I can use to tye other patterns (foam patterns/dry flies/nymphs/ etc.).

One of the components that this kit does not contain is holders for wire, tinsel and thread. I don't like winding these materials onto the cards (it ruins these materials by forming kinks every time it wraps around the card). These materials would need to be carried separately from the tying kit. The tying vice/tools/bobbins also need to be carried separately. But at least now I can carry it all in one trip from the car.

William/Bill/Doug/Carl/Jeff/Chris/Donald - If you look closely, you can probably see some of the materials you've given me over the past year (dubbing blends/fur/yarn/flash/ribbing material/etc). Thanks for the materials. These are perfect for a travel tying kit.

William - I blatantly stole your idea for the DMC floss cards. These fit perfectly into the overhead projector slide holders. I was able to wind four feet of each material onto the cards, which is plenty for a number of flies. The cards can easily be refilled, once the materials are used up.

=) fine by me, I'm going to steal this entire set up. The organization of a fine fly tier and a sound engineer. It's very..."letumgo-like".

PERFECT!

What a fantastic kit design. Many of us could benefit from such an organised easily contained pack for everyday tying as it would save a lot of searching through drawers and boxes for certain items...... around here at least!
It is small and compact enough to be easily carried, but contains enough to tie a lot of variation and large numbers of flies.

Very well thought out and put together, go to the top of the class Sir.

A couple of short lengths of 1/4" threaded rod will hold thread and wire spools. Glued/captive nut and washer on the bottom and wing-nut on the top, long enough for 4-6 spools it would be around the same length as your pack. Up to you and your engineer background to figure out how to include them in the pack!

Would love to see how you pack/carry your tool kit.

Oh, yep, did notice the hard to miss "bronze" label on the herl page.

Ray, in doing extensive "research" on your tying kit, I have decided to incorporate all of it into my own kit. (In other words, I'm going to steal your ideas ). I can't think of anything to add to it, so it will be very "similar" to yours.
Great post, strong engineering.

Ray, dang it. You just amaze me with your creativity. This is the coolest small tying kit I've ever seen. I am going to have to use some of these ideas in the future. Too broke right now to do it. But in the future...I suspect I am going to make a similar kit. BRAVO RAY!!!!!

Outstanding, Ray ... front to back and top to bottom. A major improvement on those huge plastic bins we all hauled to Roscoe last spring!

tie2fish wrote:Outstanding, Ray ... front to back and top to bottom. A major improvement on those huge plastic bins we all hauled to Roscoe last spring!

Bill, I'll be bringing my tight travel bag again...but like you (and Ray)...there will still be bins. Show and tell was such a treat last year. =).

W

Heck, if it were me- I would be taking a big ole empty plastic bin and filling it with anything I could scrounge off you guys that have such wonderful toys and play things when it comes to "show and tell."

Thanks Jeff. I will give it some thought, and see what I can come up with. I think there are also some clear plastic tubes, which are sold for holding thread/wire/etc.). I think a couple of these would be all I'd need.

William - I cut little slits into the side of the DMC cards and they make perfect holders for the Hidy/Leisenring style silk dubbing brushes. I can get three dubbing brushes on each card, without crowding (four if they overlap a bit). I need to make up a small batch of dubbing brushes ahead of my tying demonstration next month. The tying demo may be the first field test of the new tying kit.

This kit contains 20 hares ear dubbing & 20 seal dubbing, of various colors. Other dubbing blends can be made up on-the-spot, using fur and/or yarn. I think I will cut up small pieces of mole fur and some other fur patchs to round out the choices for dubbing.

A small selection of 1 inch wide strips of foam would cover most beetle/terrestrial/emerger needs.

I keep wanting to add stuff, which jeopardizes the goal of portability.

Well, I couldn't stand it. I think I have a binder around here that will work. (actually I have two) I decided I'd have to get those 2 by 2 card holders that are for slide holders. That will work for now. Ebay has them. I will add to the kit as I can. Ray, I am so excited by your idea. I have a dubbing holder that is for business cards...it is a leather binder, with many slots similar to this. But your idea keeps the kit portable, so you can take it somewhere. You outdid yourself on this idea. Good grief, I LOVE THIS.