LAW dubbing rake

[narcodog]

I LOVE my LAW rakes. They are the best.

Since I tie with a lot of on the skin fur the rake saves time and the dubbing is easy to work.

[Mike Connor]

A question for you gents: what, exactly, are the advantages of using a rake to take dubbing off a pelt? (As opposed to cutting off a hank off the hide and sifting out the right combination of underfur and guard hair?)

Don't get me wrong: I'm going to want one now. I just want to know what to say to myself to make it so I can't live without one.

It may be a little quicker and more convenient for some things. You can't use it for everything, if you want just guard hair, or various mixtures, you have to remove the fur and sort it. There are various ways of doing this. I have not bothered using a rake for a very long time.

As far as I am aware the LAW ( Lawrence Waldron, the same maker as the LAW Vice) ceramiscrapes have not been available for a while;

http://www.danica.com/flytier/law/law_rake.htm

There are others, http://www.lakelandflytying.com/22124/p ... _rake.aspx but they need to be sharpened occasionally.

You can also sharpen the LAW rakes if you have a diamond wheel, but they should normally stay sharp for a very long time.

It is not difficult to make a selection of dubbing rakes, ( Coarse, medium, fine ) using jig saw blades, hacksaw blades etc. Or use a piece of high quality tool steel ( old wood chisel etc) and grind your own. You will need to re-harden and temper this before final sharpening.

All these things work. Do you need them? Not really.

I think most people would be better served with these, ( or a similar piece of equipment);

http://www.amazon.com/Conair-Beard-and- ... 31&sr=1-21

http://www.amazon.com/Wahl-9906-2001-Mu ... 31&sr=1-17

Also useful; http://www.amazon.com/Remington-Mpt3500 ... d_sim_hpc6

TL
MC

[Mike Connor]

You can also use carbide or ceramic chasers for rake heads. They look like this;

http://www.allenbenjamin.com/chasers

TL
MC

[narcodog]

Mike is correct, you don't need a rake but I like using them and showing folks how they work, as most have never heard of them. I tye with Australian possum a lot and I can go to a particular area and get the color I'm looking for in just a swipe or two.