The Arkansas Bucktail, sometimes known as the Ozark Bucktail, dates from at least the early 1930’s according to my research. It is quite likely a lot older than that. It is a self-weedless fly with the bucktail wing protecting the hook point. It was fished behind an in-line spinner and that’s still the way I like to fish it. It is most definitely a largemouth bass fly, but I’ve taken more than a few pickerel on this one. I like it in larger sizes and fish it in the autumn with a stacatto strip retrieve. You’ll find detailed tying instructions and a Podcast-ready video at http://www.flyfishohio.com. Windows Media version is also available. As always, these tying videos are free for download and you are welcome to use these for club activities, instructions, etc…
It’s a neat pattern, all right. What I like best about it is that its tied with two materials (three if you count the thread), is effective, is traditional and…
I tied one last night on a #4 hook. It was pretty easy to tie. I left off the flash, out of forgetfullness rather than by design. I am going to make up a few more.
Robin, you have to shorten the bucktail when tying in on smaller hooks, also use very small clumps. Trust me, you can tie way smaller than #8’s in this manner. You can also take hair from the base of the bucktail where the hair is smaller and finer.
