Tag Archives: Fly Tying

Mizutani KAVA2 Fly Tying Scissor

Review of the Mizutani Kava II Scissor: Razor blades joined by a screw

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It’s always pleasant to find new functionality in a time honored tool, and scissors being the life blood of a fly tier, it’s even sweeter to find something that raises the bar on the traditional implement.

When I converted from inexpensive fly tying scissors to surgical scissors, I needed to relearn how to use scissors, as fine tips and tungsten inserts did not play well with brass wire and hook shanks. I needed to learn to care for the scissor and be judicious in its use – or risk destroying them quickly. A cut toward the hook shank was now a dangerous move, risking catching the shank between those fine points, in addition to the unwanted material I was removing.

After using Iris surgical scissors for several decades, I find myself relearning how to use scissors all over again, this time to avoid removing an errant fingertip, or accidentally severing a Carotid artery.

I was recently gifted a set of Mizutani Kava II scissors from Japan. Mizutani scissors are among the premier makers of barber shears and hair cutting scissors for upscale hairdressers, and have been making them for over one hundred years. Their handmade scissors are known for outstanding edges and meticulous craftsmanship and can cost over a thousand dollars for the high end models.

Mizutani scissors use unique steel alloys in their construction, designed for longevity, and ability to hold an edge on the blades. “Nano powdered metal,” Stellite (High Cobalt content), Damascus, as well as specialty alloys containing Cobalt, Molybdenum, and Vanadium are used in the different styles of Mizutani scissors. “Nano powdered metal” is a term describing the construction of steel by first reducing it to tiny particles, then using heat and pressure to blend the powder into a steel free of impurities, whose ability to hold an edge is unrivaled.

My scissors come in a small box with a Certificate of Authenticity, and the name of the craftsman that made the scissor. Each has the serial number etched on the blade to verify their authenticity versus a potential fake that proliferate in this high priced market. The fly tying scissor is much smaller than traditional barber shears, and only cost about $150 each – which is comparable to mid-range surgical grade scissors from a medical supply house. Each scissor case contains a suede glove to contain the scissor, a small tube of specialized scissor oil, a ratchet device to tighten the unique screw used in the scissor, and several band-aids to use while relearning how to use the scissor properly …

… that’s right, something to prevent your bleeding out – after you do something really stupid …

Mizutani has released their 4,25″ fly tying scissor in Japan, called the “Kava II” scissor, using the same Nano Powdered Metal composition as their traditional barber shears. I was recently gifted a set of these scissors and after a couple of uses, I find myself describing them as, ” …other .. worldly.”

Mizutani scissors come with a warranty covering materials and craftmanship for 30 years, and these can be resharpened via a Mizutani certified shop or by mailing them back to Japan. Resharpening the scissor currently costs between $70 and $100 US dollars (via Japan), depending on the prevailing exchange rate. Our current environment will also be subject to changes in both the Yen/Dollar exchange rate – and tariffs .. which the current administration is fond of wielding and/or repealling.

Mizutani KAVA II Fly Tying Scissor (Black Non Glare Finish)

The scissor comes with several screw in tangs that increase the number of fingers participating in the grip (can be added to either left or right handed), and serve as a stand to lift the scissor off the work surface, ensuring it’s not scraped across your desk each time the scissor is added back into your hand. Many fly tier, like myself, tend to put the scissor down when not in use, then hunt for it later when needed. Typically we drag it across to work surface in the process, removing whatever finish the scissor has over time.

Mizutani Ratchet used to tighten the specialized screw

Note the screw shown in the above illustration is not a traditional screw used for tightening scissors. A small coin shaped ratchet comes with the scissor that allows for tightening or loosening the screw, which controls the tension required to close the scissor completely. This ratcheted adjustment turns easily and is a very smooth tension adjustment. I set the ratchet tighter a few notches to test how much it changed the tension, and it was minute, implying a lot of adjustment is available to the user.

Most scissors have a design weakness due to the steels involved. The steel of the screw is typically harder than the steel used in the scissor body. Over time, the effort needed to cut tough materials like wire and feather stems, distorts the screw hole as the screw moves minutely against the screw hole, and this expansion becomes unwanted “slop” into the action of the scissor. As all documentation accompanying the scissor is in Japanese, I am unable to confirm the scissor and screw are identical steel, but the 30 year warranty suggests that’s the case.

Surgical steel is typically Stainless (for antiseptic purposes) which is a “soft” steel and the hardened screw can easily deform the screwhole with moderate pressure (and/or considerable use). A good pair of iris surgical scissors will last me somewhere between 2 and 3 years, as fly tying is more abusive to scissors than the minor tendons and flesh of the human eye.

Use and Abuse

I have completed several dozen trout flies through the tying process, and can comment on both the new function and dangers these scissors represent. What I cannot speak to is the prohibitions the maker insists upon – and what shortens or lengthens their lifespan, as I am both unable to find the maker’s prohibitions nor able to translate Japanese.

What’s completely different about these scissors from other high end scissors, is these are two razor sharp knives joined with a screw, these are NOT scissors as we know them.

You DO NOT run your finger down the blade as they will filet your finger instantly. These are conjoined knives or razor blades, and you need to keep your fingers, your children, and everything else away from the “business end” of these scissors.

The three-pronged stand and the increased height of the scissor from the bench makes it easier to find on your work area and begin cutting, and is a welcome option that becomes instinctive quickly.

I tried the scissors both with and without the three pronged “stand,” and found the three tangs do not get in the way whatsoever and are quickly forgotten.

If the finger-extension tang is used on the rear of the scissor, it has just enough weight to tilt the scissor off of its three point rest and make it sit upon the work surface point upward …The weight of the scissor borne by the two rear tangs and the rearmost “grip extension” tang. That does not imply you will impale yourself on the point if you aren’t careful, the points on these are not thin and sharp, rather a fine general -purpose tip versus something “needle sharp” and dangerous.

My default configuration is all tangs attached; three on the scissor as the stand, and the larger tang attached in right hand mode to increase the fingers used in the grip.

I would describe these scissors as an outstanding general purpose scissor usable for all fly types and sizes. They are not “delicate” nor do they seem fragile or damage prone.I would feel comfortable taking a large “whack” out of a spun deer hair bug, a heavy saltwater fly, or a smaller trout fly. Their size and design makes the scissor your “go to” option for all tying, rather than some needle pointed scissor that only handles small flies and fine materials.

New Functionality

A scissor this sharp requires you to think outside the “box.” You should not cut towards your fingers, nor cut towards the shank if your view is obscured by a big gob of marabou or a thicket of spun deer hair.

The scissor is so sharp that most of the tactile feel of the cut is gone. You don’t feel the individual hair strands parting when you close the scissor, and the blades are so sharp they part the material effortlessly. Tying something like a Goddard Caddis and cutting toward your fingers as they hold the bend of the hook, is unwise. It’s likely that your fingertips would offer little resistance to the cut and only the spurt of blood will clue you that you have cut too far … and then the pain hits.

Flattening the bottom of a Goddard Caddis? Hold the fly in your hackle pliers and keep those sensitive fingertips away from the cut. Trimming a Bass Popper? Large hooks offer more safety, but make sure your fingers are visible and not covered by untrimmed hair …

Razor blades can cut materials simply by applying tension to the item as it touches the blade. This same cut is available from Mizutani scissors. Touch the point to the thread, and it’s cut. Pull the floss tight against the scissor edge, and it parts instantly. You can saw the scissor through the material WITHOUT closing the blades, so you have a new type of cutting device that offers a different style of cut than scissors.

