Starter kit recommendations

KMK517

KMK517

Just Hatched
I don't know much about getting started or what kind of kit to get, I don't have much money, any recommendations?
 
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Find a local fly fish club. Lots of great people will help you and answer a lot of questions, and may loan or provide stuff to help.

Fly fishing is not a cheap hobby to get into. So focus on one species of fish near to where you live. You can expand your horizons later after you figure out if you like it or not.
 
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KMK517 said:
Anything, I like fishing for all fish. But I meant for fly tying kits, I don't have one
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Ah.

I'd get the best vise you can comfortably afford, a great bobbin, and a good pair of scissors. Vises don't wear out, bad bobbins will ruin your day and your flies, and good scissors will last most folks a very long time.

The rest will come with time and can, for at least the first while, be cheaped-out on. I'd start by tying, in this order, a wooly bugger, a pheasant-tailed nymph, a hare's ear nymph, and an elk hair caddis. They use some of the most budget-friendly materials and by the time you're done learning them you'll have most of the skills needed to tie just about any fly and a flybox full of flies that will catch trouts and salmons and myriad other species.

My favorite travel setup is the Renzetti Traveler 3304 vise with multiple Ekich bobbins. Jury's still out on scissors, though the past couple of days I've been tying with Renomed scissors and they're amazing.

My favorite home-tying setup is a Norvise with multiple Ekich bobbins.

My son (now 8) learned on Regal Medalion and Regal Rotary vises and they were great starter vises for him (tbh they would have been great lifetime vises for him, but he prefers tightening knobs to the squeeze grip of the Regals (he's got the hands of an 8 yo). He uses Ekich bobbins, too. He's currently using my old scissors because he's rough on equipment and mostly just ties big stuff like flatwings and clousers.
 
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Jake Watrous said:
Ah.

I'd get the best vise you can comfortably afford, a great bobbin, and a good pair of scissors. Vises don't wear out, bad bobbins will ruin your day and your flies, and good scissors will last most folks a very long time.

The rest will come with time and can, for at least the first while, be cheaped-out on. I'd start by tying, in this order, a wooly bugger, a pheasant-tailed nymph, a hare's ear nymph, and an elk hair caddis. They use some of the most budget-friendly materials and by the time you're done learning them you'll have most of the skills needed to tie just about any fly and a flybox full of flies that will catch trouts and salmons and myriad other species.

My favorite travel setup is the Renzetti Traveler 3304 vise with multiple Ekich bobbins. Jury's still out on scissors, though the past couple of days I've been tying with Renomed scissors and they're amazing.

My favorite home-tying setup is a Norvise with multiple Ekich bobbins.

My son (now 8) learned on Regal Medalion and Regal Rotary vises and they were great starter vises for him (tbh they would have been great lifetime vises for him, but he prefers tightening knobs to the squeeze grip of the Regals (he's got the hands of an 8 yo). He uses Ekich bobbins, too. He's currently using my old scissors because he's rough on equipment and mostly just ties big stuff like flatwings and clousers.
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This. But I like the Peak Rotary vise. Dave Hughes' book Essential Trout Flies had good instructions and some tips on the first materials to get.
 
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I recommend a fly tying kit like the Orvis one. It comes with a vise and all tools needed plus a good variety of natural and synthetic materials to tie flies and instructions to tie also. I bought one of these kits 15 yrs ago for not very much money and still use the vise and all the tools.
 
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Chonay said:
I recommend a fly tying kit like the Orvis one. It comes with a vise and all tools needed plus a good variety of natural and synthetic materials to tie flies and instructions to tie also. I bought one of these kits 15 yrs ago for not very much money and still use the vise and all the tools.
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Several years ago mom got me one of the Orvis kits. The vice is a bit on the inexpensive side but works fine, other tools and materials were great. Comes with a really good instructional video.
 
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Keep your eye out on posts in the 'Pay It Forward 'thread. Free items that may help you along...
 
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Really think about what fish your going after, and (realistically), where you're going to fish. I have a ton of flies I got from fly tying kits, and monthly subscription boxes that don't suit my quarry or location. I don't have the time or money to go very far from my house, so I tend to tie a lot of nymphs, streamers and chironomids. If I'm going east of the Cascades, then I'll break out the dry flies, and even then, I do better with a dry-dropper.

Used rods from a good manufacturer are great. I learned on an old Sage DS. They may cost a bit more than something from Amazon, but I've found the quality and milder action does matter. Expensive rods with fast actions, soft tips, etc. are actually harder to learn on.

Take casting lessons, seriously.
 
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Jake Watrous said:
Ah.

I'd get the best vise you can comfortably afford, a great bobbin, and a good pair of scissors. Vises don't wear out, bad bobbins will ruin your day and your flies, and good scissors will last most folks a very long time.

The rest will come with time and can, for at least the first while, be cheaped-out on. I'd start by tying, in this order, a wooly bugger, a pheasant-tailed nymph, a hare's ear nymph, and an elk hair caddis. They use some of the most budget-friendly materials and by the time you're done learning them you'll have most of the skills needed to tie just about any fly and a flybox full of flies that will catch trouts and salmons and myriad other species.

My favorite travel setup is the Renzetti Traveler 3304 vise with multiple Ekich bobbins. Jury's still out on scissors, though the past couple of days I've been tying with Renomed scissors and they're amazing.

My favorite home-tying setup is a Norvise with multiple Ekich bobbins.

My son (now 8) learned on Regal Medalion and Regal Rotary vises and they were great starter vises for him (tbh they would have been great lifetime vises for him, but he prefers tightening knobs to the squeeze grip of the Regals (he's got the hands of an 8 yo). He uses Ekich bobbins, too. He's currently using my old scissors because he's rough on equipment and mostly just ties big stuff like flatwings and clousers.
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Same setup here...Norvise and multiple Ekich bobbins. But very pricey stuff for somebody just beginning their flytying adventure. I tied on a Thompson Model A for the first 40 years and switched to Norvise about 20 years ago, although there's nothing that I tie on the Norvise that I couldn't manage with the old Thompson...it's still quite functional.
 
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krusty said:
Same setup here...Norvise and multiple Ekich bobbins. But very pricey stuff for somebody just beginning their flytying adventure. I tied on a Thompson Model A for the first 40 years and switched to Norvise about 20 years ago, although there's nothing that I tie on the Norvise that I couldn't manage with the old Thompson...that's still quite functional.
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Definitely agreed on that. My favorite demonstration tyer at the Bellevue show this past February was using a pair of vise grips that were welded to a post. He was pulling apart and using everything from bubble organza fabric and old carpet to tie fantastic dragonfly nymphs.
 
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Learn to identify insects you see along the rivers and lakes where you fish. That will determine the flies that you tie. The insects that occur in lakes are (generally) different than the ones found in rivers. Flies could be considered imitators or attractors. Generally, if there is a hatch, you should use a fly that will imitate the hatch. If there is no hatch, an attractor might be a better choice.
 
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