Jerry, I have both feathers and furs left over from 3-4 decades of tying, and they're all in good condition.
But there are a few things that work against your natural materials in storage: 1. The original condition. Was the preparation of the materials done in a high-quality fashion? Were they 'bug-free' to start with? Were they bleached/dyed/cured correctly? 2. Sunlight. Direct sunlight is detrimental to just about everything in your stash. UV light rays are the worst culprit. 3. Dry air. Dry air tends to dry out materials and make them brittle. 4. Damp air/moisture. Will rot and mold materials. 5. Bugs. Moth catapillars will ravage a bag of fur/feathers. I store all of my materials in zip-loc bags. Normally used stuff I hang up out of direct sunlight. Seldom used stuff and things in long term storage get stored in good zip-loc bags in tupperware storage bins with lids, and these are stored out of direct sunlight. I also store cheesecloth bags of cedar chips in all bins and drawers. Don't be afraid to 'cull out' bags of materials that show bug infestation. Better to lose one bag than a whole lot. I also stay away from road-kill. That's just personal, but I have too much good stuff to risk it for a few free tidbits. One exception. I put pecock herl featheres in direct sunlight for years. The green bleaches out and a beautiful brassy-bronze color is left. I tie nymphs with this. DonO ----- Original Message ----- From: "jerry" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, August 24, 2003 6:19 PM Subject: [VFB] shelf life > I recently heard that the life of feathers is only about 10 years and hairs > and furs up to 15 years. Is this true? Any long time tiers have an idea > for shelf life of materials? > > Thanks, > Jerry Sorensen > Laramie WY >
