dscapuano,

Not dumb at all.

Bucktail - Obvious answer. The location from whence they came. I'm just guessing that a buck's tail is larger than a doe's is. Bucktail is longer and much less 'hollow'. Therefore it's not very bouyant. Deer hair, meaning from parts other than the tail, can be short and fine to long and coarse, Depends on where on the body it's from and time of year the deer was taken. Hair from different parts, and at different times of year, will determine whether it is good for dry fly wings, dyeing and spinning. Deer tails are predominantly used for streamers, salmon flies and wet flies.

As far as thread size for streamers goes, I generally use 6/0. For large salt water patterns, which I do not tie, I imagine tyers use 6/0, 3/0, maybe stronger and or kevlar. The size or strength of the thread would also depend on the materials being used.

Hope this helps.

Allan