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Bucktail Baitfish

tied by Kingfisher
Fly Type: Bucktails/Deceivers,
Target Species: Pike,
Recommended Region: Northeast US,
Imitation: General Baitfish,
Material List: Hook: Mustad C70SD, size 1
Thread: Uni-Cord 7/0 (this all I use on saltwater patterns, since it's very strong and dries clear when finished with numerous adhesives)
Mid-body: Light olive bucktail, clipped from the wide end of the tail
Flash: Fluorescent Fire Orange Krystal Flash
Belly: Yellow marabou
Upper-body: Olive bucktail, again clipped from the wide end of the tail
Topping: Peacock herl

Tying Instructions: 1. Place hook in the vise and start the thread; wrap it back about 1/8"-1/4" from the eye. Uni-Cord is very expensive so I have learned to be very neat and sparing with my wraps, which keeps the fly looking nicer.
2. Clip a thin bunch of long hair from the tail used for the mid-body, place it behind the eye with a small gap for space, and tie it in. Wrap in wide turns down to the point of the hook and wrap back to 2-eye lengths behind the eye.
3. Tie in four-six strands of krystal flash on top of the bucktail as shown...
4. Fold the krystal flash in front of the eye back over the body and secure it near the eye.
5. Take a smallish marabou feather (or a fluffy one and thin it out by removing some of the fibers) and tie it in near the eye.
6. Clip a decent-sized bunch of bucktail for the upper-body and tie it in near the eye. The reason that I clip the hair from the wide end of the tail is that it's much longer and therefore I get a good-sized fly out of it.
7. Apply liquid cyanoacrylate sparingly to the head and allow it to penetrate the entire head; as you can see, the thread goes clear. Alternately, you can use "Hard as Nails".
8. Tie in four-five strands of peacock herl and again apply a small amount of liquid cyanoacrylate to bind everything together.
9. Add eyes and coat with the finishing adhesive of your choice. In this case, as in most, I use thinned Soft Body and apply with a small applicator, giving it three coats for good measure. Normally I would do this step only after tying a load of flies up, "finishing" them all at once.
10. You'll notice that the bucktail looks a bit unruly in these shots; that's because I run them under very hot tap water for a few seconds to get the bucktail to train properly. Once I've shaped the fly, I let it dry in that position and it stays more life-like under water. The finishing vertical bars were added with a fat Sharpie prior to running it under the water, though you could do that step afterwards if you wanted.

Underwater, these flies puff out a little bit, especially in the belly since the marabou gives such great action.
Presentation Tips: Good for any warmwater and saltwater piscivores, and can be tied to imitate any baitfish.

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