Kalyn Hoggard | Monday, 17 November 2025
Fly fishing seems to have several specialized subgroups. There are individuals who excel at helping others catch fish using flies (sorcerers). Some focus on understanding the various factors influencing their chosen waters and the creatures within them, participating in habitat restoration and public policy (druids). Others delve deeply into the void of great casting, with only a few emerging to tell the “tail” (wizards). Additionally, there are those who skillfully imitate a variety of species by tying feathers onto hooks (witches). The list of different cliques and subgroups in the fly fishing world is surely extensive and likely includes some extreme levels of specialization. I remember the last time I spoke with Peter Hayes; he mentioned, “I really didn’t know how to cast until I started dry fly fishing with 22-foot leaders…”(Jedi)
I dabble in as many distinct aspects of fly fishing as I can, as it helps me catch more fish. While I wouldn’t consider myself an expert fly tier or fisher, I can be creative with the skills I’ve developed in both areas to come up with unique ideas for catching fish. Here’s a simple technique I use that you might find helpful:
I like to keep “blanks” available in my box. You might be wondering, what are blanks? I’m a big fan of the “game changer” fly platform, just like many other streamer fishing enthusiasts out there. I realize there are groups of specialized streamer fishers and tiers who are critical of the game changer concept, and that’s certainly their prerogative. However, I encourage you to give it a try.
I’m not an accomplished fly tyer, but Blane Chocklett, the creator of the game changer platform, offers a wealth of information on tying this fly and has authored books on its various applications and the creatures you can imitate. While it’s best to learn from “YouTube University” on this topic, I can provide you with a basic overview.
A game changer typically consists of articulation shanks of various lengths and a hook. The setup of your game changer can result in different action types, body tapers, and lengths. For instance, if you want to create a baitfish that is exactly four inches long, you can use shorter shanks at the back, gradually transitioning to longer ones at the front, adding as many shanks as you like with your hook to reach the desired length. You might increase the shank length as you progress up the fly, as baitfish tend to wiggle more in the back than in the front. However, remember that this is a platform rather than a strict recipe. The world is your oyster!
Now, let’s talk about body material. Once you’ve chosen your shanks and hooks, the next step is wrapping them with material to create the fly’s body. I prefer using white game changer chenille for my blanks. I start with medium, then progress to large, extra-large, back down to large, and finally medium again. You can taper the fly by wrapping materials of different lengths at your preferred rate. For instance, if the baitfish you’re imitating has a particularly tall profile, you might include a long section of extra-large material, or use all medium material for something like a worm or a leech. At this stage, you have a white blob with a hook of your desired length, and given the wide array of materials available, you can shape it to any general profile you wish.
“Give a fly fisher a pair of scissors and a blank streamer fly, and they will continue to cut it until it’s no more.”
I’m sure your imagination has you smelling what I’m stepping in here. You can alter the fly to be skinny or fat and use any color you desire with some sharpies. You can add eyes of any kind you like and wrap weight onto the hook if you need the fly to sink. While the possibilities may not be endless, I’ve successfully created several different game changer flies this way. I keep all my blank fly decorating tools in a kit for travel, allowing me to observe the baitfish and imitate it effectively. I like to have longer and shorter blanks, as well as narrow and wide ones. With a full box of sharpies, some scissors, and my helmet strapped I can make just about any specie that I see.
Does this increase my catch rate? Probably not. Do these flies catch fish that wouldn’t otherwise bite? I think so, but that’s a challenging experiment to conduct.
Aren’t these flies really time-consuming to make? They can be, especially at first. I estimate that tying the blanks takes me around 20 minutes each when I’m listening to early 2000s hip hop and have my workspace set up correctly.
If the flies are time-consuming and don’t necessarily catch more fish, then why tie them? Well, they look absolutely stunning in the water. You can create a platform that behaves like a jerkbait. When you perform a strip jerk with the fly, it glides left, then right, and left again, ultimately getting fully "T-Boned" as if the fish has a personal vendetta against your fly. Furthermore, since they are visually appealing and can be shaped and colored to your liking, these flies can be aesthetically pleasing. Yes, Paul, that means the fly looks pretty. I know you’re not a fan of pretty flies, but I firmly believe in the motto “look good, feel good, play good,” and these flies give me the confidence I need to be successful—even if it’s ultimately the presentation that matters.
Do you have any fly modification tools in your bag? I started off by having scissors around for dries after spending a day chewing down the wings on the caddis flies in my box for a client. I’ve always liked having cones around incase I needed to slide one on the leader and drop a leech deeper. I’m sure the ultimate tools, bags, and wading equipment subgroup of fly fishers has loads of different little ideas that I need to know.
I’m not sure that I’ll ever be the guy that has a “leatherman” in his pocket dedicated to being stabbed into a tree and used as a fly vise, but I thought it was pretty badass the first time I saw it. Having blanks around is more my speed than frantically tying flies on the stream bank, in the skiff, or at the tiki bar.
Thoughts?