Someone recently asked what I was going to do with my old vise now that I have a new one and it got me thinking. I planned on saving it for a rainy day but it probably won’t ever get used and just sit and collect dust.

Hmm, why not give it away? I decided I’m going to give it away to someone who is interested in tying their own flies and does not have equipment to get started.

I know there’s plenty of people who follow this blog regularly who are interested in tying their own flies. It’s really not as hard as it looks. I have only been seriously tying off and on for about 6 months now. I have friends that have tied for even less and have produced some quality flies that are bound to entice a redfish or two.

There’s a wealth of knowledge online that will help you learn to tie. YouTube and tying websites are a greenhorn fly tyer’s best friend. I am going to add a link to some of my favorite tying websites and videos on this site soon to give you an idea of where I look for inspiration, ideas, or a new patterns. There are a few good resources posted in the links and fly tying section. I will post some more tutorials on different pattern’s I like to tie soon as well.

The vise I’m giving away is a Super Vise II along with a Pedestal base (both pictured below) I purchased from Cabela’s years ago. It’s not the best equipment but enough to get you by until you decide whether tying your own flies is something you want to pursue. I will throw in some hooks, materials, and a few other things to get started. I will also give you a few flies I tied (both successful and unsuccessful attempts) to give you some ideas or patterns to follow.

How do you enter? I’ve put some thought into this, and I think most straightforward way is to give it away to one of the subscribers of this blog. This is the easiest way for me to contact the winner and pick someone randomly. First, if you’re not a subscriber you need to click the “sign me up” button on the right toolbar on the home page to sign up. As a subscriber you will receive notifications of new posts on this site and nothing more.

Second, you need to comment on this post, so I know you’re interested in participating. Some of my current subscribers already have tying equipment, so if you just subscribe without posting a comment I’m not going to assume that you want to enter. The deadline to enter is by midnight on March 25, which is a little more than a week from today. Also, initially I was only going to give this away to someone local so I didn’t have to bother with shipping, but I decided I would open this up to anyone in the lower 48. I will cover the shipping charges.

WARNING: I incur no responsibility for the addiction that’s surely to ensue after you spend some time behind a vise.

If this goes well I’ll be giving away a bunch of gear and tackle in the future. I have more than I could ever use in my possession and despite all the time I spend on the water trying to downsize my collection never seems to get smaller.

About the author

Jeremy Chavez is a full-time fly and light tackle fishing guide who hails from the Bayou City (Houston, Texas for those of you not in the know). He eats, sleeps and breathes fish. He left (he was laid-off but who's keeping tabs) his career as a bean counter (he has a master's degree in accounting) to chase his dream of becoming a nomadic fish bum.

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