Fishing - bonefish fly design challenge

FishingBanter (http://www.fishingbanter.com/index.php)

- Fly Fishing (http://www.fishingbanter.com/forumdisplay.php?f=6)

- - bonefish fly design challenge (http://www.fishingbanter.com/showthread.php?t=13888)

bonefish fly design challenge

On a recent trip to the Bahamas, I'm convinced I saw, at close range,
a world record bonefish: a panic stricken double digit bonefish swam
past me no more than 3 feet away, while being chased by another fish
that looked twice as big. At first I assumed it (the chaser) must
have been a big barracuda. But that fish came within 5 feet, saw me and
spooked. I got a good look at it in knee deep water. It was definately
a bonefish, and it looked twice the size the itty bitty 10-12 pounder.

This got me thinking about big bonefish, as you can imagine.
I found a Florida Marine Institute study on bonefish stomach contents.
Small bonefish, it turns out, eat mostly insects, various worms and
small shrimp. Big bonefish eat mostly bigger crabs--and toadfish.

Big (3-4" across) crab flies are hard to tie and nearly impossible to cast.
But a toadfish is essentially a sal****er sculpin. They (Toadfish) tend
to take on the color of their surroundings (tan to light olive).

So, if you want to catch a big bonefish, I think you have to fish
the ocean flats (not way back in the mangrove bight) and I think
you might want to try fishing with extra-large Toadfish flies.

But no such fly exists--unless it's a long tan Clouser maybe.
But a 4" Clouser would require a big, extra heavy, hard to cast
hook (if you put a 4" tail on a smaller hook, you get too many
short strikes, I think).

So there's the challenge. How do you design a long but lightweight
yet still fast-sinking and easy to cast sculpin (Toadfish) fly?

I've got one in the works, that I'll post links to eventually.
In the meantime I'd like to see or hear about anything anybody
else comes up with too.

bonefish fly design challenge

Salmo Bytes wrote:

Big (3-4" across) crab flies are hard to tie and nearly impossible to cast.
But a toadfish is essentially a sal****er sculpin. They (Toadfish) tend
to take on the color of their surroundings (tan to light olive).

So, if you want to catch a big bonefish, I think you have to fish
the ocean flats (not way back in the mangrove bight) and I think
you might want to try fishing with extra-large Toadfish flies.

But no such fly exists--unless it's a long tan Clouser maybe.
But a 4" Clouser would require a big, extra heavy, hard to cast
hook (if you put a 4" tail on a smaller hook, you get too many
short strikes, I think).

Having never used the setup myself, I can't vouch for its
effectiveness (or castability), but it seems to me that if you are
concerned about short-strikes, the simplest solution would be to just
add a second, trailing hook to your Clouser. Like what the
bassfisherbubbas call a "stinger hook".

Chuck Vance (or is that unethical?)

bonefish fly design challenge

Salmo Bytes wrote:
On a recent trip to the Bahamas, I'm convinced I saw, at close range,
a world record bonefish: a panic stricken double digit bonefish swam
past me no more than 3 feet away, while being chased by another fish
that looked twice as big. At first I assumed it (the chaser) must
have been a big barracuda. But that fish came within 5 feet, saw me and
spooked. I got a good look at it in knee deep water. It was definately
a bonefish, and it looked twice the size the itty bitty 10-12 pounder.

At Christmas Island there are fish called "milk fish" that look almost
exactly like bonefish (you really cannot tell the difference in the
water), but they get much bigger. They're impossible to catch.

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

bonefish fly design challenge

So there's the challenge. How do you design a long but lightweight
yet still fast-sinking and easy to cast sculpin (Toadfish) fly?

Variation on the wool headed sculpin. Sinks, castable, cheap materials,
fun to tie.
--
Frank Reid
Euthanize to reply