# Best fly for bass?



## DrewJ (Apr 2, 2009)

Just trying to learn here. What flies work best for bass?

Thanks,
Drew J.


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## Dogsled (Feb 4, 2009)

I've been fishing Little Beaver and have been using wooly buggers (all colors) No success but I haven't seen any others catch anything either. I did one day with just Zonkers and no luck, but I think I'm gonna try tandems with a Clouser as a dropper and a big fly as the indicator, a bass should hit on either It seems like it will work on the Beaver (at least to me). I'm beginning to think they'll hit anything if it goes past their nose, I just can't find their noses  Where are you fishing at?


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## TheCream (Mar 19, 2009)

Dogsled said:


> I've been fishing Little Beaver and have been using wooly buggers (all colors) No success but I haven't seen any others catch anything either. I did one day with just Zonkers and no luck, but I think I'm gonna try tandems with a Clouser as a dropper and a big fly as the indicator, a bass should hit on either It seems like it will work on the Beaver (at least to me). I'm beginning to think they'll hit anything if it goes past their nose, I just can't find their noses  Where are you fishing at?


A tandem with those 2 flies, a clouser and a floating fly big enough to float with a clouser off the back, would be a lot of weight to chuck! 

I catch pond bass on Dahlberg Divers fairly often, I have tied a few in the past. I've also caught bass on what I call a hair worm, basically a 4" zonker strip on a streamer hook with brass dumbbell eyes, very simple fly. I have some of those I tied in purple and olive, and caught bass on both of them. They actually get pretty good action. I've caught bass on buggers and other streamers, too.


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## big_fish (Dec 21, 2004)

what type of bass are you after for smallmouth I like to have clousers in grey over white,chart. over white and brown over orange ,wooly buggers I have black,olive,light olive and white with a few odd colors in the box I don't do much nymph fishing but I have some stoneflies in there also I have a few creyfish patterns that I'm trying but haven't done much good to date. I have a few bunny flies different patterns and colors I havn't messed much with them in the past so this is the first year.for top water I have terrestials,deer hair poppers and divers and sliders in to many colors to mention (I love spinning and stacking deer hair) large mouth is about the same but maybe just larger but if you chase strippers I like to have large streamers like leftys decievers and the such for all bass I have hard body poppers that I tie and paint hope this helps you


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## Dogsled (Feb 4, 2009)

My tandem experience so far has used a beadhead prince nymph as a dropper so that's pretty light. I never gave a thought to the weight, thanks.
I've only used a foam chernbyl ant (yellow/black) as my floater cause I can see it with the yellow and it'll float a horse. 
It gets awful confusing fishing a creek for bass because most creek fishing info is geared for trout, technique and flies. Maybe i'll give the zonkers another try with some foam indicators. my problem is that in fast moving water and alot oftrees and logs I get in to deep too fast and hang up. I really like clousers and have really little snagging and hang up in wooded water as far as moving downstream fast goes.
I didn't like the action I got out of the Zonkers in a fast moving stream but to me a zonker with eyes is a clouser....am I mistaken. or is the name thing semantics.
your last line that you've caught bass on streamers and woolys verifies my statement that if the bug is in the right place at the right time..BAM
I did run into a heavy tandem last year when I was first trying them and couldn't figure out what the hack was wrong, thanks for reminding me I have to be thinking of that when planning combination.


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## flyman (Aug 9, 2007)

for me the good ole wooly bugger works every time for smallies, just have to make sure it gets in their face. also tried clousers, dahlberg divers, but not enough to warrant success. colors would be olive, black(!!!), orange/brown. try to mimic lures or bait you would use, like crawfish or tubes. hence the lures can get bulky. for largemouths i haven't caught enough to give advice


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## ohiotuber (Apr 15, 2004)

I do very well with a simple (has to be, given my lousy tying skills!) bunny strip.
I use a 2/0 or 3/0 circle hook & tie off about a 4" to 6" black bunny strip at the bend of the hook & also a red bunny strip at the same point. I simply wrap the red strip to a point below the hook eye, build a head (red thread), whip finish, dab a little head cement (clear Sally H Hard as Nails). I weight this fly with maybe 2-3 turns of .020 lead wire so it sinks VERY slowly & naturally. I like to just "twitch" my rod tip & that bunny really comes to life. It's a GREAT shallow water fly.
Mike


