Beads?

[Dickeymotto]

Did a search but didn't find much. I'm wondering what everyone's opinion on fishing bead setups is? I just read an interesting thread on Reddit and it was pretty evenly split between whether or not it was truly fly-fishing. What say you?

[stompinlines]

...suck...

[topwater]

personally i don't fish them but i don't nymph so i'm rarely tempted.

i think the bead fishing debate is most heated when it comes to steelhead. there isn't much difference between bead fishing from a boat for steelhead and the vast majority of trout guided trips drifting nymphs under an indicator for trout from a boat. if side drifting nymphs from a boat is fly fishing then the only difference between that and beads is that you cannot tie a bead.

it may blur the definitional lines when it comes to fly fishing but that's about it. the angst is more about the changes seen with boat behavior on the rivers and increasing pressure due to making steelhead "fly fishing" quite a bit easier.

[skifishbum]

usefull for convincin mardisluts to dump em out
or
hatch matchin for limited skills like to count n catch a lot wannabeaders
who like to quantify

[Ccard257]

only OK when fished from a Tenkara rod

[DeathVan]

Is there a "Lord Fishing Judge" I need to be aware of?

-or give a shit about, for that matter...



SLAY EVERY WAY !!!

[concretejungle]

I only fish dry flies on streams you've never heard of.

[ak_powder_monkey]

Fishing beads is fairly unsatisfying.

Fishing beads where salmon are not spawning is really pretty douchey

Fishing beads is probably better for the fish than fishing globugs, globugs get inhaled deeply

Pinch your goddamned barbs, especially when beading, fish tend to get caught in the maxilary, which is probably better for the fish, but its super easy to really damage a maxilary.

[2FUNKY]

Just another tool. Don't give a fuck what anyone else thinks.

[ak_powder_monkey]

I disagree, dynamite and bait are also tools, the reason we fly fish is aesthetics. Beads kinda mess with that aesthetic... Unfortunately some days egg patterns are the only thing that will work at all, and again, beads are easier on the fish generally. In the lower 48 this is almost never the case though.

Personally I'd rather catch a 20" fish on a dry than a 25" fish on a bead. Which is why people up here think I'm crazy, fishing dry flies in september...

[topwater]

...the reason we fly fish is aesthetics.

speak for yourself. i fly fish because i like the challenge and in many cases the simplicity of fly fishing versus other forms of fishing... not for the aesthetics.

[neckdeep]

the reason we fly fish is aesthetics. Personally I'd rather catch a 20" fish on a dry than a 25" fish on a bead.

I like action. I'd rather catch 30 trout on a nymph than 10 fish on a dry and thats how it usually goes down around here. To me, the form of a rod bent is more aesthetically pleasing than when straight. When I talk about the aesthetics of angling, I'm usually explaining why I don't want to fish the Palisades tailrace any more or why I hate fishing the Hank during the salmonfly hatch with 20 boats per mile. The dam pool may have big fish but it don't got no soul. Give me some solitude on water with 18"+ fish and I'm content to do whatever the fish want. As long as it ain't bait with barbs, its angling. Of course, living in AK, solitude and big fish are so easy to find you got jaded and had to make it harder for the challenge. Myself, I'm just psyched to get to a good piece of water and not find any footprints. Call it the aesthetic of first tracks.

[dfinn]

Not what she said

[creaky fossil]

go ahead and catch twinkies all day, Uncle Josh knows how to sling.

[Hugh Conway]

I like action. I'd rather catch 30 trout on a nymph than 10 fish on a dry and thats how it usually goes down around here. To me, the form of a rod bent is more aesthetically pleasing than when straight. When I talk about the aesthetics of angling, I'm usually explaining why I don't want to fish the Palisades tailrace any more or why I hate fishing the Hank during the salmonfly hatch with 20 boats per mile. The dam pool may have big fish but it don't got no soul. Give me some solitude on water with 18"+ fish and I'm content to do whatever the fish want. As long as it ain't bait with barbs, its angling. Of course, living in AK, solitude and big fish are so easy to find you got jaded and had to make it harder for the challenge. Myself, I'm just psyched to get to a good piece of water and not find any footprints. Call it the aesthetic of first tracks.

If you want catching flyfishings usually the worst way to go about it.

[ak_powder_monkey]

speak for yourself. i fly fish because i like the challenge and in many cases the simplicity of fly fishing versus other forms of fishing... not for the aesthetics.

dude, you just described aesthetics

[ak_powder_monkey]

Of course, living in AK, solitude and big fish are so easy to find you got jaded and had to make it harder for the challenge. Myself, I'm just psyched to get to a good piece of water and not find any footprints.

You obviously haven't fished here... Its a total shit show... Anywhere with big fish has a shit ton of people on it every day, no matter how far you fly. Thats what I like about Montana, I never see anyone, and if I do I just drive to the next pullout.

[topwater]

dude, you just described aesthetics

google what the word means and get back to us. i don't fly fish because of the beauty or art of it, but because i fucking like fishing that way versus complicated rigging (downriggers, kites, spreads, mooching weights, etc.)

i don't tie or fish pretty flies, i'll cast however i feel works the best (waterloading shooting heads in the salt is not artful or beautiful) and not worry how it looks to the people who aren't watching.

[DeathVan]

A tip for bead fishing:

Use your pliers to pinch a chunk out of the bead before you fish it.
-the irregular bead rises and falls in the current more akin to an actual egg and will trigger more bites


Instead of using pegs, which always eventually slip, tie a half blood knot to your leader at the correct height above the hook with a heavier gauge leader piece.
This way the bead has action on the line but fishes accurately when in the flow and doesn't jam down if you didn't have the most aesthetic cast.
-I set up a few in a Pip's beforehand

[RockinB]

I haven't fished beads in a number of years....but they can be lethal if that's what you after. Not really my preferred method, mostly because I enjoy tying and catching fish on flies I've tied.

