Sly Guy Lures Interview

[SU News]

Recently Swimbait Underground partnered with Sly Guy Lures (@Deltaman) to bring a special collaboration project to the community. The Sly Guy x SU Collaboration Gill is 7.5 inches & 4.0 ounces, lifelike details & paint, and tuned to an extra slow sink in order to accurately target the shallows & upper water column.  The bait release was an SU exclusive.  We were also fortunate enought to ask him some questions as a follow-up to the release for those of you curious about Clayton Sly, the man behind the lures.

 

Where are you from?

I’m a CA native Delta Rat. I have lived near the Delta nearly my whole life. Wouldn’t want to live or fish anywhere else. I did a short 4 years in SoCal for college and hated the fishing down there!

How long have you been fishing for & what got you into it?

I would definitely have to credit my dad for getting me into fishing. He claims that the first fish I caught all by myself were twin two pounders at 2 years old. Yes, there is photo evidence.

He was into it so I grew up going with him on weekends. I think it was around 12 or 13 that I started caring about going fishing way more than he did. I became obsessed with reading Field and Stream articles and FLW publications trying to soak up knowledge that can truly only be gained by time on the water, of which I didn’t have much! I think since then, he’s bested me a few times on the water, but usually I come home with bragging rights for biggest fish. Who cares if he catches more little ones right?

When did you hear about swimbaits/ start fishing them?

I’ll never forget that 3:16 article in Field and Stream highlighting Mickey Ellis and the Armageddon, “The wrecking ball for big bass.” I don’t know if that was the first time I heard about them, but it stands out in my mind. I had seen some of the A.C. Plugs and M.S. Slammers and I believe I had a little 4” Castaic trout painted in baby bass that I used on a spinning rod at like 8 or 9 years old catching fish from the back of the boat. I distinctly remember that my dad and his fishing partner were shocked that I was catching fish behind them.

Do you only fish Swimbaits?

I did for a while but not any more. I tend to focus in on big fish presentations. So for me that typically means 3 different styles of baits: Frogs, Jigs (bladed, swim, punching, buzz bait, and spinnerbait) and Swimbaits.

 

How did you hear about Swimbait Underground? What is your favorite part about the website & the community?

I heard about Swimbait Underground through a member on Tackleunderground! It’s the bait maker’s version of SU. My favorite part of the community is the wisdom and knowledge from guys who have been fishing swimbaits since the 90’s. Those guys know what they’re talking about and people ought to listen carefully when they speak/ type.

(SU member @Delta_fisher feeding a Sly Glide to a Delta Striper)

How did you get into making baits?

I got into making my own baits because at 12 years old, I couldn’t afford to pay $20 for an AC plug that I wanted, so, I endeavored to make my own. Still have that little 5” thing. From there it progressed into more detailed baits like a 3pc trout wake then 3pc sinking swimmers and a few rats too. Everything I made was wooden, usually out of some old 2x4!

(From top left to bottom right are Clayton's oldest to newest creations)

Are you making baits full time?

At this time, yes. I am making baits full time. I have been making my own baits for 14 years now but it has only been around 2 years of full time.

What styles and variations of baits do you make? Which are your favorite to make? Most popular?

Oh man... I think if we’re including standard color patterns here we’re talking about 18 different glide baits. If we cut it down to just sink rates, maybe only 5 different standard baits? Not sure really. I’ve got quite a few different variations of just about every fish profile I make. I usually have some weird new thing to test out every time I go fishing. My favorite ones to make and paint are the large Replica Gill Glides. However, the smaller Replica Gills are the most popular.

What do you think separates you and your baits from others?

My goal starting out was never to make baits for the public. Sure, I thought it would be cool to sell baits one day but I only ever made them with myself in mind. One weird thing that I have done and have committed to doing is to only fish my own hard baits. I have never purchased or fished any other brand of swimbait. I’m a true DIY’er at heart. Of course that’s the hard way to do things and sure, I could have shortened the learning curve by buying a Deps or some other brand but the last thing I want to be accused of is copying someone else’s design. Along that same vain of thought, I decided that I would only ever make baits directly from an actual fish. Not easy. I knew that directly molding, not 3d scanning, a live fish would act as a safe guard for all those other bait makers who would quickly accuse me of copying their carved masterpiece. I used to laugh at many of the baits that claimed to be “anatomically correct” because, in my mind, they were just never close enough. Sure, paint can go a long way in those ultra clear situations but I’ve only ever made these things with fishing the Delta in mind anyway! White works just as well as a natural color scheme if not better sometimes here.

(SU Member @BigSlant using a Sly prototype and connecting with a 9lb 13oz largie on the Delta)

With that all said, I think what makes me different than many of the other bait makers is not how I make them or that I make them very detailed, I think the difference that I intended to bring to the industry was a removal of doubt that the bait being thrown wasn’t “realistic” enough. Through my journey of making and fishing these baits I would often see fish rush up to the bait only to reject it in the end. I think the advantage that throwing something realistic brings is the elimination of a lifelike presentation altogether in the fisherman’s mind. Throwing a bluegill glide that looks super good makes me think that I should be getting bit on every cast but some days it just doesn’t happen, which pushes me as an angler to look more closely at tide, weather, moon phase, barometric pressure and time of year, rather than feeling like my choices for the lures to throw are limited. To me, the proper conditions trump bait choice. If a fish around here is hungry, it’d probably eat whatever happened to swim in front of it.

Any plans for future baits or releases that you would like to share?

Many, many plans! I am working on 5 additional fish species and 5-6 variations of baits on currently offered fish species.

Anything additional that you would like to add?

I think the most important thing that we can do as anglers is fish with people who are better and more experienced than ourselves. The fastest way to learn how to target these big fish is to fish with someone who has been doing it longer than you’ve been alive. My bait design brain trust is very small and there isn’t a single person in it who hasn’t been fishing the Delta for under 30+ years. These are the guys I fish with a lot and find that I learn more when my mouth is shut and my ears are open. It seems like there’s a reason we have one mouth and two ears.

Thank you SU for giving me the opportunity to do this collaboration with you guys and I look forward to doing more in the future. I have enjoyed being a member since Jan, 2011!

Follow his Instagram & like his Facebook page to keep up with the lastest at Sly Guy Lures!

View full record

[danthefisherman]

Realism at its finest... can't quite beat fishing a bait molded from the real thing haha

Awesome work @Deltaman! Just gets better and better!

[bassbass]

Awesome

[chevro1et]

I hope to acquire on of his gill glides one day, beautiful craftsmanship and they obviously get the attention of the big girls

[bigpoppabass]

That was a good read, witj alot of good info. I thought it was going to be just a promo. 

[azsouth]

very nice

[Londonmitch]

Great write up and baits @Deltaman looking forward to sticking some on my SU Replica Gill

[kahai808]

Good read! Clayton makes awesome baits. Can’t wait to see what else he’s got in store

[jwafan]

these interviews are super insightful...keep them going

[Primus]

Nice job Swimbait Underground and Clayton Sly. The lipped Gill bait looks it would be a killer. I have 3 of the Glides, have only had for a month or so. I have not stuck any yet in the short time that I've put to fishing them, that said they have a lot of thump for a Glide bait and the paint job on these baits is stunning. Looking forward to putting in more time in with these baits. 

[Jesse74]

Great Article. Thanks for the insight. I'm always trying to listen, learn and absorb as much as i can.