Baby Fat Minnow

Small Size, Big Eats




Full disclosure...  We are on a baby fly kick lately.  Check out the Baby Complex Twist Bugger HERE.  Now... On to the Baby Fat Minnow.

Have you ever had one of those days where you know you are fishing in the right place, the fish are active, the weather is perfect, but the fish just don't seem to like your fly pattern?  If you have ever fished a lake where you can sight fish to cruisers you get to see the whole thing unfold.  Cast out, fish appears out of nowhere and follows your fly, then he turns away.  You strip your fly and he comes right back and follows even closer this time but still turns away...  Yeah.  Stillwater trout can be real jerks sometimes.  Because they basically just swim and eat, they can afford to be more selective than river fish - mostly because they aren't burning calories in currents just to survive.  I could go on and one about this, but long story short, I wanted to create a fly that they wouldn't be able to give the ol' "looky Lou" anymore.  The Low Fat Minnow was born, and has been a very successful fly for us over the last 4 years or so.  It has caught everything from Green Sunfish in Utah to Tarpon in Mexico.  After a recent trip to chase big cutthroat, I noticed lots of really small baitfish that would school up right over the weed beds near shore.  After that trip I began working on a much smaller and simpler Low Fat Minnow, and after a few revisions the Baby Fat Minnow was born.  Instead of explaining how they worked, I'll just let you watch a video of our second trip using them...



Because Bruiser Blend Jr. comes in a bunch of different colors, you can tie pretty much any color combinations you can dream of.  I have listed several color patterns on the bottom of this page, and the video is the chub flavor.

Here's the tutorial.  Happy tying!

NOTE!!!  If the barbless Bonio hook is sold out, you can also get the barbed version and just pinch the barb. Another good option is the Firehole 315 in size 6 or 8.  Also, if you can't get your hands on the spey hackle with Chickabou, I like the new Fish Hunter premium strung marabou in Fl. White UV.

Buy the barbed Bonio HERE
Buy the Firehole 315 HERE
Buy Fish Hunter marabou HERE


~ Cheech

Chub Material List
Add to Cart   View in store
                                    
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Bead: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Nickel - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt or Bird Fur - White 
Collar: Ice Dub - Callibaetis
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Gray Holo
Head 2: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Cream
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Super Pearl - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:

Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Desert Tan (Dark Tan)

Baby Bass Material List
Add to Cart   View in store

                                    
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Bead: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Nickel - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt or Bird Fur - White
Collar: Ice Dub - UV Pearl
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Medium Olive
Head 2: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - White
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Super Pearl - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:

Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Delta Brown (Dark Brown)

Shad Material List
Add to Cart   View in store

                                    
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Bead: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Nickel - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt or Bird Fur - White
Collar: Ice Dub - UV Pearl
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Gray Holo
Head 2: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - White
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Gold - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:

Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Black

Bluegill Material List
Add to Cart   View in store

                                    
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Bead: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Metallic Purple - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt - White Dyed Tan
Collar: Ice Dub - Callibaetis
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Brown Olive
Head 2: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Cream
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Super Pearl - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:

Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Desert Tan (Dark Tan)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Sand (Tan)

White Lightning Material List
Add to Cart   View in store

                               
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Bead: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Fl. White - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt or Bird Fur - White
Collar: Ice Dub - UV Pearl
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - White
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Super Pearl - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:

Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)

Red Side Shiner Material List
Add to Cart   View in store

                                         
Hook: Fulling Mill Bonio Barbless Carp Hook - 8
Thread: Danville Flat Waxed Nylon Thread - 70 Denier - White
Bead: Plummeting Tungsten Beads - Gold - 7/64" (2.8mm)
Tail: Spey Chickabou Pelt - White Dyed Tan
Collar: Ice Dub - UV Tan
Line: Ice Dub - Red
Head 1: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Alpha Wolf
Head 2: Bruiser Blend Junior Dubbing - Butter Belly
Eyes: 3D Holographic Eyes - Gold - 1/8"


Other tools from the tutorial:
 
Renzetti Master Vise
Loon UV Infiniti Light
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Flow
Loon UV Clear Fly Finish - Thick (1/2 oz)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Delta Brown (Dark Brown)
Chartpak Fly Tying Markers - Black