Perrine Fly Boxes

[Stenonema]

What happened to Perrine? I have re-fallen in love with the perrine fly boxes. I have had my hooks rust one too many times in todays waterproof boxes. Many of us, myself included had a perrine for their first fly box. Heck, unless he could afford a wheatley this is the box that your grandpa probably used.
What happened to perrine? What is your favorite perrine fly box and how did you come by it? Do you still use it?
These are nostalgic boxes and they all seem to come with a story.

 

[ryguyfi]

I'm too young to know what a Perrine is, but the main reason hooks rust inside waterproof boxes is that people put wet flies in them and then close the waterproof lid, which then keeps the water in and causes rust. Always dry out your boxes after a trip.

 

[JoeE]

I think I have a wet fly box around somewhere. If I can find it you can have it. No story just used it to store poppers for bluegills.

Joe E

 

[Volksnurse]

Keep your eyes open at flea markets...I've picked up a few for $10-15 including whatever flies were in them. Some of the flies were as interesting as the boxes....

 

[sandfly]

I have quite a few of them, and always looking for more..

take water proof box fill it with new flies and close it up and leave in sun, they will rust there's always moisture in the air. (arizonia excluded) opening and closing along a stream will get moisture in them. (humidity along a stream) they will rust if you leave them for a period of time....put silica garment bag in them to keep dry..

 

[RLeeP]

Anybody remember or hear of the "my Zippo stopped a bullet stories" from WWII where a soldier in combat would be shot and the slug would hit his Zippo (made in Bradford, or at least they were..) lighter and be slowed to the point that the damage caused by the wound was far less than it would have been otherwise?

Well, I have a "my Perrine fly box stopped a beaver spike" story. Happened in the late 70's. It was February and I was fishing a special regs area in Warren County in a section that flowed through an old beaver meadow. Their telltale spikes were sticking up through ice all over the place. I slipped and lost my footing and came down hard, chest first, on a pretty sharp spike. But I had a big 'ol Perrine aluminum fly box in my vest in a front pocket and it absorbed the force of the fall and kept the spike from penetrating. I had a rectangular purple bruise at the point of impact for at least a month.

I don't think that it is completely out of the realm of possibility that the box may have saved my life.

I still have it, dent and all.

 

[sandfly]

Cool, glad you are still around. great story

 

[phiendWMD]

Volksnurse wrote:
Keep your eyes open at flea markets...I've picked up a few for $10-15 including whatever flies were in them. Some of the flies were as interesting as the boxes....

One of the guys I work with saw a Perrine box with flies at a flea market last week and picked it up for me. $8.

 

[FiveWeight]

Great little boxes. I have 3 of them. 2 nice small ones and a large one. When I got them they we all full of flies. Thank you Doc Eshelman. They were his dads and all the flies in um were tied by his dad. And I know that bit of info may not mean much or anything to anybody but me but, Doc has helped n taught me a lot about fishing over the years. We're both Lititz boys and has handed me stuff that he probably will never use again. He fishes big stuff. Atlantic run/Pacific run spey stuff on both coasts. Gaspe River up in Ontiaro and Washington state. Gotten off track there a bit, sorry. They are great boxes.

 

[Stenonema]

They're American made,metal, highly functional and for the time being inexpensive. I am afraid that even this thread may help to jump the prices they are fetching. I never had one save my life though. I like the #92 model with the spring clips. I recently bought a collection from Maine at a yard sale that included 6 perrines. The fellow who assembled the collection lived in Maine and did alot of Brook trout and Salmon fishing, he even did some saltwater for stripers, tarpon and bone fish. He wasn't a tier, he bought his flies. He fished mostly from the fifties to the early seventies, guessing. I like him and don't know his name. There were 10 packaged, never opened tandem featherwing streamers. There also was a box called a fly-safe made in Barre Vermont. This box has a beautiful way of holding flies. The flies are held up by the bend, displaying them as they would look in the vise. Flies are easily removed just by lifting up. I have placed size sixteens in the clips. I did some research on this box. Has anyone heard of this box or own one?
Oh, I forgot to mention. All the flies in these perrine boxes are still useable after all those years. You can tell some of them have been fished.

 

[krayfish]

Couldn't resist

http://www.jpeterman.com/!B-qpcDaYTTeHnIjTAgbeeA!/Perrine-Vest-Fly-Box-66

 

[Volksnurse]

krayfish wrote:
Couldn't resist

http://www.jpeterman.com/!B-qpcDaYTTeHnIjTAgbeeA!/Perrine-Vest-Fly-Box-66

Danng. I'm rich. :-D :-D

 

[sandfly]

At that rate I am retiring:

 

[RCFetter]

I have 6. Two small and 4 large. The 2 small are over 40 years old. The 4 large I got at Dave's in Doylestown. That was back when Sandfly was running their Orvis store.

 

[mcwillja]

Now that I know what they are I actally have 3 or 4 of these boxes given to me. I use 1 of them for streamers.

 

[sandfly]

want to sell the other 2 ?

 

[BradFromPotter]

Here's mine with speys...

 

[RCFetter]

sandfly wrote:
want to sell the other 2 ?

Not for sale. They are nice: 2-1/2" by 3-3/4" - one has clips (#60) and the other has the covered spring, or whatever you call it (#66), for dry flies.

My favorite is the large with the leaf so you have 4 sides. I don't have nearby so I don't know what number it is.

I always thought Perrine was the poor man's Wheatley fly box.

 

[beadhead2]

I have one #90 with clips on both sides
Might be for sale in the future