-
- Species
- Whitetails
- Rut Reporters
- Deer Camp
- Big Game
- Small Game
- Birds
- Special Methods
- Bow Hunting
- Conservation
- Heroes of Conservation
- Hero for a Day
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
- Land for Sale
-
- Species
- Bass
- Trout
- More Freshwater
- Saltwater
- Catchbook
- Special Methods
- Fly Fishing
- Hook Shots
- Conservation
- Heroes of Conservation
- Hero for a Day
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
- Land for Sale
-
- Health & Fitness
- F&S Adventurer
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
-
- Rifles
- Shotguns
- 2nd Amendment
- SHOT Show
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
Stuff That Works: The Simms "Thirsty Trout" Bottle Opener
Recent Comments
- Knife Freak on Winner Announced in Name This Fish Contest (2)
- badsmerf on Fly Fishing Gear That Works: SmithFly Products (4)
- Hornd on Fly Fishing Gear That Works: SmithFly Products (4)
- megasif on Photo Contest: Name This Fish, Win a Pair of Costa Sunglasses (93)
- megasif on Photo Contest: Name This Fish, Win a Pair of Costa Sunglasses (93)
Categories
- Alaska (2)
- Animal Attacks (1)
- ATVs (2)
- Bass Fishing (44)
- Big Game Hunting (2)
- Bird Hunting (2)
- Bow Hunting (1)
- Camping Gear (1)
- Close Calls (2)
- DIY (1)
- First-Aid (1)
- Fishing (513)
- Fishing Gear (50)
- Fly Fishing (691)
- Gear (45)
- Guns (1)
- Hunting (7)
- Hunting Gear (2)
- More Freshwater (87)
- Optics (2)
- Other (7)
- Quick Tips (2)
- Saltwater (81)
- Shooting Gear (1)
- Shotguns (1)
- Small Game (1)
- Survival (4)
- Survival Food (1)
- Trout Fishing (197)
Recent Posts
- Fly Fishing Gear That Works: SmithFly Products
- Video: Filming a Free Swimming Black Marlin
- Winner Announced in Name This Fish Contest
- Video: 20,000 Trout in a Bucket
- The Greatest Lesson in Fishing Streamers
- Tie Talk: Tying the Banksia Bug (Step-by-Step Photos)
- Low Water Levels Cause Worry in CO, What Will Happen to Fishing?
- Giant Lake Trout on the Fly?
- Tarpon May be Ideal Tenkara Fish
- Video: Trout Hatchery Feeding Frenzy
Archives
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
- August 2007
- July 2007
- June 2007
- May 2007
Syndicate
FlyTalk
in your Inbox
July 18, 2011
Stuff That Works: The Simms "Thirsty Trout" Bottle Opener
by Kirk Deeter
There's a special category in the fly fishing retail world labeled "accessories," which, in my mind, includes just about anything a fly angler buys that doesn't actually help them catch fish in any way, shape, or form whatsoever. This might be the most important product category for friends and relatives of fly fishers who want to buy gifts with sentimental value, but alas, have no idea (whatsoever) how to actually catch fish on the fly.
That's why a lot of us have drawers full of Green-Butt Skunk printed socks, sterling flasks with dry fly etchings, toilet seats with a Royal Coachman motif, and wall clocks with classic fly patterns that mark every hour of the day. I will admit that I might be the most "poorly-accessorized" angler on the planet, having little use for neckties (if you see me choked by a silky fly print around my neck, that usually means someone either died or got married, which in certain angling circles is almost one in the same), fly-themed wallets, and the rest of the niff-naff that says, "I'm a fly fisher."
But I grew up in the Great Lakes region. And as such, I think the "church key" a man carries to crack a cold frosty beverage at the end of a hot, sweaty, summer day of fly fishing speaks volumes.
The Simms Thirsty Trout Bottle Opener ($5.95, available at many fly shops) is the least-expensive, sure-to-be-appreciated gift product in the fly fishing world.
