Chest Fly Box?

[blueheron]

I never found my chest box to hinder my movement at all. The huge benefit when you’re in the water is the ability to have a shelf to work over when changing flies, they also hold a ridiculous numbers of flies. I never leave home without it.

 

[Bamboozle]

At one time I owned two of the original metal Richardson boxes. A three & four tray. I had them for decades and they never inhibited my casting or movement. I sold both of them here on the Swap forum.

You may be asking if I loved them why did I sell them? Good question. I stored too many flies in them. Hundreds and hundreds. As I got older I was concerned that if I fell in all those beautiful flies would get soaked. I think I sold them for more than I paid for them. Now I use C&F micro slit boxes for #16 - #22 dries and nymphs and Myran compartment boxes for dries #8 - #14. I have another four not pictured here.

If you fall in with C&F micro slit boxes, don't they get wet too?

All kidding aside, I made a removable waterproof rain cover for my Richardson Box to put on when it is drizzling but not raining hard enough to put on a rain jacket. When I get home after fishing in those conditions (or if I fell in enough to soak the box which has never happened), I open each tray and flip out the lid and close it so the clasps rest on the tray lids which leaves about a 1" gap between each tray.

I let it sit this way overnight if I'm fishing the next day or longer if I'm not. This allows air to circulate through the trays and the flies dry out just fine.

 

[wbranch]

If you fall in with C&F micro slit boxes, don't they get wet too?

Great question. Actually you can buy C&F boxes that are water resistant (don't know if they are waterproof) Some of them have an O ring all about the outer periphery of the box. So I assume if you fell and got up quickly they would be very little water ingress. Now instead of taking 500 - 600 with me I only bring one or two hatch specific boxes so if they get wet far less will need to be dried.

 

[Skeet6]

This is really making me just want to order one.
Thanks, enablers.
Mike B

 

[Billems]

They're a Penn. tradition.

 

[Acristickid]

Nope. Couldnt see my feet but I was 50
Pounds heavier then. I realized that I don’t need all that. I don’t like fussy. One small box for dries and one for nymphs. I’m certainly no genius or a great angler but when I go to a stream I know about the 10 bugs that are possibly going to be happening and I don’t really feel like I need all that much

 

[pcray1231]

I have fished in the pouring rain with mine. Gone down and took a swim to the point water dislodges flies from slits.

I don't do any fancy drying either. And there are years old flies in there. No rust.
I don't think they are airtight enough, so they dry.

 

[dryflyguy]

I have fished in the pouring rain with mine. Gone down and took a swim to the point water dislodges flies from slits.

I don't do any fancy drying either. And there are years old flies in there. No rust.
I don't think they are airtight enough, so they dry.

I guess you don't wear a raincoat over the chest box?
That's another reason I'm still a vest guy - all my fly boxes are tucked away under the rain coat, and dry

 

[kbobb]

I've told this before but here it is again:
Was fishing in Maryland with my Richardson years ago walking back to the car and a guy on his porch says "you're from Pennsylvania aren't you" I said yes and asked how he knew. He said "you guys are born with those things growin' outta your chests".

 

[just_jon]

I've told this before but here it is again:
Was fishing in Maryland with my Richardson years ago walking back to the car and a guy on his porch says "you're from Pennsylvania aren't you" I said yes and asked how he knew. He said "you guys are born with those things growin' outta your chests".

I get that comment a couple times a year.

This is really making me just want to order one.
Thanks, enablers.
Mike B

You won’t regret it. If you’ve got a little dough left over, consider adding the Amish hand made leather harness. It is a game changer from a comfort perspective.

 

[Biggie]

I get that comment a couple times a year.

You won’t regret it. If you’ve got a little dough left over, consider adding the Amish hand made leather harness. It is a game changer from a comfort perspective.

I have the leather harness and don't like it once summer rolls around because it is too hot. I just switch to my Downs box for the hot weather fishing.

 

[pcray1231]

I guess you don't wear a raincoat over the chest box?
That's another reason I'm still a vest guy - all my fly boxes are tucked away under the rain coat, and dry

I have a nice goretex wading jacket. It gets used when its cool out, and yeah keeps me dry if its both cool and wet..

