The following is a selection of my favorite carp flies. To get more information click on the title to go to a blog post where applicable or click the Show/Hide More button for additional pictures, recipes, links and videos. Click on any picture to view an enlarged version..
People frequently ask if I sell flies. Unfortunately I do not but but some of these are commercially available and where not I hope it helps those that tie their own. For more ideas visit the 2012 Fly-Swap page or the 2013 Fly-Swap page.
People frequently ask if I sell flies. Unfortunately I do not but but some of these are commercially available and where not I hope it helps those that tie their own. For more ideas visit the 2012 Fly-Swap page or the 2013 Fly-Swap page.
The Leather Trouser Worm was designed to be a durable alternative to the San-Juan worm that falls and rides hook-up and head-stands on the bottom. This worm can also be fished on the strip or the swim. It has exceeded my wildest expectations, become my go-to carp fly on the Denver South Platte and contributed significantly to our 2011 Carp-SlamV Championship. Word on the streets is that it didn't hurt the 2012 champs much either.
I developed the Carp-Stew to take advantage of the unique action of Swishers Rub-A-Dub. It has a profile reminiscent of a baby crayfish and falls and rides hook-up. The drop is level with a nice fluttery action and there is minimal jigging action on the strip. The action and profile is intended to represent a generic baby crayfish free-swimming, fleeing or diving for the bottom and works well for all presentations that duplicate these behaviors. 
The McLuvin is designed to have a similar swimming action and head-stand attitude as the Trouser worm with a generic buggy / crayfishy color scheme and profile. The McLuvin is responsible for my two largest DSP carp and extremely effective last fall and winter.
Note: Commercially available here curtesy of INTHERIFFLE.com and CATCH Fly Fishing
Note: Commercially available here curtesy of INTHERIFFLE.com and CATCH Fly Fishing
Various soft-hackles work great for carp. John Montana introduced them to me when I visited him in 2011. They have proven to be a flexible pattern that is easy to tie and extremely effective in many situations. I particularly like them for slow-cruisers, sleeping and snoozing carp and any other situation where triggering a take mid-column is the key.
The Primordial Crust (available from Montana Fly Company) is a meatier version of the Stew tied on a size 4 hook with rabbit strip running the length of the fly. The original design and the commercial pattern are extremely heavy for bombing to the bottom and swimming presentations in heavy current. I also tie a light version for that flutters to the bottom on the drop. The Crust has caught for my largest Colorado carp each of the past three seasons.
The foam version of my worm uses foam plugs strung on light mono for the tail. The end result is a truly upright fly with a unique action on the drop and the strip. John Montana says that the foam version works better on the Columbia river and that certainly seemed to be the case when I visited in the summer of 2012. It also works great under an indicator in moving water and seems to be particularly effective in the spring. 
Hare's Ear Nymphs are a good nymph pattern that works when carp are finding other less subtle flies intimidating. There is no particular magic for the hare's ear as compared to other nymph patterns, I just find it to be an easy and flexible tie that works and I have caught many carp on them. Old-school natural works but I always carry some in olive and some with rubber legs as well in various sizes and weights.
Egan's Headstand
Lance Egan's Headstand from UMQUA is another excellent commercial pattern. The combination of the original (to my knowledge) headstand design, a buggy profile and the bright head which is visible at a distance seems to work well, particularly in still-water. The picture to the left is of sample I purchased, click Show/Hide more for a home-tie with a recipe and an underwater video of the commercial pattern. 
Jay Zimmerman's Backstabber is my favorite commercially available pattern, although I roll my own. This is a very easy tie that fishes very well on the drop and the strip. The black / olive version with a little bit of flash in the dubbing is one of my favorite flies for tailing fish in dirty water. In general I prefer a slightly smaller dumbell and shorter marabou throat than the UMQUA offering.
Jaime Kaminski's Krazy Carper is a very easy pattern to tie that works great for carp. A heavily weighted version with a bright orange body, lead eyes and brown rabbit strip is one of my favorites but this fly can be worked up in many color combinations using different body materials. The bold or just plain lazy can even go ultra quick and dirty with this fly. It doesn't get much easier than eyes and a rabbit strip!
The MMF is a stubby variant of the Clouser Foxee Red Minnow tied with commercially available arctic fox. When I lived in MI I believed this was the only carp fly I would ever really need. It does not seem to work as well in CO but for aggressive carp preying on fleeing baby crayfish it is truly magical. This is also a great all-round warm-water pattern, and in various sizes and color combinations accounts for my personal best for many species.
Other Flies of Note
These are not necessarily my favorites but are all renown for catching carp and I always carry a couple.
Clouser Swimming Nymph
This may be the most famous carp fly because of Barry Reynold's endorsement. Unfortunately I just haven't had that much luck with them.
Clouser Near-Nuff Crayfish
The Near-Nuff is a larger meatier crayfish with just a hint of realism and is commercially available..
Damsel fly Nymphs
I like damsel fly nymphs quite a bit but I have yet to get to a favored pattern.
Hex Nymphs
Hex nymphs are a must-have in MI. Since I no longer live in MI I have not tried them in quite some time but realistically speaking they would probably work anywhere.