I've got a couple patterns I tied for crawfish - need to get 'em wet this year and see how they do. I had giant smallmouth in mind when I was tying these things this spring.
I tied these on some big nasty hooks - straight shank saltwater hooks - with the weight at the eye. It took a couple tries to get the action how I want - but when you give these a steady retrieve they hop and swim along the bottom and look like a fleeing crawfish. When it stops, it stands on it's tail and the head/claws rise up in a defensive posture. When you twitch the fly it darts to the side.
I use heavy lead/brass eyes at the hook eye for weight, and the body is made flat and wide by compressing strips of foam together on the sides of the shank and bound tightly with thread to shape. The variations on the above patterns are basically what materials I used for the claws - otherwise they're tied the same. Marabou makes for good looking claws, the rabbit strip does well and gives a more claw-like profile, and adds some weight to the fly when wet. The foam under body is dubbed over with rust & olive mixed light bright or ice dub for a little flash, I use hackle wound kind of sparse for the legs, and buck tail for the shell back and antennae, then coat the whole back of the thing with UV knot sense to make the fly more durable. The top pictures are actually tied "ultralight" and I can cast them on a 4 weight - the big guys at the bottom I can cast on my 7 weight overlined with a #8 line, but I try to keep the hook well away from my head because those are on nasty, sharp #2 or #1 stainless saltwater hooks. And they're heavy enough that even without getting stabbed, they would hurt to get hit with.
Had a go at a semi-realistic crawfish jig-fly. All natural materials, big gnarly hook (one element always lacking from fly patterns aimed at bass) and a half ounce of lead in the underbody. Sorta a flipping with the fly rod type of thing. Obviously can't cast it. Any guesses where I am headed? hahaha...
