3 Pro Tips for Tying Leech Patterns That Move Like the Real Thing

With: erikclymore

If there’s one thing I respect, it’s someone who chases their passion with both feet in the water. We caught up with Erik Clymore, a full-time fly tyer who swapped the 9-to-5 grind for a vise, some thread, and a whole lot of creativity. From shop tying to Etsy sales, Erik’s built a career on crafting bombproof flies that fish hard and last. He’s got strong opinions on fly design, durability, and why less is usually more when it comes to materials.

Erik, how did you first get into fly fishing, and what led you down the path of becoming a commercial fly tier?

Fishing, while relevant to some degree my entire life, didn't start becoming something I'd label a pass time until 12 or so years ago. After spending my late teens and early 20's in perpetual inebriation, things had gotten utterly out of control. In 2012 at the age of 22 I got sober. This was the point where I began to fill the now, socially and emotionally, vacant days by fishing for bass.

From there my father took me trout fishing and it was no time before I became enamored with the thought of learning to fly fish.

I was later (2016) given my grandpas hand-me-down set up, complete with his DIY tip repair that left the line guides pitifully unaligned! I made some friends on a local forum and the obsession was born.  

My fly tying timeline looked like this; in 2017 I got a vise, 2018 I began selling to shops, then I added an Etsy page. 

By 2019 at a difficult point in life I saw that I had spent early adulthood seeking the status quo despite these 'borrowed goals' lacking any sort of fulfillment which led to growing periods of total emptiness.

With this insight, a steady part-time business, and a well prepared safety net I quit the 9-5 and for the first time since getting sober stepped into the complete (and terrifying) unknown. Immediately after leaving my job I took a solo indefinite (six week) road trip followed by a determinatio to give full time tying a fair chance. 

Today, 5.5 years later, I am beyond grateful for everyone who has supported me along the way, most importantly, the late Justin Aldrich who was instrumental in my early days of full time tying. 

I am still consumed with all angles of fly tying. Add to that the fulfillment I have received, and I honestly can not fathom doing anything else. 

Your fly patterns have a distinct style—what influences your designs, and how do you balance durability with fishability?

Early on my friends and I began participating in fly fishing tournaments. The competition side of fly fishing was and continues to be absolutely instrumental in my fly design as it focuses on practicality over glitz and glamor. The emphasis on function over form has remained my foundation for fly design. 

Outside of that I am constantly researching. This has created a deep appreciation for all styles of fly tying and even conventional gear hair jigs! I draw inspiration from the various techniques, tying styles from the different regions of the world, and historical patterns. Be it conscious or subconscious, I can not help but blend features of all of the above. 

And as to "balancing durability with fishability", I value both equally. I genuinely believe you can achieve both a more productive pattern as well as a near bomb proof pattern with the same steps. 

For example, a couple years ago I did something unheard of for me and kept track of the same exact fly. While I fished multiple different patterns, over the course of a few consecutive trips I caught between 75-100 fish on one #18 pheasant tail before the full red thread underbody was exposed. The wire, whip finish(no varnish) and thorax/ pheasant tail wing case were all still intact. I attribute the longevity to making every single thread wrap with purpose and appropriate tension as I tied in the materials. 

Maintaining thread tension and making less 'needless' thread wraps produce a tight fly as each and every material is sitting tight to the shank which limit potential failure points. When done this also produces a thin fly which will in most scenarios fish better than other bulkier patterns. 

Leech patterns are a staple in many anglers' boxes. What are your top 3 tips for tying leech patterns that move well in the water and hold up to multiple fish?

1. Over dressed flies. 

Over dressing flies is always a challenge but even more so with small streamers. The materials are bulky, yet you are applying them to a much smaller hook. Something I have been repeating lately is "tie with intent." Make each individual thread wrap and material have a purpose. Assess whether there is redundancy in your pattern. Tying in less materials "with intent" will drastically improve performance and durability.

2. Mirroring or incorporating parts of classic streamer patterns. 

With all the new materials out it is easy to get overwhelmed by options. Especially when starting out, familiarize yourself with classic streamer patterns, and it will provide a foundation for what works going forward allowing you to scale down and mimic those qualities. 

3. K.I.S.S. 

Small streamers, simply put are incredibly straight forward in their duties. Replicate your chosen forage's silhouette and tie it in a way that is able to achieve a desired depth. 

Many easy patterns have already been developed to accomplish nearly every scenario, yet I as much as anyone want to constantly redesign the wheel. When doing so try and limit your fly's characteristics to just the primary features of the chosen forage or minimize the attractor features when tying the shock and awe stuff. 

Fish are simple. While we may think the additional materials serve to trigger strikes, more often than not they only detract from the performance of the fly as well as impact our ability to keep the fly tightly bound. 

As someone who’s “avoiding adulthood one fly at a time,” what’s your take on the state of commercial fly tying today, and where do you see it heading?

Hahaha!

First, let me say that I am relatively cut off from current trends. The time I spend on social media where I am not working on my own content is maybe 10% or less.

With that in mind, I can say that I have noticed a boom in part time commercial tiers. Full time tying is always going to be a small circle on account of the low income and general monotony.  

Speaking on part time sellers, I have definitely seen an increased presence on Etsy the few times I've checked, but with all societal changes there are absolutely pros and cons. 

I 100% support more people offering quality flies at an affordable price and despite my grievances on Etsy I am (sort of) glad the platform is available for easy entry. 

Unfortunately the cons are many, well, that or my cynicism just spot lights the negatives. 

Primarily this easy access to an audience via Etsy has made shop tying utterly unattractive. Shop tying fast tracked my abilities to tie consistent flies as well as forced me into new patterns. That foundation was invaluable. 

Lastly, fly history and pattern specifics seem to be tossed to the way side. I don't expect everyone to nerd out as I do, but I wish there was more respect for past patterns and their influences. Every trendy pattern is viewed as a new and unique entity when often there was a very close predecessor that gave influence. One of my favorite nymphs is the Blowtorch, but a) every fly with a hot tag is not a Blowtorch and b) the early Red Tag wet fly is nearly identical. Both are passed over and only continue to muddy the waters of fly tying

I could touch on social media's impact, but I think I'm about to find Google's character count!

Website: www.smallbatchbugs.com

Instagram: @erikclymore

Email: clymore.erik@yahoo.com