I guess that crickets on a flyrod are heresy sure enough. But boy, you talk about catching panfish on the bed! And it’s fun to fight them in on a light flyrod.
This is a good question, hadn’t thought about plastics for bass. Short tubes are also really big and small craw type products. They probably would handle better than a big plastic worm. Zoom makes a product called “horny toads” that was their biggest market intro in a while. It retrieves up close to the surface, and would be a stripping application with a flyrod.
The more I think about it, the more likely I am to try it. One of my gear fishing techniques on windy days is to drift with the wind and throw and unweighted lizard out and let it drift over the top of hydrilla. Bass dig it, and I like fighting them out of hydrilla, and I like being able to catch fish on tough, windy days. I REALLY like fighting a fish out of hydrilla with a flyrod.
Well Don, it worked pretty well. Fished for about 2hrs. Caught a bunch of fish. (I never track totals.)
Only two redears. One of those mas grande for this water, I’d say 2 pounds, maybe a little more. Very plump. The other just average size. I caught tons of 10 to 12 inch LMB. No big bass. As Buddy whould have predicted the bass hit the shad imitation on very fast strips and rod twitches. The redears both took essentially dead drifts. The blugill didn’t care. Fast or slow, they liked it a lot.
I am novice fly rod user but I like using a one inch grub with either a 1/16 or 1/32 jig head on light spinning tackle for smallies and pumpkinseed on small streams. The grub I like the best is called a slider and has a paddle tail instead of a curly. They seem to work much better than the curly tail version. The smaller jig size lets it sink slower. I cast upstream behind fall downs and the slow fall seems to draw the fish out of the cover. I would think securing a bead to the hook for fly fishing and glueing the grub on should produce the same effect or perhaps even better because the fall will even be slower. I know I will be giving it a try as soon as the ice is out here.
I think after reading this post and seeing a guy catch 30 trout (with a fly Rod and a piece of plastic) shorten plastic worm. This is a valid and popular method although not very often discussed.
What kills me though is that several catalogs advertise a fly called a gummy minnow. Which is nothing more than a molded plastic fly. If they can see it for $4.95 why can’t we do the same thing?
It could, indeed, be time for a blasphemous fly swap.
Island,
Excellent point but I know a number of fly fishermen who would fish the gummy minnow but never a plastic worm. Petty fine distinction as you point out. 8T
You had better learn to be a happy camper. You only get one try at this campground and it’s a real short camping season.
buildsrods, I would say it is the only way to deliver “micro” sized plastic flies. I know that with a 1/80 oz hook, I max out at about 15 ft with the wind, 5 ft against the wind using an ultralite spin rod. There just isn’t enough mass to pull out the line.
I tie a pattern using Cactus chenille that is very effective on LMB.Attach approx. 12" of cactus chenille to your rotary vice, anchor the other end. Turn vice until the chenille starts to kink.(be sure to turn the chenille so as to keep tightning the chenille, if you unwind the center thread you will have a pile of plastic pieces and a naked thread). Double the chenille. holding both ends it will twist upon itself. I prepare the hook ahead(weed guard dumbells eyes). Attach to the hook and finish.Chartruese, Black, and Purple have all worked for me.
I also have tied and fished the pattern that Coach Robb is talking about and it works well. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll start to think “what other materials could i do this with?”. I’ve used Krystal Flash and most every chennile out there. Come to think of it, mohair yarn might work amazingly well for it to.
I know i wasn’t asked, but here’s my technique. Requires a rotary vise.
Tie in 6-10" of the tail material. Reach across your body and grab the end of it with your right hand. Use your left hand to rotate the vise over and over. (you may find it easier to switch the position of your hands, but that’s your call) You’ll begin to feel the tail contract as it becomes increasingly twisted. Check to see if its twisted enough by moving the end of the tail towards the vise. If it twists up in the middle and forms a “t” shape, you’re done twisting, if not kepp going. once its sufficiently twisted, pull it back out straight. Use either your hand or the hook on a tying tool (like a single hook dubbing loop spinner) take hold of the tail at a spot slightly forward (toward the vise) of the middle. Holding that point out straight in line with the hook shank, bring the tail back to the hook. While securely holding that tail end to the hook, release the middle point, and watch the tail twist into a rope-type shape. Tie in the tag end onto the hook, and that’s basically it.
I think it differs from that stonefly in that there’s only one strand and you have to twist more. I have used this technique with multiple colors and sizes of chennile. (keep in mind the chennile is almost always the cactus/ice variety) Large black or purple chennile with medium chartreuse twisted together works really well on bass!
The fly with the twisted foam tail probably floats? The one with the twisted chenille is depending on how the rest of the hook is dressed has a real nice slow drop. I like fishing it at weed edges and in the pads with two or three quick little strips and than let it settle. The take is usually as it settles. Not an extremely durable fly but that just gives you the need to tie more. The wife doesn’t understand that when a dozen fly boxes are filled you don’t stop tying you buy more fly boxes!
