Strike Indicators (FLOATS) for warm water fishing....

[Buddy Sanders]

Since Hungntree didn't specify on his post whether or not he was asking about 'strike indicators' for warm water, or just in general, he got lots of responses about indicators for trout fishing in rivers.

Since there IS a huge difference, I wanted to address it for the warmwater lake bass and panfish fisherman, rather than the moving water guys.

Warmwater forum here, remember...(you river trout guys go away!!! ).

(trout nymphing in a river with an indicator is easy...current makes most of the finesse out of it..just watch the thing and if it drops, you got bit...so which indicator you use is personal preference-ALL of them work just fine, as does using 'none'.)

For strike indicators for fishing for bass and panfish, the 'requirements' are a bit different than what you may need for trout...first, you can't get the same presentation by not using an indicator than you can with one. Unlike trout fishing in rivers, where some folks believe that being able to nymph without using an indicator is some kind of 'I'm better than you thing', in warmwater, not knowing how to do this properly severly limits your fishing. You can't catch the 'same fish' without a float.

I am talking about using a float, or indicator if you prefer, for DEPTH CONTROL. That's different from just hanging a trailing fly off the back of a topwater bug or fly...nothing wrong with that, popper/dropper is deadly for bass and panfish in the summer, but it's not the same thing.

Indicators are a tool, and they have properties that make them desirable or not depending on where you fish and how you fish.

For warmwater indicators:

They have to be able to hold up heavier flies..some with lead dumbell eyes...yarn won't do it, neither will the cute little foam circles or 'putty' stuff...all of these are for trout nymphing...doesn't much matter as long as you can see them for that. Cork, foam, or balsa will work.

You need to see them, often in waves, so color is important. I prefer black and bright yellow, but chartruese, orange, whichever YOU can see is the always the way to go...if you can't see it EASILY, you are not going to catch many fish with it.

Sometimes you need LOTS of tippet under the indicator. One that will come loose and slide down the line at the hook set is helpful when fishing twenty or thrity feet deep.

'Sensitivity' is a buzzword that translates to: "I don't know what I'm doing and if the indicator doesn't sink out of sight I'm clueless". For warm water, it doesn't mean that the thing is small and sinks easily. If you can see and cast the indicator, BIGGER IS BETTER...fish don't 'see' these, it won't 'spook' them, and the ability to sense movement on a larger object bouncing on the water is easier than with a tiny one. A larger indicator has more bouyancy. When the fish pulls on it, it resists, getting the hook positioned properly for the hookset (no, the fish won't 'care'...bass guys down in Florida use balloons blown up to six inches in diameter, and the fish don't care).

Round indicators are giving up too much. Can't tell anything other than up and down with them. If your tippet changes direction, a round indicator won't let you know. Indicators should be cylindrical, or at least have a 'barrell' or protrusion on top that 'points' the direction of the line. This is helpful, especially on light striking fish. By the way, for any such things to work, you have to use enough weight to properly load the float. Too little weight is usually worse than too much.

The 'longer' you can make an indicator, and still be able to cast it, the better. The fishermen who have taken light tackle float fishing to an art form tend to use very light and bouyant balsa floats with long 'arms'..these aren't there for looks, they 'tell' the angler things. A long indicator will 'lay flat' on the water if the fish takes the fly while coming upwards, thus removing the weight from the indicator. Fly fishing indicators don't need to be very long, either. An inch, inch and a half indicator will do this well.

I use two types, both home made and both made from foam (see attached thumbnails). One has a loop of rubber out the bottom, and the other has a hole through it and I 'peg' it into place with a piece of hollow 'Q-tip' tube that's also on the line. This will 'come free' at the hook set and slide down to the weight or fly.

The one that 'loops' onto the leader does leave a 'kink' in the leader...I'm not sure what the problem is with this, as a strong pull on the leader removes it instantly.....I use this for fishing up to around ten to twelve feet deep. I use the 'releasing' indicator when I fish deeper than that.

This is a deadly technique for bass, especially in cooler water. Tie flies on jig hooks so they hang properly, and just let the wind/wave action do it's thing. Take can be light, so you need to pay attention and give a gentle lift each time you see the indicator bobble any (or lift up, which happens more than you'd think). If there is a fish, the indicator will dive, and you can set the hook.

Same thing for BIG bluegills in the winter months. A couple of nymphs with enough weight to take them down, and with this technique you can fish slow enough, and with positive depth control, to interest the bigger fish.

There is an art to using a float in warmwater that is just as worthy of mastering as learning to mend or work a topwater bait.

Buddy

P.s; I use the same 'indicators' for stillwater trout fishing, and for when an indicator is called for in a river...fish don't seem to care. BS.