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Hand shaped balsa popper


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Hey gentlemen, 

New to the ISA so go easy on me. This fly is a hand carved and painted balsa popper finished with a coat of epoxy I did a little while back. The block of wood holding it up was the starting material. Went for a "bass-like resembalance" with this colored creation.  Let me know your thoughts and happy to be part of the ISA clan. 

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1 hour ago, Tom L said:

Very nice looking bug.  Definitely will hunt.  Like the way you used a net to paint and gave the fly its textures.

 

28 minutes ago, Rob G said:

that is cool, did you place a slit in the bottom for the hook shank or did you drill a hole for the hook to slide thru?

Thanks guys! Appreciate it.

Rob, I have a fine tooth wood cutting blade for my dremel, I cut a slit in the bottom and set the hook with a little epoxy, then I fill the slit with white foam and cut flush with an x-acto knife. After a few coats of gesso sanded and then paint and epoxy, you can't even tell.

 

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Agree with Mike.  We never did the balsa wood thing but we did make use of the old cork stoppers that we used to get at the neighborhood hardware store.  In fact, I'm thinking about doing that again here shortly.  Ahh, this semi-retired thing really does have its perks. Ha

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30 minutes ago, Rob G said:

Agree with Mike.  We never did the balsa wood thing but we did make use of the old cork stoppers that we used to get at the neighborhood hardware store.  In fact, I'm thinking about doing that again here shortly.  Ahh, this semi-retired thing really does have its perks. Ha

Tell me more about these cork stops. How's the price? I build rods and cork ring prices are getting astronomical. 

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Rob, I new that semi- retirement thing would work out just fine for you.

These aren't as fancy as Jon's but were fun messing with and are light enough to cast with a 7wt fly rod and heavy enough for a light spinning rod. They have worked quite well on area largemouths. The  one pictured is a synthetic stopper from a wine bottle. They come in purple, yellow, red, green, etc. and are a nice bonus if you enjoy an occasional glass of wine. I have a nice stock of them as well as corks :). If there is a winery in your area you may be able to get a deal on the stoppers as they surely order bulk.

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Hmmmm, do I smell a contest coming on?  Create a popper from an old cork stopper and catch a fish on it and win a prize !  Do you think we could get a few to post their creations?  Maybe not after Jon and john showing off their talents...... but think about it anyway.

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Nice one, John. I just love finding things around the house to tie with. I'll have to give wine corks a whirl, never tried before! 

 

Rob, that sounds like a great idea. Not necessarily limited to the fly tyers in  the forum either. 

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I like it Mike :)!

It seems to me that there was a certain someone that had a St. Louis Cardinals popper that was quite cool. Maybe we could have that posted here.

These are not fly poppers, but they are poppers and plugs made from scrap basswood. I used a hand cranked grinder and files to create these when I was in my late 20s, which seems like another life ago. They were spray painted and covered with a spray urethane. Each  one caught fish before they were retired to this box.

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Nice work John. I like the 13, the Oreno, and the Ike's. My goal when I was in my teens and 20s was to carve a Flatfish. I never got one that worked. Why, when I could buy a real one at the hardware store for $2-3.00? That seemed like a lot back then.

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Props to Mike for that cork lure.  and yes, you win............for now : )

John, those are neat, I don't think you've ever shown those off before.  I've never been that creative or good at wood working.  My first Lazy Ike came when my mother had collected enough books of S&H Green stamps and she let me redeem them for a box of lures that contained an in-line spinner and a Lazy Ike.  I was in heaven.

 

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