Little bucktails swap

A swap organized over the Streamers@ mailing list

Back a few months ago on the Streamers@ mailing list, one of the discussion-group participants (don't worry Bob, you'll go nameless) admitted that he had no small bucktails in his streamer box; and querried the group to recommend patterns. Subsequently, over a dreary January weekend, with 74 days, 9 hours & a few assorted minutes until opening day in Maine, the idea for this swap was spawned. In addition to gracing these pages, the swap served to fill quite a few streamer boxes with a delightful variety of "little bucktails for brookies."

This swap has gathered a collection of patterns from diverse sources, including Maine regional favorites (such as the Warden's Worry and Edson Tigers), patterns from the wider northeast (e.g. the Shushan Postmaster), regional patterns from the West and from Alberta (Atom Bomb & McNab), old Atlantic salmon fly adaptations (the Professor), and newly created patterns (South Branch Chub, Grey Fox, Green Parrot). They all share three things in common - hair wings, small hooks, and a tremendous attraction to brook trout.

EDSON LIGHT TIGER, MICKEY FINN

Submitted By Wes Autio

EDSON LIGHT TIGER

MICKEY FINN

Wes' Comments

Edson Light Tiger:
The Edson Light Tiger was created by William Edson of Portland, ME in 1929. Joseph Bates (Streamer Fly Tying & Fishing) suggests that the Edson Light Tiger and Edson Dark Tiger are "among the most successful for all species of game fish."

Tying Instructions
1. Start the thread behind the eye of the hook and lay down an even base of thread wraps to the hook bend.
2. Select a section of barred wood duck feather that is about 3/16" wide, showing at least two bars. Even the tip of the feather and fold it. Tie it to the top of the hook, allowing two bars to show. Tie the base of the section to the top of the hook by wrapping the thread back to about 3/16" from the eye.
3. Select four strands of peacock herl and tie to the top of the hook. Hold in on top of the hook and wrap the tread back to the hook bend over the herl. Twist the herl and thread together and wrap the herl/thread
around the hook to about 3/16" from the eye.
4. As the start of the wing, select a bunch of yellow bucktail, even it, and tie it to the hook, using the loop technique. The tips of the bucktail should extend to the end of the tail.
5. Apply a coat of penetrating, clear head cement before finishing the head, and allow it to dry.
6. Tie red hackle tips to the top of the wing so that they extend approximately 1/3 of the length of the bucktail.
7. Complete the head with thread wraps, and cement it again with penetrating, clear head cement. Allow it to dry, and finish the head with black Cellire for a glossy look.

Mickey Finn:
The detail of the Mickey Finn's origin is a bit obscure. The creator is unknown, but was at one time produced by William Mills & Sons but not named. Bates (in Streamer Fly Tying & Fishing) described the
history of its naming. Apparently, John Alden Knight received the fly from Junior Vanderhoff at a fishing club near Greewich, NY in 1932. Four years later, in 1936, Mr. Knight used it on a fishing trip near Toronto,
and due toits success, named it the Assassin. Gregory Clark, who also was on that trip, renamed it Mickey Finn, presumably because of the recent death of Rudolph Valentino by a dose of barbiturates (that is, he was
slipped a Mickey Finn). Over the next few years, it was popularized in the outdoors press, and since has become a staple streamer for brook trout.

Tying Instructions:
1. Start the thread behind the eye of the hook and lay down an even base of thread wraps to the hook bend. Wind thread back to about 3/16" behind the eye.
2. Tie the oval tinsel to the underside of the hook, and wrap thread over it back to the beginning of the bend, keeping the tinsel on the underside of the hook. Wind thread back to about 3/16" behind the eye.
3. Tie in the flat tinsel, and wrap it to the bend of the hook and back to the place where it was originally tied in, making sure that no thread shows through the tinsel. Tie the end of the tinsel and cut it off.
4. As the start of the wing, select a small bunch of yellow bucktail, even it, and tie it to the hook, using the loop technique as described by Martin Joergensen. The tips of the bucktail should extend just beyond the back of the hook
5. Secondly, select a small bunch of red bucktail (about the same size as the yellow), even it, and tie it on top of the yellow bunch, again using the loop technique.
6. For the last portion of the wing, select another small bunch of yellow bucktail (again, about the same size as the previous two bunches) and tie it on top using the same procedure. This loop technique helps keep
the colors separate, but you must be careful not to roll one bundle around the other, obscuring the lower color.
7. Apply a coat of penetrating, clear head cement before finishing the head, and allow it to dry.
8. Complete the head with thread wraps, and cement it again with penetrating, clear head cement. Allow it to dry, and finish the head with black Cellire for a glossy look.

