# Bonefish Fly Box



## lsunoe (Dec 5, 2016)

I'm beginning to tie flies to make up a fly box for a (hopefully) upcoming trip. I think I want to bring about 6 dozen flies all of different sizes and weights. What are your favorite bonefish patterns, and what hooks do you prefer to use for them. This will be my first time tying for them so any and all advice is greatly appreciated.


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## RJTaylor (Oct 4, 2017)

Don't know where you are headed, but I threw Gotchas, Sliders(tan), and Clousers(pink/white) in the Yucatan. Size 4 and 6, with a mix of bead chain, and XS lead eyes.


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## jbnc (Feb 28, 2017)

Crazy Charlie's in pink or a white/pink combo. Just like RJTaylor said, size 4 and 6 but depends on where you're going. You can find videos on tying them pretty easily online.


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## Whiskey Angler (Mar 20, 2015)

I love bonefish biters (Mustad 24007 #6's and 4's) with a pink or red head (with beadchain), natural deer hair and pink legs.
You have to deal with epoxy and a drying wheel if you want to make them right, though. The biters plop kind of hard, but they get down to a nosing bones mouth quick.

If you are fishing somewhere with spooky bones (like Ambergris BZE), you may want to stick with gotchas or charlies with bead chain for a gentler presentation that doesn't sink too far into the deep grass. On charlies, I like clear body (20# mono wrapped around shank) with a white or pink wing and pearl flash.

I found that tying a ton of flies at one time ends up being a waste...I usually only use a half dozen or so during a trip, and then the other 5 dozen get wet and fall apart or rust before my next trip.

As others said...where do plan on fishing? Makes a big difference.


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## duppyzafari (Jul 9, 2015)

Gamakatsu SL45 Bonefish 4, 6, & 8
Gamakatsu SL11-3H 4, 6, & 8
Blind for super skinny water
Medium for general use
Heavy for deeper water and mudding fish

Crunch down the barbs if you're fishing near any structure that might break you off.

Everything the gents above referenced is perfect.
I'll also add Mantis shrimp, Spawning shrimp, and Bonefish Toads to the list.

Any little shrimp or crabs will do. Match the bottom. White for sand, Tan for mixed, Olive & Brown for Turtle Grass.

Some of the old school traditional flies like puffs, turds, bitters and such are fun to tie just to recognize from whence we came, BUT I will admit that I never reach for those flies in my box.

Bonefish flies are small, quick to tie, don't eat up a lot of material and really help you get excited for your trip as you see your box filling up.

Tight lines!


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## Canebrake51 (Feb 15, 2018)

Sure like that red and white fly in the upper right of your photo. What do I need to try to tie that?


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## jsnipes (May 1, 2011)

You could probably fish a single tan gotcha for the entire week. Might need 1 or 2 backups


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## EvanHammer (Aug 14, 2015)

jsnipes said:


> You could probably fish a single tan gotcha for the entire week. Might need 1 or 2 backups


I agree with this. I tend to overpack and have done lots of trips with too much gear and too many flies but taking 6 dozen is definitely excessive. Tell us where you are fishing for more specific recommendations but a handful of gotchas is probably sufficient and the others are just to make your box look interesting.


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## Guest (Jun 16, 2018)

6 dozen flies? Are you going for a few years? Our son and I fished in the Bahamas for 7 straight days, caught lots of bones, and used less than 15 flies.


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

duppyzafari said:


>


Duppy, that's just way to organized and purdy. Lol Mine looks like I threw a few hand fulls of assorted flies in a box! 

I agree you don't need too many and I tend to go for the obvious most shrimpy fly I can find in my box 1st.

I think the assortment tho is to rifle thru flies to see what they are willing to eat, if they decide to snub their noses at what you would consider is your go-to fly (those bastards! ). Also, for those "plan B, C...D...e...f...g..."


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

My ugly shrimp fly has worked all over for bones

just sayen


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## mightyrime (Jul 18, 2016)

Matters where you are going. I think its very important to have three sink rates. Lead eye fast, bead chain medium, and unweighted. Also be sure to have some tied with weed guard.
General rule of thumb is match the bottom to your fly.
As said the standards above are great. I also like "fishys bonefish fly" and a "squimp" there is a picture below.
Oddly enough on my last bonefish trip to grand cayman I used only one fly which was basically a rust colored bonefish fly as i saw little crabs or maybe baby lobsters all over the place that were this color and the bones liked it.


