Cat fur dubbing

[Allison]

Ok, this is going to sound really dumb, but cat fur seems to make nice dubbing material.

Is there any disadvantage to this? I have regular dubbing materials too, but wouldn't mind having a constant supply of a certain shade of grey.:cool:

[ibn]

Is there any disadvantage to this?

A patchy cold cat.

[Allison]

:D

Actually, I combed her to harvest the goods. :p

[Bruce Davidson]

I've found cat fur dubbed flies especially good for dogfish.

[Cactus]

I've found cat fur dubbed flies especially good for dogfish.

Do dog hair flies work for catfish?:confused:

[Swandazi]

Do dog hair flies work for catfish?:confused:
nope, they scare them away.

[Allison]

I've heard that using tuna can labels as dubbing on your flies will catch a lot of catfish though.

[Sloan Craven]

I just like any excuse to shave a cat.

[Allison]

Well, hey, if I thought it was going to get me somewhere, I'd probably shave her and then blackmail her with the pictures, but actually the technique was discovered by accident. I have a super-fine comb that I run across her fur from time to time to check for fleas. The teeth are closer together than the size of a flea. What you get (assuming the cat is flealess, 'cuz with the fleas it's just gross) is the fine underhair, that at least in my cat's case, is downy and dun-colored, kinda like bunny.

I've just tied up a couple of flies with it and it works as well as anything for dubbing, assuming the fishies will like it. Makes me want to go to the houses of other cat owners with my fine comb in hand. An orange tabby might be nice......

[jami_wa]

Yes!!!!!!! finally a purpose for the 2.5lbs of fur my himmalayans leave on the furniture. I was looking a huge mass of white fur the other day wondering about this topic lol

[Backyard]

I just like any excuse to shave a cat.

iagree

[troutaholic]

Hey Jami just put that fur in a little plastic baggie, label it "Himalayan Yak under arm fur" (or some such) and sell it for 7.99 a pack at Orvis. Get a couple more cats and all your fly fishing will end up free! :beer2:

[Minx]

I just like any excuse to shave a cat.
:beer2: I'll drink to that......here kitty, kitty. How about whiskers? Work good for tails or antennae? :rolleyes:

[Allison]

A lot of tabby cats have striped whiskers.

I hadn't though of that until I saw someone was selling them for fly tying materials on Ebay. :rolleyes:

[scotch]

after you shave your cat and cut off it's whiskers, put scotch-tape on its feet. Hilarious.

[Charles Sullivan]

Do you get to kill the cat first?
I to have been contemplating using pet fur for fly fishing. The home road dog fly. You may have just motivated me to do it.

[ceviche]

But, seriously... From my experience, cat fur seems to absorb water a bit too well. The fur from my medium hair, calico/russian blue mixed looks like a perfect dun color, so I tied up some Adams flies. However, they seemed to get water-logged rather easy. I suppose some kind of water-proofing would be in order with cat fur.

[Minx]

Sounds like some "water-proof cat" testing is in order here :cool:

[Allison]

But, seriously... From my experience, cat fur seems to absorb water a bit too well. The fur from my medium hair, calico/russian blue mixed looks like a perfect dun color, so I tied up some Adams flies. However, they seemed to get water-logged rather easy. I suppose some kind of water-proofing would be in order with cat fur.

Ok, then two more dumb questions:

Is waterlogging an issue if it's a wet fly, or only if it's a dry fly?

Waterproofing: seems like the same stuff you use on your outdoor clothes might work on fur. Anyone have thoughts on that?

[nomlasder]

Sounds like some "water-proof cat" testing is in order here :cool:
Sign me up, I gotta couple I should test

[Sloan Craven]

Ok in all seriousness, Maine Coon's are a breed that have a special coat. They are actually nonallergenic because of it. Its something in their saliva or something. Anyway, the fur is also supposed to be better at shedding water.
Anybody know anything about cat fur? It might be worth a try.

[scotch]

Did that dry fly always land on it's feet?

[ceviche]

Did that dry fly always land on it's feet?

That Adams sure did!

[jami_wa]

Heh.....I was going to be vulgar and say a joke about how men will do anything for a shaved (cat).....I'll be good.....:eek:

[Sloan Craven]

Heh.....I was going to be vulgar and say a joke about how men will do anything for a shaved (cat).....I'll be good.....:eek:
LOL It's just like you to go there:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Minx]

Looks like they've had enough of the cat jokes.....:hmmm:

[troutaholic]

I was wondering who'd be the first to make that reference Jami, didn't think it would be sweet lil ole you though! :eek: hehheh

[Choclab]

What about lab fur? I have a chocolate lab who likes to shed alot. What could I use that for? I amagine it would float pretty damn good considering it is from a water dog.

[Allison]

I am in the process of waterprofing the cat fur. Should have time to tie a few with the improved product next week and will do comparison tests in the sink before messing with them in real water.

