# how many casts/fish per fly?



## ckamanao (Mar 20, 2010)

Here is a question for you dry fly guys. How many casts with a dry fly before you need to switch your fly out? Not because its not producing, but it isnt riding as high as it should be. Do you just put more floatant on or replace it and let it dry out some? Also, how many fish on one fly before you feel like you should tie a new one on and give the other some drying time?


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## GaryFish (Sep 7, 2007)

Never switched a fly to let it dry, or because fish have trashed it. To dry it, just a few false casts and you'll have it dry. Remember that as you false cast, that fly is moving at 50-60 mph through the air - which is a high power air dryer. You'll dry a fly faster this way than you ever will hanging it on your drying patch. Also, a little tattered, I've found, will catch more fish than a fresh and perfect fly. If that specific fly is producing, keep fishing it until you lose it, or it stops producing. Don't change it to dry it.

In fact, I had a single fly that I used to catch seven different species of fish in three different states. Not a pattern, but a single fly. It was incredibly chewed up after taking four species of trout, whitefish, large mouth bass, and it finally met its demise in the mouth of a bluegill. And the more tattered it got, the more fish it caught.


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## ckamanao (Mar 20, 2010)

yesterday was my first time flyfishing and I caught quite a few on the middle provo. but the fly went from tan to red because of the blood from the fish (one of the trout had the fly in its gills) I thought, with all the blood and mucous on it, that i should change out for another fly- i had two of the same. I just didnt know if it was all right or not. 
Do you ever put more floatant on the fly in the middle of fishing it?


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## GaryFish (Sep 7, 2007)

I'll reapply floatant sometimes. But the fish slime on there I actually think improves it. But that's just me. Fish will key in on the flies that are a bit crippled, or having a hard time getting out of the surface film because they are easier to get. So if you fly looks a little buggered up, or even off colored from the blood of some previous fish, don't sweat it. As long as it keeps working, keep fishing it.


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## flyguy7 (Sep 16, 2007)

IrFrogs Danny is your best friend. When you first tie a fly on you will want to apply a tiny amount of a gel based floatant such as loon Aquel. Make sure to apply VERY sparingly and rub it in. Once the fly becomes waterlogged, then you will use the frogs fanny. F.F. is a powdered dessicant. It is used to draw all the water out of the fly, while sticking to the existing Aquel and repelling water away from the individual fibers of the the fly. Be sure to use the brush to thoroughly work the water out of the fly. The more choppy the water, the more frequently you will need to apply the F.F..


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## RnF (Sep 25, 2007)

flyguy7 said:


> IrFrogs Danny is your best friend. When you first tie a fly on you will want to apply a tiny amount of a gel based floatant such as loon Aquel. Make sure to apply VERY sparingly and rub it in. Once the fly becomes waterlogged, then you will use the frogs fanny. F.F. is a powdered dessicant. It is used to draw all the water out of the fly, while sticking to the existing Aquel and repelling water away from the individual fibers of the the fly. Be sure to use the brush to thoroughly work the water out of the fly. The more choppy the water, the more frequently you will need to apply the F.F..


This method works great.

FYI, you can get the same stuff that is frog's fanny for a fraction of the cost. 3rd product down, it's called fumed silica. It's the same stuff. You can get one small container for 4 bucks at a fly shop, or you can get a quart for a dollar more at this site 

http://www.king-cart.com/cgi-bin/cart.c ... atch=exact


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## fyfcalls (Dec 13, 2008)

Frogs fanny works awesome, but I have found with picky fish to ditch the aquel and just spend a little more time working the FF into the fly with the brush. The reason behind this is because if you put both on the fly and set it in the water look at the oil and silicone rings coming off the fly in the water much like an oil slick. I have not found anyone else who can verify that the fish can see it but it seems to work for me especially on tiny drys. It works awesome on hoppers too, because it doesn't set the hopper too high in the water, if you kick a live hopper in the water look at how low they sit on top. They don't ride high like a rubber raft, so you need to be careful with some of the hoppers that have foam on them already. 

On changing flys you need to read the water as how the fish are hitting the surface, whether it is a very explosive splashy hit or are they just sipping the surface. You may have the right species of bug but just in the wrong form of its lifespan. Even if you are seeing for caddis on top but the fish are hitting the surface very hard and splashy they are actually feeding sub surface on caddis emergers. Look into some good fish behavior and aquatic insect books they can totally change the way you fish and your success. With colors especially streamers I will find an area where I know there are fish in (under cut banks, log jams, overhanging trees, etc) and I will throw streamers in different colors and styles and switch every 10 casts until I get a roll or a strike. Look at some of the stuff the Kelly Gallup uses and ties. He uses almost 100% streamers on the Madison and is very successful even when prolific hatches are going on.

Sorry for the long post and some of you may disagree with me but it seems to work for me. I am also the type of person that is open for critique so if any of you have any pointers off what I just said feel free (sorry for hijacking the post).


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## ckamanao (Mar 20, 2010)

at the time that i was fishing, i had an 18" brown clear 2 feet of water coming after my caddis on top. I had never seen this before or have even heard of it. It looked like a smaller version of one of those great whites going after the seal dummy that you see on the Discovery Channel. Needless to say, for my first "hesitant" outing, I am hooked for life. Now I just need to figure out the basics-I probably caught more bushes than fish.......


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## dartangion (Jul 2, 2008)

Well I have been fly fishing for 15+ years and you sounds better than me, I am cursed when it comes to the middle. I tried the caddis last Friday (as well as a hopper, nymphs and streamers) and didn't get so much as a bump. But good on ya for getting out and taking it to 'em! Oh and I second what the other guys said about not changing the fly, the more chewed up the better!


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