. I think weed guards actually help me catch more fish because I am not afraid to go for the perfect cast up against the reeds.I still avoid using weed guards at all on flies intended for use in open areas, primarily flies for smallmouth along rocky shorelines where I don’t worry about brush along the shore or aquatic weeds.
This.
Glad you've discovered how much fun it is!
I’ve been fishing within inches of Lilly pads mostly. Occasionally landing on one. Very interesting info! What you say does make sense about more hookups without a weedguards. In my early days of popper fishing I didn’t tie them with weedguards but started thinking I needed them. I’ve missed a few good fish lately on the double weed guard and was starting to wonder. Seems like fish explode on the popper from underneathGlad you've discovered how much fun it is!
And do you mean "within inches of the lily pads" or actually in the pads?
I've gone back & forth on this and for the lakes I fish (LG bass 10-18"), no guard definitely results in more hookups. There's absolutely no question in my mind. In fact, not hooking a nice 4 lb fish was the last straw that made my decision final. And that was on a fly that had a 30 or 40 lb looped type guard. And stiff double guards are too...well, stiff for most poppers. No way I'm even trying them.
So now I fish in the pads without weed guards. 2/0 is usually the biggest hook I use. 12 lb Maxima gets me off most pads. The smaller hooks require a bit more finesse.
I hook too many fish in basketball sized openings in the pads to avoid the pads. This often requires a quick, nearly violent lift out of there to avoid hooking a pad. Having said that, there's still times when you're gonna hook a pad. IMO, if you're not hooking pads, you're not bass fishing.
And it's always that last pad between you and the fish that you hook. Haha!
Also, all the big blowups I see on my lakes are always in the pads. Frogs, mice, damsels, dragons. They are all in and ON the pads. I've seen a bass nab a dragon fly off a pad.
I've had some mixed results fishing poppers with articulated hooks that point up like this one from Bream Bugs:
View attachment 82207
The only problem I can factually point to is a couple of deeply hooked fish. One probably died.
Do I think I've missed fish on these because of the hook position? I think so, but not completely convinced. The next 3 or 4 lber that I miss using it will probably seal the deal.
Good luck!
I'll be tying some bass bugs and smaller foam bodied bugs for bluegill this winter and would like to have some that are least weed resistant. Has anyone experimented with using material on the fly itself as a weedguard. Bucktail comes to mind. Or is that not stiff enough? I should mention that bulrushes and not lily pads are the obstacles where I fish.
The one with peacock is semiweedless, especially if I go slow through the weeds. The worm hook with bucktail is pretty much weedless.
Like this style? This one's weed resistant, anyway. And it works well - I've replaced the dragon tail a couple times now.
Nice!
Did you tie this? If so can you share the recipe?
I found these - didn’t tie. I keep meaning to learn to tie poppers, but have never done so. One cool thing about the pattern is the weighting. It lands hook side up every time and the profile looks really froggy. They are also very durable
