Dying fox fur

[Shoemoo]

I bought some arctic fox tails from a couple of different online sources, and the first tail came yesterday. It's really soft and fluffy, with one small area of dark tipped fur. I'm planning on cutting it into sections and dying it.

I've bought some dyed body hair swatches in the past, but I want to try dying my own. It's my favorite hair for crappie jig tails. Got some body fur from an old stole coming soon too. I'm really excited about creating my own colors. The local fly shops have a very limited selection.

This is my first attempt at dying fur. I've heard people use RIT dye or Kool Aid? Has anyone dyed white fur before?

 

[AtticaFish]

Here is a thread - Before & After - that i think might have the info you are looking for.

"Has anyone dyed white fur before?" Are you trying to take a color that is not white and make it white?

 

[Shoemoo]

Thanks for the link. Too bad I can't see the image in the first post. Looks like I'll be using RIT.

I'd guess that the tail is about 80% pure white, with most of the rest darkened by scattered black guard hairs. I usually pull the guard hairs out anyway because of their length. There is one very dark spot where the color goes into the under fur. It's about the size of a silver dollar. I know it's very difficult to lighten fur without damaging the hide, so I'll be dying that part a dark color. I'm thinking dark purple or black.

 

[blt]

If you are getting into dying, you may want to invest in a bottle of synthrapol to put into the solution. 1/4 teaspoon for about a qt. to 1.5qts of water. It will help the hair/feathers take the dye more evenly. Remember to rinse in warm water when you take out of the dye bath also.
I do hair at 180 degrees. If you let the water boil, I don't know about anything but Bucktail, but it can leave you with a pot of hair soup.

 

[Shoemoo]

Thanks. I have an old stock pot and candy thermometer I plan on using. I've got lots of materials, so it's not a disaster if I mess up a few times along the way.

I want even, colorfast colors. I assume you can pick up Synthrapol at stores like Joanne's or Hobby Lobby?

 

[blt]

Couldn't tell ya. I ordered mine online off Amazon. I know I have 2 big craft stores here in Lancaster, A C Moore and Micheals, and neither had it online when I checked. Check the sites online you mentioned. Another thing some do is dip a paper towel section into the dye, and you can get a look at what it looks like. Read this on other sites, but never tried it myself.
I don't use Rit, so I am of no help for you there. Stainless steel pot is also suggested, nothing that can react with the dye.

 

[hunter7711]

Just make sure if you use Rit to substitute Vinegar for the salt. Go to the Rit site and they tell you the mixture for 100's of colors. I must have deleted the picture from the earlier post. All it showed was a piece of natural next to a piece I dyed Chart. Fox is my all time favorite to fish with. I normally mix it with Hackle.

 

[Shoemoo]

Did the color turn out really bright? I'm mainly looking for vibrant colors. Fluorescents would be nice, but I'm thinking that might be difficult to get unless the dye is specifically labeled as fluorescent.

 

[blt]

Salt? Never used that. Some people wet their hair/feathers before they put it in the dye...some don't. Never tried it, but if I find out it works better, I'll give it a try.

 

[Shoemoo]

The official RIT instructions say to use salt, but apparently it doesn't work well on hair and feathers. RIT is actually intended for fabrics and makes no promises regarding animal products aside from silk and wool. I'm not super picky about the exact shade of the results. Dying makes some people tear their hair out because they can't match a specific shade of olive or whatever, but as long as chartreuse comes out yellowish green and pink comes out lightish red, I really don't mind.

 

[hunter7711]

I used #578 http://www.ritdye.com/colorit_color_formula_guide Follow the formula I did in my other post. If you want it yellower just add more of the lemon yellow. I found the picture of what I did.

 

[Ron Don]

Ive gotten some bright colors from Prochem Washfast dyes. Heres some i dyed a while back.

 

[hunter7711]

I wounder how they would work on fur. I like the yellow. I have ordered from several places lately and none of the flou. yellow is the same, or what I want.

 

[Fatman]

I'm a coward about dying furs and feathers LOL

 

[LedHed]

Colors came out brite Ronny - looks good