I had a chance to try out a heftier fly when I went tubing yesterday and got two bass on them in about 15 minutes - one on a black version and one on a white version:
Here’s the pattern:
/c/fly-patterns/5
I LOVE this fly!
Anyone else fish it? How are you doing the retrieve?
jimmadsen,
You are right… the Dahlburg Diver is a great fly and I have caught my share of bass with them. But eventually they start to retain water. Since I am not a great tier, (especially with “messy” deer hair) and hate throwing large soggy flies, I now use a foam version called the Stealth Bomber. I have fished it many ways. Sometimes making it dive with hard strips forming a bubble trail works best. Sometimes multiple short pops and gurgles work best. But, what ever the case, do not underestmate the pause. Most of my strikes come when the fly is sitting still. I fish in a heavyly fished lakes and I think the pause makes the fly very different than most of the spinning lures they see. The bass seem more willing to hit the fly when it is just sitting there looking “helpless”. I am not saying that the Stealth Bomber attracts more bass than the Dahlberg Diver, only that the Stealth Bomber is easier for me to tie and I can fish the same one all day. I am partial to yellow, black, and white. The link to tieing the Stealth Bomber is included below.
caribe
http://www.flyfishga.com/stealth_old_tie.htm
Nice! I dont use much dalbergs but I make plenty of the balsa wood diver without the collar and they work just as well. Put a intermediate line on and the action of the divers work much better.
Hey Caribe - I know what you mean about the dahlberg getting heavy - I love the pattern for the foam version. I haven’t had a chance to set up my bench yet (no basements in Oklahoma means there’s no easy place to put it) but as soon as I do I’m going t tie up a mess of them for both bluegill and bass.
Hey Fishdog - I’m with you one a heavier line - I use a 3x when casting my bass flies - just helps them lay out better - do you have a pic of the balsa wood diver you use?
This is a completely random question but I’m curious - doesn’t Oklahoma get frequented by house-raising tornadoes? 
One would think basements would be a necessary safety feature on any dwelling in such a location. LoL
Karli-Rae
Caribe -
Thanks for sharing that foam fly info! I LOVE tying with foam and this fly looks awesome! I am going to tie one right now!
Karli-Rae
Hey Kali-Rae - you’re absolutely right - Oklahoma is smack dab at ground zero for them - we have the NOAA forecasting building just a mile from the house.
This is the first place I’ve lived WITHOUT a basement. Growing up in Iowa they were standard and whenever the tornado sirens went off you knew where to go. I’ve always lived in a house that had a basement - regardless of the state. I’m just used to having some place to dive underground when the stuff really hits it.
But here in Oklahoma, the water table is pretty high (so they leak/flood) and a lot of times there’s a layer of limestone/sandstone after you get down 4 feet so they are a lot f work to dig.
So needless to say, it’s a little unsettling for me living here - especially since we’ve had two already this spring.
I tie my divers ‘bendback’ style… extremely weedless
That’s a GREAT way to tie it! Thanks for the idea…