Say, what's with this deal here? I was fine before, and now I'm lying to my family, staying up half the night trying to tie things, scrounging for materials wherever I see them, waterproofing cat fur...?


Seems like some kind of sick addiction to me....

PS. If the guys from Creekside Seattle store see this, shoot me a PM--I have questions and stuff and no time to get to the shop in the next few days. Thanks!

[toddsbernina]

Allison its ok your not the only one who has been sucked into this addiction. As long as you dont call in sick to work because you in the middle of tying 2doz. size 18 adams or tell you husband your going to the grocery store when really your going to creekside for another patch of deer hair and brown thread i think you will be ok.

Oh i was wondering if you could tell me why a chick got mad at me when I chose tying over driving an hour to hang out with her one night.

[Allison]

Oh i was wondering if you could tell me why a chick got mad at me when I chose tying over driving an hour to hang out with her one night.

That's kind of a no-brainer, Todd.:hmmm:

[Kent Lufkin]

Ok in all seriousness, Maine Coon's are a breed that have a special coat. They are actually nonallergenic because of it. Its something in their saliva or something. Anyway, the fur is also supposed to be better at shedding water. Anybody know anything about cat fur? It might be worth a try.

I've been tying with cat fur since my college days when it was a tough choice whether to spend 50¢ on fly tying supplies or on a couple gallons of gas.

Cat fur seems to absorb water more than other furs so it's best suited for tying nymphs. I've tried various waterproofing methods for cat fur dries. The best is the silicone liquid that you dunk a completed dry fly into and wait until it dries before fishing.

We've got a 6YO Maine Coon who measures nearly 4 feet stretched out and weighs a whopping 20 pounds. Although it's true Maine Coons love water, their fur doesn't seem to be any more water resistant than that of other breeds. While his coloring is called red, it's actually a sort of creamy orange-brown which I occasionally use for October caddis adults.

K

[chadk]

Garfeild, is that you??

[Allison]

THAT. Is one. big. cat. :eek:

[Kent Lufkin]

Garfeild, is that you??

Naw, that's Elmo. You can say what you want about him behind his back, but if you're not nice when he's around, he'll kick your ass. I've still got the scar from the first time I tried to give him a pill.

K

[chadk]

I've still got the scar from the first time I tried to give him a pill.
K

I bet. I worked in a vet hospital when I was in college. I had to give various animals pills at times and some cats were just plain mean. We had zippered cat bags to put them in where nothing but their head could stick out of (to save you from the claws). I remember fighting this cat for 10 minutes just trying to get it to swallow one pill - and I had the thing in a cat bag. It was vicious. The funny part is, this tiny little vet doctor lady comes along and see me and this cat duking it out. She stops, grabs the pill, grabs the cat by the head with fingers in mouth and stuffs down the pill in a split second and walks off without a word. Cat and I both just had this dumb blank look our our faces....

The funniest time there was when I was there alone and had to give this huge, but extremely dumb and clutsy one year old great dane eye drops. That would have been a fun one to get on tape :rofl:

Then there was the black lab who's appendix burst during surgery. Blood litterally everywhere (walls, ceiling, entire floor) :eek: And yet she was fine and went home the next day...

Sorry - a little side tracking there....

[Tim Cottage]

We've got a 6YO Maine Coon who measures nearly 4 feet stretched out and weighs a whopping 20 pounds.
K

Jeebus Kent! I don't recall seeing that monster at your home. Had I known he was there I would have just thown the package from the sidewalk to the porch.

TC

[Sloan Craven]

=
We've got a 6YO Maine Coon who measures nearly 4 feet stretched out and weighs a whopping 20 pounds. Although it's true Maine Coons love water, their fur doesn't seem to be any more water resistant than that of other breeds. While his coloring is called red, it's actually a sort of creamy orange-brown which I occasionally use for October caddis adults.

K
My parents have two cats just like that. The bigger one loves to relax in that same position with another person rubbing his belly. He also likes to chase small dogs.

[nick m]

Man, quality thread guys... With so little new pics going up with all the rivers closed, I'm trying to find new places on the site to waste my time. Although, once I get home, I'm gonna have to give this a try.

[Keith Hixson]

One of my best friends and fly fishing buddy and professional fly tier (tied for Orvis for many years) had a deal with the local Vet. (Skins out cats when they are put to sleep) He has a mess of cat skins in various shades. Uses them for dubbing on wet flies. He likes the way they dub. He's the best fly tier I know and he uses cat fur. He also uses dog fur, raccoon, badger, and real skunk for his "skunk" pattern. Anyway that's another story. But, he told me that most cat fur does absorb water pretty quick. He likes that for wet flies and nymphs. I have never used cat fur and I'm just a hacker when it comes to fly tying but I know of one very talented professional who uses cat fur.

This is the truth!

K.