Hi everyone,
Found this article on Float & Fly fishing for winter smallmouth.
This could be the new cold water tournament tactic up here.
http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/float-n-fly.html
Found this article on Float & Fly fishing for winter smallmouth.
This could be the new cold water tournament tactic up here.
http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/float-n-fly.html
Ive been using this technique now for the past couple years. It can work pretty good in the cold water but i also had some decent luck in summer with it it, but using light weighted wacky rigged finesse worms and grubs. This time of the year the fish will usually be in deep water 20ft+ so it works better if you use a slip bober float and fly rig. I can give you more info on how to rig that if you'd like just let me know. It's funny you posted this now because i just got done rigging up 3 float and fly setups for tomorrow morning. Ill post if i make it out, have ta see how hard it's raining.
It took some discipline, the article was a little long but,I read it through....I like the book style breakdown he used, though and I think I may have used this style when I was younger and just didn't know it had a name...I REALLY like this and I like the fact he said to 'tweek it' to suit and experiment ...I'm somewhat DISTURBED by the thought of a 10'+ pole though ...I'm a short little dude and the thing would be twice as big as I am...I'm thinking 9' would be my limit and that's only because my striper poles have ALWAYS been 9'ers and I'm comfortable there...10 would be R I D I C U L O U S hahahahaa thanks for the link !
Really,this isn't an article its a novel!
I AGREE,he could have just written...tie a fly to a bobber...of course he does give some great tips for the style..it's a little "wordy"...And I f I'M saying that...thats somethin' haahhaha YUP..."tie a fly to a bobber"
...I'm somewhat DISTURBED by the thought of a 10'+ pole though ...I'm a short little dude and the thing would be twice as big as I am...I'm thinking 9' would be my limit and that's only because my striper poles have ALWAYS been 9'ers and I'm comfortable there...10 would be R I D I C U L O U S hahahahaa thanks for the link !
Don't come fishing with me bud...I use 12 foot rods for almost all my fishing and I don't wanna give you a complex
Don't come fishing with me bud...I use 12 foot rods for almost all my fishing and I don't wanna give you a complex [/q
I'd try it ...I'd might just be WATER SKIING behind a good sized fish ...hahahahaaa and if I hooked into one of those carp from your videos we could set up a ramp for a little DARE-DEVIL side show...
[/q
I'd try it ...I'd might just be WATER SKIING behind a good sized fish ...hahahahaaa and if I hooked into one of those carp from your videos we could set up a ramp for a little DARE-DEVIL side show...
Don't come fishing with me bud...I use 12 foot rods for almost all my fishing and I don't wanna give you a complex
I'd try it ...I'd might just be WATER SKIING behind a good sized fish ...hahahahaaa and if I hooked into one of those carp from your videos we could set up a ramp for a little DARE-DEVIL side show...
Can you bring shawnerome and u and the powder blue nija can make a vid. And borrow bever fevers head cam.
Dave if you fish on my boat next year i have a ski pylon. So if the fish aren't biting and everybody's bored you can put on a ski show?
How about on the ice this winter????? 
way to many words for me
I hear ya. I'm not gona read it again i know enough about it.
I doubt you nee a 12 ft rod. i would just use a light spinning rod cast at a 45.8 degree angle from boat and let drift to 46.2 degrees past the boat then repeat. OK, Maybe not exactly like that but you get the idea.
My buddy says his kids have caught more big fish with a wacky senko and a bobber than u would think. I'm gona have my kids try if someday but who knows?
I agree with everyone that the article is very dense and wordy. Below is my synopsis of what they author is trying to convey.
One of the key elements in float and fly fishing is, you guessed it, the Float. The author of this article is noteworthy for actually comparing and contrasting three different float rigging techniques: Bob's bobber, Nukol's 7/8 and the authors own adaptation the plastilite 1&1/4in. pear shaped bobber.
The Nukol's 7/8 is a two tone pear shaped plastic 7/8 in. spring lock bobber.
The Bob's bobber is a two tone pear shaped plastic 7/8 in. spring lock bobber with a 3 way swivel attached to the bottom spring lock.
The author's rig is a plastilite 1&1/4in. pear shaped spring lock bobber.
To make the float lay on its side a small weight is added to the top of the float. With the exception of the Bob's bobber, the floats have to be user modified to lay on their side using a weight. An alternative method is to use split shot above the float on the main line to make the float lay sideways.
Once the float is clipped onto the main line, about a 10 foot leader is attached to the float or the 3 way swivel. Tied to the end of the leader is a 1/16oz hair jig. (Alternatively, you can just tie the jig to a 4-6lb main line and set the float 10' above it.) The weight of the jig should make the float stand up.
This fixed float method imparts a dying bait fish type action to the hair jig as the float rises and falls with the wave action of the water.
The "controversy" regarding the various floats and rigging methods seems to be about the ease of setting lure depth and detecting a bite.
As might imagine casting a 1/16th oz hair jig on a 10' leader with a 7/8oz float above it is somewhat of a difficult task with a short stiff rod. Thus a longer and more limber rod is needed to not only cast the rig but to give you enough leverage to set the hook once the fish bites. A longer softer rod also allows you to play the fish using ultralight line.
One of the key elements in float and fly fishing is, you guessed it, the Float. The author of this article is noteworthy for actually comparing and contrasting three different float rigging techniques: Bob's bobber, Nukol's 7/8 and the authors own adaptation the plastilite 1&1/4in. pear shaped bobber.
The Nukol's 7/8 is a two tone pear shaped plastic 7/8 in. spring lock bobber.
The Bob's bobber is a two tone pear shaped plastic 7/8 in. spring lock bobber with a 3 way swivel attached to the bottom spring lock.
The author's rig is a plastilite 1&1/4in. pear shaped spring lock bobber.
To make the float lay on its side a small weight is added to the top of the float. With the exception of the Bob's bobber, the floats have to be user modified to lay on their side using a weight. An alternative method is to use split shot above the float on the main line to make the float lay sideways.
Once the float is clipped onto the main line, about a 10 foot leader is attached to the float or the 3 way swivel. Tied to the end of the leader is a 1/16oz hair jig. (Alternatively, you can just tie the jig to a 4-6lb main line and set the float 10' above it.) The weight of the jig should make the float stand up.
This fixed float method imparts a dying bait fish type action to the hair jig as the float rises and falls with the wave action of the water.
The "controversy" regarding the various floats and rigging methods seems to be about the ease of setting lure depth and detecting a bite.
As might imagine casting a 1/16th oz hair jig on a 10' leader with a 7/8oz float above it is somewhat of a difficult task with a short stiff rod. Thus a longer and more limber rod is needed to not only cast the rig but to give you enough leverage to set the hook once the fish bites. A longer softer rod also allows you to play the fish using ultralight line.