I gave a quick look thru the threads and didn’t find anything on polar bear fur and its use.
Does anyone know of any patterns that use polar bear fur?
I’ve heard that it is hollow cored and seems it would be used for a dry fly, but I just don’t know.
Any info. on this is appreciated.
I know of a “Polar Wulff” pattern tyed by Rob Solo here in Newfoundland, but I would have to look up the pattern for you.
The Black Nose Dace is a good one. This is my version. John
Black-Nose Dace
Hook: Mustad 9575 #12
Thread: Black 100% Silk
Tag: Red Yarn, very short
Body: Flat Silver Tinsel
Wing: (Lower Third) - Polar Bear
(Middle Third) - Black Skunk
(Top Third) - Brown Bucktail
Head: Black Silk Covered with SHHAN
Thanks for the info.
I’ll have to do a little research on those flys. I find that a picture helps me a lot when tying.
Here is a link to the Black Nose Dace, right here on FAOL. John
Bassman, Thanks for that link. I’m still trying to find my way around here.
From what I’ve seen so far this is a very nice site/forum.
Your very welcome any time I can be of help just let me know. Welcome to the site. John
Be aware of the legal possession of polar bear fur!!
Polar bear is not hollow. It once was the wing material of choice for many standard steelhead wetflies. It could be used for dry fly wings but there are much less expensive alternatives.
If you have some great - if not … personally I wouldn’t want to encourage you to drop sums of money on it - there’s hair out there that is just as effective - and not as deerly exotic.
That’s about it in that nutshell.
Polar Bear fur has a translucency that most furs do not have. The closest I’ve found is the white fur from a skunk, which as already stated is much cheaper, more easily obtained and you do not risk the chance of having an illegal fur. HideandFur.com is a good place to look for all types of legal fur. I have no affilation with Moscow Hide and Fur, I am just a very satisfied customer.
Jim Smith
I have enjoyed tying with polar bear fur since I inherited an old rug that was in too bad shape for display. I feel the natural polar bear fur has qualities that are not matched by any synthetic or substitute. However, it is controled in the U.S., and this must be kept in mind, as well as the expence. That said, the fur is not hollow like deer and does not spin or compact. It is a very hard fur and better used for streamer wings and wet flys than dry. The hard fur can be difficult to attach and slips out if not secured with care. It gets transluscent in the water and gives the fly a nice appearance. I also use it for some bodies with underwraps of floss or tinsil of different colors, and the color only shows through after the fly is saturated.
Thanks for all the info. This is a very informative site.
The fur I ran across is about 25 years old from a taxidermist that getting rid of odds and edds. I’m not sure if getting it will be a legal problem or not. Any ideas on this?
Mike,
Polar bear guard hair is hollow and this, with translucency, is what gives the fly that flashy and attractive effect as the light breaks through it.
The underfur is one of the best dubbing materials for wet flies. It has just right curl which responds to the currents very well.
You need to examine the guard hairs to assure that the tips are intact on that 25 year old fur.
Most of the fur that is available in stores here in Canada comes from the harvest by our Inuit
hunters and it is legal here.
I believe that the hunt is done mostly toward the end of the winter because most of the fur has the tips “burned” by the ice crystals during the fearce storms of January. However, even if such a guard hair is not very good for most of the tying, the underfur is OK.
The dyeing is more difficult then with the other fur.
Take a look at the last week’s Fly Of The Week:
Polar Shrimp that is made allmost entierly from the polar bear fur.
Happy tying!
Faruk,
"Polar bear guard hair is hollow and this, with translucency, is what gives the fly that flashy and attractive effect as the light breaks through it. "
I’m pretty sure there is at least one typo in that statement…minor…
but I want to be sure you are saying polar bear hair is hollow…??..I never knew that and just want to be sure…others have posted not hollow…
If it is hollow is it really buoyant???
:shock:
I have tyed a lot with polar bear. If the Gard hair are hollow it would surprise me to no end. The property to the hair are not met by anything out on the market today. But I know how hard it is to find in the states and rarely use it for fishing flies. I mostly use it only for fly that are give as gift or to be used in a display. If you find have fun with it I do.
Ghost.
Ducksterman,
Yes, I make mistakes in English as I have learned it
“on the street” not in school. Also, my knowledge of computers is not adequate to help me go through the spell check here on BB.
Regarding the polar bear guard hair, I am convinced that it is hollow and translucent. It has something to do with conducting the light toward the dark skin of the bear for the warmth absorption. It is therefore buoyant. There are records about polar bears found swiming over 50km away from the nearest land. (I believe that is the number I rad in some scientific article).
The comment that was made about the polar bear hair not being hollow, was in refference to the flaring
like the deer hair, which has a different structure and is more like spungy(?)so it can flare.
Paul Schmookler has described polar bear hair in the article in one of Art of Angling Journals. I am away from my home at the moment, and can’t tell you which issue it was.
Pardon my spelling again.
Happy tying
Thanks, Faruk…I don’t care a darn about the spelling…I just wanted to be sure you meant hollow 
I learned something…thanks again.
Facts from the Library of Congress
More interesting things about polar bear fur.
Thanks to all for the info.