THE BABY WHALE

One of a Kind Fly!

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I walked across the yard, peering down at the grass.
Did it need to be mowed? I prayed it did not.... that is my least favorite home chore. 
Thankfully, it still had several days until it needed cutting, and I heaved a sigh of relief.

Glancing down at my feet, however, I spied an odd shape on the ground. It was different than the other fallen pecans, littering the ground around our trees.
It was darker in color and the shape was wrong; more rounded, more uniform.

I bent down and picked it up. In my hand I held three rounded, oblong forms, all attached to plastic branches - it was some kind of decorative piece for fake flower arrangements.
Like a large brown nut, sorta kinda.
I'm sure it fell off of some "home decor" item purchased by my wife at Hobby Lobby. 

On close examination, it was about the size of a small pecan. It had a brown plastic "skin" on the outside, with Styrofoam inside. 

"Hmmmm... Styrofoam?" I muttered.

CLICK -  the light came on... I could make it into some kind of fly!

I'm always looking out for things that can be turned into flies.
It could be anything, from packaging rescued from the trash bin, to some feathers stuck in a bush.
It doesn't  matter; if I get an inkling that it might make a fly, I take the challenge.
And I knew there have been other, round-ish flies over the years.
The old Accardo, "Round Dinny," comes to mind, for example.

So, it was certainly possible.

I sacrificed one of the fake nuts for dissection, to see what I was working with. From this surgery, I hit on how to transform this weird, fake plant-thing, into a weird, but cool, bass fly.

Tying The Baby Whale

- First, use a hacksaw to cut a slot in the bottom.
Not too deep...you don't want the lower curvature of the "body" to block the hook gap.

- Wrap a good layer of thread on the hook, then glue it into the slot with clear Gorilla Glue.
Actually, this glue isn't really clear. It may say that on the label, but it ends up white.
I've found that this stuff will really grip a hook, though.
Any fly body attached with this stuff will tear off before it turns on the hook or lets go. 

-  Clean off the excess glue
The glue itself expands into a foam, as it cures, and oozes out all over the place. Once hardened, trim it with scissors and a razor blade, then sand and use a little filler as needed. For filler, I used old-school Durhams Water Putty.

NOTE: Don't use solvent based glues and fillers with Styrofoam, as they will melt the foam. Super glue will normally melt the foam, too. So, it's either this kind of glue, or epoxy. 

 

- Decorate with nail polish
Because of the outer plastic skin on this thing, it was possible to use nail polish for decorating without their solvents melting the foam.

Several different colors of nail polish were applied as dots, and as dry brush coats.

- Add eyes using the "paint dot" method, then gloss coat with a clear waterproof art acrylic.

Finishing Off

With the body and hook complete, it is time to dress the fly.
This part is super simple - there are no rubber legs, no dangly appendages, none of that.
Over the seasons, I've come to appreciate that basic hair and fur are just as attractive to bass as more elaborate dressings, so I went that route. From that decision we move to…

Dressing The Back End

- Gold strands from Fly Tyers Dungeon 
I first laid down some sparkly flash in the tail, using, "Northern Lights, Gold/Hot White," from Fly Tyers Dungeon.
It is basically a crinkly Mylar tinsel with clear, hairlike fibers mixed in.

I used gold because Bob Clouser said I should use it on bass flies. That's good enough for me!

See link #1 at the end to find out WHO Bob Clouser is, should you not know, and WHY he said that.

See link #2 at the end to visit Fly Tyers Dungeon and see all the Northern Lights colors. 

- Bucktail and deer hair
Nothing unusual here - just random brown bucktail at the rear and stacked deer along the hook shank. Some furry dubbing was applied between the deer hair bunches to cover any gaps on the bottom... probably not needed, but it makes it tidy under there.

As it is, it may not cast worth a crap. Its like a ping-pong ball, with a poofy fur collar. 
So, we shall see later about the casting.

Conclusion
I didn't know what to call it...every fly needs a name, of course 
It's big, but also small, it's round, and it looks like, well, a little whale,... more or less.

"Bingo!" I said aloud. Our cat, sitting nearby, looked at me and licked his paws. He could care less, in that way only cats can care less.
I went on, despite his obvious dismissal...
"That's it - that's the name! The Baby Whale it shall be."


What were the nut-like, fake flower things found in my yard?
I still don't really know for sure.

Will this fly catch anything?
Probably, but I don't really know that yet, either.

But one thing I do know is, you'll probably never see any other flies like these two Baby Whales!

The Baby Whale

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I hope you liked this article, and learned something from it. 

I go for a job well done..., since I have no idea how to make money at it. 😁
If you think I did a good job, a like, comment, and share is appreciated. 

Thanks for reading, and "Tight Lines!"

David Hutton 

Questions? Contact me here ... dahutist@gmail.com

If you would like to join a no drama, no hype Facebook group, follow this link: Palmetto Fly N Fish

All rights reserved, David  Hutton© 2023 

LINKS

1. Bob Clouser On Bass

2. https://www.flytyersdungeon.com