Very low price for premium Tiemco bobbins from Amazon.

[Nocktavius]

IMO if you’re going to drop 30+ bucks on a bobbin get a Rite. The lack of thread getting stuck around the side alone is worth the money.

Not sure aside from being “fine” and “Japanese” what these tiemco ones do that Dr Slick can’t.

 

[Bamboozle]

Though Amazon is littered with fake products, and I respect your caution, I feel confident that these are genuine.

They’re sold by Amazon, not another vendor, and the picture above was taken by me of one of the two that I purchased myself. I’m also not the only person to have noticed the weirdly low price.

https://singlebarbed.com/tag/tiemco-adjustable-bobbin-review/

Before I was convinced of the authenticity of the bobbins, I'd be contacting Tiemco in both the US and Japan. sending them the link and asking if there is chance they are counterfeit...

Amazon is a $#!+show of fake goods regardless if they, a subsidiary or a partner is the seller...

Back when I started tying there weren't many choices so I went with Materelli plain metal tube bobbins and have stuck with them ever since. I also own a couple Rite ceramic bobbins that I reserve for GSP because it is tougher on plain metal tube bobbins.

As far as shape goes, my preference is basic spring arms, small, flat spool "buttons" so it's not too wide when loaded with a spool of thread and I like a long tube. The Materelli Long Tube bobbin fits that bill perfectly.

I know EXACTLY how to adjust them so my preferred thread spools fit just right and dispense with minimal tension. I prefer minimal tension so I can load them with any denier thread without worrying about breakage or readjusting. If I want more tension, I just squeeze in on the arms of the bobbin. To fine tune the thread spool rotation and elminate squeeks, I wax the spool buttons with a little parafin.

Because they weren't that expensive back in the day and until discontinued, I have accumulated a lot of Materelli bobbins over the years because I like to keep multiple bobbins pre-loaded with spools of thread so I'm not swapping and re-threading all the time.

When I see what people get for a Materelli bobbin on eBay and elsewhere, I am confident in the knowledge I could sell my Materelli collection and buy as many of those other fancy bobbins as I want and still have some left over cash. 😉

 

[mt_flyfisher]

Does anyone actually use bobbins? I only have spools.

How about these bobbins from D.H. Thompson? Lots of bobbins, and more.

 

[Kms]

How about these bobbins from D.H. Thompson? Lots of bobbins, and more.

View attachment 1641239517

Very cool

 

[Bamboozle]

How about these bobbins from D.H. Thompson? Lots of bobbins, and more.

View attachment 1641239517

I like the two "bobbins" in the lower right corner.

 

[Kms]

IMO if you’re going to drop 30+ bucks on a bobbin get a Rite. The lack of thread getting stuck around the side alone is worth the money.

Not sure aside from being “fine” and “Japanese” what these tiemco ones do that Dr Slick can’t.

The Rite bobbins are nice (I have a couple), However with the Rite bobbins I have to dial in the tension each time I change a spool, whereas the Tiemco maintains the same tension when changing spools.

Is that a big enough issue to justify buying a Tiemco? 🤷‍♂️ Only if you want one.

 

[nfrechet]

i'm cheap. i like the jstockard ceramic bobbin holder for $8.95. does exactly the same as that tiemco bobbin holder

 

[Kms]

All bobbins are adjustable, all simply hold a spool of thread, ceramic bobbins can be had for 10 bucks, and a 10 dollar bobbin does just as good of a job as those “premium” Tiemco bobbins or other overpriced bobbins. I have 25 to 30 ceramic insert bobbins most of which I paid 2 dollars for but no more than 8 bucks for any of them and I have had most of them for decades. They look nice but they bring nothing more to the fly tying table then a Terra. That’s just me though so as long as your happy it’s a win.

To clarify, the tube length is adjustable. Whether that is valuable is a personal preference. And I absolutely agree that people should buy/use whatever fits their wants/needs.

 

[Kms]

Before I was convinced of the authenticity of the bobbins, I'd be contacting Tiemco in both the US and Japan. sending them the link and asking if there is chance they are counterfeit...

Amazon is a $#!+show of fake goods regardless if they, a subsidiary or a partner is the seller...

True. But as Amazon is the seller, if the product were fake, returns would not be a problem. I’ve bought and returned stuff from Amazon Japan with no difficulty.

 

[Kms]

I don’t know how this became a referendum on cheap vs expensive bobbins, as I know that where and how people want to spend their money is nearly always 0% my business, but whatever.

This bobbin is priced at ~$80+ most places, but only $33.10 on Amazon because 🤷‍♂️, so if anyone did want one this is a deal. I wouldn’t pay $80 for one, but as all I owned were a couple of really ****** inherited bobbins made of shiny cheese and a pair of Rites, these seemed like a nice addition for me.

And they are nice: they look good, feel good, and so far maintain tension really well when switching spools (I would bet the double arm contributes to this consistency). I’ve found the tube length adjustment is a nice feature for me because despite my shaky hands I like tying little flies (16 or smaller) and every little bit of extra clearance helps me navigate thread into and around the bends. The tube is also removable and so should be replaceable, which would be a bonus if clumsy me breaks one (I haven’t tried to secure spare parts so I could be mistaken).

So I like this bobbin, this is a good price for what it is, if anybody wants ‘em then get ‘em, and anybody who doesn’t, wouldn’t or won’t is totally cool.