I could go on about its fail-safe solid aluminum design, how it grips the teeth of the most rugged micro-brew bottle caps, and all of that, but knowing that I am speaking to an audience of innovators who will stop at nothing to unfasten a bottle cap at the end of a hot fishing day--using teeth, belt buckles, Bic lighters, and the gunwales of a drift boat (among many other things) to get the job done--I'd simply suggest that for six bucks, this fish-shaped cap-opener is a wise investment. What it lacks in "bling" is more than compensated for by way of substance.
I carry many. I give them to friends in need. Yet, over the years, I have also learned that serious anglers often value their own sacred church key. The wide-faced metal lift from the neighborhood hardware store, the favored bottle-cracker straight from the brewery, the opener with the catchy phrase imprint...
Tell me about your favorite church key, and why it is so, and to the best commenter, I will send you one of these. Perhaps we can unhinge a couple cool bottles of suds (birch beer included) together someday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Today on Field & Stream
Loading...
Visit Our Sister Sites at Bonnier Corporation
| Enthusiast | Kiteboarding | QUAD | SKI | Skiing | Scuba Diving | Sport Diver | TransWorld Ride BMX | TransWorld Business | TransWorld Motocross | TransWorld SKATEboarding, | TransWorld SNOWboarding | TransWorld SURF | WakeBoarding | WaterSki | Warren Miller Entertainment | WindSurfing |
|---|---|
| Travel | Caribbean Travel & Life | Destination Weddings & Honeymoon | Islands | Meeting Traveler | Resorts & Great Hotels |
| Lifestyle & Shelter | Florida Travel & Life | Garden Design | Home Ft. Lauderdale | Home Miami |
| Luxury | SNOW | Spa |
| Marine | Boating Life | Cruising World | Fly Fishing in Salt Waters | Power Cruising | Marlin | Motor Boating | Sailing World | Salt Water Sportsman | Sport Fishing | Yachting | NewBoats.com | UsedBoats.com | YachtBroker.com |
| Outdoor | Field & Stream | Outdoor Life | SHOT Business |
| Parenting | Babytalk | Parenting |
| Science | Popular Science | Science Illustrated |
| Saveur | Saveur |
| Working Mother Media | Working Mother |
| Entertainment / Events | World Entertainment Services | World Sports & Marketing |
Fieldandstream.com is part of the Field & Stream Network, a division of Bonnier Corporation.
Copyright © 2012 Bonnier Corp. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Comments (31)
I picked up a Dynamic Lures Aluminum key at ISE this past January. It's shaped like a shark, not one of the long ones I've seen in the past, but a short blue one where the jaws open the bottle. It works nicely!
If I can mention a contrarian opinion to put some of this stuff in perspective. I use to think I was the complete angler if I could hang a lot of stuff off the front of my fly vest..clippers, tippet material, forceps, the bottle opener, fly floatant, hook sharpener, etc., etc. But the flyline constantly got hung up on that stuff making a cast. Now, I no longer look like I fell off the cover of an Orvis catalog, but am a better fisherman for it.
I carry a Leatherman. It has everything I need to fish and enjoy a frosty beverage.
Was at a beer tasting event this Friday night where they were giving away hats with bottle openers attached to the visor. This is a little over the top for me. I have a close connection with the local distributor so my fridge is always stocked with nothing but the best high end beer but I must admit, my bottle opener is the backside of a Pampered Chef can opener. Boring.
To my friends in Ohio. Yuengling will soon be distributed locally. No more driving to PA for beer.
ohhhh wanttttt. ever since i quit smoking i dont nesesarily have my trusted nr.1 lighter with me anymore so having something cool to open my suds with would be nice :)
Found an old bottle opener under the passenger seat of a '66 Lincoln Continental Convertible I bought when I turned 16. I have kept it ever since and I can only imagine the wide variety of beers it opened for its previous owners in California and Oregon, and now in MN.
I have had the same bottle opener on my keychain since I was 16. I bought a pair of jeans that came with an aluminum shark bottle opener. It about 4 inches long and at the mought of the shark/opener its about and inch wide. Its a perfect contour of a shark and attched to the ring at the tail. This thing has been with me for over 13 years and has opened beverages and other things needing prying open. I used it after an ice storm in Wisconsin to pry open my gas cap flap. It's still bent a bit from when I did that.
Buckhunter, is there any way you can sway those Yuengling distributors to drive out west a tad farther....say....Colorado?