ATOM BOMB

Submitted By Kerry Brown

ROYAL COACHMAN HAIRWING STREAMER

Submitted By Ben Taylor

Comments from Ben & his proud dad

The Royal Coachman Bucktail is a popular adaptation of the traditional wet fly. The substitution of white goat hair for the wing adds translucency & action to the pattern when tied in smaller sizes.
Twist the peacock herl with the tying thread before wrapping it on so it won't unravel if the fish bite it.
Ben is the 12 year-old son of the swapmeister, and clearly the prize of his dad's eye with this offering.

LLAMA

Submitted By Gordon Dale

THIRTEENTH LAKE

Submitted By Scott Daskiewich

Comments

This fly is named after a small lake on the edge of the Siamese Ponds wilderness in the south central Adirondacks. Garnet mines punctuate the mountains surrounding the lake. Three species of trout inhabit the lake as well as landlocked salmon so I suspect this fly would be versatile enough to use for all. I plan on doing a trolling size model for fall landlockeds.

ROACH RIVER ROBBER

Submitted By Kelvin Hartley

SOUTH BRANCH CHUB

Submitted By Aaron Hirschhorn

Aaron's Comments

The South Branch Chub was originated by Bob Jacklin while he was in highschool in New Jersey. His thrust was for a fly to use in small streams and ponds for native brook trout, particularly in the South Branch of the Raritan. He now claims that it is good not only in the east, but also out west.

Tying instructions (for my variation):
1. Attach thread at eye and wrap back a couple of eye lengths.
2. At this point tie on the gold Bodi-Braid and run thread to bend and then back up to this point.
3. Wrap Bodi-Braid up to wating thrad and clip excess.
4. Tie in a sparse amount of White Monga Ringtail for the base of the wing.
5. Over the white hair tie in an equal amount of Black Monga Ringtail.
6. The top of the wing is the most important part of the fly. Drape a small teal flank feather to form the back of the fly. If using Jungle Cock, tie them on at this time.
7. Cement the head and apply a touch of dubbing wax to the wing to groom and give it a nice sparse look.
8. Apply yellow eye with black pupil and cement when dry.

GREEN PARROT

Submitted By Stan Jakubaszek

MCNAB STREAMER

Submitted By Craig Jenne

KATADIN IRONWORKS SIMPLE SQUIRREL

Submitted By Ron McKusick

GRAY FOX STREAMER

Submitted By Robb Nicewonger

BLACK GHOST, HAIRWING VERSION

Submitted By Bob Petti

Bob's Comments

Originator: Herb Welch Tying tip - Use the uni stretch in a bobbin as thread and tie the tinsel in as you're winding back to the bend, and the tail in as you "turn around". Tie off with black thread and wind the tinsel forward. Finish the fly as normal.

HELL CAT

Submitted By Doug Saball

SHUSHAN POSTMASTER

Submitted By Stack Scoville

>Stack's Comments

The taper to the body is a modification of the technique Mike Radencich described in his excellent book on tying the Classic Salmon Fly. I used two strands of cotton embroidery floss and tied it in about 3/5 of the way toward the head. Keeping the two strands side-by-side, I wrapped forward to 4/5 then back over the first wraps to 2/5 from the tail then forward to the wing tie in point and tied off the cotton. Then with tying thread I wrapped backward, with VERY flat thread, filling in any gaps all the way to the tail and then back to the wing tie in point. I then took Kreinik silk tied it in, wrapped all the way back to the tail and then forward, making sure that there were no lumps or bumps, keeping the floss absolutely flat, and then tied it off. Next, I took an small test tube and "burnished" the silk to flatten it even further. This technique is also described in Mike's book. After wrapping the tinsel forward and tying it off, I covered the entire body with clear Cellire lacquer. After drying, I tied in the throat, much like a small wet fly wing. The squirrel follows. Finally the head is cemented, and covered with 2-5 coats of Sally Hansen Hard as Nails nail lacquer.

