Does anyone tie in weed gaurds to their flies?

[Rob G]

Just curious if anyone ties in either single or double 20 lb. mono weed guards to their flies, and if so, do you feel you lose more hook ups, or in other words is it fishless as well as weedless?

 

Singles I've tied but this video shows a double that is kind of neat, anyone ever use both and can tell a difference?

 

http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to-tie-weed-guards-saltwater-fly-fishing-flies-176862/

[Guest rich mc]

i do a single weedguard on my chenille frog. i have also tied some on pre wired weedless hooks but they are mucho expensive . one of the benefitsof the jig type hooks is the material and andgle of teh hook eye help in making flies weedless. on clousres i tye a buklier head and epoxy or glue enough to fill the gap by the lead eyes . rich

[Mike G]

I do a lot of single mono weed guards. A while back, after watching that same video, I did a fly with a double guard as shown in the video. The double guard eliminates the problem of centering the guard over the hook point. Maybe it protects better. Because I was concerned that double 20# would be too stiff I used 12# so that I got 24# (12+12) equivalent. I was planning to do this more this year and try some light stainless wire that I have had for a long time.

 

As for how that double guard works, you would have to ask Rich since I gave the fly to him.

 

I guess you always give up something in hookups with a weed guard. But it is a tradeoff you have to make in snaggy weedy waters.

[Guest]

I use both double # 20 or #16 mono weedguards and pre-formed wire weed guards on my Georgia Bullfrawgs and Receding Hare Worms. I'm not sure how the video ties them but the way I do the double is extremely snag proof while not fish proof. I can say the same for the wire guards. I have found that the single mono loop is the the one that gets in the way of hook penetration by being directly in line with the hook point. My weed guards are as good as anything on conventional tackle. I can come cleanly thru any weeds, logs or rocks without fear of hanging up. Only slime weed still gets you all messed up. Bend back flies or stiff bucktail wings only make a fly weed "resistant' but not weed proof. If you intend on putting your fly IN the weeds not around the weeds, you need the double or metal weed guards, they work.

[bjensen]

I've used single weed guards on most of my Murdich Minnows and top-water stuff. This double is interesting and I'm going to start using it. I finish mine off a little differently, though. Rather than trim the mono to length, flatten, then tie in, I pass the mono thru the eye, tie it down behind the eye, glue with super glue, and trim mono off on opposite side of eye. Then I heat my bodkin with a lighter and burn thru the eye melting the mono. This clears the eye and makes the end of the mono flared so it can't pull back thru the thread tie-down point.

 

Brian

[Mike Flyrodder Miller]

I use both double # 20 or #16 mono weedguards and pre-formed wire weed guards on my Georgia Bullfrawgs and Receding Hare Worms. I'm not sure how the video ties them but the way I do the double is extremely snag proof while not fish proof. I can say the same for the wire guards. I have found that the single mono loop is the the one that gets in the way of hook penetration by being directly in line with the hook point. My weed guards are as good as anything on conventional tackle. I can come cleanly thru any weeds, logs or rocks without fear of hanging up. Only slime weed still gets you all messed up. Bend back flies or stiff bucktail wings only make a fly weed "resistant' but not weed proof. If you intend on putting your fly IN the weeds not around the weeds, you need the double or metal weed guards, they work.

 

 

IF I use a weed guard, my preference is the double D weed guard described since in protects the hook in all directions-even from the side. I go lighter on the mono on lighter flies since the weight of the fly isn't enough to cause deflection of the mono. I've used as light as 10 pound, but like to stay somewhere between 12 and 15 pound test. I've had no problems with hanging up in the weeds except the slime like Craig mentions. And the softer mono assures that you don't loose a fish to deflection on a light take. I love that weed guard, but I don't tie it quite as far down on the hook bend as the video shows.

[Guest]

Again, let me state that I haven't seen this tying video. Mike states that he doesn't tie the weed guard as far down the shank as in the video. I don't know where that point is, not seeing the video but I tie mine about half way around the hook bend. This really keeps the guard in place when encountering heavy cover that may drag on the guard causing it to be moved out of place. I have found that upon hookset, this guard will fold back on its self allowing for full use of the entire hook gap, not just up to the tie in point. I like my double weed guards to act like sled skis (flaired out slightly sideways)keeping the fly upright if resting on the bottom of the lake not allowing the fly to fall over. There is probably 3/4" distance between my two guards with the hook point in the middle about a 1/4" lower than the guards.

[Stuart_Van_Dorn]

I've been using wire weed guards that Bill Schearer uses on his musky,pike and bass flies and they work well. I have used a number of methods of weed guards from the double mono, standard single which I tie with 12# mono, as well as the mono loop. Last summer I tied flies that use a strip of foam with a slot cut into it that the hook is slid into. Tullis is the guy that came up this type of weedless fly and for some reason I can remember his first name. He ties a weedless wooly bugger on a standard worm hook, this is a pattern that I've used with some success in lily pads and grass mats. The foam is extended from the bend at the hook eye and a slot is cut where the point of the hook is slipped into and rides flush with the top of the foam. Imagine a lid and you get the basic idea. I've experimented with wider bodies and more frog like patterns. Also, if the fly design allows for it, I use long bucktail to cover the hook which also provide some hook point protection, Jack Garthside has dragon fly nymph that is tied this way and I've caught a good number of fish on this pattern. I think one thing to remember is to move the fly slowly through the weeds, in Dave Whitlock's book, Fly Fishing for Bass he talks about weed guards and how they can collapse if you strip to hard when retrieving the fly and cause the guard to collapse. However the last few years,I've been skipping weed guards and bringing enough flies so I don't worry about losing a few. After all, I need to fill the pockets in my vest with something.

[Mike G]

Gentlemen,

 

As the Mike, that Craig mentions, I think I am on the right track, no?

Next, there are lots of ways to keep weeds off the hook, no? A picture is worth 1000 words, as they say, no? I think I have understood the verbal discriptions the contributors have made. I would like a picture to confirm it. But that is just my opinion.

[Mike G]

Here's an interesting foam guard. More details are on bouncerflies.com