I'll go from late in the day to early. So, if you are looking for fly tying materials and stuff, then Brad Buzzi should be your guy, especially if you are looking for bucktails. Theresa and I had planned on hitting TFFS in Lancaster this weekend but, honestly, my interest just fizzled out. Brad was one reason I was going, Dave Nelson and Squimpish was the other, but looking at the floor plan in Lancaster I don't think he is going. So after a few early morning appointments I decided to take the ride down to give the Toms River a go. Sunny, outgoing tide at midday, why not.
It's a nice enough place, moving water on the tide, plenty of room for a back cast, nose in parking to the water. There was a bunch of guys out but the only thing I saw caught was a catfish and two large white perch, nothing with stripes. It's a cool spot that I bet gets shoulder to shoulder in the next few weeks when word gets out the fish have found the warmer waters in the back of Barnehat Bay.
Now, I've lost the days order. On my way to work I made a strop before the water warmed up. Dead low tide, good for scouting or refamiliarization of the structure in the river. I'm looking for that early season smallmouth that usually is the start that the water is heating up and things will get going soon.
So back to Brad, my dealer. He runs Buzfly. He sells flies, materials, teaches, and is very involved with the Atlantic Saltwater Fly Rodder, where he is past president. So he's involved, and into it. The really only way to pick proper materials, at least materials, is to hold them in your hand and run your fingers through them. Brad does the show circuit, but, even remotely, he is a great resource for bucktails. He gets them raw, debones them, cleans them, dyes them, dries them, brushes them out, and grades and packages them. He says each tail is handled 12-15 times in the process. He has great colors and quality, but they don't come that way. Below is how your pretty tails look raw, from the processor.
His basement workshop is a maze of bucktail in different stages of preparedness. You can text him at (732) 406-0463 to put an order in, he says, "Text is best". If you want to discuss certain lengths or a higher grade, softer if you need, or a certain color, he can discuss that with you. Don't rely on ordering from some factory only to be disappointed with the color selection or quality.
So I made some sweet scores being able to go through his several bins that are ready for Lancaster. I needed a few good whites, some of the lighter pastels I like, and browns, including the dark brown to the right which I loved. I was also able to get some SF Blend in needed colors and some newer colors to me, ones that will give lighter materials a little contrast. I sleeve of tab eyes and three spools of mono to tie with and I was set. I had some questions on trying bucktail, reverse, Hollow style, and Brad was nice enough to pull out the vice and help me out.
Go through your drawer of sub-par bucktails and then give him a call.