How to fly fish like a bassmaster all summer long

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Lefty’s Deceiver = Suspending jerkbait

Designed in the 1950s for saltwater by fly-fishing guru Lefty Kreh, the Deceiver is deadly on both largies and smallies (not to mention northern pike and walleye). The key design elements are its swishy feather tail, wisps of tinsel and bucktail top and sides, which “breathe” in and out as the fly moves. The combined effect is like the sexy wobble and shine of a lipped stickbait.

The first time I saw a Rapala X-Rap, I knew it was going to be a great lure, because it was essentially a plastic Deceiver, right down to the feather tail. I carry three-, four- and five-inch Deceivers, in chartreuse/white, blue/white and green/black. Fish ’em where and how you’d throw a suspending stickbait, with a floating or sinking line, depending on the depth.

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