Never drink Vodka when tying Woolly Buggers

[Philly 0]

Maybe I should drink more of it when it comes to tying them.  I do fish them but the ones I catch fish on are at either in of the size spectrum.  The ones in between seldom work.  I catch fish on the ones I tie on size 14 to 18 4xl hook and ones that are 4 inches or longer.  The problem was I was tying the longer ones a size 2, 6xl hook and I was losing more fish, particularly jumping ones like smallmouth. I blamed the losses on the leverage the extra long hook gave the fish.  I decided to give articulated buggers a try this year.  The hook is a 1/0 Daiichi 2461 and the longest articulated shanks I had lying around wondering what to do with them.  I tied them in the three colors I've caught fish on.  They're not original patterns I've learned them from other folks.  They have names, in order of appearance, the White River Demon,  the Catskill Killer and the Chili Pepper.  They're messy, proportion is lacking.  They run 5 to 6 inches long.  Hopefully, they'll catch fish.

Of course if you continue drinking you might wind up seeing a pig fly

Disclaimer, I did not tie that.  I received it as a bonus in a warm water swap, I think on this board, somewhere between 2004 and 2010.

Time for a couple of shots, see if they bring the Road Runner flies into focus. 

[knotjoe 0]

Love the Porkchop fly🤣. Absolutely imperative that you catch at least one bass on it...just because.

Think the hook-up problems on smallies was due to them hitting the head of the fly?  I've always wondered this on longer streamers, seems the smaller fish are hard to hook and I think it's because they aim more for the head section on bigger baitfish patterns.  Kelly Galloup mentions this theory quite a bit with trout, never seems a problem with LM bass, but smallies have given me fits in the past with it.  Great big one's get hung fine, but a lot of misses on the smaller customers.

 

[Philly 0]

That fly is one of a kind.  I keep it in a clear plastic box where it keeps good company with a Patriot fly tied by Charlie Meck.  It's never going to see water.

I'm planning on using them in a couple of largemouth lakes up in the Poconos in mid-May, though the lake we're staying on also has smallmouth in it.  It's main test will be, assuming we get the green light to cross the border, in Northern  Ontario in late summer.  Last time up three years ago we were consistently catching 15 and 16 inch smallmouth.   I hate to disagree with Kelly Galloup, but many years ago my nephew, then 12 years old, were fishing minnows for smallmouth and rock bass in a feeder stream to a lake.  The stream and lake both have trout in them. We didn't get a hit on a minnow from a trout all day.  At the end of the day, we had about a dozen left.  They were on their last legs so I tossed them into the stream.  They were struggling on the surface and out of nowhere trout started blowing up on them, and the one thing that stood out was the trout were grabbing them in the middle of the body and taking them down.  I know eyes on streamers and baitfish patterns play a bigger role in salt water.  I'm not so sure they do in fresh water.  I put them on my baitfish patterns anyway, for a more realistic look, and on my streamers also.  I do tie most of my baitfish patterns on the Gamakatsu B10S stinger hook.

[jcozzz 0]

On 3/24/2021 at 5:52 PM, knotjoe said:

Love the Porkchop fly🤣. Absolutely imperative that you catch at least one bass on it...just because.

Think the hook-up problems on smallies was due to them hitting the head of the fly?  I've always wondered this on longer streamers, seems the smaller fish are hard to hook and I think it's because they aim more for the head section on bigger baitfish patterns.  Kelly Galloup mentions this theory quite a bit with trout, never seems a problem with LM bass, but smallies have given me fits in the past with it.  Great big one's get hung fine, but a lot of misses on the smaller customers.

 

Smallmouth seem to like to stun their prey,i watched a few 6" smallmouth trying to dislodge a big craytfish one time .They kept ramming into him as he fought with his claws.They finally made him swim out from under the log he was backed against.They ripped him shreds.I always try to let smallmouths hit it a couple times as i believe you are correct.I also have caught many when they delicately sipped a foam bug off the surface.They don't seem to just inhale anything that fits in their mouth like peed off largemouth does.

[TIER 0]

those flies don't look Russian enough. Drink more Vodka, comrade.

Dear FBI agent that's spying on me,

This is a joke, I have never drank Vodka before. Plz don't kick down my door.

Thank you, James

[Philly 0]

I guess I could add some red to them.  I'm half Ukrainian.  Close enough to drink Vodka.  100 proof is just a bit weak.  I just can't find the 150 proof stuff around here.

[SilverCreek 0]

10 hours ago, Philly said:

I guess I could add some red to them.  I'm half Ukrainian.  Close enough to drink Vodka.  100 proof is just a bit weak.  I just can't find the 150 proof stuff around here.

Since you are half Ukrainian, the math says 75 proof is what you should drink. 😃

[niveker 0]

I would think @Philly should increase the proof to make up the deficit