bucktail

[jalama]

this really shows my ignorance but here goes...can bucktail be used for spinning?

[fishbum]

Bucktail don't spin worth a hoot. You need body hair. The very best deer hair comes from a early September or early October deer. Check with your bow hunting friends for a hide. Scrape it, wash it streatch it and dry it. You won't be sorry for the work involved.

fishbum

[Micropteris]

The hairs at the base of the bucktail can be used for spinning. They are not ideal but will work in a pinch.

They are hollow and will flare like deer body hair.

[Gandolf]

Hi Jalama,

You may know quite a bit about spinning, deer, etc., so if you already know what I am about to write, my apology in advance, I don't mean to offend.

Hair for spinning should be "hollow." It isn't really hollow, per se, rather is has a relatively strong and tough exterior, and a spongy "pithy" interior that can be easily compressed. This means that when you cinch down the thread, the hair compresses against the hook shank, flattening out. Since the side of the hair against the hook can't move, the compression is all with the side of the hair which is away from the hook shank being compressed toward the hook shank.

It works very much like a plastic drinking straw. If you lay a plastic drinking straw like you get with a soft drink at a fast food place, lay it on a hard surface like a counter top, and then take a table knife and press down on the straw as if you were going to cut into the straw, the ends of the straw will kick up.

In the same way, to spin, the hair must be easily compressed. This ease of compression causes the hair to flare or "spin" when compressed by the thread. Thus, hair which is "hollow" works great for spinning, and hair which is solid does not spin well at all. Bucktail is almost solid, not at all "hollow", and consequently does not spin well.

Hair from the sides of deer are generally good for spinning. Hair from the center of the back is less "hollow", and consequestly does not flare as much as hair from the side of the body. Because it does not flare as much as hair from the sides, it a good choice for winging hair wing dries.

Caribou is great for spinning, I am thinking that mule deer is better than white tail generally speaking, and hair from the side of the deer is better than hair from the middle of the back. If I recall, hair from bucks is better than does, but I can't remember for sure.

Regards,

Gandolf