Material storage & transport systems

[Craigie17]

Having purloined my Dad's fly tying equipment and materials years ago when he lost interest, I have recently inherited my grandfather's tying kit, that of a friend who lost the rag with learning and my uncle's stuff too. No complaints; great to be able to tie with my grandfather's kit in particular. Hooks wrapped in waxed paper, held in little matchboxes, and a jungle cock cape which is definitely a good bit older than me, still in good condition. I'd never thought of tying tube flies on thick electrical wire insulation either!

Anyway, I now have a big stack of materials and no sensible system with which to organise or store it. I'd be interested how you guys store your various materials - piles on the floor isn't really working for me or the missus!

Also, does anyone take tying gear away with them anywhere? I've got a couple of (non-fishing) trips coming up where I'd like to be able to tie in the evenings, and had thought about looking for a specific bag for materials. Clearly I could just throw stuff in the holdall, but if there was a decent bag out there that might double up to help with storage and wouldn't break the bank, I could be tempted to invest.

Cheers

Craig

[Robbie]

When I had my kit set up permanently I used an old chest of drawers to store most of my stuff in. Hoping to use the same arrangement again soon, also on the lookout for a nice writing desk with some built in drawers.

for mobile tying it might be worth looking at some of the tool boxes from the like of Home Base or B&Q.

[corsican dave]

craig, I use a number of click-lock plastic drawers at present, a bit like these:
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/2977478.htm
they stack nicely under a table or in a cupboard.
but I will confess to hankering after something like a bisley multi-drawer filing cabinet! http://bisleydirect.co.uk/small-storage/home/10-drawer-multidrawer/h2910nl-bq1-mandarin-bisley-home-multidrawer-10-drawer-59cm-h
or two..... :lol:

travelling, you can get some right fancy (and ridiculously expensive!) ones from fishpond and the like. but, have a look at these!:
https://www.lifeventure.co.uk/product/washgear/wash-bags

one of the many plus sides is that it's compact enough to fit in any luggage. the detachable bit inside is super-tough and ideal for scissors and other sharp tools. I can even fit a vice in the bag if I don't max-out with too many materials. what materials to take tho'...? ahh, that's another question entirely!  :

[Highlander]

For travel, plastic cantilever toolboxes from the likes of B& Q & Homebase are ideal. Purpose designed ones for fly tying are in my opinion far too dear for what you get. For "normal" storage I use flat plastic ones from Ikea or The Range. Gummed labels marked with contents & stuck on are handy or even if you can get hold of a DYMO mackine that too is good for marking things.On my tying bench ( basically a shelf    ) I have stackable plywood boxes I got from IKEA a while back. They too are ideal & can be bought in either two or four high with the drawers removable.. Bulk Items or item that I rarely use are in a small plastic tool box. A ground down mothball sprinkled sparingly in any "open" ones  keeps away any nasty beasties.


Tight Lines

[gerrymaguire]

ive got an old home office probably from the 60's or early 70's it has  loads of small drawers and an overhead strip light that switches on automatically when it is slid out, I think its about as good as you can get I bought it at a local auction over 20 years ago ill put a pic up when I get a chance

[Craigie17]

Cheers for the responses guys, appreciate it.

Gerry, will be interested to see a photo - home office sounds spot on

Dave, those drawers look excellent. I think the lumi-orange would go well with my lime green curtains too  . I like the idea of the wash bag - I use the small one of those for a (big) hill FAK, but perhaps the bigger version would be a good investment and help make the choice of materials a bit easier! A bit more portable in a holdall than the tool box perhaps?

A trip to B&Q in the morn I think!