👍

 

[Nocktavius]

The Rite bobbins are nice (I have a couple), However with the Rite bobbins I have to dial in the tension each time I change a spool, whereas the Tiemco maintains the same tension when changing spools.

Is that a big enough issue to justify buying a Tiemco? 🤷‍♂️ Only if you want one.

Yeah, I’ve noticed that too- but increasingly I just use the same olive Veevus 70D for nearly every pattern I tie (not like the fish are seeing the thread anyway, right?

 

[afishinado]

I agree with those that said above inexpensive bobbin (holders) can do a good job.

As long as the tube is flared or ceramic and does not break threads, it should work fine.

Fitting your hand well is certainly a consideration but that is not really related to price.

As far as adjustable tension, I bend out the arms to set the tension rather loose and palm the bobbin (like one would with a clicker reel) to adjust the tension of the thread as I wind it.

Each to his/her own though.

 

[falcon]

I have about 10. None cost over 15.00. Some Stockards, Griffins and others from way back that I dont recall the brand and probably cost a buck or two back then. They all work fine. I get having spendy bobbin holder is neat but it is not necessary.

 

[nfrechet]

 

[Bamboozle]

The adjustment I make is to bend the "knuckle" on the arms of my bobbins outward so the "buttons" that go into the ends of the spool are perfectly parallel. This allows the thread spool to turn easier, keeps it from popping out, plus it fits in my hand better.

I do this bending while I hold the arms together up near the tube. This is so I don't inadvertently spread the arms too far apart and break the bobbin.

Once I get the buttons parallel, I'll pop in a spool to check the fit and if I need more tension, I'll squeeze the arms IN above the knuckle with a spool in place or the fingers of my other hand holding the buttons apart.

When I'm done, the tension is perfect for any size thread I use and if I want more, I just squeeze in on the bobbin arms.

 

[lars]

i've used the same old bobbins for decades. can't say i paid much for them and any seem ok to me.

just looking at them closely now, looks like two of them are Matarelli's and the other an el cheapo. they've tied a lot of flies.

 

[Bamboozle]

i've used the same old bobbins for decades. can't say i paid much for them and any seem ok to me.

just looking at them closely now, looks like two of them are Matarelli's and the other an el cheapo. they've tied a lot of flies.

Materelli is all I use with the exception a couple of Rite bobbins. I know they were around $5.00 - $10.00 when I started fly tying and about $25 just before Frank Matarelli died in 2018 at age 102.

Today if you are lucky you can sell one for $80 - $100 bucks on eBay... 😉

 

[Kms]

The adjustment I make is to bend the "knuckle" on the arms of my bobbins outward so the "buttons" that go into the ends of the spool are perfectly parallel. This allows the thread spool to turn easier, keeps it from popping out, plus it fits in my hand better.

I do this bending while I hold the arms together up near the tube. This is so I don't inadvertently spread the arms too far apart and break the bobbin.

Once I get the buttons parallel, I'll pop in a spool to check the fit and if I need more tension, I'll squeeze the arms IN above the knuckle with a spool in place or the fingers of my other hand holding the buttons apart.

When I'm done, the tension is perfect for any size thread I use and if I want more, I just squeeze in on the bobbin arms.

View attachment 1641239538

Parallel buttons makes intuitive sense. Thx

 

[poopdeck]

I don’t know how this became a referendum on cheap vs expensive bobbins, as I know that where and how people want to spend their money is nearly always 0% my business, but whatever.

This bobbin is priced at ~$80+ most places, but only $33.10 on Amazon because 🤷‍♂️, so if anyone did want one this is a deal. I wouldn’t pay $80 for one, but as all I owned were a couple of really ****** inherited bobbins made of shiny cheese and a pair of Rites, these seemed like a nice addition for me.

And they are nice: they look good, feel good, and so far maintain tension really well when switching spools (I would bet the double arm contributes to this consistency). I’ve found the tube length adjustment is a nice feature for me because despite my shaky hands I like tying little flies (16 or smaller) and every little bit of extra clearance helps me navigate thread into and around the bends. The tube is also removable and so should be replaceable, which would be a bonus if clumsy me breaks one (I haven’t tried to secure spare parts so I could be mistaken).

So I like this bobbin, this is a good price for what it is, if anybody wants ‘em then get ‘em, and anybody who doesn’t, wouldn’t or won’t is totally cool.

👍

Sorry. In my defense I would just like to point out that it’s freezing outside, my boats been put away for 6 weeks and I haven’t been out fishing since the week before Thanksgiving. My only saving grace is that I didn’t jump into the whole bobbin/spool holder debate. If I were to get down in the weeds on that issue, it’s a bobbin to me because I’m a fly tier and not a seamstress. I wonder if seamstresses deal with the whole expensive/inexpensive bobbin thing as well? My guess is yes they do.

 

[mt_flyfisher]

While we’re on the subject of bobbins, have any of you tried the Tiemco Adjustable Magnet Bobbin?
I don’t really need any more bobbins, but that one looks pretty nice.

And on the subject of adjustable tension bobbins, does anyone have or still use one of the old Herter’s bobbins? I don’t recall their selling price at the time, but they probably sold for just a dollar or two, and they were all I used for many years.

This one is for sale on EBay right now for $9.99, or best offer.