Rick Z’s post about Aluminum eyes got me thinking - always a dangerous thing.
Do you think eyes actually help the fly attract fish or FFers?
Do you prefer eyes that are proportional to the fly or bigger eyes that make the fish look more like a juvenile?
3D vs flat, any preference?
Any colors that you would NOT use for eyes?
Personally, I like using the doll eyes that can act as a rattle and I like big eyes. Not sure that they catch more fish, just my preference. Oh yeah, sometimes I just cyclops it and use one eye in the middle.
I think it depends upon the pattern.
On minnow type patterns AI think that it helps.
I don’t use them on most of my nymph patterns at I think they are counter-productive.
While I feel it is always dangerous to speculate why animals do what; I have read that eyes on a critter indicate the head area and observation as well as the potential for danger, (teeth) so predatory fish will attack from the rear.
So with that assumption in mind; an eye would add a realistic element to a fly of substance so for that reason I think that it can add to its effectiveness.
Besides; flies look cooler with eyes and coolness is about the only reason I need to add an element to my flies.
I don’t get hung up on size or color but I’m partial to a yellow, white and red iris in that order although I once made a “Drunk Deceiver” that had bloodshot eyes. I also mostly use dumbbell eyes or Eye Balz, not flat doll eyes. Durability is one thing I strive for in a fly and doll eyes don’t seem to stay put as well as dumbbell eyes for me.
Panman, you trying to give us few Oregonians a bad name? Wait, I’VE already, done that, never mind!
Raw; My “primary” use for eyes when I do use them, is to place all the weight I may want on a leach/bait fish pattern, say, “up front” so when retrieved the fly rises and falls, more like the leech it’s imitating. It also saves on putting lead or non-lead,wire, on the hook shank which will make the fly sink in a more “parallel fashion” which leeches just don’t swim in. Or, bait fish, for that matter.
“Colors”, depends on color of the fly and also on water clarity.
I actually spent one season (March till November) trying to determine if eyes on my minnow patterns added to their effectiveness or made it worse. Please keep in mind that I was fishing exclusively for LM bass. After one summer of switching between the same flies with or without eyes, the best I could determine is that if the fish are in an aggressive feeding mood, the eyes enhanced the effectiveness of the pattern. If the fish were in the mood to be a bit finicky where they would slide up behind the fly and maybe pump their jaws a couple of times to “taste” the water or just follow behind the fly, then the patterns with eyes were not as effective. So my definitive answer is “It depends.”
Occasionally, I am the voice of dissent. This is one of those times.
All last year, I fished a simple pine squirrel streamer ( sculpin / baitfish ) with no eyes, no weight and no flash. Browns, bows, cutts, cuttbows and brookies all took it aggressively and without hesitation ( guessing from the way they smacked it ).
I’ve also fished double bunnies and thunder creek style baitfish patterns without eyes, and don’t think that adversely affected the “catch rate,” which is a pretty difficult thing to assess.
Heard any number of discussions on this subject, and I usually seem to be in the minority, but I’d rather listen to the fish and be guided accordingly. Not saying streamers with eyes wouldn’t have done as well, maybe they would do better, but I’m all for simple and a “less is more” approach, given any consistent favorable reaction by the fish.
Paul makes an interesting point that mirrors my experience - baitfish don’t bob along, they swim a pretty level plane wherever they are in the water column ( or so it seems to me ). So I fish unweighted baitfish patterns off a sinking line with a short steady strip and let them keep an even keel.
I also mostly use dumbbell eyes or Eye Balz, not flat doll eyes. Durability is one thing I strive for in a fly and doll eyes don’t seem to stay put as well as dumbbell eyes for me.