FYI- I've seen a couple guys use the cable used on weed-eater's instead of pegging with a toothpick. Seemed to work fine for them. I always tied a non-slip mono loop and ran the tag end through the bead before going back through the loop to finish the knot. It gave the bead movement and kept it at a set distance from the hook.

[2FUNKY]

I disagree, dynamite and bait are also tools, the reason we fly fish is aesthetics. Beads kinda mess with that aesthetic... Unfortunately some days egg patterns are the only thing that will work at all, and again, beads are easier on the fish generally. In the lower 48 this is almost never the case though.

Personally I'd rather catch a 20" fish on a dry than a 25" fish on a bead. Which is why people up here think I'm crazy, fishing dry flies in september...

I thought about not responding since I cannot stand trying to have a discussion with people who always go to the very extreme of the situation, fucking "dynamite", get real man. I see others have schooled you on the meaning of aesthetics so I will leave that alone. I no not consider myself a "fly fisherman" per se. I consider myself an Angler, don't see a reason to limit oneself on one tactic. I will use any means at my disposal to pursue fish. I feel I am a much better fisherman due to this. I do prefer to fly fish for trout since I like to cast a fly rod and enjoy all the little nuances it provides, dries, nymphs streamers, swinging,etc. While throwing dry flys is great, I do love a big hatch and just crushing fish on dries, but have no issues swinging, or twitching something big and ugly down deep, or "gasp" fishing a bead. I also have no issue picking one of my many gear rods and crushing Pike, Bass, Lakers, Salmon etc.
I call BS on your last sentence. I cannot count how many times I have just crushed some steelhead on beads while everyone else was getting skunked. I loved how later around the fire they would be all stoked how they got a tug, maaan. Oh, I do throw a two hander swinging for steel as well, I have even put a bead and a bobber(indicator) on it, the horror!

[Underoos]

I thought about not responding...

Yeah, I do that too. I should pay more attention to that.

I call BS on your last sentence...
...they would be all stoked how they got a tug

While it's true that Patrick spews some dumb shit, I absolutely believe him here. It may sound like an old cliche, but for many people fishing is most definitely not about catching fish. Believe it. It's about catching fish a certain way, or it's about being with friends, visiting a certain piece of water. Sometimes it's no more than an excuse to get drunk. Personally, I compare it to golf. I like playing golf, but I'm terrible at it. The best way for me to enjoy it is to not take it seriously. Don't keep score, pick up your ball or set it down wherever you want to. Sit out a hole, take ample mulligans. It's fun to be out there hacking it up with my friends. Just play the game your own way as long as it doesn't interfere with anyone else's agenda. Fishing's the same.

I floated 14 miles yesterday and fished for about a 1/2 hour. Hooked one, caught none. I had a blast.

Back on topic: there were beads and a go pro in the boat yesterday. coincidence?

[neckdeep]

You obviously haven't fished here... Its a total shit show... Anywhere with big fish has a shit ton of people on it every day, no matter how far you fly. Thats what I like about Montana, I never see anyone, and if I do I just drive to the next pullout.

I did get to fish there, once, in 2004. Flew in that famous "Grey Goose" out of Dillingham. We floated the Kanektok from the lake down to Quinhagak. There was no "shit ton of people" ten years ago but maybe the Kanektok isn't a "big fish" river, I don't know what that means. There were some fish counters at a weir. We saw some euros with inflatables camped at the top and a couple jet sleds around the tent lodge near town. Other than that, 100 miles and 8 days without seeing anyone. We had scheduled for the peak of the king run. The river was choked with seemingly millions of chums, sockeye and kings, loads of rainbows and dollies plus those top 15 miles below the lake had insanely good dry fly for graylings up to 18-20". More action than I needed. I shit you not: I got hook hand from fighting so many fish for eight straight days. By day seven, my rod hand was actually cramping up to the point where catching yet another sockeye or chum just wasn't fun. You are telling me that the entire west coast of AK is played out? All those rivers are crowded? Cuz when we flew up to Bethel, it sure looked like 100 miles of nobody and multiple coastal streams. Very aesthetically pleasing, if swampy tundra is your thing. And I live next to montana so yeah, I do have a basis for comparison. I'd go back to AK before I bothered to drive over the pass to MT. MT's good, sure, but there's nothing there we don't have in ID and WY and it is often a bit drier east side o' the divide so no need to make a fishing trip into a roadtrip. And yeah, I have seen video of an AK sockeye clusterfuck with gearheads standing shoulder to shoulder. Looks like harvesting, not fishing. But you are seriously telling me you can't fly out to world class fishing anymore? If not, then what's the point of living in AK?

And for the record...we did NOT use beads on the Kanektok.

[Foggy_Goggles]

"What are you catching them on?"

"Good presentation!"

Some of you act like it ain't fly fishing unless you've got Simms on head to toe. Tie on whatever you want as long as you're having fun. Most people that take fishing too seriously are no fun to go out with and generally suck.

[plugboots]

Sure, use beads. Whatever.
For me, every time I head out I go through a progression.
Seeing the fish before I cast is always number 1. Problem is, I head out and the fish aren't rising, or aren't visible on the flat/beach/riffle, so I resort to slinging streamers, nymphing with anything, etc. Unless I'm with a guide, though, I usually get bored, (even if I'm slaying them), and go do something else. I just don't like the randomness of not casting to a specific fish. I used egg patterns below spawning suckers on Armstrong's and it was very satisfying to figure that out. If the rainbows are feeding right below spawning fish and the bead is put in exactly the right spot and you see it take, that's cool for me. Otherwise, not so much.