robert hunter graciously posted his sand bass tips for success earier and his mention of using a strike indicator got be to pondering this question: what sorts of Bobber-Cork-Strike Indicator-VOSI do you best and brightest find the most success with?

Personally I have used closed cell foam flies for my indicator. Mainly I fish ponds and still water, dropper fly tied off of the bend of the foam fly's hook.

I use the Thingamabobber mostly. I also use foam flies if I'm getting bit on the T-bobber. One thing I do when I'm at Beavers Bend is look in eddy waters & pick up indicators. You would not believe how many I have found!

I don't like the pinch-on foam for that very reason. We fly fishers say that bait fishers leave their trash everywhere... Just take a look at the little log/stick jams on the evening hole & up and down spillway creek... AWFUL! I think they should outlaw the foam stick-on indicators!

Off my soapbox now... When I am fishing a Griffith's Gnat or RS2, I use a dry fly as an indicator.

JR

I suspect most of you have already figured this out, but the less you compress the foam in a fly, the better and longer it will float. Notice that Robin has left the foam in his fly nice and "fluffy" so that it will float better, which is important for this technique. I've been know to use foam flies for indicators too.

You'll sometimes see flies where the tier has either stretched the foam or wrapped it tightly with thread to get a nice smooth foam body. Doing this will make a prettier fly, but compressed foam will not float as well as uncompressed foam.

Of course, which tying technique is best for you to use depends on what you want the fly to do in the water.

And you can always add some floatant to a foam fly to help it float better too.

I will often use a foam ant with a tuft of fluorescent wool on its back for visibility.............works for me unless it is very turbulent water, that requires something a little bigger.
When possible of course I do not use an indicator

Mike

Yea for trout if they are feeding on the surface at all reall like the foam terrestrial. You don't have to worrie about them getting water logged. You did really well with that pattern I like the added foam to te head above the fishes sight well done. Robin I still havnt forgot about your furled leaders really look forward to trying one.

Hey robin have you ever tried doubling your line and putting it thru the eye of the hook and over the fly to secure it. Like you do wtith those thingy bobbers. That is the only problem that I have encountered when using a fly is the indicator I come around the bend to deeper water and now I need a longer leader for my second fly. I just don't know how secure and in place the dry fly would stay by doing that.

You guys that are just starting their adventures in fly fishing and fly tying are getting some great advice in this thread from both Robin and Rex. Robin does a great job in tying those foam flies and Rex is pointing out something it took me forever to learn on my own. It can be pretty frustrating when everyone says foam flies do a great job floating all kinds of stuff and my first foam flies would not even float. I was so slow learning I probably tied a few dozen foam flies before I could get them to float...sometimes I can be a pretty slow learner.

Big Dale

That's why I don't use "fly" indicators. I like to move my indicator a lot. Don't know how to do that easily when I'm using a fly as an indicator. Otherwise I surely would.
jonbo