FLY TYING TIP - FOAM STRIKE INDICATORS - EOTG - November 1, 2010

FLY TYING TIP - FOAM STRIKE INDICATORS

I have been a fly-fishing guide for a long time and I cannot count the number of times I have been in a fly shop and looked at the jar of foam strike indicators setting by the cash register.*

Two things, no make that three things: 1. Very nice collection of patterns - love em. 2. You can get a life time supply of craft foam at places like Wally World for less than ten smackaroonies (dollars). 3. Why does anyone use a strike indicator like that foam thingy when you can use something that may catch you a fish - like A LARGE FLY??? I'm asking because I really just don't get it!

Best Regards, Dave S.

That is one of the most excellent and useful articles I've read lately. Very nice ideas for pattern, too. Good job and thanks, Bruce

nice article but all i'm seeing here is the addition of the word "indicator" before any foam pattern :confused:

Dave,

I'm with you on the foam. Getting foam from indicators that are already made for $1-$1.50 EACH when you can buy a whole sheet (the BIG 11X14 sheet) at the craft shop for ONE DOLLAR does not strike me as inexpensive. You are paying not just for the foam, but for the labor to cut it up, assemble it, and market it, plus the fly shops mark up. With a straight edge and a razor blade you can cut up a whole sheet in just few minutes. You'd get ten or more 'indicators' from one 'sheet' of material. Plus the added benefit of being able to cut the foam into the size strip you need...sometimes different uses require different widths.

All that being said, it is a way to get small strips of foam without any labor other than cutting off the 'O' ring. That may appeal to some. The industry likes it when we see a price tag of 'just a couple of bucks' and think it's a deal on ANY fly tying material.

As far as 'why' use an indicator rather than a 'large fly': There are times when it's either impractical or just not allowed. It's impractical when you need to change the location often. Most indicators attach so that they can be moved easily up and down the leader. Usually with some kind of looping or light clamping to the leader. It's not intended to hold tightly or to weaken the leader. When you tie on a fly, you usually don't want it to be able to slide. Knots are always the weak link, and avoiding extra ones (like tying in a fly and then tying to the bend/eye/loop/wherever for the dropper) when possible is always a good idea. Many folks are using light tippets with small midges under indicators...6x and 7x stuff isn't all that strong.

Also, if you are trying to support a lot of weight for fishing relatively deep, say over five feet, or in fast water, very few flies will support it. Then there's the whole visiblilty and sensitivity thing. The 'keys' to successful indicator fishing are visibility and strike detection. You have to be able to see it, and see it well, for it to work at all. Plus, you need to be able to 'read' your indicator. Not all strikes are 'indicated' by the indicator being pulled under the water. It can be, and often is, much more subtle than that. If the indicator is properly designed, how it floats can tell you several pieces of information about how your fly is drifting. A skilled indicator angler can detect very light strikes based on how the indicator moves or hesitates. This is predicated on using the same type of indicator over and over again to 'learn' it's tells.

You may also run into areas where the number of flies you can fish are regulated. If you feel you are better served with fishing the allowed number of flies near the bottom, using up one of them for the indicator might not be as productive. Trout don't always, or even mostly, feed on the surface.

There are times when the 'hopper-dropper' is very effective, but it's not somthing that works all the time.

Good Luck!

Buddy

I liked this article. It is interesting, informative, reasonably creative, and gives all of us something to think about and expand upon further if it suits our fishing/tying styles.

Buddy,

Thanks for the explanation. Personally, if I wanted to use a bobber or splitshot I would go back to using my spinning gear. I won't fly fish with any kind of weight (wrap-on lead or split shot) between my fly and my fly line. I will repeat myself and say again that you might as well use your spinning rod. What purpose does a fly rod serve in this instance other than to become an unwieldy mess and an abomination to cast. If you do not cast your fly rod ,why use one??? If your going to duck & chuck why not use mono? I see the application of the bead head or lead wrapped directly on the hook shank in the fly fishing process, but think it silly to put a "bobber" or splitshot any where else but on spinning gear.Is there no "line" of delineation between what constitutes fly fishing and spin fishing and if fly fishermen keep pushing this line too far into the spin fishermens realm will we give the spin fishermen the "ammo" to eliminate "fly fishing only" areas, because now there really is no difference??? Just asking! I know people like to push the envelope, but be careful what you ask for. Maybe I can put it this way - if your State has a Primative muzzleloader season, do you think people with In-Line muzzleloaders WITH SCOPES should be included? What say you about my rant? This should probably be over on the Sound Off Forum! LOL!!!

Best Regards, Dave S.

old fashioned paper cutter with the big arm blade. Any size foam, any width, from inches to mm. makes those foam patterns pretty easy.

as far as indicators vs not, do we have to go there again? Indicate if you feel the need, it's the fly that matters.

