06/15/2026
New to south Florida, I met Flip in 1973 on a 4th of July BBQ poolside lunch in Kendall hosted by the woman giving our young kids David, Drew and Brooke swimming lessons. Her husband was coincidently the President of Burdines at the time. When I asked our hostess, “What’s with the guy sleeping on the sofa?” she responded, “Oh, that’s Flip. He went bonefishing at daylight this morning.” Well that certainly explained everything! We hit it off together over beer, Buffet and burgers and Flip mentored me for a decade through my introduction into saltwater fly fishing.
He was never without his Manley pliers in a sheath on his belt. I’ve been using the same model of Manley’s ever since as well. The parallel jaws gripped tag ends of mono much better than scissor jaw pliers, especially when we were tightening knots of 80 # shock tippet for tarpon fishing. The side cutters were sharp and durable, and they cost $39.95 at the time.
A few months ago, Flip convinced Hank Manley to lengthen the tips on the jaws to remove a hook from a fish’s jaw more easily. Hank agreed and we just got the new Flip Pallet Signature pliers in stock. Dammed if they don’t work better and finally I need to spring for a new pair of pliers! They are no longer $39.95 but for $139.95, I’m good to go for another 50 years.
https://www.floridakeysoutfitters.com/manley-flip-pallot-signature-pliers.html
