Wooly Bugger Materials List

The Wooly Bugger is one of my favorite flies to tie and fish. I’ve caught everything from tiny dace in fast coldwater streams, to trophy browns and rainbows with this fly.

The materials list below lists all the things you need to tie a Wooly Bugger. If using marabou for the wing/head, try getting it in two different colors, one darker and one lighter. Using darker color tied on first then tying over it with the lighter marabou will give your fly some more color variety, which can be an advantage when fishing!

Hook – 10-12 (streamer)

Thread – black or dark olive

Tail/Body – black marabou

Ribbing – oval silver tinsel

Wing/Head – white marabou or rabbit dubbing

Hook -10-12 (streamer)

The hook size of your fly is a very important factor when fishing with Wooly Buggers. The size you choose will depend on what type of fish you are targeting, the size of the fly in reference to the fish being targeted, and also the type of line being used.

For example: If you are using a 6-8 weight rod with a floating line (or full sink) and want to catch large trout that feed on midges or small mayflies, then using a #16 -18 streamer pattern would be appropriate.

The same goes for bass fishing; anglers usually use heavier gear for bass than trout because bass tend to be bigger and stronger than trout. Using larger hooks like #4 -5 will help keep them from breaking off as easily as smaller ones would do so

Thread – black or dark olive

• Thread – black or dark olive. Ideally, use a good quality tying thread such as Veevus or Danville’s Finest. If you don’t have black or dark olive, any color will do as long as it’s not too bright!

Tail/Body – black marabou

The tail/body is the most important part of your fly. It is also the most difficult to tie. Using marabou as a material for this part of the fly will make things easier, because it is soft, flexible, and durable. Marabou comes in many colors and sizes. When tied at the end of a Wooly Bugger, it gives it its signature look: fluffy and colorful!

A Wooly Bugger is one type of streamer fly used by anglers around the world for catching fish such as trout or salmon. A streamer will catch more attention than any other type of bait fish because it moves through water quickly with its distinctive flapping action that attracts predators from all directions.

Ribbing – oval silver tinsel

• Ribbing The ribbing needs to be stiff enough to support the fly, but soft enough that it can bend easily. It’s also important that the ribbing be strong, so that it doesn’t break under pressure from wind and casting. Lastly, you want your ribbing to be shiny so that it can catch light when you’re fishing.
• Eyes Eyes are used for fly tying because they make a fly look more realistic. They also help give fish something to focus on when they see your fly pass by them in the water. Different types of eyes will have different uses; some will attract more attention than others and some are better at keeping their shape longer than others do over time with repeated exposure to water and sunlight (although this depends on how much sun exposure there is where you live).

Wing/Head – white marabou or rabbit dubbing

The wing/head is made from the same materials as the fly itself.

• White marabou or rabbit dubbing, which can be used to make a Wooly Bugger fly pattern.

A simple list of materials needed to tie a Wooly Bugger fly pattern.

Hook: Gamakatsu B10S (1/0, 2/0), Daiichi 1150 (4/0, 5/0)

Thread: Uni-Thread 8/0

Tail: Caribou Hair in Tan, Medium Brown and Black. Substituting dubbing is simple if you don’t have access to caribou hair by simply using rabbit or badger hair for the tail and then tying a wider cone of hackle behind it to give the fly more movement underwater.

Body: Superfine Dubbing in Grey Squirrel and White Seal. Substituting dubbing is simple if you don’t have access to top quality squirrel fur by simply using rabbit fur as an alternative with some white seal mixed into it so that when it gets wet with water it turns grey instead of white like regular rabbit fur does when wetted out completely

So there you have it, a simple and effective pattern that can be tied in a variety of colors, and produces good results on just about any water.