Kold, I will let you in on a dark and dirty little secret. When these small breweries make the big time they contract with the larger companies to brew their beer for them. If you think Yeungling or Sam Adams are brewed by guys in bib overalls and coonskins caps located in a small town brewery, you are mistaken. Anheuser Busch will brew Yuengling. Sort of like discovering the cute girl you are flirting with has a STD.
From R.E.I. I picked up a skeleton of a fish, orange in color, and the mouth functions as the opener. I had this for years and lost it for a few months, soon to discover my brother had taken it. Since I got it back I has been worn down, by many different factors, mainly rubbing up against my other keys. This bottle opener needs to be retired soon and I would love another Simms fish.
Wore the same belt fishing for 6 years straight; when I got older it was perfect for opening some Leiney's. Unfortunately it broke due to the many holes drilled for resizing. So, I cut off the leather and now it's a bottle opener that looks like a belt buckle rather than a belt buckle used to open bottles.
My favorite opener was a Homer simpson talking bottle opener that said "hmmm, beer" or one of several other brilliant Homer quotes. That rarely travels with me, so I became skilled using various objects such as spoons, lighters, rocks, hemostsat, tables, and occasionally a real opener.
If you guys were tough like us Idahoooligans, you could open your beer bottle with your teeth. Of course when the wind blows I keep my hat on by using tacks.
When I graduated a few years ago, one of my gifts was one of those snazzy little openers that plays "Ride 'em Cowboys" whenever you use it. I thought I had lost it, until I was digging around in the kitchen drawer last week and something set it off. An instant stream of undergrad memories came rushing back to me, and pre-planning for the fall tailgating season began.
Love my "Thirsty Trout Church Key" opener, in fact it's the only Simms product I own! Buckhunter, you're right, somebody else'll be brewing the Pottsville amber goodness, just as AB now brews Rolling Rock, and the Guinness we drink in the states is from Canada. By the by, why'd Sayfu get dinged for his comment on the hazards of too much junk on yer vest? I know it's Sayfu, but he's right on this one.
Being the step-son of a guy who works for Columbus distributing, my fridge is always full, I have perfected the art of popping the twist tops with my forearm Nd for the pop tops, I use whatever inadimant object around to pop/pry the top off to reveal the deliciousness within.
Just a pointer, but being half drunk and trying to use a divot repair tool to open bottles will leave you with chunks of knuckle meat on the bottle top. Nothing like shedding a little blood for something you love, though. My favorite church key is the one in my pocket right now, that an ex-girlfriend gave me 14years ago when I was a freshman at UGA. It is now silver instead of black and you can't read "Bulldawgs" on it anymore, but it works as good as ever.
I keep an old cast iron opener in my cabin that depicts a naked lady. It's been around for years. The best part about it is, the more I put her to work, the better she seems to look.
Backcast, Sayfu has a cult following. Would love to fish with the dude someday but I don't see myself visiting his part of the country.
His point is well taken. Have never carried forceps for fear of falling on them. Ouch!
I use my wedding ring, people get a kick out of it. Just rest your ring finger on the bottle top, hook the lip of the cap under the ring, and pivot your hand/wrist forward. Voila! Beverage opened, and no need to pack around extra stuff in your pocket.
i also own this bottle opener and other than a baseball cap it is the only Simms product i can afford!!! before this i used my wedding ring and before that a special ring with an opener on it. not being able to open a beer is as bad as snagging the last fly in your box on a tree....
Yeah, Sayfu even gets an amen from me on this one.
I was honestly expecting this bottle opener to carry a 2-3X price premium for the Simms name on there. Not too shabby.
I do so want one of these. I am afraid I am of the Bic lighter variety, and nothing quite gets your attention like missing the angle with a lighter, and puncturing the butane containment, while you have a lit stogy stuffed in your face. I have done it 3 times, and somehow managed to escape a facial hair fry each time.
I've always used the opener on my swiss army knife. But for the really stubborn caps i'll bust out the gerber multi-plier.