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## duppyzafari (Jul 9, 2015)

Canebrake51 said:


> Sure like that red and white fly in the upper right of your photo. What do I need to try to tie that?


Your fave bonefish Hook
Red Thread
Bead Chain Eyes
White Arctic Fox
Barred Legs
Pearl Flash
White Marabou

It's just an extra fluffy gotcha. Super easy tie.


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## Canebrake51 (Feb 15, 2018)

Thanks!


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## duppyzafari (Jul 9, 2015)

Everyone saying that you don't need 6 dozen is certainly correct that you'll never use 72 flies on your trip - BUT - there is something to be said for the ritual of tying a bunch of flies and "getting in the zone" for your trip. 

I tied a dozen flies for a buddy who was visiting my old stomping grounds in Grand Cayman, and he used the same fly for the entire trip. Tied it on the first morning, cut it off to pack up his rod an go home. Over 20 fish caught on the 1 fly, the other 11 sitting in his box waiting for the next trip.

When you find the fly they like, you're set. (Until a trigger fish breaks you off on a coral head or a puffer bites the hook in half.)


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## Whiskey Angler (Mar 20, 2015)

I tied some biters this weekend for a trip I have coming up. A red a yellow and a green - honestly though, where I'm going I'm pretty sure the bones would attack a bare hook, so like Duppy described, these ties are more for me than the bones.


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## duppyzafari (Jul 9, 2015)

Whiskey Angler said:


> I tied some biters this weekend for a trip I have coming up. A red a yellow and a green - honestly though, where I'm going I'm pretty sure the bones would attack a bare hook, so like Duppy described, these ties are more for me than the bones.
> 
> View attachment 30796
> View attachment 30798
> View attachment 30800


I'd eat em. Sick ties, buddy.


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## Tom Ilg (Jun 13, 2018)

I'm in agreement, 6 dozen might be a little excessive, but in reality they don't take up a lot of room in your luggage, so who cares.....

I live in Playa Del Carmen, MX and fish the beaches, and then the flats and inlet of the Boca Paila Lagoon, just north of Ascension Bay..........Our fish love the Crazy Charlies, Gotcha's, and Shrimp Patterns, all in size's 4, 6, and 8.

The Charlie's and Gotcha's in pink or white.
The shrimp in a tan color.

These will work with a limited degree for Permit, but they tend to gravitate to the small crab patterns.

But you haven't mentioned where you are going...unless I missed it somewhere.


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

Whiskey Angler said:


> I tied some biters this weekend for a trip I have coming up. A red a yellow and a green - honestly though, where I'm going I'm pretty sure the bones would attack a bare hook, so like Duppy described, these ties are more for me than the bones.
> 
> View attachment 30796
> View attachment 30798
> View attachment 30800


how did you do the heads. Rotary device or what?


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

If you're looking for detailed instructions - the full name of the above bug is the Bonefish Bitters. The original head was a simple hot glue over tied in beadchain eyes. You can also do it with epoxy - but then you'll be rotating the head first - then tying in the remainder of the bug... As already noted a good bug when you're not in spooky fish... A bit noisy on the landing if you're in tailers....

Here's a few bugs that I got a bunch of orders for back when I was a commercial tyer (and tying for as many as three different shops at the same time...). All work very well on big (and not so big bonefish...). The first is a simple bonefish clouser (tied Lefty's way with all the wing on one side of the hook) - the "outrigger style" weedguard is my own... These are in tan/white - but I also got lots and lots of orders for them in pink/white and fl. green/ white.. We've taken every size of bones with this bug - almost everywhere... 








the standard was always on a #4 34007 hook








this pic shows a dozen each in size #4 and #6 -note the different wing sizes (the eyes were different sizes as well...).








This pic shows two patterns - the Mitch Howell (my version) in two colors and the Clear Charlie (my pattern) , both of these patterns have taken some really big bonefish in Biscayne Bay and points south down towards Ocean Reef... and were only done in size #4... We fished them in gambling style, tossing the bug ten feet in front of where the fish was heading (usually in grass bottom) - then giving it a single twitch when the fish was almost on top of it... You either spook the fish or get bit - no in between. It's always a gamble tossing a fly ten feet ahead of a big bone (many nearing or over ten pounds...) since they seldom follow a straight line for very long at all...

