Fishing caddo last week I knew before I left that the dead lilly pads would pose a hook fouling problem as I was fishing for yellow bass. So, I used some 60 degree hooks and regular jighooks to tie up some alternatives to see if they were effective in catching fish and would hang up less than the clouser. I am happy to report that using the 60 degree and the regular jighooks helped in alleviating hook fouling and at the same time did not adversely affect fish catching.
Here is a pic showing the various designs:
the top row of flies are clousers tied with a tail and a wing and some with just the tail, with wing omitted. The wingless clousers are much more effective than those with wing and tail.
The second row of flies(aligned withdrill bit) were tied on 60 degree hooks, beadhead behind the tie in point, with a wing and no tail; not very effective for catching fish but few hook foulings.
The third row contains two flies tied on 60 degree hooks with bead in front of tie in and tail only; no wing. These flies were very effective catchers and did not hang up as much as the beadchain clousers.
The fourth and bottom row contain flies tied on a regular jighook with beadhead attached in front of tie in point with tail only; no wing. These were also very effective fish catchers and did not hang up nearly as often as the beadchain clousers.
So, unscientific I know, but I will be fishing more 60 degree jighooks and regular jighooks in the future.
I would appreciate comments and criticisms from you fly designers.

This is the very best sort of science, applied science. It seems to me that the wingless design focuses the hydraulic drag in a manner that maintains the inverted position of the fly.

thank you for this research, it influences how I am gonna tie.

close up of most effective design

I think it is fantastic you did these tests, and posted results. Does the bottom fly have plastic bead eyes, or is that bead chain?
Excellent work Pearow!!!!

Gene, if you noticed, in addition to the flies running true “hook point up”, the 60 degree bend in the hook acts as a lever, hooking the fish in the jaw or upper mouth – very seldom in the gills.
Nice flies!

george; you are correct. I bet I caught 300+ fish and had to use my forceps on 2 or 3; hooks were in upper part of mouth or in the side of the mouth; both caddokid and myself commented on that little fact-p-

Wonder what was unappealing to the yellow bass about the wing-only version (which I think of as the Barry Evans variant)? (Actually, I tied a small pile in that fashion, so the bad news is unfortunate.)

Three hundred? Sounds like they're on, or y'all are on . . . and I reckon the Carters are always on on Caddo.

Do you tie those jig hook flies on with a loop knot or a clinch knot?