Craft fur versus calf tail

[Palad]

I am just getting into tying jigs and my question is can one be used instead of the other? And witch do you use the most?

 

[redman]

I use Calf tail don't use craft fur much. Most of the jigs that I tie work better with calf tail. I did a test on the craft fur a few years back. Calf tail was the better producer over the craft fur.

You can use both but IMHO the calf tail is the better material.

Redman

 

[Pup]

I am just getting into tying jigs and my question is can one be used instead of the other?

Yes.

And witch do you use the most?

Craft fur.

Now, here's what you need to ask yourself and then tell us. What type of fish are the jigs for?

I tie for bass most of the time, so I use craft fur quite a bit. Kip (calf tail) doesn't have the length I need for the size of the jigs that I tie. Generally, I tie 1/8-ounce jigs and larger. Sometimes, I do tie on 1/16 heads and the craft fur still works there for what I want to achieve. That is, a hair profile that's long enough to provide good movement in microcurrents without being retrieved.

This is a late fall/wintertime/early spring consideration for many bass fishermen who fish their hair jigs extremely slowly along lake and river bottoms. Craft fur works well for that.

Come to think of it, craft fur works fairly well when fish are active too. I find it's best for me to move my rod's tip slightly up and down while retrieving the jig and keeping it off the bottom of the river or lake I'm fishing.

 

[Fatman]

I use both, but I do prefer calftail but good stuff is hard to find sometimes. I know a few guys on the fly tying boards that like calftail but don't like tying with it and use calf body hair instead.

 

[redear]

they are two totally different acting materials, and both are great for certain things. the craft hair has more movement and is longer, the calf tail has a tougher texture and is stiffer, it also takes more practice to get it looking right on the jig than craft hair.

 

[redman]

I have to agree with pup on one thing for bass it is hard to beat the craft fur for length. I tie mostly crappie jigs so calf tail is the best choice for me. I can see nothing wrong with using both on the same jig with good results.

Redman

 

[Fatman]

X2 with redear and redman - redear seems to know where to get good calftail. I think it's Crazy Angler Tackle but hope he'll post if I'm right or wrong on that.

 

[Palad]

Thank you for your replies. I am tying crappie and bluegill jigs. 1/32oz and 1/64oz.

 

[AtticaFish]

You could use them on the same types of jigs, but they have a significant difference in how they look in the water.

Craft fur will flow very smoothly in the water with lots of action to it. If you pick out some of the underfur and make a fairly sparse tail, it will collapse down to a thin tail and have a TON of movement in the water. Tying with craft fur is not difficult but it can be challenging to get the under fur pinched out to get a smooth taper tail.

Kip is much stiffer compared to craft fur and will keep more of the shape that it is tied in. It will stay a bushy looking tail and have subtle movement. Kip can be difficult to keep from slipping around the hook shank - takes good thread and lots of pressure to keep it still.... a drop of glue will help.

In my best Yoda voice impression..... Need them both, you will.

 

[redman]

AF yes kip is stiffer but this time of year it is the material of.choice in this part of the country. Will use kip tail jigs up until the crappies spawn out. After that it will be maribou tail jigs till it gets very cold again. Them and the Flash Ducks.

Redman

 

[AtticaFish]

oh, oh, oh....... kip tail has its place in MY box. It is stiffer material than craft fur and THAT IS why i like it, i think anyway. Got some jigs from Jiggin Joe a long ways back and they were like a super addictive drug to the bluegills in my local reservoirs. I dedicated several nights to figuring out how to make something similar, bought several tails since then, but never have been able to re-create the jigs that Jiggin Joe made for me with my own hand. But the Kip sure does work!!!! Last spring, myself and a buddy were nailing crappie on 1/32, bright a$$ kip tail jigs i tied for a short time at a favorite little lake. They keep that fat a$$ profile which is a good thing at times i think.

...AF yes kip is stiffer but....

 

[redman]

AF Think that when the water gets cold fish slow down as so must we in fishing for them. That is the point of my post. When I fish thur the ice my jigs has no tails. The colder the weather gets down here the slower I longline. I just have to drift along with the river current. Seems that at this time of year the fish(crappies) go deeper. Get most of the fish in the middle of the river channel. Warmer the day the better the fishing and colder the day it is some times really a hard day on the water. And a jig with very slow action is the best producer.

Redman

 

[redear]

the best calftails I have bought at the best prices were from Grandpa bobs, but you might waite a while for your order to get to you, and you may have to remind him of backordered stuff later that you have already paid for, but he is a great guy with a full time job that keeps him real busy at times, but like I said the quality of his tails are the best and so is the price. crazy angler has good prices on calftails too, and he will get them to you faster on average but the quality won't match grandpa bobs tails. now they both sell wapsi tails I believe, but grandpa's look like a top grade and crazy's look like a lower grade, not trying to step on any toes here, but just want ya to know the deal n the tails. alot of other places charge entirely too much for their tails, you shouldn't pay more than 2.50 each for them.

 

[smalljaw]

I've checked out the kiptail at my local Cabelas and it was too short for my needs but it does feel coarse, more so than bucktail so I'm not sure how it would work in the water but craft fur is really different. I tie most of my jigs for bass and smallmouths in cold water really react well to craft fur but the reason is easy to figure out, the craft fur doesn't need much movement to set it in motion, just the slightest of current makes craft fur sway to and fro while the jig head sits motionless and there fore it looks alive but not running away which makes for an easy meal!!

 

[redear]

most all kiptails have short hair at the base and it gets progressively longer towards the tip, so each tail can be used with several different sized jigs. A trick I use to make them easier to handle and cut the hair from is to take a side cutter, which looks like a pair of pliers with cutting jaws , and cut the tail in peices by cutting thru the bone if it is still in there. just look the tail over for the side with the sparsest hair and push the hair out of the way as best you can so you don't cut thru much of the hair thus losing it, and I even bend the bone sometimes to make it easier to snip. you don't have to cut all the way thru the bone, just enough to let you break it all the way over, If you try to cut all the way thru it in one wack, you will lose too much hair that way, so just a little snip, and break over, then snip a little more till you get it separated. really helps in getting your desired hair from the tail easily. If I was into smallmouths though, I would probably go with bucktail and craft hair, and also the wool and satin materials we are starting to use here.

 

[Fatman]

Squirrel tail is also much easier to use when you break it into pieces. Haven't tried any kip from Grandpa Bobs or CAT. Gonna have to get some soon, bought mine along time ago, from a fly shop back home.

 

[Shoemoo]

I prefer calf body hair, but it doesn't come in as many colors as the tails and it's not as available. The body hair is straighter and easier to get off the hide. Tails are one of those items I'd rather see in person first. Sometimes you get really bushy tails with lots of long hair, sometimes you get ones that look like they would only work on teeny dry flies.