How to Make a Musky Bucktail

The musky bucktail doesn't resemble any other blade or jig-style bucktail fishing lure. The musky bucktail is long, uses several hooks and shows a wild display of hair. The typical lure is longer than 10 inches and the design is intended to create a visible commotion that attracts the fish. Muskie are predatory and drawn to large prey sources. The bucktail doesn't imitate a specific mammal, fish or reptile, the lure's size and motion resemble a large fish, snake or leech.

Things You'll Need

  • Size 4 treble hooks
  • Spinner blades on a swivel
  • Leader wire
  • Fly tying vise
  • 3/0 tying thread
  • Bucktail
  • Instant glue
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Instructions

    • 1

      Place one bend on the treble hook in the vise and clamp the jaws. Feed a 24-inch section of leader wire through the eye bend the wire to create two 12-inch sections. Slide a second treble hook on one end of the wire.

    • 2

      Feed both ends of the wire through the ring on the blade swivel. Pull 1 inch of overlap on each end of the wire. Twist the swivel to twist and tie the wire. Continue twisting until the entire wire is twisted into a single strand.

    • 3

      Wrap the thread around the Size 4 treble hook 10 times. Cut a clump of bucktail and hold it on the hook with the tips covering the hook bend. Make 10 thread wraps to secure the hair. Add one drop of instant glue to cement the wraps.

    • 4

      Remove the hook from the vise and clamp the middle section of wire in the vise. Make 10 thread wraps around the wire. Cut a clump of long bucktail fibers and secure the fibers to the wire with 10 thread wraps. Add a drop of instant glue to cement the wraps. Cut off the thread.

    • 5

      Remove the wire from the clamp and tie a third section of bucktail on the lower half of the wire and a fourth section immediately above the blade. The entire wire is covered with bucktail when the process is complete.