Being nice pays off!!

[smalljaw]

Well it looks as if being a nice person is paying dividends not that I was looking for it in the first place. I got new neighbor awhile ago and I found out during the summer that the kid they have loves fishing so I helped him out giving him his first casting rod, and I've been making jigs for him to use as well as other lures but I did run it by his dad first because you never know what people are capable of these days. After helping the kid out and getting reports on how good he was doing with my jigs I came to find out his dad has a taxidermy shop and he told me if he gets some bucktails that someone doesn't want he'll let me know. Today my doorbell rings and there is my neighbor with a huge buck tail, and the best part is he went and pickled and told me it was all ready to go and I asked him what he wanted and told me ot to worry about money but I offered him money anyway and told me if I offer him anymore he'll stop giving me bucktails as he is going to be giving me a lot more once rifle season opens!! How lucky am I to have such a good neighbor!!! The bucktail is really high quality, I was shocked at how soft the hair was, I feel pretty lucky!

 

[Fatman]

What goes around comes around!!! Kudo's for helping the boy out!!!!!!!!

 

[Radtexan]

Nice work SJ....Pay it forward it always comes back..

 

[blt]

Nothing like good ole Pa. bucktail. Nice job!

 

[AtticaFish]

...How lucky am I to have such a good neighbor!!!...

I bet he is saying the same thing. I have gotten a few full bucktails now in trade for just a handfull of jigs. Both sides feel they get their worth!

I have found that every bucktail is very different. Some 'fresh cut' ones i have gotten have very soft fibers and others are stiff.... some kinked out hair and others poker straight. Is a roll of the dice.

 

[Lost Pole]

Nice work SJ....Pay it forward it always comes back..

Most of the time, but good advice n happy for you!

 

[Jig Man]

I have been using doe tail. The hair isn't as long as Pa buck, but it is very soft and has good action... And the best part is it's white! Great job on the trading. Doing the right thing always pays off. Te giving part is payment enough. When you both win its even sweeter!

 

[blt]

Doe/buck, early fall, late fall, winter and spring all can bring a difference in the tails. I just got a box of 164 bucktails a few weeks ago, and you can see the differences you mention. These are all a mix of late winter, spring and summer tails.

 

[smalljaw]

I'm amazed I never knew he was a Taxidermist but then again I really wasn't looking for material and I had no alternative motives when I helped the boy out with fishing advise and equipment. I know how hard good stuff is to aquire at that age and you fish a lot of junk until you get something good plus not many kids getting into the outdoors these days, most are playing Xbox or are on facebook. I have gone through a lot of bucktails over the years and I got a lot from hunters around the area and I get pretty good ones most of the time but this has to be one of the nicest I got in a long time. It was nice that it was given to me but the overall quality is rare to get, very full with no bare spots and extremely soft and I have only got a few natural bucktails that were that soft.

 

[blt]

He may be good for more than you know. He may have connections that can get you Fox, Mink, (don't be there when they skin that critter, stinks like heck!!) all kinds of possibilities. I had 2 skunk pelts given to me to try by my furrier.

You sound like me, you do this stuff because it makes someone happy, not because you are looking for something in return. I give a lot to kids, Vets, and special needs groups at the beach when they have events on the fishing pier.

Seems like there are a lot of people on this forum that are of the giving type. Seems to be too rare anymore among this "me me me" society we live in now.

 

[Fatman]

X2 blt - "Seems like there are a lot of people on this forum that are of the giving type"

 

[StumpHunter]

Good to hear the kid is catching fish on your jigs. Nice to have some good neighbors too

 

[hookup]

Being nice pays off, that's fur sure!

Reminds me of a tail (no pun intended LoL) how I got a bag full of bucktails. Around this time of the year, deers go into a rut & believe that a pair of headlights are foreplay to mating.

This results in allot of dead deer on the side of the road.

My buddy carries a plastic bag of salt mixed with borax, and when he sees a fresh roadkill, he stops, clips the tail, and puts it in the bag. One day he was clipping a tail, and an irrate lady came out and started yelling at him for clipping the poor deer's tail.

His reply was "Lady, the deer's dead and doesn't need his tail anymore".

She about fainted.

 

[redman]

I have have used over 500 bucktails and the ones that I liked best were the old Swamp buck tail. These are the ones that have really kinky hair that is almost like small wire. These have the best action in the water.

Good Book says that you reap what you sow. So Cast you Bread upon the water and it will come back seven fold. No big secret I give away more than I ever use. And got more than I will ever need.

Redman

 

[papaperch]

To be truthful there still are a lot of givers in this country of ours. They just are not a very vocal bunch. Every person that you help in life. Has the potential of becoming a friend. At 65 years of age I have yet to hear a person say at any funeral parlor. "Yep they just had too many friends. "

Watching the re-action of a person being gifted is almost always reward enough. The reason I say almost is a little too much enjoyment I revel in now and then. That is when a child comes up to me on the ice and says " what are you using ". I show them a handful of my pinmins. Show them how to use them, give the handful to them, and tell them now go outfish your dad. Youngsters have that natural curiosity and do not hesitate to inquire why you are catching them and they are not. Us older folk are almost always too reserved to admit defeat or intrude on one another's privacy. Usually the dad finally comes over and says " can I get a lesson too ? " Have made several good friends in this scenario.

 

[blt]

Nice story papa. I had a special needs kid come up to me on the pier asking what I was using to catch my flounder. I got one of my rigs out of my bag, asked his Mom if I could rig him up, and did it. He caught a horseshoe crab, something we hate latching on to, but he was running around yelling with excitement lol. Of all the rigs I gave out, his I will remembner the most. He asked his Mom for money to buy some rigs off me, no need, I gave him a bunch.

The happy expression his Mom had was worth it also. Would have loved to see him catch a flounder or sea trout, but had to leave. Who knows, maybe he did.