Travelling Vises

"riverman" wrote...
"Frank Reid" wrote...
Go for the Danica. Table clamp is better than pedestal. This one has a
really good table clamp. See pictures etc here;

I'll second that, I've been using mine for 8 years with no problems.
Dropped out of cars, thrown into my truck, used it for so many shows, I
can't count (never could get that counting thing anyway).

Hmm, at first glance it looks like it has a lot of bells and whistles. How
handy is a rotary vise, in reality? I find that I only invert my flies when
I'm tying things like beards on Clousers (or is it Muddlers?), and I don't
usually find myself needing to spin my flies.

I have the same vise, as recommended to me by Frank and several others, so I'll
give you my take, FWIW. It's really not a matter of "needing" to spin the flies,
but the convenience and speed of doing so. The best example I can give is a PT
nymph, where the materials with which you're working are relatively short.
Having the ability to just hold the PT fibers in place as you spin the fly makes
it *so* much easier than doing it hand-to-hand on a fixed vise.

I guess I was imaging a really
simple vice... I'm prepared to be dissuaded, though. I might grow into it.

Be dissuaded - it's worth it. 90% of the time, I use it in a fixed
position, but for that remaining 10% it's worth having the rotary feature.

And do you also recommend the table clamp?

I use the pedestal almost exclusively, but that's because I no longer have a
designated tying space and have to set up where space allows. The vise comes
standard with the clamp and the pedestal is a separate purchase, so you'll end
up with the clamp in any case. If you're *really* cheap (like me), you can
easily convert a standard pedestal for the Danica.
--
TL,
Tim
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http://css.sbcma.com/timj