Bob Clouser's fly the "Clouser Minnow" is one the most successful fly fishing flies of all time! Bob fished for smallmouth bass with us a few years ago and brought out the "Crabby" colored version which then became one of our favorite smallmouth bass colors ever. The Clouser Minnow is one of the most versatile flies ever; fish it in freshwater for bass, trout, and panfish as well as fly fishing saltwater for redfish, bonefish and more.
You can buy online straight from our shop - or buy the materials and start tying the Clouser Minnow for yourself. In the video below Jared walks through tying a clouser minnow fly pattern meant for smallmouth bass in fresh northern waters. Watch the video and he'll explain how he might alter the recipe for fishing bigger saltwater game.
The B10S - used in the video - is perfect for a good all around streamer for freshwater trout, bass and even muskie. Try the 811S Tiemco hook for a saltwater safe option to go after snook, stripers & tarpon.
GSP thread is super tough to help crank down on the lead eyes. 3/0 Uni thread will work fine, too.
We use medium red dumbell eyes in the video for a versatile all-around fly. The bigger the lead eyes, the faster the fly sinks.
The gray and purple bucktail in the video is ideal for clear lakes and great lakes areas like Green Bay and Chequamegon Bay - represents emerald shiners and smelt that smallmouth love. Keep the bucktail sparse and not too tightly wound. Some of our other favorite colors for smallmouth everywhere include brown/grey, chartreuse/white and grey/white. Tan/white, pink/white and chartreuse white are good bonefish colors.
We are using pearl and purple in the video but feel free to experiment with other colors.
