Wild Water Fly Fishing Dry Fly Assortment, 72 Flies with Large Fly Box, Size 12 and 14 Review (2026)

Who this assortment is built for

This kit is aimed at anglers who want to stock a fly box with a season's worth of common dry patterns without tying flies or building a selection fly by fly from a shop bin. Because it includes 72 flies across six patterns, it suits someone who fishes often enough to lose or wear out flies regularly and does not want to run low mid-trip. It also works well as a gift or a starter set for a newer dry fly angler, since the patterns included, Light Cahill, Dark Hendrickson, Rusty Spinner, Elk Tan Caddis, Winged Black Ant and Parachute Adams, cover many of the mayfly, caddis and terrestrial situations a trout or panfish angler is likely to run into on freestone streams and lakes. Anglers chasing highly selective fish on heavily pressured technical water, where exact pattern and size matching matters most, will find the fixed size range more limiting.

What is actually in the box

The assortment is built from six classic dry fly patterns, twelve of each, for a total of 72 flies: Light Cahill in size 14, Dark Hendrickson in size 14, Rusty Spinner in size 14, Elk Tan Caddis in size 14, Winged Black Ant in size 12 and Parachute Adams in size 12. All of the flies arrive already sorted and inserted into Wild Water's waterproof fly box, which the company describes as a two-sided design, so there is no need to transfer flies into a separate box before heading out. The patterns themselves are tied using what Wild Water describes as traditional recipes and materials that have been used for decades across North America and Europe, rather than newer synthetic-heavy designs, which keeps them familiar to anglers who already fish standard dry fly patterns.

Using the box on the water

Because the flies ship pre-sorted in a waterproof box, this set is ready to clip onto a vest, sling pack or chest pack pocket without any setup. The size 12 and 14 range covers a wide window of hatch activity for trout and panfish, from early season Hendricksons to summer caddis and terrestrial ant patterns, which means an angler can often fish through a full day with flies from this single box rather than switching boxes. Because the box is described as waterproof rather than fully submersible, it is still worth keeping it in an outer pocket rather than fully underwater for extended periods, and rinsing and air-drying flies after a day on saltier or muddier water helps keep hooks from rusting over a season of use.

Where it fits against other fly assortments

Compared with buying individual dozens, such as a set of Gray Elk Hair Caddis flies on Mustad hooks, this assortment covers far more pattern variety for a similar amount of money, since six patterns are included instead of one. Against Wild Water's own smaller 36-fly assortment in a small box, this 72-fly set roughly doubles the spares in the same size range, which suits anglers who fish more often or want backup for a full season rather than a single trip. Compared with a narrower kit like an Alwonder Elk Hair Caddis 10-pack in a single size, this assortment trades some depth on any one pattern for much broader hatch coverage, which is usually the more useful trade for an angler who does not know exactly what will be hatching before they arrive at the water.

Verdict and who should look elsewhere

This 72-fly assortment earns our score of 8.8 out of 10 as a practical, ready-to-fish box that covers a genuinely useful spread of common trout and panfish dry patterns without requiring the angler to tie or hand-select flies. It is a strong pick for anglers who want depth of spares in sizes that matter for most freestone and lake fishing. Anglers who need smaller sizes for technical hatches, or who prefer a slimmer box for a minimalist kit, should look at Wild Water's smaller 36-fly option or a box built around a narrower size range instead, since this set is built around volume and variety rather than covering every possible hatch size.

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