Flashbacks, etc.

[PRM]

A question for you FAOL'ers in the Northeast (PA, NY, etc.)...My own experience has been that flashback-style nymphs, copper johns, and other subsurface trout flies with "flash" don't seem to work nearly as well here in the NorthEast as they do out West. What's your experience been? If "flashy" works for you, which patterns?

Thanks,
PRM

[flybugpa]

hare ears and ptns, thats about all sub surface flies i fish with flash, and all i use is Shane Stalcups material....cuz i like it.

[MidgeMadness]

I live in Maryland and have pretty good success with hares ears with gold flash for the wingcase instead of the traditional style. Never did have much success with copper johns.

Rodney

[owlman]

I fish in PA and have enjoyed the most success with a hares ear flashback; an olive flashback has worked on occasion. As for Cooper Johns, I have fished them on occasion but have not found them productive. That may be because I am not using them correctly.

[Greg H]

Last Friday in Ontario, Canada I caught two rainbows on a Lightnening Bug - thought it was the answer, then nothing. Switched to a Sawyer/Wulff grey nymph (NO FLASH) and caught 8 more. The day was sunny a bright and the water was clear. A couple or 3 more on a wet fly (dark/dull) variety. My buddies did not use flash either and caught about 12 each also.

[mahanvey]

Copper John's work with various timing down here in Texas... When the water is clear they will sometimes work below a hopper in the fall... if they aren't working a zebra midge will probably work in either red or black. If neither of those are working I go with a soft hackle (flashback or not) and swing them in the current... this will generally always get the bites.

[Grn Mt Man]

PRM,

When all else fails I like to use a black woolly bugger with about 4-6 strands of flash added to the tail and then twisted and wound up the body between the chenille wraps to the hook eye. Has worked on just about anything I've fished for including warm water fishies. Caught a nice "bugle mouth bass" once while bouncing one on the bottom. It's what my mother-in-law called a sucker or carp.

[NJTroutbum]

In PA/NJ I can count the number of fish I've caught on the Copper John on one hand in the past 10 years or so. A basic hares ear with a little pearl flash wingcase does very well though:^)

[Steven McGarthwaite]

Could be that the flash fly pattern work better when there is cloud cover, that dimishes the brightness of the flash material. In clear water, on a bright sunny day, there just maybe too much brightness. Just a thought! ~Parnelli

[alra195]

I've had great success fishing Black Copper Johns on streams in PA & WVA. Seems to be a great fly, especially for stocked fish. Black Copper Johns were the go to fly on a recent trip the South Central PA streams the first week of May. Bead Head Hares Ears and Pheasant Tails with flash have also been a very successful combo for me as well. I also do quite well on epoxy back nymphs, don't know that these qualify as flashbacks but the bubble over the wing case seems to work for me.