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noahflyfisher

Bucktail Subsitution?

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So I tied my first black nose dace recently, but I didn't have any tan buck tail so I used a piece of timberwolf hair we have in our trailer to keep the mice out. (I don't know if it works but it seems to) it seems to tie in nicely but its not as coarse as buck tail and it flair a bit more. The first one I tied is on the left, second one middle, and the last one on the right. So let me know what you think! Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. Tight lines.

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Well, the obvious is that the black should be the middle clump of hair, not the top. It represents a stripe along the middle of the real minnow.

 

Other than that, it looks pretty good. The wolf seems to be a good substitute.

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Agree with the others the pattern colors & sequence is not correct, but those will catch some fish. They may be a bit over dressed too, but that's a matter of opinion. I like to tie them sparse, but also tie some "bucktail" style hair wing streamers fuller, and they all seem to work.

 

As far as the substitution, I don't think there is a substitute for bucktail. Hairs/furs have their own unique properties, but other long hairs can certainly be used for tying this style of fly. I tie quite a bit with fox & coyote hair, and have tied with hair/fur such as skunk & opossum. Much depends on the size hooks you're tying on & texture of the hair. As you get smaller with the hook sizes, bucktail may not be the best choice. I don't often tie streamers smaller than a size 8, but will tie some for panfish occasionally down to size 12. I like a Clouser style pattern on size 12 to 8 hooks with bead chain eyes & use fox or coyote for them instead of bucktail, as they're much finer than bucktail & the finer hair gives such a small fly better action. You can tie the Black Nose Dace in a variety of sizes.

 

You may also like another similar pattern tied with the black side stripe, white belly and an olive back (topped with a few strands of peacock herl if you like). It generally mimics a baby bass, but also may imitate various other baitfshes that have the dark side stripe. I've caught a lot of fish over the years on that color scheme as well as the tan/black/white that you've used. Plus, shades of gray with the black side stripe over a white belly is another good one.

 

I believe I had read that the original Art Flick BND pattern was tied with Polar Bear hair in the belly, but since that's no longer a commonly available material, bucktail has replaced it. I've tied the BND pattern with skunk hair for both the black stripe & the white belly, which makes a perfectly good pattern that will get eaten! smile.png

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I believe I had read that the original Art Flick BND pattern was tied with Polar Bear hair in the belly,

 

Not only that, but the black bear for black part. Only the brown was bucktail.

 

This is one fly where I think we all make substitutions of one sort or another. I really like the look of wolf in this one.

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Thanks you guys I will take into consideration everything said and provide an update tomorrow, I am always looking to improve my fly's. Oh, and tide water, I am going to tie up a few with that black/white/olive scheme also.

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