Guaranteed Smallmouth Flies

[dabalone 0]

I hate it if someone guarantee's that I will catch fish, I know i've just been snakebitten and my as well stay home, lol.

[osprey 0]

Why is it that folks commonly use charteuse as a smallmouth color for Clousers, yet I've never seen anyone use or recommend (check the above postings, unless I missed something) chartreuse as a color for buggers? Nor have I ever seen any chartreuse buggers in a fly shop.

 

Both Clousers and buggers are critter patterns and both are subsurface, so a good color for one should be a good color for both -- there are no more live chartreuse minnows in the water than there are live chartreuse leeches.

 

I'm planning to tie up some Chartreuse buggers and have a go this season.

 

-- Paul

 

 

[Guest]

Osprey, I haven't tried chartruese buggers, but have had great results with chartruese maribu leeches. Never saw a leech that color in my life, though...

[Guest]

I know one or two local fly shops that carry Chartreuse Buggers. I keep several with me all the time because you never know when it's gonna be a good trigger. Some species do have a little Chartreuse in them. If you hold a Gizzard Shad up close and look at the area where the Olive of the back becomes Silver along the sides, you'll see quite a bit of diffuse Chartreuse.

 

Aside from Caddis nymphs and Inch worms, I can't think of any other bug with that color, although some Damsel nymphs are a very bright Emerald Green, which is pretty close.

 

I tie Clousers, Buggers and Zonkers in Chartreuse, and my latest version of the Chartreuse Zonker is insane. I found some holographic Silver mylar tubing, and when combined with the Chartreuse hair, you've got a streamer that can be seen from space! I haven't used them yet, but I'll report on whether or not they work for more than scaring small fish and children...

[dabalone 0]

Very good point, Chartreuse is really a go to color for all bass species out here including striper, and yet I have no chartreuse boogers in my box. Slap!

[Jeff K 0]

Wooly Bugger (any color!)

Sneaky Pete (topwater)

 

 

And I have a tie for 4th:

Clouser Minnow

Burbler

[Sean Juan 0]

I use

 

1). Brown/Orange Clouser

 

2). Chartruse wooly bugger - for tail and body generally use a black saddle hackle

 

3). Crease Fly without any epoxy so it will float and work like a popper

 

 

The crease fly will work in any color but I found that all yellow with blue spots works the balls. I was painting a few and my niece wanted to help so she made one with hearts on it and a rainbow one (which didn't work) but the yellow one with a ton of blue spots was dynamite.

[dadsgnat 0]

Number One Smallie Fly in clear waters is a Chartreuse Woolly Bugger, size to match your fish. Here it is 1/0 at the largest. Add legs and sparkle. If that's too flashy, go to Olive, no flash.

 

When the waters begin to muddy, go to browns, root beers and the like in the same size.

 

When the waters muddy more, go dark. Brown and black, forget the flash. More legs work, I think, because they make more noise. I've fished the crawfish patterns and they work well, but they don't seem to outfish the simple Bugger.

 

I fish the crawfish patterns more because I enjoy tying them more.

 

At dusk, however, tie Black Muddler Minnows or, better yet, black skaters in large and whisk them back from the bank. Big splash, lots of fun.

 

Except for the dusk strategy, add bead heads or shot to get flies to required depths.

 

Grin a lot.