VIDEO Bendback Diver

Warmwater Flyfishing was a magazine of pure gouge (US Navy slang for:  pure authentic and essential information, no BS).  It is now defunct but in the April/May 1999 issue, Dr. J. Galt Allee, MD, wrote an article about a fly he developed to fish Lake Jackson in North Florida in 1984.  This fly design was a game changer as it is "pretty much snag free".  It is one of the most weedless flies I use and I have caught some large bass on it.

This little bass catcher can be tied in minnow patterns, snake or eel imitations, or even as a mouse.  The good doctor used a 3/0 Mustad 34007 hook that not only did he bend into a "bendback" shape, but opened the gap of the hook a bit too.  The video below shows my version of his pattern.  I encourage you to tie it, throw it in the heaviest pads or weeds you can find, and watch the bass explode on it.

Tie one, try one, and let me know how many fish you caught.