Typically most scissor cuts (with precision scissors) are done up and away from the shank. Both right-handed or left-handed tiers will have the scissor in front of the fly, cutting back toward the tail with scissor points elevated above the shank. This induces a tapered angle to the cut which is thin closest to the shank and wider as the cut procedes down the material towards the tail. By touching or sawing with the blade you can cut from either direction, tail to head or head to tail, which gives a bit different profile on the severed material butt.

If you decide the cut needs to come from a different direction than traditional, make sure you attach the material with this new directional force in mind. Cut or saw with the scissor edge in the same direction you wrapped the material as pulling or tensioning the item in the opposite direction will loosen it. Tinker with this to understand the options you have.

As with surgery scissors, especially those with Tungsten Carbide inserts, avoid cutting down towards the finished areas of the fly. At least minimize these cuts where possible. The scissor is so sharp that hitting the completed ribbed body, when cutting a material on a future step, could cut through the wire rib, fur, and sever six or eight turns of thread, ensuring your fly comes apart instantly. Cleaning the hook shank of the remnants of a poorly tied effort is possible with a simple sawing motion to remove all the mats off the bare hook.

… and yes, I’m still commiting most of this to my muscle memory, but so far … still have all nine digits intact.

How to Purchase Mizutani Scissors

My understanding is the wait time on these scissors is non-trivial. I have seen multiple references to two to three months waiting for a completed pair, so you need to plan accordingly. The scissor is available in multiple finishes, different steels, and the fingerholes can be ordered in three different sizes, but each special element will require additional delay. The scissor is available from the Dolly Varden Fly Shop in Sapporo, Japan, and from their website you can add yourself to the notification list and be informed when new stock arrives. Their email address is dolly@dorllyvarden.com, and they offer worldwide shipping.

In Summary:

These are an outstanding general purpose scissor for the professional tyer, not for the occasional hobbyist. Their 4.25″ length is traditional for a small pair of scissors, and they currently offer only the single size in four different alloy/finishes for fly tiers.

The fact that I like this scissor does not mean you will like it, as I have tied both commercially, professionally, and occasionally – and have spent many hours (and many dollars) using precision scissors. The Mizutani scissor is a wonderful instrument that will become your workhorse scissor, but is not appropriate for everyone due to their sharpness and potential to cause injury. It would make a great gift for someone that ties lots of flies and has been doing so for many years, but this tool is not for the beginning fly tier.

The Blue Dun fly shop in Japan has additional information on the scissor and the different specialty elements and steels they offer. You need to translate the page to English, as I have for the below technical blowout showing the scissors features.

On the above technical blow out, the reference to “Ring size” refers to the ability to order the scissor with three different finger hole sizes. I haven’t found the actual dimensions of each, but the standard finger holes measure (which I assume are Medium), 13/16″ wide by 17/16″ tall, and are perfectly suited for the average hand.

Postscript: He’s Exaggerating, Right?

No. Not even a little bit.

This is the result of the 11th fly tied with the scissors, specifically a Bird’s Nest, in size 12. I was ensuring the feather distributed itself around the hook evenly, and used the point to flick the teal fibers apart, and caught the edge of a forefinger with the open points.

The cut was not even felt via the hand holding the scissor, only a slight impediment to the swing of the scissor motion … and then the pain hit …

I followed up with a few emails to the staff at the Dolly Varden fly shop, and they confirmed that these scissors are in short supply. When I asked about the Matte Black finish variants, they mentioned a two month wait for anything special ordered. It didn’t sound like a preorder was possible, rather you simply had to wait for whatever became available via the shop’s existing orders. This is consistent with anything rare and handmade – so you’ll need to monitor their inventory and/or inquire as to when their next shipment will be arriving.

With the current tariff agreements imposed by our administration, the simple “silver” colored scissors (Hot Isotropic Pressure or HIP finish) retails for about $150 (JPY 20,000Y, $180 with shipping and insurance). The Matte Black version is closer to $200 (JPY 36000Y, $230 with shipping and insurance), and the Damascus steel version lists for about $800-$900. (JPY 140,000Y).

Damascus steel gained its notoriety during the Crusades, and most historians suggest the original mineral deposits have long been exhausted. “Damascus” steel today is made by mixing numerous steels together to form the traditional multicolored “topographical map” look that’s present in the blade. In short, Damascus steel is a visual phenomenom, neither superior nor able to hold an edge better than other high carbon steels. Powdered metal and its impurity free composition is considered by many to be the best at holding an edge, and both the Matte Black and Silver (HIP) scissors use Nano Powdered Metal, I am unsure of the Damascus variant as it contains numerous steels …

I think these are worth the wait. Simply because the low end scissor costs the same as surgical quality scissors, but use a much harder steel – backed up by a 30 year warranty. If I burn through a set of Miltex stainless IRIS scissors every couple of years, these suddenly become really cost effective.

Do rotary vises offer anything to the tier other than increased cost?

Having treated myself to a full rotary vise whose price rivalled a mortgage payment, it was not enough for me to leave all that mechanical wonderment alone.

Per my last post on the features of the Dyna-King Excalibur, I suspected the rotary capability of the vise was linked to the kind of flies tied rather than a “must have” feature that would benefit fly tied on the vise.

My surmisal was based on my own viewing of other tiers featured at shows and club gatherings, as well as viewing the fly shop reviews via YouTube. Most of the fly shop reviewers wax eloquent about the rotary feature, but subsequent reviews, or flies tied in later episodes, only show the occasional use of the rotary function, and almost always on large flies. Small flies simply don’t lend themselves to the use of full rotary function.

Opinion is always the easy part …

… especially as we grow older. To be fair to this mechanical marvel, I needed to practise using the rotary feature to see what it offered … and to see what it did well, versus the more traditional vises we’ve used for the past century.

For testing purposes I ran about twenty dozen trout flies through the vise to test how rotary function assisted (or hindered) me on both dry flies and nymphs. I ran sizes 16 through 6, for the testing. The smaller sizes tended to be dry flies and the larger sizes were heavy Stonefly nymphs. I used both beaded, non-beaded, and barbless hooks.

I found that two kinds of rotary use is possible …

The first is the thread is moved out of the way of the work area and the bobbin deposited on a stand or arm. The yarn or hackle is wound, and the thread returns to the area to tie off the material.

The second type is the thread contains the item to be wound, like dubbing, and the bobbin is held at your belly while you feed the material to the rotating shank.

Preliminary finding: Not at all surprising. The larger the hook meant the more turns of material used in hackle or body – and that meant more turns for the rotational feature – and therefore more use.

Finding #1: Small hooks are at most four or five turns, and if the thread is snagged by the hook point (as part of rotation), dubbing will explode off the thread, and the work paused while you re-dub the fur back on.

Finding #2: Despite being able to watch wire ribbing get laid onto the body, it was not easier to get more even spacing or concentric turns, because the lumps and bumps of earlier steps and tie off points cause the stem to settle where it wants versus where you desire it. The ability to see the wire go all the way around, versus losing sight of it on the far side of the hook, did not make it easier to apply.

Finding #3: Hackle was identical to wire rib above. If you crowded the head with earlier elements of the fly, the rotational application of the hackle was not easier, as the lumps and bumps of prior steps made the stem slip to one side or the other.