It was Rusty Gates who showed me how to tape sinle edged blades together with spacers to make zonker strips from rabbit hide. Looks to me that same thing would work on that foam.
Now for the the questions...

How about a how-to on making the indicators themselves? I don't have any to use as a model but I do have lots of foam sheets!
Is it true that some of the craft foam sheets like those at Michaels and such aren't truly closed-cell foam and thus take on water?

Jackster,

Some of the foam sheets you see at Michaels and other craft stores, and especially those smaller sheets you see at fly shops, while labeled 'closed cell' (and even though they probably are technically so) can absorb water. I found this out from experience. I'm not sure if it's the cutting of it, or what, but they can become waterlogged over time.

Easy fix, though. I just dip them in waterproofer (same stuff I use for dry flies and deer hair bugs) when the body/indicator/fly/whatever is complete. Just to be sure. If you are going to paint/seal the outer surface, as on a painted popper or hooper or such, then it doesn't need the WP treatment.

As to 'making' foam indicators. Those foam strip indicators that inspired this article are poor examples and, frankly, if you want that type of indicator you'd be better served with poly yarn.

But if you really want some, they are easy to make. Buy a couple of foam sheets and some 'O' rings. Get good sized rings, that makes it easier to get the foam strips through them. About 5/16-3/8 id is about right. Cut the foam into 1/8 inch strips. Cut the strips into four inch lengths (or whatever 1/4 of the total sheet length is). You need them sort of long so that you can hold/stretch them easily. Gather together twenty strips (more or less depending on the size indicator you want-play with it until you like the bouyancy). Use whatever color or combination of colors you like.

Load your bobbin with some strong thread. I always used C & C Bobbin thread when I made these. Thread the strips of foam through the 'O' ring.

Place one edge of the 'O' ring into your vise and clamp the laws on it. Fold the foam strips around one edge of the ring. Even the tips of the foam strips and pull them tightly away from the vise. This will stretch the 'O' ring and should also flatten and compress the foam strips where they wrap around the ring. The tricky part is now you have to maintatin the tension and get some tight thread wraps onto the foam right where it intersects the ring. (If you are seious about making a bunch of these, you can build a tool to hold the strips stretched out while you wrap them with the thread). Once you get the thread started to where the foam won't slip, you can let go and finish wrapping some thread to lock the foam in place and flare it. A 1/8 inch tight thread collar is about right. Whip finish and use head cement on the thread.

Trim the foam to the length you want.

Make sure the cement is completely cured. Waterproof it.

You can also make laminated foam indicators by glueing sheets of foam together, punching out cylinders from it, and shaping them into a cone. These are higher floating and will give you an easier indicator to 'read'. They do require the use of glues and some tooling to accomplish.

Good Luck!

Buddy

Thank you, Buddy!

I have made hundreds of the indicators shown to give away at Exhibitions and Conclaves. They work best in fast moving water where a Stimulator (or similar) large fly indicator may get swamped by the ripples. If you have to use a lot of weight to compensate for the flow, you will also be glad for a large indicator. Unfortunately, they are prone to wiggle a lot in the water which makes detecting subtle strikes difficult.
As for effecting casting, I really don't like the thingamabobbers because they are expensive, they can put a hesitation in laying down a cast, and i can do the same with a lighter weight plug of foam cutout with a hollow punch. Cut the plug, burn a hole crossways with a hot bodkin, thread a loop through the hole and voila!
Foam indicators as show in the photo are easy to make and probably cost about a nickle each. Cut the foam into long tiny strips with a table top paper cutter. Now you need a pair of forceps. Put an "O" ring on the forceps before you open then. Open them and grasp however many strands of the foam you want in the indicator. Bring the ring off the forceps to the middle of the strips. Now put another "O" ring on the forceps. Grasp the foam strips at the "O" ring you have on them and pull the new "O" ring over the strips, folding them around the first "O" ring. That's it.
The hardest part was finding the gasket "O" rings (and, sorry, I've lost the selle's addressr) which come by the thousand -- so you really only need to order once.

Was it an article by Ray Bergman, John Alden Knight, or A.J. McLane where I first read about using a large bushy Bivisible as an indicator? It seem like multi-fly rigs have been around for a long time. In fishing many believe that two hooks are better than one no matter what tackle is used. Some believe in even more hooks though I have had my best luck with single fly rigs.

It was refreshing to see this old tip reincarnated in the 21st century with 21st century materials. What is really changing here is the fly, which was traditionally fur and feathers. Today you can fill your vest with creations made of materials grown only in test tubes.

Better fly fishing through chemistry!