I haven't poled over bonefish in years now since I much prefer fishing the 'glades where the fish aren't quite so spooky when I have anglers aboard...

By the way the original "Mitch Howell" pattern was done by Bob Kay - long departed now... Here on microskiff Mitch is listed simply as FMH... and has some outstanding custom Hells Bay skiffs up for sale these days...


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## jmrodandgun (Sep 20, 2013)

6 dozen? I'm not very good at math but that sounds like too many.


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## texasag07 (Nov 11, 2014)

Does it matter how many he ties? 

I am the guy that usually brings way to many flies and other supplies for a trip because I don’t like to be somewhere especially far away from home and not have something I want.

For bonefish flies I tie for myself, friends and customers I typically have a mix of the standard gotcha, Charlie, and few more modern bugs in pink, white, tan( my favorite) and green. Usually in two different sizes with three different weights.

On my last bonefish trip though I took alot of different bugs and after each fish I caught I would swap to a different fly. With the fish I was fishing for the bug didn’t really seem to be the limiting factor but how, where and the mood of the fish I was presenting it to.

Besides extra bugs is the perfect reason for a return trip!


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## Bruce J (Mar 4, 2018)

No matter what selection of flies I bring with me on a trip, I also carry a fly tying kit. It’s pared down to the basic essentials, but I always tie up a few more of something during the week to restock the inventory. It’s also not a bad way to wind down with an adult beverage and some good story tellers after a long day on the water.


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## Whiskey Angler (Mar 20, 2015)

permitchaser said:


> how did you do the heads. Rotary device or what?


The heads are 5 Minute epoxy with a very (very) small amount of food coloring mixed in. I mix a nickel size amount of epoxy (just enough for one fly) and give it about 2.5 minutes to catalyze, and before it kicks (because the epoxy i use goes from water to booger consistency in a matter of seconds once it kicks), I use a tooth pick to glob the epoxy on the hook over the beadchain. Before I put it on my drying wheel, I usually have to hold and manually rotate it for a minute or two to wait for the epoxy to setup enough. Its all kind of a pain, but they are fun to make.
I use Zap Z-poxy 5 minute.


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

Whiskey Angler said:


> The heads are 5 Minute epoxy with a very (very) small amount of food coloring mixed in. I mix a nickel size amount of epoxy (just enough for one fly) and give it about 2.5 minutes to catalyze, and before it kicks (because the epoxy i use goes from water to booger consistency in a matter of seconds once it kicks), I use a tooth pick to glob the epoxy on the hook over the beadchain. Before I put it on my drying wheel, I usually have to hold and manually rotate it for a minute or two to wait for the epoxy to setup enough. Its all kind of a pain, but they are fun to make.
> I use Zap Z-poxy 5 minute.
> View attachment 31174


I like the results but I'm not patient enough to do this
thanks this might help bone fishermen


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

permitchaser said:


> My ugly shrimp fly has worked all over for bones
> 
> just sayen


Ok Perm.... I'll bite! Show us your ugly bonefish fly.


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

Whiskey Angler said:


> The heads are 5 Minute epoxy with a very (very) small amount of food coloring mixed in. I mix a nickel size amount of epoxy (just enough for one fly) and give it about 2.5 minutes to catalyze, and before it kicks (because the epoxy i use goes from water to booger consistency in a matter of seconds once it kicks), I use a tooth pick to glob the epoxy on the hook over the beadchain. Before I put it on my drying wheel, I usually have to hold and manually rotate it for a minute or two to wait for the epoxy to setup enough. Its all kind of a pain, but they are fun to make.
> I use Zap Z-poxy 5 minute.
> View attachment 31174


I like the modified wheel!


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

Backwater said:


> Ok Perm.... I'll bite! Show us your ugly bonefish fly.[/QUOTE
> 
> Here you go this is what I sent in for the Sheepy Swap. Emoney said a redfish took his so I sent him some more. 2 for sheepy and 2 redfish size


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## Whiskey Angler (Mar 20, 2015)

Backwater said:


> I like the modified wheel!


Disco ball motor and craft foam screwed to some scrap wood. Yes...I'm cheap.


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