Finding #4: We don’t consider the “spin” of the shank when we mount hooks, as rotation is still a new member to our toolset. In my testing I had to reposition every hook to ensure it rotated smoothly. Eventually I gave up and adjusted the vise barrel only … allowing a “wobbly” rotation to be acceptable. This saved time versus removing and repositioning the hook to get the precision rotation. Different bends and sizes require the hook to be mounted differently on the Excalibur as the slots in the jaws change the grip on the hook. Small hooks are mounted on the tip of the jaw, large using slots, and the in between sizes added somewhere between the tips of the jaws and the meaty slotted area. This change of location alters the spin on the hook, and will require a vise barrel adjustment to spin smoothly. “Wobbly” was more efficient than repositioning the hook, so I would consider this a bit of a hindrance or time sink…

Finding #5: Depositing the bobbin onto a vise extension or arm, usually required me to remove the thread when rotation was complete. The small angle formed between the shank of the hook and the resting place for the bobbin, was not large enough to allow the hook eye to NOT snag the thread when the vise was rotated. Dyna-King provides and arm attached to the vise that allows the bobbin to be rested away from the working area. Unfortunately, the eye of the hook often catches the thread as it is rotating, requiring you to remove those turns once the rotational portion is complete. This added time to each rotational step, making it a hindrance versus a nicety.

In summary, I did not feel that the rotational capabilities of the Dyna-King Excalibur (or any fully rotational vise), outweigh the costs associated with its purchase. Rotation in of itself was often a hindrance instead of a benefit, and for the average trout fly tier, it is really questionable whether a full rotational vise provides any advantage whatsoever.

Cheaper more Flexible Needle Scabbards

As a follow up to the post on using Needle Scabbards to protect bobbins, I’ll introduce a new source as well as a cheaper price, and additional capabilities ..

Ebay turned out to have a stretchable silicon “needle cover”, which is available in a large range of sizes, and being silicon, stretches more than the vinyl needle scabbards purchased from Amazon.

The Ebay vendor sells 100 packs for about $8, which is a third of the price of the vinyl style, and doubles the quantity as well.

I purchased the 1.57mm X 12.7mm size. and it is perfect for most bobbins – and stretches to fit over the large barrel bobbins featured in my two posts on bobbin review. 1.57mm is the internal diameter of the opening, and 12.7mm is the length of the scabbard.

Stuffing the tip of a expensive ceramic lined bobbin into a tool caddy may have repercussions at some point, and having the tip protected when not in use gives you the ability to secure the thread, as well as protecting the finish on the tip of your ceramic or chrome bobbin.

As a double bonus, you can use these to protect the tips of your Tungsten Carbide scissors. The stretchable nature of these needle scabbards are more useful than the earlier flavor, but be forewarned that these will likely deteriorate over time and exposure to sunlight. While heavy walled, sunlight is the nemisis of silicone, and some months or years hence, they will fail.

bobbin reviews

Part 2: Bobbin Reviews: More Expensive options and a feature I didn’t know I needed

In Part 1 of this post we reviewed a mix of high priced engineering marvels leavened with a few of the lower cost traditional bobbins. The hope is with the increased cost of some bobbins comes a variety of new capabilities and features, rather than simply increased cost for the same feature set found in less expensive options.

In Part 2 we’ll extend our earlier efforts onto a new crop of bobbins, some expensive, others less so, in the hope we can find evidence of bobbins evolving into something more, other than simply high priced gadgetry.

As with the first post, we’ll use the same series of simple tests for each bobbin; different threads, different flies tied – some large, some small, the ability to fit different thread spool sizes, loading the bobbin via mouth, thread management – if offered, and evaluate any unique new features on the bobbin not shared by the rest of the group.

Option 6: Dr Slick ECO Bobbin BOB4

Doctor Slick ECO Bobbin

Barrel Length: 1.75″

Overall Length: 4.5″

Cost: $7 – $10

The Dr Slick BOB4 bobbin is a simple recreation of the original Matarelli bobbin, with a dual “glass” barrel insert. There is no explanation on the maker’s website as to the “dual” designation, so I’ll assume the dual “glass” inserts imply an insert in the top and a second insert at the bottom of the barrel … versus a single insert extending through the barrel.

It is listed as a 4″ bobbin, and is 4.5″ from glass tip to bottom of thread spool when loaded.

This bobbin performed all tasks admirably, with no issues. Construction seemed solid, spool tension was adequate, and the only visceral reaction I had to the bobbin was the color of the glass insert. Both tip and bottom are black – which made the thread hole appear small and hard to find, especially if you’re loading black thread. The air flow seemed less when sucking the thread through, as if the hole were smaller than other bobbins, even though the barrel is wider than most. I was able to consistently load the bobbin via mouth, so the functionality was intact.

Thread tension, and thread management, is via “spreading the legs” of the bobbin forcibly, identical to a Matarelli bobbin, and the polished brass feet gave a consistent feel and provided smooth resistance to thread leaving the barrel.

This is a long tube bobbin. The overall barrel width is wider than most as it will not fit a 14 gauge needle scabbard, you will need to purchase a larger gauge if you employ them to protect your bobbins.

In short, this is a good quality, functional long tube bobbin, no frills or features, and is a good replacement candidate for the cost concious angler learning to tie flies and intent on possessing several more of these.

Bobbin: 4 Stars. No additional features outside of those consistent with the traditional Matarelli bobbin. A ceramic or “glass” sleeve is a common feature of today’s bobbins, so it is not considered unique for this test.

Option 7: Ekich Bobbin

The Ekich Bobbin

Barrel Length: 1.75″

Overall Length: 4.25″

Cost: $140 – $150

New Feature: Thread Management

The Ekich bobbin has been around for a decade or so, and is likely the last word in thread management for fly tying bobbins. The marvel is the brainchild of Faruk Ekich of Canada, and his company, AutomaticBobbin.com.

This bobbin approaches thread management in a different way than spool brakes or simple tensioners, rather the focus is on both thread payout and recovery, versus simply making a spool brake to increase the tension on the spool.

The Ekich bobbin features a coiled spring that tightens as small amounts of thread are pulled from the spool, allowing this coiled energy to recover thread back onto the spool should slack appear in the thread via a user’s manipulation of the bobbin. The bobbin is precisely architected to provide about 33 grams of resistance to hold the bobbin and thread spool at the position of last use, and requires tension control of the thread via the user’s fingers on the spool, versus any mechanical tension adjustment. As the spring coils the bobbin can be moved toward the work area to recover thread back onto the spool.

This bobbin requires a little getting used to on the part of the user, and is the most expensive bobbin currently offered on the market, so you need to approach this knowing there is a bit of a learning curve, and significant costs are involved.

All fly tying bobbins have been engineered to dispense thread and the Ekich bobbin is engineered to dispense, and recover thread, which sets it apart from the rest of the pack. The small spring and its coiled energy can be used to recover thread, tighten half hitches, and plague the owner repeatedly when he forgets to release the pent up energy and cuts the thread when the fly is complete. The coiled spring immediately sucks the thread back through the barrel and you have to reload the bobbin over and over until you learn this lesson properly.

Spring energy can be dissapated simply by lifting the spool away from the spool housing with thumb and forefinger to allow the small peg on the housing to clear the thread spool, and it will immediately release all its stored energy. This peg fits inside the thread spool recesses and winds the spring as the spool is rotated dispensing thread. It has a 24″ capacity, so once 24 inches of thread has been pulled from the bobbin, tension changes markedly queing you to release the coiled spool. Note that wooden spools cannot be used on the Ekich bobbin as they lack holes in their surface that can engage this small peg. A few other spool types have minor issues, and notes can be found on the maker’s website for both workarounds and probibitions.

Bobbin function is admirable, with no issues on simple tasks. Loading thread via mouth worked well, the fit in the hand, including one handed operation of the “spool lift” to release spring tension, also worked flawlessly, the frustration associated with having the thread pulled back through the thread barrel on fly completion is completely mental … “old dude forgetfullness”, not a function of the mechanics of the bobbin.

I tested the trout model and it was NOT a long tube bobbin. The maker makes a Salmon model with a slightly longer tube (30mm versus 20mm for the trout size) that approximates the long tube style. This bobbin does not allow midge spools as they are too short to engage the rubber “O” ring, and midge spools lack the proper hollowed area to allow the spring peg to fit within them.

