[freeze69]

As the title says newbie. Never fly fished in my life. Bought it mainly for bluegill and crappie. Friends at work have told me what they use and do good with. Mainly accardo legged poppers. Was curious what other types of flies would do good in northern Indiana.
Thanks,
Jerry

[Cliff Hilbert]

Jerry you can use any flies that you would for trout fishing. People like to use poppers but you'll catch many, many more panfish using nymphs than you will poppers. Read the following article I wrote and it'll help you to catch more bream.
Bream Fly Fishing - By Cliff Hilbert

[BigCliff]

Cliff Hilbert catches tons of fish and he is dead on with the recommendation of nymphs. You'll find that you'll need to either get good at setting the hook quickly (before it goes deep inside them) or get really good with a pair of hemostats.

Nymphs with rubber legs work REALLY well.

[Tangle]

I use nymphs, too. I have had great success with a beadhead prince nymph this spring/summer.

[fshfanatic]

In no perticular order:
1: Beadhead Hairsear.
2: Flashback Pheasant Tail.
3: Copper John (various colors)
4: Small Leeches & Buggers
5: Foam ants & spiders
6: Chironomid Pupa Patterns (http://www.bcadventure.com/adventure...mid/pupa.phtml)
7: Damsel Fly nymphs

[freeze69]

Appreciate all the advice with the different flies. Went out today for a little bit. I think that my fly line is bad. It would only cast out about 20ft. and then start curling up real bad. Bought some new 5wt/wf line before work today and going to put on tonight when I get home. The guys at work tend to think the line is bad also. Any input on this would be appreciated.

[dougm]

Jerry,

Why not give my free booklet on fly casting a try? It works well for many as long as you do exastly as I suggest. Simply go to http://www.douglasmacnair.com and dowload Excerpts.

Doug

[freeze69]

Will diffently have to check it out.

[BigCliff]

On the line curling: this is what is generally referred to as memory. Unfortunately, memory is probably one of the biggest differences between the fly lines out there with prices that seem obnoxious for fishing line ($50+) and those that don't.

I had fished nothing but the expensive lines for a few years before I recently bought a cheaper one (SA Air Cel) for a rod that I didn't expect to use very often. (10' 6wt) I figured since I loved the company's better lines, the cheaper one would work just as well but not be as slick. I was quite disappointed with the line as it would keep coiling up and this was pulling it down off the surface.

Even if you choose not to upgrade to a better line, there are some things you can do to prevent that line coiling. Before you put that new one on, make it into loops the size of your waist and hang it off of something overnight. Doing this same drill in between fishing outings will help as well.

Another option is to stretch the line out each time you go fishing. Ideally you would want to attach the end of the line to a tree or something (not with 5x leader, you'll want at least 15lb as the weakest link for this drill), point the rod at the tied off point and start walking away. Once you get to the end of the line, grab ahold of it, put some tension on the line and just hold it for a minute or two. Walk back towards the tie off point about ten feet and watch to see if the line coils AT ALL. If it does, stretch it again. Another method involves putting the midpoint of the line around the ball of your vehicle's trailer hitch and stretching it that way. I don't have a hitch on my vehicle and doubt I would trust it to be smooth enough to not damage my line if it did. (Dave Whitlock however does advocate that method, and he knows 5x more than I have ever wondered about this sport.)

A simpler option is to only stretch the portion of the line you will be able to cast. The memory of the line doesn't matter as much when its just coiled on the reel.

Straightening your line also helps it float. (I know, seems unrelated, but give me a second) I only recently learned that the most common reason for a floating line to sink is because its memory causes it to coil up. Imagine looking at it at water level. The weight of the parts of the coil that are higher than the rest (and potentially above the water) is pushing down on the rest of the line, forcing it below the surface. Any given inch of a floating fly line is designed to float its own weight, not to be a floating support for things pushing down on it from above.

[freeze69]

The line memory thing makes perfect sense. This being the one main problem that I hate with my spinning reels. Just can't wait to be able to get back out again and try again. Unfournately won't be able to do that for awhile. Between work and horse shows rather busy. (wife and the gulf war keeping me busy) Luckily enough though the one show were going to has about 5 small ponds on it. There nice and wide open no obstructions and I think will be a perfect place to practice some more. One thing I will say for the most part fisherman & woman are more apt to help others than horsemen & woman in the show ring. Learning alot and highly appreciate it.