Summer though, with the pop up storms. Heck no. Quick dry shirts. Such a hassle to pack stuff. I don't carry a net, pack, nothing. Put waders on, richardson, stuff a spool of tippet in pocket, rod, go.

 

[Bamboozle]

I always have the little rain cover I made for the top of my Richardson that takes up about as much room as a folded sheet of paper. I also carry one of those throwaway ponchos.

The only time I carry a proper rain jacket is if I expect it to rain, a LOT and my rain jacket is a flyweight nylon job that folds up very small. I hate wearing jackets anytime for any reason so it takes a real lot of rain to get me to break mine out. Both the cheapo throwaway poncho and the rain jacket fit just fine over my Richardson box, that's why I carry them.

A vest to me is a place to put stuff I don't need enough to bother carrying, but I did because I had the room for it. That's why ditched the vest in the first place and went with a chest box.

 

[dryflyguy]

I always have the little rain cover I made for the top of my Richardson that takes up about as much room as a folded sheet of paper. I also carry one of those throwaway ponchos.

The only time I carry a proper rain jacket is if I expect it to rain, a LOT and my rain jacket is a flyweight nylon job that folds up very small. I hate wearing jackets anytime for any reason so it takes a real lot of rain to get me to break mine out. Both the cheapo throwaway poncho and the rain jacket fit just fine over my Richardson box, that's why I carry them.

A vest to me is a place to put stuff I don't need enough to bother carrying, but I did because I had the room for it. That's why ditched the vest in the first place and went with a chest box.

On the other hand, I fished with a friend last year who had downsized to a chest pack.

We came across some fish rising to BWO's
And he had none with him. They were back in his camper because he didn't have room to carry everything he might need.

The next day, we came across a place where I had caught some large fish in heavy current recently.
I told him from my previous experience there, to go with 4x tippet to avoid breakoffs.
He proceded to hook and break off 3 fish in a row.
He had no 4x with him, and was using 5x

 

[Bamboozle]

That's just poor planning and not being organized. It has nothing to do with how you carry your stuff.

 

[goose54cdd]

Anybody have a link to the seller of Downs Chest Box? I can't seem to find one.

 

[Bamboozle]

I could be wrong about this, but I THINK they are no longer available except in the used market.

 

[goose54cdd]

I could be wrong about this, but I THINK they are no longer available except in the used market.

Thanks, I didn't know that.

 

[wbranch]

This is really making me just want to order one.
Thanks, enablers.
Mike B

Expensive and no better than

Thanks, I didn't know that.

Check out this link. I really cool looking chest box by C&F Design. I never saw it before but I might buy one. I see 0ne shortcoming - it just hangs freely aroiund your neck. I'd prefer another strap to hook too the sides and go around my back to keep it from moving side to side.

https://www.flyshack.com/DisplayIte...ogle&msclkid=ad29abcd374a1b852ebbc9cc65705a31

 

[Bamboozle]

It’s cute, however I can find a few additional short comings...

• The inserts or "pages" should be swappable, so you could configure it the way YOU want it instead of trying to adapt it to your needs.

• You have to like slit foam for fly storage. I know a lot of folks do, but I don't. I always prefer compartments for dry flies and plain flat foam for the minuscule midge pupa I use.

• The flip pages with pockets for split shot, magnetic fly holders and threaders are interesting if you use them, but again, I'd rather have more fly storage.

• Unless you don’t mind re-spooling tippet material or changing brands when your favorite goes to a bigger/fatter spool size; tippet dispensers that intend to use existing spool sizes of tippet material are a waste of space and WILL become obsolete eventually.

• That skinny neck strap will dig into your neck after a while, especially if you don't wear a shirt with a collar.

• It DOES have a clip to secure it to your shirt, but if you are only wearing a T-shirt, I have a feeling it will be popping off all the time.

Bottom line, if a Richardson was out of my budget or not for me, before I want that route, I’d just buy a small chest pack and use a regular fly box(es), but that’s me.

FWIW - that's what I do when warmwater fishing...

As always YMMV.