I tied large flies and small with the trout model and felt the 33g of precision control both a blessing and a curse. For small dry flies and nymphs the bobbin performed well until you approached the coiled spring limit of 24 inches of dispensed thread. At that juncture tension increased and it seemed prudent to release the coiled energy by lifting the bobbin up the spindel with thumb and forefinger, making the extra tension disappear and allowing additional work. This was an extra step not required of any other bobbin, and it was wasteful. The tension abruptly resets to 33g and it will seem suddenly sloppy-loose – compared to a moment ago.

As a fast moving, former commercial tyer, I am judgemental over wasted energy and unecessary steps, and I did not care for the required spring-coil adjustments. This is not something insurmountable, this is part of the “getting used” to this particular bobbin and its unique foibles.

On large flies and heavy threads, 33g was much too loose. Tying a big saltwater fly requires constant tension and pressure given how the amount of mats and their control can often be unruly. Resetting the bobbin tension to 33G under these conditions was a pain, something I did not like. The now relaxed tension was much too loose for the large fly and materials I was adding, and I immediately had to clamp down on the thread spool to avoid unwanted thread payout – especially as there are no warnings when you’re about to hit the 24″ dispensed thread boundary.

I did not find any information suggesting the Salmon size bobbin had a different tension value, so I have to assume it’s set for the same 33G as the trout model. This is great for 18/0 midge thread, but doesn’t work as well for Size “A” and a fistful of bucktail.

This bobbin might be well suited for specific types of fly, as I tested with the trout size and felt it worked best with small flies. The cost of the thread management is prohibitive in my mind, so I was not prepared to immediately purchase the larger Salmon model to see if it was better suited for the larger flies.

In summary, a good bobbin with unique features that require the user to adjust their tying style – instead of simply use. Bobbin: 3 stars, as the tension felt too weak to tie large flies, and the constant release of pent up energy was a wasteful step, that I often forgot. New Feature: Thread Management: 3 Stars. The thread management worked well dispensing and recovering thread, but the tension was constantly needing assistance from my fingers, even when my fingers were busy releasing coiled energy from the spring. The cost of this bobbin will make it prohibitive to own six or seven of them, so specific uses may make this bobbin more attractive to own compared to general fly tying. This is not a bobbin for a well heeled beginner to own, rather it’s a unique use bobbin for an experienced tier with specific demands. Good bobbin, excellent construction, with foibles … and a nosebleed price for thread management.

Option 8: Hareline Double Ceramic Premium Bobbin

Hareline Double Ceramic Bobbin

Barrel Length: 1.75″

Overall Length: 4.5″

Cost: $11 -$15

The Hareline Double Ceramic fits a midge spool right out of the box, so I’ll assume that will loosen over time if using standard size spools. This is another Matarelli bobbin replacement, with only the ceramic insert to offer new functionality over the aging Matarelli standard.

This bobbin has the largest tube diameter of all those tested, and coupled with the traditional flaired ceramic cap will not fit a traditional 14 gauge needle scabbard cover. The inside diameter of the barrel is also larger than all others tested, so it should work quite well dispensing thin yarn or floss in addition to thread.

Not surprisingly, this is really easy to thread and the easiest bobbin to load with simple suction, given how much oxygen can be pulled through the barrel.

The ceramic material lining the barrel is the “roughest” tested – imparting a noticeable “grating: feel to the thread as the bobbin rotated around the hook shank. While disconcerting, as I’m used to silky smooth ceramic and stainless barrels, this did not actually grate on the thread, it felt that way. Occasionally I would hear an audible sound when winding, suggesting it wasn’t just my imagination as to the “rough” surface. Note that I use quotes when describing “rough”, the barrel is not rough nor did it sever thread or wear it in the slightest, it simply felt like it was destroying the thread, and didn’t actually harm it at all. Of all the bobbins tested this was the only ceramic that had this feel.

Bobbin: 4 Stars. No new features, a solid Matarelli replacement in a long tube design, that due to the barrel inside diameter should be considered for dispensing more than thread. This would be excellent for fine yarns and floss.

Option 9: SMHAEN Bobbin

Barrel Length: 2″

Overall Length: 4.25″

Cost: $65 – $85

New Feature: Thread Tensioning

The bobbin comes in two flavors; the red version of the SMHAEN is standard length and the blue is their midge version. Due to the constraints inherent in the design there is little ability to fit differing spools sizes due to the legs of the bobbin being joined by the tension adjusting arm. Not surprisingly it would not fit a midge spool in the standard model.

I purchased the standard version hoping it was closer to the long tube I was looking for, and like many of the other makers, the SMHAEN standard version is midway between a Matarelli standard and a Matarelli Long Tube bobbin.

The new feature available is thread tensioning adjustment, likely the largest range of adjustment currently offered in bobbins. The Matarelli relies on pressure from the bobbin legs, the Stonfo and Petitjean offer small adjustments via a tensioning slider, and the SMHAEN gives you a true thread brake, allowing you to lock the spool into an unusable configuration for light threads.

Upward movement on the tension adjustment (clockwise) tightens the thread, and downward movement of the knob loosens the thread. As the tensioner knob is available while gripping the bobbin you can adjust thread tension on the fly, in an intuitive and hand-friendly manner.

The SMHAEN has a prohibition on using Kevlar thread in the bobbin, so please note that its use may invalidate any warranty.

Bobbin operation was silky smooth. Thread can be sucked through the barrel and the bobbin loads easily via mouth. It has the thinnest ceramic insert of any of the bobbins tested and fits a 14 gauge needle scabbard perfectly. This fine tip is worth protecting with a needle scabbard as its thinness could be considered downright “sharp” if the ceramic chipped or cracked. I’m unwilling to test the ceramic inserts strength given smashing an $80 bobbin strictly for science is not my cup of tea.

Because of the design of the bobbin, its feet move the least of all the bobbins tested, and any variation in spool sizes may be an issue. This same tensioning arm configuration also means that changing spools takes three times longer than any other bobbin, as the adjustment knob has to be loosened to the point where the old spool can be removed, the new spool inserted, and then retensioned to the desired setting. This is a manual and cumbersome process compared to other bobbins, so frequent thread changes are undesirable.

This is a solid bobbin, pricey, but effortless to use outside of the spool changing issue. The ceramic barrel may be fragile due to the thinness of its walls, but this issue may require extended use and more opportunity for mishap, like dropping a pedastal base onto the bobbin while its resting on the table.

Bobbin 4 Stars. New Feature: 4 Stars if thread changes are infrequent, 3 Stars if you change thread spools often.

Option 10: Tiemco Adjustable Barrel Double Arm Bobbin

Barrel Length: 1.5″

Overall Length: 3.75″ to 4.5″

Cost: $34 – $85

New Feature: Adjustable Barrel Length

My compliments to the designer as they were able to devise functionality never seen in a bobbin that I didn’t know I needed …

That’s saying something.

The double feet on the bobbin did not move the needle for me, in fact I found them a liability in an unlikely manner. When threading a traditional bobbin you have to negotiate the thread past the two feet and into the barrel. With a double foot bobbin, you have FOUR wires in the way, and threading is a bit more of an issue. Four wires provides a bit more resistance to the thread spool, but I can’t say it was noticeable when using the bobbin.

The aparture for the barrel is quite small, as is the ceramic tube itself. It was easy to load the bobbin via mouth, but the four feet (four wires in the way) and small opening had me looking for reading glasses to assist the threading process.

What was a major change was the adjustable barrel, and how I no longer cared whether I had a midge, standard, or long tube flavor, as all those bobbins were available within this single chassis.