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## Dogsled (Feb 4, 2009)

TheCream said:


> A tandem with those 2 flies, a clouser and a floating fly big enough to float with a clouser off the back, would be a lot of weight to chuck!
> 
> I catch pond bass on Dahlberg Divers fairly often, I have tied a few in the past. I've also caught bass on what I call a hair worm, basically a 4" zonker strip on a streamer hook with brass dumbbell eyes, very simple fly. I have some of those I tied in purple and olive, and caught bass on both of them. They actually get pretty good action. I've caught bass on buggers and other streamers, too.


Cream, I was out yesterday and tried the big dry and a small clouser and it worked ok. I wasn't going for a lot of distance and worked the current.
I think had I tried for a few false casts the weight may have affected it. I didn't fish long enough for any results because of rain but it did keep my clouser up where I wanted it.

Thank goodness the weather is warming up and I can get out of these creeks and back into the lakes where I can fish for crappie. The creeks are good for practice for control and casting though.


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## Patricio (Feb 2, 2007)

the Whitlock Fruit Cocktail. 










when fishing subsurface, any crayfish imitation will do. but for me, bass means topwater.


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## wader (Dec 9, 2004)

I landed a good LM out of a local pond last week on a #6 bead head olive bugger. I picked up a couple of black Rainy's Tsunamis in Cabela's bargain cave recently and can't wait to hit the pond with those at last light when it warms up.


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## steelheader007 (Apr 8, 2004)

any sparsely tyed fly!


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## Fishaholic69 (Apr 6, 2007)

clousers like said above in basic colors. olive/white, grey/white, chart/white,blue/white, red/white and all white and all black work good. also wooley buggers in black,brown and olive. bunny leeches in white,black and olive also. can also try top water stuff like deer hair mice and poppers


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## chuckyp (Oct 23, 2007)

I've had success with poppers all different colors. 

Also I tie zonkers slightly different and have caught both smallies and large mouths with them. I tie in a tail approximately 2" hanging off the end. Then wrap the zonker strip up towards the eye palmering it. Then I just tie off, I've also played with putting bead heads on the front for faster water but I usually fish ponds.


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## Wild One (Jul 3, 2008)

I fish 2 fly rigs all the time for any species. Just because you're using a point fly and a dropper doesn't mean you have to use a floating fly and a sinking fly (i.e chernobyl ant & prince). I use tandem streamers all the time and have great success. Or, I'll throw on a big streamer as a point and a nymph as the dropper. Putting the heavier fly on as the dropper defeats the point of fishing tandem streamers because the heavier fly will drag the smaller fly into an unnatural motion. Fish with the heavier fly as the point fly.

You don't need indicators fishing this way because you fish by feel. Believe me, you'll feel the strikes whether you're in a stream or on stillwater! Forget about the indicators unless you're trying to dead drift them like a dry fly. 

Stick with the before mentioned streamers and top-water stuff and you'll catch what you're after. Just make it look either wounded or scared and you'll likely entice a strike.


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## Shortdrift (Apr 5, 2004)

For all around I used a muddler minnow in various sizes. Fish it floating, semi submerged or as a streamer using split shot. Worked most of the time but there were exceptions when a nymph or true popper would work better. Always started with the bugger and often never changed.


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## Flyfish Dog (Nov 6, 2007)

Cant go wrong with Poppers for topwater and any larger baitfish imitating patterns! Topwater that worked wonderfully for any bass has been the deer hair mouse pattern thrown along the bank then quickly short stripping! You can use a small lightweight that is unweighted minnow pattern behind a large #4 popper with ease. Knowing what to do to catch big bass is key cause I know!


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## Paul W (Apr 12, 2009)

For a topwater I really like a diver type pattern, like a Dahlberg Diver or Snook-a-roo. Subsurface, a large wooly bugger or puglusi EP fly in a shad, or sunfish pattern works very well. 

Capt Paul


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## Live2Fish (Apr 7, 2004)

Subsurface - wooley buggers, clousers, streamers with propeller blades or using a jig spinner and mini spoons

Surface - cooper bugs, gurgglers and marabou muddlers

There are a few others I use also but the above are my most consistant.


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