Using hare fur

OK. The mask has a number of more or less defined areas with specific
types and colours of hair.

On either side of the nose, there are areas of reddish brown hair
with very little underfur. Moving up the side of the mask, this
changes to a light buff colour. As one moves further up, the hair tips
become darker with a well defined dark brown to black band, and blue
grey underfur.

Between the eyes and on the forehead is hair with light yellowish tips
and a dark base.

At the base and between the ears is the "poll" this is a light reddish
brown with pale tips, with underfur of the same colour.

At the base of the ears you have soft fur with light, often almost
white fur with a varying length of dark base. Moving up the ear
itself you have short dark hair with light tips. This is the hare
recommended for the hare´s ear nymph. You can remove this by pinching
it off with your thumb and finger nail. The whole side of the ear is
covered with this hair.

On the leading edge of the ear, both sides, you have very light
coloured guard hair. One side has much stiffer and longer hair than
the other. You can use the long side for wings, tails etc, and the
short side for light guard dubbing.

There are three other distinct areas on the outside of the ear. At the
base of the ear you have short red/brown fur. Above this short white/
buff fur, and then you have the tip of the ear which is very short
almost black fur.

Moving to the inside of the ear. We have already covered the leading
edges.We have much the same schem as on the outside, but there is much
less hair and it is shorter. Otherwise similar. Again the easiest way
to remove this hair is by pinching it out with your finger and thumb.

So, that very roughly covers it. I have been working on an article
about this for quite some time, but I don´t know when I will finish
it.

You can blend any of these furs together in pinches, or you can use
each type of hair alone, or you can separate the guard hair and the
underfur and use it separately.

There are many possible blend combinations. I have covered about
twenty of these "standard" blends so far, but of course they are
practically infinite.

Many people simply shave the mask and chuck the result in a blender,
But this is a terrible waste of possibilities and the resulting blend,
though quite excellent for some nymphs and wet flies, contains a very
large percentage of underfur, and is thus less suitable for quite a
few things, including dry flies.

You can dress dozens of completely different flies using a mask and
ears. And you can also control the properties of those flies.

I hope that helped at least a bit. When I have the article finished I
will post it of course.

For guard hair wings and the like, body fur is better simply because
it is a lot longer and easier to handle. even short body guard hair is
at least an inch long, which is quite ample for even the largest
flies.

The guard hair from various locations also differs in colour according
to location, and much of it also differs in colour along its own
length. There may be three or more clearly defined colours or shades
of colour on a single guard hair, If you want a specific colour, then
just cut the colours off that you require, and put the others aside
for something else.

Anybody wishing more info, and the accompanying pictures, may find
them here;

http://www.sexyloops.co.uk/cgi-bin/t...=ST;f=7;t=5396

TL
MC