I’ve been using the Pirate’s Fly Patch for over two years, and it has become an indispensable part of my fly fishing. It stays clipped to a panel in the back of my car, giving all my flies have a place to live. Whether it be drying out wet patterns or simply serving as a storage spot, the dense foam holds everything from midges to meaty salt streamers. The patch is still holding all these flies securely, and the bright brown trout pattern still looks good.
Even though that patch is still going strong, I recently got a hold of Pirate Fly Fishing’s latest offering – The First Mate.
The First Mate patch uses Velcro to affix to surfaces. A corresponding adhesive sheet can be placed on the back of a drift boat seat, the side of a cooler, or a surface near your tying desk. Also, anything that sticks to hook-side (scratchy) of Velcro works with the back of The First Mate – such as most car interiors and certain sling pack bodies.
The rigid plastic shell makes the patch virtually indestructible. More than that it gives The First Mate an advantage over traditional, foam only patches. If a fly patch is simply a sheet of foam, the corner(s) you use to remove and move the patch will bend with repeated use. The “handles” on the edge of The First Mate give you a place to grip and pull the patch, plus they’ll never wear out.
On either side of The First Mate there are incredibly strong neodymium magnets. They will hold several flies securely as you tie together rigs, and catch any wayward fly that falls near them. Used in tandem with the attachment point in the patch’s plastic shell, they’ll keep a pair of forceps or nippers from flopping and banging around as you paddle or walk. Their power is no joke: when I first opened the patch I dropped a heavy pocket knife on one and it didn’t budge after making contact.
Of course, the design of the patches are one of the first things you notice. “Even though brook trout aren’t native to our home waters here in Colorado, they’re so beautiful that it’s hard as an artist to pass up on using their colors,” says Maddie Bonthron, one of the owners and the lead designer at Pirate. “Functionality is obviously the top priority, but an appealing design like this is so important for something that is going to go on someone’s drift boat or truck.”
Even as a stationary piece of gear, the Pirate’s Fly Patch became an integral part of my fly fishing routine. I’m looking forward to integrating The First Mate into how I fish. With multiple vehicles and diverse angling opportunities in any given week, I’m sure the flexibility will serve me well. And with that brook trout print, it’ll look good wherever it goes.
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Head over to the Pirate Fly Fishing website to buy your own First Mate patch, and be sure to check out their original patch, fly box, and other gear as well.