WInner, Winner, Chicken Dinner…

The bobbin barrel adjustment is identical to mounting a bit into a power drill. Tighten or loosen the cap, adjust the barrel to the length desired, then retighten the barrel housing to fix the barrel at that length. This adjustment can be made with the bobbin hanging from the fly as well as on the workbench. This functionality is immediately useful and can be used on nearly every fly tied. Adjusting the bobbin barrel length to your favorite setting, and tie with abandon on big, small, complex, or dainty.

The ceramic barrel, barrel housing, and chassis can be disassembled into three pieces. The barrel itself is 1.5″ long, so you can adjust the bobbin length about an inch comfortably. There is a minimum amount of ceramic barrel that must remain in the barrel housing to ensure a good fit and initial experimentation suggests it’s about half an inch of barrel that must stay in the tube to engage the mechanism properly.This gives you an inch of barrel to move in either direction.

Barrel fully extended the bobbin is about 4.5 inches long, with barrel retracted, the bobbin is about 3.75 inches long.

The ceramic barrel has a small diameter and as the barrel is extended, is at increased risk for a potential impact break. Tying at a show and dropping it into a backpack might expose it to a pedastal base impact as you add a vise, and while the ceramic barrel is a cinch to replace, I don’t see the vendor selling replacement barrels. This might mean the ceramic will never break, or it may mean you might have to learn to retract the barrel before storage in your tool caddy or backpack. The ceramic barrel is too small for a 14 gauge needle scabbard, but retracted, the housing accepts that size perfectly. I want to protect ceramic where possible, so this is becoming increasingly non-trivial.

For some reason Amazon is selling these at half price from a vendor in Japan. I bought mine for $34 thinking it was retail, and find all the shops in the United States are selling it for $80. Three different barrels are available on the bobbin, fine, standard, and heavy duty, but I only see the standard weight barrel available via fly shops.

I am going to purchase a couple more while Amazon has them at the lower price, just to ensure I have several.

Bobbin: 4 Stars. New Feature: 4 Stars. Really nice bobbin, well made and easy to use. New features operate intuitively, making it easy to assimilate them into your tying on the first fly. Really expensive bobbin so jump on the Amazon price while they still have a few. I hope this barrel technology will be used by other manufacturers versus making multiple bobbin lengths. Vendor needs to sell additional barrels so you can swap or replace your barrel.

Bobbin Summary

Over the course of these two posts we’ve seen only four areas of change in bobbins. Thread Management, Thread Tensioning, adjustable barrels, and the addition of a dubbed loop capability, everything else is the same feature set as the original Matarelli bobbin, with a few material changes to the bobbin chassis, like ceramic barrels. While some of the bobbins showed merit, some were easy to use, some required relearning a thing or two, and some were downright silly, several of the technologies hold promise.

As there are more than a single type of fly tyer, and many types of flies, different functionality may appeal to some versus others. Thread management is low on my list, thread tensioning a bit higher, but outside of the moveable barrel on the Tiemco, none of these are about to topple the low cost Matarelli type bobbins from their well earned throne.

Engineering marvels, all … and beastly expensive in light of what you get.

Hopefully you found a few questions answered without having to purchase all these costly bobbins. As always, I paid retail for all of the bobbins in both articles, with an emphasis on all bobbins boasting of new functionality (and nosebleed cost). In my mind, only the Tiemco offered a mature technology to me immediately, with the Petitjean … a glimpse of future function.

For the beginning fly tier, stick with the inexpensive bobbins for the moment. Changes to bobbin technology are in their infancy and the large dollar outlay is not warranted at the moment. As with fly rods, fly reels, and everything else in our sport, wait until your skills outclass your equipment before you plunk down the big dollars for bobbins (or anything else in our sport).

Disclaimer: As always I have paid full retail for all the bobbins reviewed above. This ensures cost is factored into the features reviewed, and my righteous indignation crops up appropriately at the precise moment needed.

Petitjean Bobbin

Petitjean Bobbin follow-on post

After surveying much of the candidate field, my instincts suggest that the Petitjean bobbin is the only bobbin offering capabilities and functionality that have never fit within a bobbin’s pervue. As such, its unfamiliararity and unique foibles require a deeper look at the bobbin, to assess whether its promise is realized already or it’s a prototype of something that can only be realized later with additional refinement.

Let’s Get Price Out of the Way

The 800 pound gorilla in bobbin assessment is price. There are plenty of inexpensive “house” bobbins offered by vendors that cost less than five dollars and are copies of copies of the Matarelli bobbin. These bobbins work flawlessly, and as such, should be the default option for most tiers interested in problem free functionality at reasonable cost.

Beginning tiers should not look at anything but “tried and true” until their skills surpass their starter gear. Ditto for the commercial tier, who is focused on speed and wants his tying gear to function flawlessly without his having to fiddle with foibles or shortcomings.

Seventy-five dollars for a bobbin is excessive. Regardless of the alloy used, the engineering marvels it contains, and factoring in its innate ability to ward off vampires and disable hungry zombies, it’s hard under any circumstances to justify this kind of cost.

If cost is king, you don’t want this bobbin.

What capabilities would be worth a $75 bobbin?

I found myself asking this very question many times over. I had come to the conclusion that the only way to justify the hideous expense would be in counting the tools no longer needed, or counting the minutes saved due to the tool’s assistance.

In looking at my tying bench and the costs of the many tools present, the only options that come to mind are vise, scissors and hair stacker. If my bobbin could replace any of those tools it would likely pay for itself.

Unfortunately, these options aren’t in any of the bobbins sold, so any real feature increase in a bobbin is likely to be minor, replacing only the inexpensive tools like threader cleaners, dubbed loop tools, and their ilk.

Hence, the Petitjean Bobbin.

All the things I found out since the last article on the topic

As I dug deeper into the bobbin’s use I had to create new tests to determine where the foibles existed, and whether some of my initial premises were correct.

Grip Does Not Matter

How I gripped the bobbin and which side I rested my thumb on was the first issue I found my comments to be incorrect.

I find holding the bobbin with my thumb on the tensioner keeps the thread contained within the wire guide. If I was left-handed, or wrapped the bobbin counterclockwise, my instinct now is that I would hold the bobbin 180 degrees differently. 

It doesn’t matter which side of the bobbin is towards you – or whether your thumb is positioned in a certain way, holding either side of the bobbin works equally well. I tested this premise by gripping the bobbin randomly while it spun under the vise jaws. I found no additional issues with the thread coming out of the tip guide regardless of my hand position.

So how was the thread coming loose?

It was the advancement of the thread up or down the shank, and the speed with which I did so that cause the thread to come out of the tip guide. When I advanced the thread quickly down the shank the bobbin tip would be ahead of the thread, sometimes at an really small angle, it would scrub the rim and find the small aparture of the tip and come out. If I wrapped more methodically down the shank (instead of going from eye to bend in three turns) the bobbin acted normally no matter how I held it. It’s a mix of speed and angle that can cause the thread to come out.

The Plane of the bobbin may influence this behavior

If the bobbin is held parallel to the hook shank and the thread is advanced down the shank quickly, the thread may find the aperture of the tip guide and come out. If the plane of the bobbin changes the same law applies, but it may not be as obvious. The point is to ensure the angle of thread (between point of attachment on the shank and tip of the bobbin) is not too small, implying the tip of your bobbin is far in front of the point of attachment, where you took your last wrap. Remember the thread “scrubs” its way around the tip of the bobbin as the bobbin rotates around your hook shank, too acute an angle and the thread finds the opening and is released.

