Pete is at it again. Like I've stated many times before Pete Rosenau is one of the most knowledgable and talented fly tiers there are and he's continually pushing the envelope at Spawn both with material and fly design! We hope you enjoy this step by step and cant wait to see all the fish you get into using this pattern!
Articulated Simi Seal Jig Leech
"The Simi Seal Leech, born from John Rhomer, is one of the greatest fish catching patterns in existence. This variation simply involves adding some mallard flank for some subtle mottling and using a Spawn Micro 60* Jig Shank for that magical dancing movement fish love. Tie this fly in different sizes and colors to fit your waters. You’ll be glad you tied a dozen." -Pete
Material List:
Thread 2: Uni Thread Chartreuse 6/0
Tail: Fluorescent Hot Pink Mallard Flank
Hook Body: Spawn UV Pink Steel Simi Seal
Shank: Spawn Micro 60* Jig Shank
Bead: Hareline Mottled Tactical Slotted Tungsten Pink 5/32” (3.8mm)
Shank Body: Spawn Coastal Chartreuse Yellow Simi Seal
Collar: Fluorescent Chartreuse Mallard Flank
Step 1: Place your hook in the vise.
Step 2: Begin your thread on the hook and wrap back to just where the shank begins to bend. Come back toward the hook eye 2-3 wraps to be in position for tying in the tail feather.
Step 3: Select a mallard flank feather with fibers slightly longer than the hook shank. After gently brushing the fibers toward the base of the quill, trim a section for the tie in. This point is usually easy to find if you pay attention to where the fibers become more consistent in length which is also the same point the quill becomes a bit stronger.
Step 4: When tying in a feather to be wrapped it’s always easier to begin the wraps and keep your fly cleaner if you leave just a bit of bare quill. When you begin wrapping it will be easier to guide the fibers and not begin with strays getting trapped. Tie in the feather top (convex) side facing upward.
Step 5: As you begin wrapping any feather, it helps to wet the fibers with some water on your fingertips. They’ll be much easier to control. As you wrap the feather your off hand should be gently coaxing all the fibers to point toward the rear of the fly. For most of my mallard I like to wrap with the inside of the quill facing the hook shank. This leads to a sleeker look. Whatever your preference for where the quill is facing, once the fly is in the water it will be slicked down either way. For this example there are 5 wraps of the mallard. Tie down with 5 solid thread wraps and trim off the excess feather.
Step 6: Make a thread loop roughly 5 inches long. This will be longer than we need, but easier to wrap. Thinly pull out your UV Pink Steel Simi Seal fibers and lay them out in a ladder fashion. The key to a clean loop that lets the material do the work is to keep it sparse. The length of your pre stationed dubbing ladder should be about 3 inches. Carefully load that into your thread loop and spin away. Gently brush the spun loop to release the trapped fibers. Spin your dubbing spinner a few more times to reinforce anything fibers that may have come loose. Wrap the loop up the hook shank in touching wraps. With every wrap your off hand should be coaxing the fibers toward the rear of the fly.
Step 7: After wrapping to the hook eye, secure your dub loop with 3-4 solid wraps. Bring the dubbing loop thread back over itself and wrap down with 3-4 more solid thread wraps from your working thread. Make sure your tie off is clean and apply 2 whip finishes with 4-5 wraps per. Gently brush out the Simi Seal body and comb back toward the rear of the fly. Apply your cement of choice to the thread wraps and let dry.
Step 8: Before attaching the hook to your Spawn micro jig shank, slip on the slotted bead. Attach your tail section to the Spawn 60* micro jig shank with the hook point facing upward. Place the shank in the vise and add some .015 non lead wire wraps. This can be tricky in such a small space, but if you do it before tying down the shank you can slip some wraps underneath until you have roughly ten wraps. Push those wraps into the bead cavity and jam the bead to the hook eye. Trim the non lead wire so the shank arm will have room to be tied all the way down without interference from the wire.
Step 9: Begin your thread and fully secure both the shank arm and the wire wraps. After a couple passed of thread I apply a small amount of Loon Hard Head and then wrap over a few more passes.
Step 10: Repeat the same procedure as we did with the hook body. 3 inches of Coastal Chartreuse Simi Seal into the loop. 
Step 11: After wrapping your dubbing loop forward and tying off, you should have roughly 1/8th inch of room behind the bead which will hold our final ingredient. Again be sure to brush out your dub loop and comb the fibers toward the back. To control the Simi Seal fibers wet your fingertips in a cup of water and coax the fibers backward. This will keep them out of the way whilst wrapping your feather and also tying off the fly.
Step 12: For our final feather wrap we want a feather whose fibers reach to the hook point of out trailer. In this application we want the feather to add some mottling, but not cover our Simi Seal body completely. For this effect we simply remove the fibers from the left side of the quill if you’re looking at the convex side with the top of the feather facing up. Again make a neat tie in spot on your feather and tie in.
Step 13: Wrap your feather forward with touching wraps. When you reach the bead tie off and remove the excess feather. Make a clean and even neck and apply 2 whip finishes. Apply the cement of your choice and let dry.
Complete fly!
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