Why so many nymphs with black beads?

[castsN2trees]

As of late, it seems like more and more commercial nymphs are being tied with black beads? Why is this? Is there an advantage over bright beads ( nickel or brass)?

I’ve tried a number of flies that have black beads… they are really cool looking… but I haven’t had very good results… and I’m to the point of abandoning them.

I nymph a lot… it’s my go-to method…it’s really not that complicated…. And my hunch is that a lot of fish caught on nymphs were attached by the flashy bead…. So why replace it with a black bead?

Any insight is greatly appreciated…

Gratuitous nymph pics for any dry-fly-only guys

 

[SKYKO]

Super cool pics, nothing to add on bead color except your program seems to be working really well..

 

[Divad]

Came for the beads stayed for the amazing fish pictures all wet and cozy in the net

Instead of throwing them out you could raid the local Sallys/Ulta/Nail Salon for some colorful polish of your choosing. Or quickly scuff off the black?

 

[Zak]

I like gold beads. I think the trend of 'tactical' black beads is a look to catch fishermen. Though I have been known to use nickel black beads in stonefly nymphs.

 

[Pink Squirrel]

Ton Rosenbauer from Orvis is often credited with bringing beads to North America and popularizing them. He has for the last few years been advocating dark colored beads for heavily fished waters in the belief that pressured fish could have developed an aversion to bright beads. I have no idea if this is true or not but it is not impossible.
David

 

[Matt B]

I tend to go for the dark beads in Stillwater indicator situations. Just sitting there under a float in lake, it seems like fish can check their hair and teeth in a shiny bead, although they work, too.

Mostly, I want to hear about Chinook on a little nymph.

 

[Tom Butler]

This is interesting. This spring I started working up darker hare's ears with a black nickle bead and it worked well for a while. Now I'm back to the gold beads (and copper). For a period of time the darker colors worked best fished along the bottom. I did note that with the dark bead the fish were less likely to take on the induced take lift. Many fish come to the bright gold bead on the lift, and I suspect the bright metal beads may look like an air bubble in some fashion. I don't have much success with shiny nickel beads. I really don't know THE answer, just sharing some observations.

 

[Brian Miller]

Back in the last century (mid-1990s) the co-author of "Selective Trout"; Doug Swisher stated something like "Have you ever seen (live nymph) with a shiny gold head???"" A back to black movement is just a *new* cycle of discovery (for a while).

 

[FinLuver]

Black in the early season…bronze in the dog days.

 

[Chucker]

Ton Rosenbauer from Orvis is often credited with bringing beads to North America and popularizing them. He has for the last few years been advocating dark colored beads for heavily fished waters in the belief that pressured fish could have developed an aversion to bright beads. I have no idea if this is true or not but it is not impossible.
David

When I was in New Zealand (over 20 years ago), I was advised not to fish flies with gold beads on a particular, highly pressured, river. I was skeptical and did it anyway, and watched a number of fish spook as soon as the fly got anywhere near them. One so violently that it tailwalked its way down a rapid out of the pool. Switched to flies with no beads and started catching fish.

It was only one place, on one day, but I have fished fewer gold beads everywhere since then.

 

[Brute]

Black accessorizes with everything...

 

[Long_Rod_Silvers]

 

[castsN2trees]

Ton Rosenbauer from Orvis is often credited with bringing beads to North America and popularizing them. He has for the last few years been advocating dark colored beads for heavily fished waters in the belief that pressured fish could have developed an aversion to bright beads. I have no idea if this is true or not but it is not impossible.
David

That’s my assumption as well… it’s an effort to make the bead “disappear”… and look closer to a beadless nymph… so, you’d think it should fish as well or better in pressured situations… and equally in non pressured situations… but I have caught 0 fish on matte black beads… which maybe just means I’m the problem

 

[Buzzy]

I'm so old that I was fishing chironomids before beads were a known quantity; white ostrich herl was tied on the head of the fly (gills) with fuse wire to help it sink when needed. To the OP, you have it nailed: say goodbye to black beads, personally, I like having variety.

 

[castsN2trees]

I tend to go for the dark beads in Stillwater indicator situations. Just sitting there under a float in lake, it seems like fish can check their hair and teeth in a shiny bead, although they work, too.

Mostly, I want to hear about Chinook on a little nymph.

That makes sense… I don’t fish Stillwater, so I hadn’t considered that possibility…


The chinook… I was trout fishing a river in the early fall with my normal setup… a 3wt, with a dbl nymph rig on 6lb tippet…had not seen any signs of salmon and had no idea they’d entered the river…. I was fishing deep, 10ft or so below the bobber…so when the bobber dropped hard and the line didn’t give on the set, I figured it was the bottom… a second later I was seriously regretting using such light tippet…. The fish exploded… 3 runs to the far side of the river… and multiple jumps… all the way out the river… I pleaded with the fish to stay hooked, I sang to the fish, I reassured the fish that he’d go back safely and how good he’d look in photos… I did everything I could… but I don’t think I took a breath the how time… it was the exact same feeling as the first steelhead I fought…

Eventually, I landed him, took a couple quick pics and he swam off happy… and I laid flat on the bank, exhausted, but equally happy…

 

[Matt B]

That makes sense… I don’t fish Stillwater, so I hadn’t considered that possibility…


The chinook… I was trout fishing a river in the early fall with my normal setup… a 3wt, with a dbl nymph rig on 6lb tippet…had not seen any signs of salmon and had no idea they’d entered the river…. I was fishing deep, 10ft or so below the bobber…so when the bobber dropped hard and the line didn’t give on the set, I figured it was the bottom… a second later I was seriously regretting using such light tippet…. The fish exploded… 3 runs to the far side of the river… and multiple jumps… all the way out the river… I pleaded with the fish to stay hooked, I sang to the fish, I reassured the fish that he’d go back safely and how good he’d look in photos… I did everything I could… but I don’t think I took a breath the how time… it was the exact same feeling as the first steelhead I fought…

Eventually, I landed him, took a couple quick pics and he swam off happy… and I laid flat on the bank, exhausted, but equally happy…View attachment 77931

I've never thought to sing to a fish on the line before. I'll have to try that some time.

 

[SurfnFish]

been days I've painted over silver beads with black, as well as green, pink, red and...

 

[castsN2trees]

I've never thought to sing to a fish on the line before. I'll have to try that some time.

There are very few secrets in fly fishing… but this is one of them… it works great in large fish, and it is essential for carp fishing…. Carp like Dwight Yoakam songs, Whitefish prefer Hank Williams… Trout don’t seem to be too picky…so I mix it up…

 

[RCF]

It is a conspiracy I tell you! A conspiracy! Black beads is just another marketing ploy by manufacturers and retail establishments to get more money out of your pocket and have you fill up your supply box with various different sizes and shades of the them.

 

[Long_Rod_Silvers]

There are very few secrets in fly fishing… but this is one of them… it works great in large fish, and it is essential for carp fishing…. Carp like Dwight Yoakam songs, Whitefish prefer Hank Williams… Trout don’t seem to be too picky…so I mix it up…

What about bass? What do they like? Inquiring minds need to know.