This is my go to bass fly . It sinks like a rock and you will need an 8wt to chuck it . It has about 30 wraps of lead under the estaz .
Below is how I like to fish it . (C&Ped from another site . )
It took me a long time to give up the spinning and casting gear, and when I did my daily numbers took a big drop. I was fishing the same water that had always been fruitful in the past. I was using the same colors that were my lucky / confidence colors , but the strikes were few and far between . When I made the conversion to fly gear I did it " all in " style. Not because I am an elitist or a fly snob , but for the sake of learning and because fly fishing was somewhat of an enigma to me. I had always owned a fly rod but was far from proficient with it. It saw the water once or twice a year , and It was more an an exercise in futility than anything but fishing .
Getting back on the point, I thought about exactly what has changed other than the method of casting . I was using bass flies that I bought from various places and a 6 wt with a bass tapper line. Still I was getting skunked more than not. That is until the day I caved. I was fishing with my normal fishing buddy(normal is not a good description of this guy but I’m trying to remain positive) . He was busting my nuts about catching one to his three or four and could not believe that I haven’t given up on the whole fly fishing thing yet. I can remember that exact moment in time, I said, " screw it ! " (I’m keeping it clean as well). he offered up the spinning rod as if he was the serpent in the garden . I accepted his offering , eagerly , almost lustfully I cast that quarter ounce lead headed , twister tail jig about a half mile. It was like being reunited with a lost love , and I was grinning ear to ear . Although . I felt as if I was cheating , and I had no one to answer to but myself.
That day was the best thing that ever happened to me as far as fly fishing goes. Turns out I saw the error of my lack luster fly fishing ways .
While I had my tryst with the spinning rod I noticed / remembered that with all the flies I had in my vest none of them were fit to use in the lower third of the water column(8-12 feet for this body of water) unless they were drifted and allowed to sink. Even then if you snap the rod in order to impart any kind of action they would rise faster than they would sink. This made for a slow or shallow presentation. Good sometimes , but Id rather fish deep and impart what ever speed the conditions deem necessary. Along with the lack of depth was the lack of vibration .
To remedy this problem I went to the local fly shop and asked some questions and looked at some of the tied flies. I could not find what I wanted until I started looking on line for big bass flies. I bought a few “meat whistles” and some other cone head things with a twister tail on them but none of them were as heavy or as big as I wanted so I went out and got a vise.
I have tied before , but it wasn’t pretty. I got a Cuda trekker and a basic tool kit and some fur and lead and about every other thing I could think of . All of this under the guise that I would save money on flies . Long story short I came up with a fly that looks like a tube/git-zit and sinks like a rock. Its basically a cone head estaz bugger with about 30 wraps of lead on the hook. Its heavy , has good movement and I can thump and bump with it.
The thumping comes from the need to create vibration in the fly. I want to treat the line like a guitar string and transfer the vibration down to the fly. In order to do this I need a heavy fly that serves as an anchor point. Or better stated something to jerk against. I achieve the thump by snapping the slack out of the line . Not pulling or dragging the line but a quick wrist snap that when the line is tight I stop the snap. The resulting feel is that of a loose guitar string a low pitched vibration that reverberates through the rod into your hand and gives you instant confidence . I am convinced that fish feel this technique.
The bumping is a more primitive and widely used technique .
most every body knows that bumping a crank bait along the bottom or smacking one against a stump will draw a strike. Bumping a fly is the same except the fly fisherman needs to be more conscientious about the structure than the average gear slinger. We need to understand the size of the rocks on the bottom . The consistency of the slime and the complexity of the fallen timber . Only once we completely understand the structure , can we try to capitalize on its fish holding capacity .
I fish mainly for smallies . This fact makes me a bit of a rip-rap rocky bottom nut. A " have rocks will fish " kind of guy. I’m not one for floating vegetation or flooded timber . So I’ll speak of what I have found to be true and leave the speculation and experimentation to you on your own fishing grounds.
When I bump the rocks I need to know the size of rocks. Big rocks allow for a long slide over the rock while a bunch of little rocks will force me to hop the fly. I like them both and a combination of the two is also welcome. The trick is to know the way they feel in the rod hand. Once you can tell the difference between the big rocks and the little stones you have it made.
Just think like a bait fish or crayfish.
The quarry of bass do several things to avoid being eaten. They camouflage themselves , they remain calm and no matter what , they try not to draw attention to themselves. A good pattern should do none of these things. I want my fly to stand out , quiver with the lightest of current and poof clouds of debris into the water. All to attract the attention of any fish passing by. Not only the bass but the little minnows and bugs. The point being if the little fish are looking the big fish will come to see whats going on. Then comes the strike !
While I know its nothing new to the bass fishing world , I figured Id put my thoughts out there for any one lookin for a new way to fly fish for bass .