I tied several dozen parachute flies to test the bobbin’s attitude in relation to the tying area. In the first test the bobbin was held with the tip down and parallel to the parachute wing, wraps were applied to the wing post. In the second test, the bobbin was held with the tip pointing toward the parachute wing, and the bobbin was wrapped around the wing. Both tests were successful, and the thread did not come out of the guide.

It appears that only the acute angle issue, coupled with speed, causes the thread to find the aperture, instead of the attitude of the bobbin in relation to the work surface. The plane of the bobbin can influence the behavior, but the cause appears to be the same … acuteness of angle in the new plane combined with a meat headed fly tier intent on completing the fly quickly.

By now I’d tied about six dozen flies with the bobbin and most of the issues were moot. I’ve not used the thread tensioner while tying the trout flies as setting the tensioner once is all that’s necessary for similar sized flies using the same thread. Replacing the thread and changing the hook size to saltwater had me change the thread tension, but again only once.

Summary: This is a bobbin that functions well in the hands of an experienced tier. It is not without flaw, as the thread can pop out of the tip guide when you get forgetful and move the thread either up or down the shank quickly.

The dubbed loop tool is useful when tying nymphs, less so when tying dry flies, and I tied more dubbed loop flies than normal as it was so convenient to do so with this bobbin. The thread tension function tends to be “set it and forget it” if tying similar sized flies with the same size thread. This tension adjustment was the best I’ve tried so far – not a complete brake on the spool, but noticably increasing the tension.

The cost makes this a luxury item. This is not for the average tier who will eventually own a dozen of these bobbins. While the Matarelli bobbins copies are plentiful and cheap, most tiers will choose to own a dozen of them instead.

Rating: 3 Stars. The cost of the bobbin is prohibitive, and the thread can come out occasionally even when you’re used to the bobbin, New Functionality: 4 Stars. Good thread adjustment, dubbing loop tool works well, once you’re used to it.

In this day and age of the $700 fly tying vise, and the $1000 fly rod, the $75 dollar bobbin is in lockstep with what we’ve done to the sport. I can’t say I agree with where we’re heading, but I’m not surprised at any of this.

Personal Note: I really like the bobbin, but it does not justify my owning a dozen of them. This bobbin appears to be the only real advancement of the bobbin as a fly tying tool, but it’s cost is staggering in light of what you get. I can’t think of a capability that when added to a bobbin would make it worth a hundred bucks, but I have to applaud Mssr. Petitjean for his efforts and his vision.

Matarelli Hackle Pliers, Stainless and Brass prototype

Frank Matarelli, Godfather of the Better Mousetrap

Frank Matarelli was a towering, unsmiling fellow, partial to checkered hunting jackets. His physical stature and opinions brooked little disagreement, as he reduced the complex to simple, making current events, politics, and Grizzly hackle, all manageable in a single breath.

He lived out in the Avenues of San Francisco, on Irving Street, neighbor to his close friend Cal Bird. Both were prolific tiers, but Frank was the more secretive of the two, as only family and Cal were allowed to see his garage work area, housing his machinery and tool production. Cal described Frank’s tool building process as a wide leather belt, or harness, that allowed him to bend wire and steel via body weight. “Frank threw his body all over to bend wire to make whip finishers.”

Frank and I were both members of the Golden Gate Angling and Casting Club, and as I taught their fly tying classes for many years, we crossed paths frequently. While Cal fished closer to home, Frank took yearly vacations to Montana, and eventually purchased a vacation home there, close to his favorite fishing.

Frank was a machinist for the San Francisco Chronicle newpaper when I knew him, so his skills with metalurgy were acquired over a lifetime of machine shop work. I’m unsure what he was responsible for at the newspaper, but with all the heavy machinery on the premises, it’s likely both repair and fabrication were involved. He was a meticulous craftsman, as evidenced by the quality of his tools, and was always eager to invent the better mousetrap. He was a vocal critic of his competitors, but criticism was warranted given how poorly their tools performed, in the comparison, and how cheaply most were made.

One glimpse at Frank’s fingers and you understood why his whip finisher was so important to him. He had a job-related ridge of callous on the edge of both forefingers that prevented him from performing whip finishes with his hands. He often absent mindedly trimmed away this callous with nail clippers while talking with you, but the resulting uneven surface would sever thread instantly. His whip finisher kept the thread at a safe distance from his digits and ensured a successful knot.

Despite an imposing presence and his stark opinions, Frank was a grand fellow worthy of regard. He enjoyed watching other tiers weave their magic, and took pride in his ability to increase their skill via the quality of his tools. He always carried extra sets in his pocket at shows and many were his highly prized “presentation” tools, made with stainless steel instead of brass, that you couldn’t purchase retail, you could only get from Frank as a gift.

Matarelli Presentation tools
Matarelli Presentation tools in Walnut and Bamboo

… and he gave away plenty of them. Frank would watch any tier closely and was keen to reward talent with a set of his tools. Just as keen would he lambast you for using someone else’s tool if you had a set of his already in possession. Both rewarding talent and his removing “inferior” products would always be done in good taste, with humor, as Frank was a real gentleman despite his gruff exterior.

Frank had multiple prototypes of tools made from a variety of materials. He made bobbins from both metal and wood, used brass, copper, and stainless elements in his tools, and even made hackle pliers, which he never marketed, but you could receive as a presentation gift. He made a lot more tools than most realize, given his wooden versions, his midge, regular, and long tube, bobbins, his presentation whip finishers, in regular and extended reach configurations, and the normal whip finishing tool. In addition to these, Frank made both a midge and regular size bobbin threader, and multiple bodkins, which also were only available as a presentation tool

When Cal Bird introduced his pair of dubbing tools, he mentioned to me that Frank was producing them for him in his garage. Cal was a caligrapher by trade, and produced all the instruction sheets and package labels for his tools, but Frank did all the wire work and shaping for Cal.

Matarelli Whip finishers. Both regular and Presentation
:Matarelli whip finishers. Early prototype, normal, presentation, and presentation extended reach

My proximity to Frank’s watchful eye meant I was a frequent beneficiary of prototypes and oddities, as well as admonishments when he found me fiddling with some new vendor’s offering. While I loved tinkering with new tools, I learned to pocket them if Frank’s shadow darkened the doorway. Frank knew I was a commercial fly tier as well as a casual hobbyist, and I was gifted numerous prototypes with which to fiddle. Frank knew that commercial tiers have different insights into products; how they wear on fingers, how easily they’re gripped, and how they are slid off the work surface versus held in hand. Quite a few club members were pressed into service to refine things as were numerous tiers in Montana, where he spent his summers.

I recently espied quite a few mentions of Matarelli tools on Internet forums, many inquiring as to their value as they are no longer made. Like most tiers, I’d not thought of “value” regarding tools, as efficiency of use will trump monetary value in every case. Recently I’ve thought I might explore some of the pricier bobbins to see if there is a fit replacement to the Matarelli long tube, and whether several decades, several flops of engineering alloys, and a couple additional sawbucks have increased the capabilities of Frank’s design, instead of merely their cost.

I have added some photographs of all of the Matarelli tools and prototypes in my possession, which will allow the WayBack Machine to catalog them for future generations. It’s important that those of us with first hand knowledge of these “OG” angling legends recount what they know so that future generations of anglers can learn as we did.

Matarelli Hackle Pliers with hook extended
Matarelli Hackle Pliers

On the featured photo at the top of the article are the Matarelli Hackle Pliers, they were spring loaded where upward pressure of your thumb would extend a small stainless hook outwards to grip the hackle and lodge it against the barrel of the plier when tension is released,

All flavors of the presentation whip finisher; standard, extended reach, and wood handled, had a small “V” notch cut in the end of the tool to sever thread. The non-wood presentation model feature a silver, stainless steel barrel (handle) versus the brass of the traditional retail tool. This thread cutting capability makes them highly prized by those fortunate enough to own a pair, as the tool is already in hand when the finishing knot is applied, and the thread can be cut without reaching onto the work surface for another tool or scissors.

