Featured Bead Head Flies
The right bead head fly depends on where you're fishing and how deep the fish are holding. Here's what each pattern is built for.
- Bead Head Chartreuse Wooly Bugger, Size 10 (Qty 6): A brass bead wooly bugger built for shallow to mid-depth runs. The chartreuse color stays visible in stained or off-color water where natural tones disappear, and the brass bead puts the fly in the 1 to 3 foot range without extra weight. Fish this one when you need a searching pattern that covers water fast. Best for trout and bass in rivers, ponds, and lakes.
- Bead Head Black Flashback Nymph, Size 12 (Qty 6): A nymph is a fly that imitates the larval stage of aquatic insects that live on the stream bottom. This bead head nymph dead-drifts naturally in riffles and runs, and the flashback strip catches light underwater to trigger strikes. It imitates a wide range of aquatic insects, which means it produces in almost any moving water trout stream regardless of what's hatching. Fish this one under a strike indicator when you don't see fish rising to the surface.
- Tungsten Bead Head Chartreuse Squirmy Worm 2.0, Size 12 (Qty 6): A fast-sinking worm pattern built for deeper runs and high water. The tungsten bead sinks faster than brass, getting the fly to the bottom quickly where trout feed most. The 2.0 version features a double tail with Mylar chenille, which adds flash and more movement than the original single-tail design. Fish this one in water over 3 feet deep or when flows are high and you need to punch through the current fast.
- Tungsten Bead Head Tan Wooly Bugger with Rubber Legs, Size 10 (Qty 6): A tungsten bead streamer built for deeper pools and faster current. The rubber legs pulse and kick with every movement in the current, giving the fly action even when it is sitting still. This pattern reaches the bottom in water over 3 feet deep without added split shot, and stays in the zone where bigger fish hold. The best choice when you want a wooly bugger in faster, deeper water than a brass bead can reach.
About the Bead Head Fly Collection
Wild Water's bead head collection covers three pattern families. Bead head wooly buggers come in 13 colors including chartreuse, brown, pink, crimson, orange, purple, green, and a tri-color option. Bead head flashback nymphs come in black and olive. Tungsten bead head squirmy worms cover chartreuse, orange, yellow, pink, and purple in both the original and upgraded 2.0 version.
All patterns are available in sizes 10 and 12. Each 6-pack works out to about $2.00 to $2.08 per fly. Most fly shops charge $2.50 to $3.50 for a single bead head fly. Stocking 4 colors of wooly buggers, 2 colors of nymphs, and a pack of squirmy worms runs roughly $75 from Wild Water. Buying the same 42 flies at a fly shop would cost $105 to $147. That difference pays for your first spool of tippet and a strike indicator with room to spare.
Brass vs. Tungsten Bead Head Flies
The bead material determines how fast a bead head fly sinks, and that affects how well the fly fishes in different water conditions.
Brass beads are standard weight and work well in shallow water, slow current, and calm conditions. They give the fly a moderate sink rate that works well for dead-drifting nymphs in riffles and runs where the water is not too deep.
Tungsten beads are roughly twice as dense as brass, which makes tungsten bead head flies sink significantly faster. Tungsten bead head flies reach the bottom quicker in deeper runs, faster current, and high water conditions where a brass bead would struggle to get down in time. If you are nymphing in water deeper than three feet or fishing during high flows, tungsten is the better choice.
A good starting rule: use brass bead head flies in water under three feet deep with moderate current, and use tungsten bead head flies when you need to get down fast in deeper or faster water.
Why Choose Wild Water Fly Fishing
Wild Water Fly Fishing has been helping beginners get started since 2006. This is a family-owned business built on the idea that fly fishing should be accessible to everyone, not just people who already know what they're doing.
All orders ship free with standard ground delivery (4 to 7 business days). Orders placed before noon EST go out the same business day. If something isn't right, the 30-day return policy is simple and hassle-free. The team is U.S.-based and easy to reach at info@wildwaterflyfishing.com or by phone at 585-967-3474. Real people pick up.