I've never carried a bottle opener, and it has often left me in the "search around for whatever works" category. As a law enforcement officer, I'm pretty much always carrying a gun, and that gun is usually a Glock. Sadly enough, in desperation, I've found that by dismantling the gun and taking out the barrel, you now have a very effective bottle opener. The gap between the recoil lug and the breech block forms the perfect dimensions for opening a cold bottle of liquid refreshment. More than one startled individual has borrowed my "bottle opener" only to realize what it really was..
i have a bottle opener on my key ring but i can't for the life of me figure out where i got it from. had it for years.
I had a CRKT M16 (my favorite everday knife) it had a Zytel handle and it was amazing for opening a beer. My car was broken into and it was stolen. Now I use whatever is around, rocks, trees, other beer bottles...etc.
Loon makes a "Nip n Sip" nipper with a bottle opener on the end. I thought it would be good to keep on my keys for any beer or fishing emergencies that arise. The nipper blades don't do well in my pocket, though. Maybe this gadget from Simms will do the trick.
Mine is always in my pocket. My Swiss army has the oh so useful flathead/bottle opener blade.
Someone gave me one of these simms bottle openers and I love it... with the exception that the chain would never stay latched. But its light weight and works and looks like a fish.
I use a piece of paper
Post a Comment
Was at a beer tasting event this Friday night where they were giving away hats with bottle openers attached to the visor. This is a little over the top for me. I have a close connection with the local distributor so my fridge is always stocked with nothing but the best high end beer but I must admit, my bottle opener is the backside of a Pampered Chef can opener. Boring.
To my friends in Ohio. Yuengling will soon be distributed locally. No more driving to PA for beer.
I keep an old cast iron opener in my cabin that depicts a naked lady. It's been around for years. The best part about it is, the more I put her to work, the better she seems to look.
If you guys were tough like us Idahoooligans, you could open your beer bottle with your teeth. Of course when the wind blows I keep my hat on by using tacks.
I've always used the opener on my swiss army knife. But for the really stubborn caps i'll bust out the gerber multi-plier.
Kold, I will let you in on a dark and dirty little secret. When these small breweries make the big time they contract with the larger companies to brew their beer for them. If you think Yeungling or Sam Adams are brewed by guys in bib overalls and coonskins caps located in a small town brewery, you are mistaken. Anheuser Busch will brew Yuengling. Sort of like discovering the cute girl you are flirting with has a STD.
I use my wedding ring, people get a kick out of it. Just rest your ring finger on the bottle top, hook the lip of the cap under the ring, and pivot your hand/wrist forward. Voila! Beverage opened, and no need to pack around extra stuff in your pocket.
ohhhh wanttttt. ever since i quit smoking i dont nesesarily have my trusted nr.1 lighter with me anymore so having something cool to open my suds with would be nice :)
Found an old bottle opener under the passenger seat of a '66 Lincoln Continental Convertible I bought when I turned 16. I have kept it ever since and I can only imagine the wide variety of beers it opened for its previous owners in California and Oregon, and now in MN.
I do so want one of these. I am afraid I am of the Bic lighter variety, and nothing quite gets your attention like missing the angle with a lighter, and puncturing the butane containment, while you have a lit stogy stuffed in your face. I have done it 3 times, and somehow managed to escape a facial hair fry each time.
Love my "Thirsty Trout Church Key" opener, in fact it's the only Simms product I own! Buckhunter, you're right, somebody else'll be brewing the Pottsville amber goodness, just as AB now brews Rolling Rock, and the Guinness we drink in the states is from Canada. By the by, why'd Sayfu get dinged for his comment on the hazards of too much junk on yer vest? I know it's Sayfu, but he's right on this one.
I carry a Leatherman. It has everything I need to fish and enjoy a frosty beverage.
Loon makes a "Nip n Sip" nipper with a bottle opener on the end. I thought it would be good to keep on my keys for any beer or fishing emergencies that arise. The nipper blades don't do well in my pocket, though. Maybe this gadget from Simms will do the trick.
i have a bottle opener on my key ring but i can't for the life of me figure out where i got it from. had it for years.
Backcast, Sayfu has a cult following. Would love to fish with the dude someday but I don't see myself visiting his part of the country.
His point is well taken. Have never carried forceps for fear of falling on them. Ouch!