The walnut bobbin is for the “midge” size sewing machine thread spools. This is because all the old school tiers purchased thread in cones instead of spools, and decanted the thread onto sewing machine spools via a power drill held in a vise. Threads used for fly tying were much larger than today, and traditional sized spools were shallow and held much less thread than the thin, deep, metal spools for sewing machine use.

I’m sure Frank would be pleased to read many of the comments on the “value” topic of Matarelli tools, and how despite their increase in worth, not a single tier mentioned his willingness to part with his Matarelli tools at any price.

Matarelli midge bobbin with sewing machine spool

Just a follow up on the below NYMO post

Just finished tying a few dozen Clouser Minnows using the smaller sewing machine spools and a Matarelli Midge bobbin designed for the smaller spool size.

So I don’t confuse the reader I’ll need to change the nomenclature a bit. The spools for sewing machines are called “bobbins” and we call the apparatus that holds the spool a “bobbin,” which can lead to confusion on the part of the reader. I will call the sewing machine bobbins “spools” – as in sewing machine spool, to distinguish the fly tying tool from the container holding the beading thread.

Unlike sewing machine spools, which are made of steel, the NYMO beading thread is packaged on plastic spindels, with paper sides rather than metal. While the paper thread spools work, my hammy hands and their grip on the fly tying bobbin dislodged the spool from the midge bobbin frequently. I had to change my grip a bit to make these work, and once aware of the issue I was able to make them work reasonably well.

Long Tube, Normal, and Midge bobbins made by Frank Matarelli. This shows the dimensions of the three

Unfortunately, additional definition is needed for what I am describing as a “midge bobbin.” Frank Matarelli made his midge bobbin expressly for the sewing machine spool size – and NOT for our traditional thread spools. Matarelli tools are no longer made, and today “midge” bobbins are typically smaller, lighter bobbins made for tying small flies using the conventional thread spool sizes.

Us old timers that still have a few midge bobbins remember how cone-based thread used to be a reality, and moving fly tying thread from one form to spools was not such an imposition. Naturally, this should “color” your view as to whether this smaller spool form of NYMO is worthwhile for your tying.

It’s likely that winding a rubber band onto the legs of traditional bobbin would close the legs enough for a sewing machine spool to work better. The extra tension afforded by the rubber band might make your current bobbin an option.

Heavy tension on the bobbin while tying can work the thread into the crevass between paper spool side and the packed thread itself. I didn’t get any tangles, but I did get a few turns of uneven tension as a result. When working with big saltwater flies this isn’t much of an issue, but could be if the thread sizes and flies tied were smaller.

In summary, there was a wee bit more bother using the paper spools due to the tier’s palm pushing the paper spool out of the grip of the bobbin’s legs. A grip adjustment was necessary so that I didn’t continually knock the spool from the grip of the bobbin legs. As this thread is 2/0 or larger, you will be tying flies commensurate with the thread size and force will likely cause issues. Be so advised.

Us old tiers cried bitterly on the news of its demise

NYMO was the first unwoven nylon sewing thread that revolutionized fly tying

NYMO, by the Belding Cortecelli Company, was the first nylon sewing thread that relegated all the buttonhole twists, silks, and cotton threads of yesteryear to the scrap heap. As a young tier, I marveled at its strength and how it could be spun via a bobbin into both a round small thread, and unspun to generate a flat thread that added little bulk. We gleefully spun the bobbin to produce the round variant that would knife through deer hair, and attached feathers and hackle tip wings via the flat, “no bulk”, flavor. It was revolutionary to the fly tying realm and changed our perspective of threads and their capabilities forever.

… and then came the news they were taking it away …

As this predates the Internet and online shopping, a large city might have access to a fly shop, whose stock was quickly cleaned out, and the rest of us were left ransacking sewing stores, millinery outlets, and wandering around any premises that sold fabric, hoping to find a thread section.

While the thread was magical in the fly tying circles, it sucked horribly as a sewing thread. The “Use warm Iron” admonishment on every spool, meant just that … as using a hot iron would melt nylon and the garment fell apart. This didn’t sit well with the sewing community, nor the dry cleaners, so the Belding Cortescelli Company removed the thread from the mainstay outlets.

I remember spying a few spools of size “A” White at one of the International Anglers Expositions, and as I pointed a shaking finger at the treasure and fumbled for my billfold, was grilled by the proprietor as to how, ” …had I never used it before, I shouldn’t … as it was being pulled off the market.”

I was successful in laying in a small stock of Size A, in black and white, then resigned myself to the notion that on their consumption it was back to the crappy threads of yore.

Fortunately, Monocord emerged shortly after NYMO disappeared, and I, as well as my fellow fly tiers, learned that tying tiny dry flies with “000” (3/0,three-ought) was infinitely superior than the thicker, Size “A” NYMO we had squirreled away. NYMO had been available in 3/0 as well, but when the run started on its dwindling stocks, only “A” was available for hoarding.

What brought back all those distant memories was my recent discovery that NYMO has been reintroduced by Belding Cortiscelli, and is marketed as a “beading thread.” Beading thread is a heavy, coarse thread designed for constructing beaded bracelets and other bead jewelry. Most commonly used by jewelry makers in Size “D”, for strength, the venerable NYMO is available in few fly tying sizes as well. The smallest I’ve found is “00” (2/0, or two-ought), which isn’t likely to unseat our existing threads like Danville’s 6/0 Flymaster, 8/0 Ultra, or UNI threads, but it could prove economical for tying larger flies like steelhead, bass, and saltwater flies.

NYMO Thread
A cone of NYMO tying thread

In addition, the packaging of NYMO offers both “Cones” and spools designed for sewing machines, which fit the Matarelli Midge bobbin, something our current spools do not. As thread hasn’t been available in cones to us fly tiers since the late seventies, most tiers will not find the 3 ounce and 6 ounce (or 1lb) cones attractive. In the olden days, we would decant thread off a cone by placing a spool on a power drill and loading the thread from the cone onto the empty spool akin to adding backing to a fly reel. The six ounce cones cost somewhere between $22 and $55, depending on the source, and hold about 5000 yards of thread, nearly 50 – 100yd spools. The sewing machine spools are 145 yard spools (size 2/0) and range anywhere from about a dollar, to about $4.50 per spool. It pays to refine your search to get the best pricing, and you need to frequent beading and craft stores, not fly shops. Etsy and Ebay are your friends as well.

NYMO on sewing machine bobbins

I was able to secure quite a few individual spools for about $1 per spool. I grabbed some black, white, and blue, in the 2/0 size, as I am making a lot of salt water flies for a donation project I am working on. I routinely find these on Ebay, sold in various colors and sizes, in odd lots sold by private individuals. It appears they use thread colors for a specific project, then move onto other jewelry using other thread colors. Remnants of their past project are then sold on Ebay or Etsy at a reduced price.

Given the wide variety in pricing for the thread, I would only purchase it on sale or on the cone. If you opt for the cone, save empty plastic bobbins first to give you something to offload onto, as the cone is unusable until you transfer the thread to spools useful for your traditional (or midge) bobbin. Store all threads out of direct sunlight, as that is nylon’s nemisis. I am using size “A” NYMO that is nearly fifty years old, and due to dark storage, it has retained its strength without decay.

Many new colors are available that were not present in the past, so we can thank the jewelry and craft folks for insisting on all the muaves, puces, and goldenrods, we enjoy today. As a cautionary note, do not assume you are getting the 2/0 size unless it is plainly marked (or advertised) as such. The most common sizes used for beading appears to be “D”, which is considerably larger than anything we use today.

