FLYMPH FORUM

I'm kind of a fur junkie. Ok...hoarder. I always wash, condition, brush and "primp" all of my skins and masks. You get SUCH a better product! I have several hares masks in several colors and they have all had this black, hard, nasty crap matted in the fur on the outside edge of the mask right at the base of the ear. Any tricks for getting this stuff out? That's a primo area on the mask, and I always lose a lot of great dubbing while combining that stuff out with a flea comb. Since it's on all of my masks and in the same spot, I assume it's on most other masks too.

I agree 100%! I do the same thing with my hare masks, and am always amazed by the improvement in the quality, from a simple wash and blow dry/combing. I save the fur that comes off (picking out the clumps with dried blood) then use the fur for my next batch of nymphs/soft hackles.

EXAMPLE: https://flymphforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=8969

Terrestrial12, Howdy;

The " this black, hard, nasty crap matted in the fur on the outside edge of the mask right at the base of the ear. "
is (imo), most likely dried blood and ear wax, it happens. So, why not try some peroxide as a
method to remove it? It won't change the color. If you want to test it just use a Q-tip on a spot.

hank

@hankaye that's a great idea! Ya I actually assume it's ear wax/blood since it's always in the same spot at the base of the ear but it doesn't seem to soften in hot water and dawn and I didn't know if animals had ear was haha. I'll try that next time.

Ray yes I do pretty much the exact same process as you but I do a few things differently you may or may not want to try...
1. I use a .99 cent flea comb rather than a brush. This gets everything nice and smooth, fluffed up and laying right, but it doesn't pull a bunch of fur off the mask like that. Only the tangles and little bits of dried blood or undesirable organic matter get combed out. Works amazingly. I don't like a big clump of hair from different areas all mixed together personally.
2. After my furs are washed and rinsed I fill the sink or a bowl or whatever with clean, warm water and about 10-15 drops of pure glycerin from the drug store. I let it soak for about 20 min then proceed with the dry/combing process. U can get it for about 3 bucks for a big bottle. This is the active ingredient in hair conditioner with no scent or coloring. Leaves the skin still hard but pliable and the fur super soft and shiny.