How different are calf tail and buck tail?

[FontinalisFin]

I would tie a wet fly style hackle at the hook bend, like Billy's poppers, but micro. For a panfish bug litteraly anything will work for the tail, even a mop fiber, nothing you need to be super serious about following the materials list, except for the general triangle shape and rubber legs.

 

[Merle]

Nothing fancy. Just a Triangle Bug for bluegill.

Instructions for tying the Triangle Bug — Panfish On The Fly

Instructions for tying the Triangle Bug fly.

www.panfishonthefly.com

that picture actually looks more like bucktail (at least to me). When I think of calftail I think vertical posts on parachute dry patterns. I think if you had some green bucktail, and selected a clump near the base where it's shorter, it would work pretty well.

 

[Rob Allen]

that picture actually looks more like bucktail (at least to me). When I think of calftail I think vertical posts on parachute dry patterns. I think if you had some green bucktail, and selected a clump near the base where it's shorter, it would work pretty well.

Slightly off topic but even for steelhead wet flies bucktail is superior to calf and even squirrel tail, just might have to stack it first which can be a challenge.
Parachute posts are pretty close to the only good use for calf tail..

 

[Pink Nighty]

I just grabbed some hooks for these yesterday Josh! FWIW, I'll be freestyling them out of marabou, craft fur and flash.

I'm thinking that hair wont wiggle as much in the chop while you pause as opposed to marabou or craft. Which may be the ticket sometimes.

 

[Josh]

I just grabbed some hooks for these yesterday Josh! FWIW, I'll be freestyling them out of marabou, craft fur and flash.

I'm thinking that hair wont wiggle as much in the chop while you pause as opposed to marabou or craft. Which may be the ticket sometimes.

What hooks did you get?

 

[Pink Nighty]

What hooks did you get?

Size 8 daichi streamer, light wire and long so there's plenty of hook sticking out

 

[FinLuver]

One has antlers when it grows up…the other horns. 😳😁

 

[Norm Frechette]

Nothing fancy. Just a Triangle Bug for bluegill.

Instructions for tying the Triangle Bug — Panfish On The Fly

Instructions for tying the Triangle Bug fly.

www.panfishonthefly.com

i would definitely substitute bucktail for calf tail

 

[Old406Kid]

Is the hook that they specify their own custom design?

 

[Mike Cline]

You said: “Bear in mind that I'm a crap-ass fly tier and am not particularly picky about this stuff as long as the fish don't care.”

The fact that you are seeking advice on fly tying materials on this forum is evidence that you are not a “Crap-ass fly tier”, but one that is intent on improving your knowledge and skill. One mistake in my opinion that a lot of new or novice tiers make is trying religiously to follow a so-called “fly pattern”. A panfish popper is a panfish popper and there is no end to the combinations of materials that will craft a functional panfish popper. Long gone are the days where fly patterns religiously call for “the urine stained belly fur of a pregnant fox” as if the urine stained belly fur of a coyote wouldn’t work. Knowledge of different material properties and having the requisite skills necessary to incorporate any given material are the skills you need to foster expand your fly-tying abilities.

The simple Panfish popper is nothing but a tail and a foam or cork head (sometimes, sometimes not with rubber legs) It is a simple formula. Your question about the tail has many answers. The table below has many tail options that could be incorporated into a panfish popper. Important however are four properties that influence to effectiveness of any given material you might choose to incorporate in a Panfish popper.

Durability: How well does the material withstand casting and catching fish. Some material is fragile, others are tough.

Movement: How well does the material move in the water when the fly is still or being stripped? Movement translates to your fly looking alive or not.

Water Retention: How well does the material shed water when wet? Materials that retain water cause flies to gain weight and make them more difficult to cast with distance and accuracy.

Ease of tying: Some materials are easier to tie with than others.

	Durability	Movement	Water Retention	Ease of Tying
Bucktail	Moderate	Low to Moderate	Moderate	Easy
Calf Tail	Moderate	Low to Moderate	Moderate	Medium (short fibers)
Craft Fur	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Medium
Moose	High	Low	Low	Easy
Synthetic Flash (Polar flash, Crystal flash, Kreelex, etc)	High	High	Low	Very Easy
Vinyl or Rubber Legs	High	High	Low	Very Easy
Hackle	Moderate	High	Moderate	Easy
Marabou	Low	High	Moderate	Easy
Rabbit or Squirrel	Moderate	High	High	Moderate
Finn Racoon or Arctic Fox	Moderate	High	Moderate	Easy

Any of the above materials could be used to tie effective Panfish poppers. The more you tie and use on the water, the more your skills and knowledge will grow. You will grow to like some materials over others when you try new patterns. Don’t be a “Crap-ass tier” and stay wedded to any published fly pattern recipe. Learn to understand the properties of different materials and use those properties to your advantage as you tie and fish the flies you want to tie and fish.