dying kiptails

[redear]

hey guys, I know this topic has been talked about before, but I can't find it. Getting ready to dye some white kiptails. I know I want to try pink and maybe some faded chartruese. Question is, what are ya'll using to successfully dye kiptails? Rit dye doesn't seem to get the job done, to my satisfaction. Will sugar free kool-aid do a better job? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[Illinoisgiller]

Run"dying hair" through the search engine. There has been a lot of discussion on this. Hope this helps a little. Mike

[shipahoy41]

Dyeing Bucktails, cow tails or marabou is not all that difficult. First, using a sharp knife, debone the tails and remove the fat. The key is wash and degrease the Bucktails in cold water. Use any household detergent (Tide works well as does Simple Green). Rinse well, be careful not to break hairs. Comb them to get all the burrs and other debris off, especially blood.

You can utilize common RIT dye or even Kool-Aid on Bucktails; just use hot water with the dye. Use an old soup kettle to heat water and dye. Once water is over 180 degrees, shut off heat and put in cleaned tails and stir for about 10 minutes. Simmer for about 45 minutes or until all the color is gone. During this time, carefully turn the fiber periodically in the dye bath so it absorbs the color more evenly. Remove, rinse well and hang to dry.

[redear]

Thanks for the info ya'll! I found some good stuff on the hair dying threads, and on ship's response. Thinking about trying kool-aid first, then if that doesn't work good enough, I'll probably get some dye from dharma trading co. I know it's cheaper to buy them already dyed, but it seems that the quality and length of hair is better on the white ones I buy from barlows. Ive gotten a pink one that had hair so short I could hardly grab it with my fingers, and the white ones and chartruese ones had good hair. Also Ive gotten plain yellow in place of yellow chartruese. I usually order the jumbo ones. The hair on my pinkie jigs is about an inch, so it must be a little longer than that when I cut it off the tail. Kid goat hair is supposed to be excellent, although Ive not handled any. It's fine and fairly straight, might have to order some of that from petes fly shop. I do have a momma goat on my farm, but she's right scittish, It would be tough stalking up on her!

[redear]

ok, heres the deal. this dying thing aint working out too good for me. My confidence is shattered. lol I dyed two white kiptails red with rit dye. Hot water salt etc, it was a medium dull red, and if you looked close you could see parts of each hair that didnt take the dye. The other two white tails were dyed turqoise blue with powdered water soluble dye, from a woodcraft store, I think. This dye was very concentrated, and I added salt and baking soda, and heated the water to a boil at first. Same results as with the red, and the hide could be pulled apart as well. All four tails went in the trash can. I don,t get it! The ones I buy are so beautiful, and rich, and vibrant in color. They must use a very very concentrated dye, or a whole lot of it. And on top of being great in color, they don't look like they have been stirred in hot water. They look like they have been simply dipped in and taken out, because the hair isn't even ruffled. Believe me, when you put these things in the hot water and stir them a little, they look all ratty and bedragled when you take them out, and even when you comb them out and let them dry, they still look ratty and ruffled. So in my opinion, the commercial people are using a dye that very easily does they job. Has anyone out there gotten the results you see with the commercially dyed calftails?

[smoothlures]

Are you washing the tails first with Dawn or something, so they'll take the dye?

[shipahoy41]

Are you washing the tails first with Dawn or something, so they'll take the dye?

That is what I suggested for Redear to do in my original post. You HAVE TO degrease the tail first! If he does that as you and I said smoothlures then he will have better results.

[redear]

yeah guys, I degreased the tails. First I bleached them for about an hour, then rinsed them good, then washed them in hot soapy water with hand detergent in it, then rinsed repeatedly again.

[redear]

oh, somebody on here somewhere said they were using dye from dharma trading co. and getting good results. Well I googled up the company, and they had at least four types of dye, so I couldn't determine which one would be the best.

[shipahoy41]

Only other thing I would suggest Redear is to add a little vinegar ...apple cider vinegar) and salt to the mixture. Try it again and let the tails sit in it longer stirring occasionally.