It’s nice to have a few alternatives to the fly tying brands, given how inexpensive threads are to manufacture.

Phentex Yarn

Fly tying materials in the Wild : Polypropylene Yarn

It turns out I have quite a bit of time on my hands, given my providing care for an aging parent. While that certainly puts a dent in my fishing itinerary, it hasn’t slowed me down on the fly tying front … not even a little.

Like many other fly tiers, the last person I tie for is myself. For whatever reason, I ensure all my pals have plenty, and my fly box is filled with drab experimentals or gayly colored attractors, too gaudy for even the unconventional angler.

I have been restocking a lot of materials with the plan of tying for my own boxes, and find myself alternately thrilled – when I find that missing box of Puce Guinea fowl I misplaced, and gasping … when I see the current price of what it would take to replace it.

In many cases I had the foresight to lay in a goodly supply of common items, like hooks and tinsels, but after years of tying flies, I have made inroads into that supply and need to get more, or contemporary patterns require colors I lack and failed to set aside. As I discover the current trade names, sources, and locales for these materials, I’ll be adding them here for your consumption.

To wit, today we just confirmed that our old friend “Polypropylene” now goes by a different moniker. While the old name is common in fly shops and fishing venues, most of the garment industry has attempted to move away from unwholesome synthetics in favor of more comforting names and trademarks. Fly tiers have long known of the reluctance of the fashionable types to wearing REAL furs, and how it has cut into our supply of animal parts and furrier scraps. The same is true of trade names … and the movement away from names that sound like they cause cancer, to names that sound more wholesome, natural, and socially acceptable.

Polypropylene is now called “Olefin” and those tiny three yard cards of Poly yarn that sell for three dollars each, can be purchased under the Olefin name for a fraction of the cost of retail.

Skeins of Olefin yarn will look slightly different than the fly tying flavor, but only because the yarn you purchase might be a knitting yarn, a spun four ply, versus the unspun two ply seen in the fly tying variant. Combing the yarn out and unspinning the weave yields the same material and the same coarseness of fiber. Color selection is greatly increased due to the non angling uses, and for some that may be an additional benefit. Most poly yarn is used to wing spinners or dries, and typically used in the white and light gray flavors.

It’s not surprising that most of the Olefin yarn consumed in the US originates under Chinese manufacture. As there are so many uses for the Olefin yarn, everything from heavy ropes to gossamer garments, you need to select a form that is conducive to your fly tying.

Phentex was the brand of Polypropylene yarn purchased in the late 70’s, and the Phentex company still makes the yarn in its many forms today. Phentex markets the yarn under a variety of styles and types, many of which are available on Amazon. The “Slipper and Craft” yarn is a loose Olefin weave and will likely work well for your tying.

Most fly tiers will have a lifetime supply of Polypropylene (Olefin) yarn with only a single skein of the white and one additional in gray, I have found uses for turquoise blue, damsel dries, and brown – for Calibaetis parachutes. At six dollars a skein, you’re getting several decades of materials for the price of two of the small fly shops cards.

Jump on it.

Loon ERGO Serrated Scissor Review

The pandemic has accelerated my conversion from trout fisherman to bass fisherman  due to  the unknowns associated with food, lodging and travel. I’ve shelved all the gossamer and petite gear needed for trout fishing in favor of  Styrofoam, hair,  rubber legs, and hooks capable of severing your Carotid artery with an errant cast.

Loon Ergo Hair Scissor640

Tying flies for bass is the “Widow Maker” for most marriages, as the production of a dozen 2/0 poppers involves half a deer hide, acres of marabou and brightly dyed Grizzly hackle, most of which winds up clinging to your lap or blowing about your tying room at the whim of your air conditioning.

I keep reaching for my “trout” scissors to cut bead chain eyes and saw through Stinger hooks and realized they were better served staying in the drawer given their delicacy.  Unable to find my old serrated edge heavy scissors, I picked up a pair of the Loon Outdoor Ergo Hair scissors to replace them. At $15 per pair, these scissors are priced well considering the potential for destroying them while restocking your fly box.

Tying big deer hair poppers can shorten the life of traditional delicate scissors as there are additional pressures that go hand in hand with larger flies.

Volume: Large bass poppers require many times the materials of smaller trout flies. That translates into cutting larger volumes of material with each cut of your scissor. As leverage plays into the physics of scissor cuts – the longer the scissor the more force is applied to the fulcrum area, the small screw holding the scissors together. Stainless steel is a “soft” steel (compared to others), and the screw steel is typically “harder” than Stainless, which ensures this excess force  will eventually deform the screw hole and loosen the scissor over time.

Obscurity: Tying big lumpy hair poppers means you have an enormous wad of hair lashed to your hook prior to trimming the final shape. As the majority of the hook is hidden , it’s very easy to close the scissor on the shank, point, or eye – simply because you couldn’t see it while trimming. Whacking a hook point with your scissors is bad for the tips and for the screw area, as the steel of a hook is “harder” than the steel (often Stainless) used to make the scissor. Hook steel can easily take the points off of a Tungsten scissor, as Tungsten is among the hardest of all steels – but it is also among the most brittle.

Dirt: Carving large amounts of deer hair off of the hide is a dirty business. While animal hides are cleaned and washed prior to being parted up for packaging, there is still a lot of foreign material trapped in the hair. Dirt, debris, dried blood, seeds, and everything else trapped in the under fur will be in the path of your scissors each time you make a cut of hair, and that additional wear adds over time.

Bulk: Cutting through three-quarters of an inch of Elk hair takes considerably more effort than trimming a mallard feather, yet most tiers expect the results to be identical. Cutting large amounts of material with small scissors requires the scissor to be closed slower than when it cuts a small feather – or the screw area will suffer. This is the most common way to deform the screw hole, cutting too much too quickly, and either the handles bend as you close them or the screw hole widens to accommodate the excessive pressure. Scissors loosen as they age, but it’s actually deformity of the screw hole that causes all the extra play – rather than wear.  If you are tying a lot of large flies or the materials are quite tough it’s better to switch to a larger scissor with the backbone to sheer through the material with less strain on the fulcrum area.

Today, Bulk and habit were the root of my problems, as I kept reaching for the fine point trout scissor when I should have used a larger set with serrated blades. Serration is always useful when trimming hair as the fibers cannot slide out of the scissors ahead of the cut, the fibers tend to catch in the serration and ensures everything gets trimmed proper. Note that this is both good and bad, as the serrated scissor will grip and make absolute cuts – and you can remove too much material if you’re unused to them.

The Loon Ergo serrated scissors are a 4.5” (powder-coated stainless steel) scissor with superb tips and a light serration down one of the blades. The large finger holes, hence the “ergonomic” designator, are quite comfortable for extended tying sessions, and there is enough “beef” in the scissor frame to snap them closed without feeling the handles flex – which is a good tell that the scissor is over capacity on the cut.

At $15 the price is really cheap, prompting me to order a second set for use with conventional tackle, trimming braid and heavy monofilament where that serrated edge will prove extra useful..

As my tying room is currently bereft of carpet due to a “slab leak” and having to jack hammer the concrete pad beneath for the repair, I should mention that I managed to drop these scissors on their points and bent both tips in a dramatic fashion. Stainless steel is a soft steel, so I was able to restore the points to their original shape by dragging them across my vise barrel several times. This is not a failure of design or an inherent weakness in the quality of the product – rather this is what happens when good scissors and fine tips meet an immovable object.

Great scissor for a great price – and with the large finger holes even the hammy handed should find these comfortable.

Note: This is an unsolicited quick review of this product. The scissor was purchased at full retail from a shop.