How to Cure Epoxy Fishing Flies

Epoxy is a common material used in fly-tying. Epoxy is used as a clear coat on wing cases, and the material builds custom fly bodies. The epoxy spoon is one of the more common uses for the material. Building and curing epoxy flies requires a mold or wire outline to forge the shape. The epoxy curing time is written on the packages, but curing speed is increased by manipulating the environment. Curing epoxy flies is an easy and typically requires less than five minutes.

Things You'll Need

  • Play- Doh
  • Baby spoon
  • Two-part epoxy
  • Toothpick
  • Hook
  • Lamp
  • Fly-tying vise
  • 6/0 thread
  • Medium wire
  • Instant glue
Show More

Instructions

  1. Mold

    • 1

      Build a mold matching the intended fly shape in a clump of Play-Doh. Simply press a baby spoon in the dough to form a spoon fly mold.

    • 2

      Mix equal parts of the two-part epoxy on a piece of paper. Stir the mixture with a toothpick.

    • 3

      Fill the mold with the epoxy and set the hook shank in the epoxy without covering the eye or the point.

    • 4

      Place a lamp directly over the epoxy to increase the heat and encourage drying. Remove the fly from the mold after five minutes.

    Rotation

    • 5

      Clamp the hook in a fly-tying vise. Start the thread at the hook bend and make 10 wraps to tie in two pieces of medium wire. Wrap the thread to the hook eye.

    • 6

      Manipulate and bend the wire to outline the epoxy boundaries and shape the fly. Make 10 thread wraps over the wire at the hook eye. Cut off the extra wire and add a small drop of instant glue to cement the thread. Cut the thread off the hook.

    • 7

      Mix equal parts of the two-part epoxy on a piece of paper and stir these with a toothpick. Use the toothpick to coat the wire and hook shank with epoxy. Rotate the vise jaws as you add epoxy. The rotation prevents the liquid from dripping off the hook.

    • 8

      Continue rotating the hook and adding epoxy until the body is developed. Rotate for three minutes under a lamp to harden the body. Stop rotating and leave the fly under the lamp for an additional two minutes to completely dry.