MACGREGOR

Submitted By David Talley

Comments

According to Bates' Streamer Fly Tying and Fishing, the pattern originated in Scotland. The original recipe calls for a burnt orange chenille body. I didn't have any of that, so I used floss, which I think I like better anyway. The original also calls for a throat of grizzly hackle. I substituted guinea fowl.

RED & WHITE #1 (ORIGINAL), RED & WHITE #2 (POPULAR), GOVERNOR AIKEN

Submitted By Bob Skehan

RED & WHITE #1 (ORIGINAL)

RED & WHITE #2 (POPULAR)

GOVERNOR AIKEN

Comments

Red And White
The two variations of the Red and White bucktail presented here show the original dressing which is pretty much a Mickey Finn with white bucktail substitued for the yellow, and the modern popular version which has the top layer of white bucktail replaced by peacock herl. I have to confess I haven't fished the original version at all since I'm generally a certifiable "peacock herl topping" junkie. Both patterns adapt well to all hook sizes, including tandem rigs for trolling. It's a very effective pattern all year long, but particularly in spring just after ice-out on Maine's lakes and ponds. I substituted calftail for the bucktail in this small version. Many times a white eye with black pupil is painted on the head of this pattern.

Governor Aiken:
This pattern, named to honor former Governor George D. Aiken of Vermont, is very similar to the Magog Smelt pattern, this bucktail is a must have for landlocked salmon fishing in my opinion. Some folks substitute a mallard flank shoulder for the jungle cock cheeks, particularly in larger trolling sizes...(making it even more like the Magog)...though I don't tie this pattern with either of them. Like the Red and White, it adapts nicely to all hook sizes and is a very popular trolling pattern tied in tandem. I used calftail in this particular sample as it was better suited to the size 10 hook. Note the peacock herl topping...see my comments above regarding my herl addiction. A peek into my streamer box would see this pattern sporting eyes painted white with black pupils.

PROFESSOR, WARDEN'S WORRY

Submitted By Will Taylor

PROFESSOR

WARDEN'S WORRY

Comments

Professor
My dad had a wonderful box of brook trout flies when I was a kid, many of them tied on eyeless hooks with gut snells. This squirrel-winged version of the Professor was one of the patterns I recall, along with a strip-wing version using a woodduck flank wing. This is one of my favorite patterns for swirling into pint-sized pools on tumbling mountain streams. I just have to tie one on my tippet to go back to those barefoot days on Beehunter Creek.

Warden's Worry:
Developed by warden Joseph Stickney, of Saco, Maine; an old standard since the 1920's. I originally wanted to tie this with a squirrel wing, but a traditionalist on the list shamed me into "doin' it proper." I'm glad he did - it looks a lot better the way that Stickney intended it. (I do have a couple with fox squirrel wings in my bucktail wallet, but I'll be careful who I show those to).

EDSON TIGER DARK

Submitted By Clyde Watson

EDSON TIGER DARK (Original)

EDSON TIGER DARK (My Version)

Clyde's Comments

According to Bates' book, Edson incorporated "Edson" cheeks (gold metal cheeks) to replace the expensive Jungle cock eyes. Also of the five examples in Bates' book, I don't think any of them are tied identicle. He used various hackle types for the tail and even used furnace hackle for the squirrel wing. Seeing this I don't feel as bad for my simplified version. For me it's easier to tie, and still closely resembles the original pattern.

BLUE BACK

Submitted By Roger Whitcomb

Roger's Comments

I use this pattern in casting and trolling sizes including tandems. It works well right after ice out for squaretails in the pattern and size I have done for the swap however I do use it in size 10 & 12 also. I
believe that the natural flare and translucency of Polar Bear is a real attractor for squaretails and the other Trout & Salmon species as well. I normally fish it on the surface at that time and then as the water
warms up change to a sinking line. It also works well for Lakers during the summer months fished as a tandem @ 50'-60' either dead drifting or trolling.