Is 5-Minute Epoxy a Thing of the Past? | Fly Fishing | Gink and Gasoline | How to Fly Fish | Trout Fishing

Clear Cure Goo. Photo By: Louis Cahill

I can’t remember the last time I had to break out my smelly two-part epoxy bottles at the tying bench.

For several years, 5-minute epoxy was a mainstay in my fly tying. It worked great for molding my streamer heads, coating my popping flies and equally well for putting my finishing touches on the backs of my nymph patterns. Fast forward to present day, however, and epoxy has quickly become a thing of the past. In the eyes of most legitimate fly tiers, epoxy is nothing more than an old school tying material and technique that has become outdated. Innovative fly tying companies like Clear Cure Goo have taken the idea of epoxy and reinvented the wheel by introducing a full line of UV curing products. They serve the same purpose as epoxy but are less messy, more efficient and easier to work with at the vise. After using them, I now look at my life long stash of epoxy bottles on the bench and wonder if I shouldn’t just toss them all in the trash. I could use a little extra room on my tying bench anyway and I’m tired of looking at dried up epoxy patches with wooden stirring sticks adhered on scrap all over my work area.

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If you haven’t yet tried or bought into the hype of Clear Cure Goo products, I suggest you test them out. Clear Cure Goo calls their UV curing products “the cure to epoxy”, because you’ll no longer waste time prepping your two-part epoxy for each fly you’re tying, you won’t feel rushed and you’ll have zero waste. Go ahead and keep that 18 rpm epoxy fly and jig turner around if you want just in case, but I’m putting mine on ebay for a few extra bucks towards purchasing more Clear Cure Goo products.

Hotspot Zebra Midges coated with Clear Cure Goo Hydro. Photo By: Louis Cahill

Since I’m slapping around epoxy, I thought I’d throw a few slaps Sally Hansen’s way, pertaining specifically to her “Hard as Nails” nail polish. I started using Sally Hansen’s back in the day for coating my tiny midge larva, trout beads and other tiny nymphs to provide that life like shine. It was a breeze to work with and it gave me that great shine in the water, but its one down fall was it didn’t last very long before it started cracking and coming off. Clear Cure Goo “Hydro” serves the same purpose, but the UV curing process makes it super tough and much more durable than the nail polish. It’s not just good for coating flies, it’s perfect when you’re tying flat wing or other multi-layered streamers and want them all to lay out nice and stay in place. Take peacock herl for instance, which is a staple for finishing off many baitfish pattern recipes. I always have a problem with keeping it all together on top of the fly. Andy Bowen, from Cohutta Fishing Company, showed me all you need to do to fix this problem is brush the Clear Cure Hydro along the peacock herl, hit it with the UV Light and it will lock into place. So simple, yet genious. Clear Cure Goo gets emails all the time from fly tiers around the world with new ideas and uses for their products. We’ve only begun to scratch the service on their products capabilities and I’m looking forward to seeing all the cool fly patterns that are invented because of them.

Bowen’s Baitfish Minnow

Warning: Be aware of your battery power levels in your UV Light. When the batteries get low they don’t always provide the necessary power needed to cure the UV products completely. Also be aware that some of their thicker UV products dry with a slightly tacky touch. Lastly, experiment with the optional applying tips that come in the Clear Cure Product package. These will provide you with much more control in the amount of UV product you apply and where you apply it. For more information about Clear Cure Goo, go to their website and watch their product videos to find out all about them.