I picked up a Dynamic Lures Aluminum key at ISE this past January. It's shaped like a shark, not one of the long ones I've seen in the past, but a short blue one where the jaws open the bottle. It works nicely!
Buckhunter, is there any way you can sway those Yuengling distributors to drive out west a tad farther....say....Colorado?
Yeah, Sayfu even gets an amen from me on this one.
I was honestly expecting this bottle opener to carry a 2-3X price premium for the Simms name on there. Not too shabby.
Being the step-son of a guy who works for Columbus distributing, my fridge is always full, I have perfected the art of popping the twist tops with my forearm Nd for the pop tops, I use whatever inadimant object around to pop/pry the top off to reveal the deliciousness within.
I use a piece of paper
Someone gave me one of these simms bottle openers and I love it... with the exception that the chain would never stay latched. But its light weight and works and looks like a fish.
When I graduated a few years ago, one of my gifts was one of those snazzy little openers that plays "Ride 'em Cowboys" whenever you use it. I thought I had lost it, until I was digging around in the kitchen drawer last week and something set it off. An instant stream of undergrad memories came rushing back to me, and pre-planning for the fall tailgating season began.
I had a CRKT M16 (my favorite everday knife) it had a Zytel handle and it was amazing for opening a beer. My car was broken into and it was stolen. Now I use whatever is around, rocks, trees, other beer bottles...etc.
Mine is always in my pocket. My Swiss army has the oh so useful flathead/bottle opener blade.
Just a pointer, but being half drunk and trying to use a divot repair tool to open bottles will leave you with chunks of knuckle meat on the bottle top. Nothing like shedding a little blood for something you love, though. My favorite church key is the one in my pocket right now, that an ex-girlfriend gave me 14years ago when I was a freshman at UGA. It is now silver instead of black and you can't read "Bulldawgs" on it anymore, but it works as good as ever.
i also own this bottle opener and other than a baseball cap it is the only Simms product i can afford!!! before this i used my wedding ring and before that a special ring with an opener on it. not being able to open a beer is as bad as snagging the last fly in your box on a tree....
Wore the same belt fishing for 6 years straight; when I got older it was perfect for opening some Leiney's. Unfortunately it broke due to the many holes drilled for resizing. So, I cut off the leather and now it's a bottle opener that looks like a belt buckle rather than a belt buckle used to open bottles.
My favorite opener was a Homer simpson talking bottle opener that said "hmmm, beer" or one of several other brilliant Homer quotes. That rarely travels with me, so I became skilled using various objects such as spoons, lighters, rocks, hemostsat, tables, and occasionally a real opener.
I have had the same bottle opener on my keychain since I was 16. I bought a pair of jeans that came with an aluminum shark bottle opener. It about 4 inches long and at the mought of the shark/opener its about and inch wide. Its a perfect contour of a shark and attched to the ring at the tail. This thing has been with me for over 13 years and has opened beverages and other things needing prying open. I used it after an ice storm in Wisconsin to pry open my gas cap flap. It's still bent a bit from when I did that.
From R.E.I. I picked up a skeleton of a fish, orange in color, and the mouth functions as the opener. I had this for years and lost it for a few months, soon to discover my brother had taken it. Since I got it back I has been worn down, by many different factors, mainly rubbing up against my other keys. This bottle opener needs to be retired soon and I would love another Simms fish.
I've never carried a bottle opener, and it has often left me in the "search around for whatever works" category. As a law enforcement officer, I'm pretty much always carrying a gun, and that gun is usually a Glock. Sadly enough, in desperation, I've found that by dismantling the gun and taking out the barrel, you now have a very effective bottle opener. The gap between the recoil lug and the breech block forms the perfect dimensions for opening a cold bottle of liquid refreshment. More than one startled individual has borrowed my "bottle opener" only to realize what it really was..
If I can mention a contrarian opinion to put some of this stuff in perspective. I use to think I was the complete angler if I could hang a lot of stuff off the front of my fly vest..clippers, tippet material, forceps, the bottle opener, fly floatant, hook sharpener, etc., etc. But the flyline constantly got hung up on that stuff making a cast. Now, I no longer look like I fell off the cover of an Orvis catalog, but am a better fisherman for it.
Post a Comment