Recent Patterns

[jsb2l]

I am new to flytying and have been making your standard olive wooly buggers over and over, trying to perfect it. Does anyone out there have any color suggestions/combos? I have added some crystal flash to the tails to have some variation. Can I add painted/weighted eyes or other materials? I primarly fish for smallies in the Illinois, but am heading the the Pere Marquette the first week in Nov for steelhead.

Thanks in advance

[SmallieHunter]

Now here is something I know a little bit about

For Smallies you defiently want some of the following colors:

reddish brown to match the crawls
black to match the hellgramites
white for a baitfish pattern

I truly believe that wooly buggers are the ultimate smallie fly you can really experient with colors and sizes and just about anything you can create can really work.

Man I wish I could say I was heading to the PM for some steelies but the earliest I could possibly make it would be after Christmas due to conflicts at work.

Good luck with the buggers and take some pics of them!!!!

[jbrowning]

I tie mine in brown, black, olive and white. Now I have started experimenting using peacock herl for the body instead of the chenille. I use about 3 strands of peacock herl and twist them to make them stronger. Looks pretty cool to me.

Jim

[DFix]

When you say Brown, what brown do you mean? - Crayola, cinnamon, etc.?

[jbrowning]

The brown I use matches the camel thread that I tie it with.

Jim

[J. Johnson]

I think any brown can work, if you want to get close to the color of your local crayfish. You would need to study them in your local watershed to determine the color phases they go through.
I find a reddish brown and brownish orange work best in my areas.


Buggers are great to experiment with. You can make a bugger out of all most any type material.

I have some tied up with a dubbed body, some wrapped in estaz.
Dumbbell eyes tied clouser style to keep them from snagging the bottom.
I have also used dyed deer tail for the tailing. Instead of palmering hackle all the way up the body tie hackle in at the collar like a wet fly. So many ways to tie a bugger so little time.

Buggers

You mentioned you are new to tying, welcome! Learn proportions and get to understand a fly recipe.
From there, only let your imagination hold you back. Don't be conventional with patterns, often all it takes is to show them something different.

[Lunk]

I don't think there is a wrong way to tie a bugger. I've tied up some in my old school colors for fun - black chenile and hackle with a bright yellow tail - and smallies have hammered them. Who knows what they think it might be!

[Jim Hester in MD]

The various versions of buggers are all good flies for a variety of fish. For any fishing the colors already mentioned are probably the most popular, but for bass don't overlook some of the "standard" color combinations that the lure guys use. Colors or combinations like black & blue, purple, purple & blue, purple & black, red & black, chartreuse & white, orange, chartreuse & orange, orange & brown, etc, all still catch fish. Many of these won't be your "go to" type of flies, but having a few in your fly boxes may be the difference needed on some days.

Other versions of buggers that I like to use are tied with rabbit strip tails, soft hair tails, like squirrel, or Aussie Opossum tail, or fox, or ostrich herl.

As has already been said, there is no wrong way to tie them, and the possible material combinations are only limited to your imagination.

[jsb2l]

I like the idea of adding dumbell eyes clouser style. I have used some of these with success on the local rivers for smallies. Can someone kind of get me started on how to wrap the eye to the hook. Do you use thread or mono?

Thanks

[Jim Hester in MD]

When I tie on lead eyes I start my thread, then make a few wraps to establish a solid thread base, then place the eyes & make about 4-6 wraps across one way, then cross wrap, and alternate until I have them fairly tight and straight. I prefer to use Danville Flat Waxed Nylon, or Depth Ray Nylon for this type of tying, but any strong thread will work. On some of the smaller flies, like size 8 Bonefish patterns, where I may be using bead chain or 1/100 oz size lead eyes I may even use 6/0 thread.
I also usually use a drop of Pro's Soft Bait Glue to secure the eyes.

Don't try to get lead eyes too tight, especially with the smaller sizes. I've had a problem with them breaking occasionally.

Because I tie commercially a lot of my tying is done in assembly line steps, so I tie the eyes on as many hooks as I need before going to the next step.

I then do the gluing, then after the glue sets, proceed to the next step.

You'll be surprized at how fast you can complete several dozen flies tying in this manner.

[OSD]

A good bugger for Sleelhead/Salmon





OSD.

Attached File(s)

 rdf_brightsteelheadbugger.jpg ( 16.83K ) Number of downloads: 2

 

[Sawcat]

Hi OSD I was wondering what sizes you'd tie these red beauties for salmon and steelhead? Thanks, Eric

[Steelheader69]

Like others have said, SOOOOOO many combo's you can tie up. Great summer run buggers are orange/brown and the favorite all around is pure purple. BUT, have one bugger that seems to nail about every species that runs during the summer (summerrun steelhead, spring salmon, and trout/cutthroat). In fact, did a tutorial on this one. No lead added actually. I try not to weight them at all. I normally wet them down before I cast, then let them naturally flow with current. Have had alot better hookups that way.



That's my steelhead bugger. A good producer. Have even tied these on jigs for clients who only gear fish.

[wayne SW/MO]

I get my saddles out, my chenille out and use my imagination on Buggars. I don't think there is a bad combination.
I would take some egg flys to the PM. I also found, haven't been in a few years, that a little stealth was very important. We did better staying out of the water and approaching on our knees.

[FKROW]

My long time favorite for trout and smallmouth is dark olive body with black tail and hackle. The majority are tied on size 4 hooks.

Recently many local FF have reported excellent response to all white buggers.

Regards,
FK