Rubberized Horse Hair

[snitcythedog]

Ever since Terrain Modeling by Richard Windrow I have been on the lookout for rubberized horse hair to make vegetation.  Unfortunately it is only used by specialty furniture restorers and not readily available.   I have decided to have a go at making some.  First you need a willing donor.  (note no ponies were harmed in the making of article). 

It is spring and my daughters pony is shedding like hell.  After a quick brush I ended up with a large tub full of pony smelling hair.  This was washed using Fairy dish washing liquid, rinsed and air dried for an extended period. 
     
Some of the hair was layered over a sheet of granny grating and placed into a bucket.  I then poured mold making latex thinned 1/1 with water over the horsehair. 

Once the excess latex was strained from the hair it was set to dry.  Here are two images. 


Once I build something with it I will post images but it is just as fine as the stuff that I purchased form 4D modeling.  This is quite cost effective since most of the latex was reusable.
Hope that helps.
Snitchy sends.

[Hammers]

Useful!

[snitcythedog]

Quick update.  The current batch is not working well.  I have looked at it further and I think I need to use main and tail hair.  That will take longer to collect.  The hair from the rest of the pony was too fine and not quite strong enough.  I will post on this thread again once I try with the mane and tail hair. 
Snitchy sends.

[The Voivod]

I have no idea where this is going, but I'm curious to see.

[Silent Invader]

Fascinating and cool 

Must admit I'm reluctant to use horse hair for fear that one of my dogs will decide the terrain is a tasty chew  . The main culprit has already demolished a truck with lumber made from twigs.

[Johnno]

I wonder how many off us are now off to buy ponies? 

[redzed]

you know it's on ebay?   or Antenocitis

[beefcake]

rubberised pubes Umm, keen to see where this goes also. 

[levied troop]

6 foot x 3 foot sheet will keep you in foliage for years:

http://www.woolies-trim.co.uk/p-1532-rubberised-horsehair.aspx

[redzed]

nice find 

[6milPhil]

Good luck with this. 

It's also available from restorers of classic cars, I got my chunk off that ebay.

[Pijlie]

Thank you for this post! I have wondered for years where to find those mythical rubberized horses!

[snitcythedog]

Evening all.

First for the comments.  I know that you can purchase this stuff here in the UK and in some other countries.  When I lived in the states you could not find it for love or money so I wanted to know if it was possible to make it at home. 

Now for the Update.  Unfortunately I did not take photos of the process but it is pretty straight forward. First of all use mane and tail hair.  Hair brushed off the body is too fine.  Gather several hand fulls of hair and wash it in dish washing liquid picking out any hay or shavings.  Let it drain and while it is still slightly damp put it in a zippered freezer bag.  The mold making latex is mixed one to one with water.  Then add a couple of drops of dish washing liquid to break the surface tension of the water and mix well.  Pour this into the plastic bag with the hair making sure the hair is well covered.  Drain the excess latex from the bag, remove the hair and lay it on a piece of granny grating to dry.  Once dry it is ready to use.  Cut it up and tease it out before using.  I am including photos of purchased rubberized hair vs home made stuff used to make tree branches.   

Purchased

Home made


Hope you like.
Snitchy sends.

[carlos marighela]

Latex pony? Don't try googling that at work.

[beefcake]

Wow. That looks great. Nice work.