leg builder

[kfacres]

what is good for building legs?  graphite? foam?  what's popular?  How about colors?  anything white or brown?

 

[The Show]

Baby powder works good for white legs. Twine works good for everything else.

 

[shortyjock89]

Baby powder works good for white legs. Twine works good for everything else.

Graphite works pretty good for black legs, but it can make a huge mess, just like baby powder.  If you're gonna use something other than paint to build legs, practice at home on a couple that you don't care about as much.  Taking twine and graphite out is NOT fun either.

 

[NSF]

never used graphite before, but ive never had a hard time taking twine out. just gotta be sure you soak the living bejesus out of it with whatever adhesive remover you are using. then it usually just would come off in nice chunks. twine is fun to use but it is easy to get carried away and have things start looking unnatural. also if you start with twine make sure you have a couple of pair of super shard blocking blades or bust out the shears.

as far as paint building for a black one, i always pulled the leg with prime time or tail depending on how broke the leg hair is., spray a nice coat of tail adhesive on it once you get it clipped the way you want it, let it dry a bit then cover with white, let it dry a bit then either brown or jet black. then a final coat of black finisher. of course this is a ideal scenario where i have all the time in the world, i have obviously done it differently and had it turn out fine.

 

[HeiferShower14]

how about using baby powder on black legs then painting it black?

 

[shortyjock89]

I just meant that with graphite and twine...plus all the 3m and tail glue and paint, it can get quite messy.  When we fit that hard, we usually use crop oil or purple oil to take it out if we're not gonna show that calf for a while. Graphite works well on belly's best I think.  I'm sure there are guys who have used it lots more than me, but thats what i've kinda figured out.

It's just easier to not have to cover more white than is absolutely necessary.  You'd have to use brown and then jet black, and then black finisher...it's probably easier to use twine or very very fine sawdust and then paint.

 

[kfacres]

interesting... where do you get twine? or graphite? 

 

[shortyjock89]

interesting... where do you get twine? or graphite? 

I just use left over graphite that dad has for the planter boxes...so I guess we get ours at John Deere lol.  The twine you can cut up yourself, and sullivan's sells leg builder and horse hair too.

 

[Show Heifer]

I am not sure, but isn't twining and graphite illegal to use at most junior shows?

And "looking unnatural"? Come on... have you looked at show calves in general lately?  :

 

[shortyjock89]

I am not sure, but isn't twining and graphite illegal to use at most junior shows?

And "looking unnatural"? Come on... have you looked at show calves in general lately?  :

Sure is, and at most breed sanctioned shows too, but Open steer shows are a lot of fun!

 

[The Show]

I am not sure, but isn't twining and graphite illegal to use at most junior shows?

And "looking unnatural"? Come on... have you looked at show calves in general lately?  :

Sure is, and at most breed sanctioned shows too, but Open steer shows are a lot of fun!

Second  <rock>

 

[iowabeef]

In Iowa, it is illegal to add anything to calves..ie-twine, horse hair, not even their own hair glued somewhere else., at any of the Iowa Junior Beef Breeds sanctioned shows or the 4-H shows.  But at open steer shows it is fair game and you see all kinds of crazy stuff.....

 

[kfacres]

how fine do you cut the twine?  inch? 1/2 inch?  less? 

This is turning into a detate on whether or not twining and graphite is illegal? 

Trust me people, I won't be twining any steer calves out there that you will have to show against! 

The real question is.. has anyone ever built legs up on calves that weren't black?- something like a char, or shorthorn with speckled legs?  Would this be possible- I guess it would be, but highly uncommon?

 

[NSF]

with anything char influenced or even the odd colored shorthorn i find it best to try to save their own hair from when you clip them at home. just stick it in a bag then you have the perfect color matched building material.

 

[The Show]

I'm not gonna say it's impossible, but speckled legs would be pretty dang hard to do if I had to guess.

 

[shortyjock89]

I'm not gonna say it's impossible, but speckled legs would be pretty dang hard to do if I had to guess.

Painting over twine on a Shorthorn calf is no different than painting over one that has been built up with white paint.  If worse comes to worse, just paint it a classic shorthorn pattern and it'll be fine.  If you get so crazy with the twine that you can't see the colors underneath at all, you may have used too much haha.

If I keep hair off a calf, I usually try to keep it from the tail switch, it just is a little easier to use for me.

I think that the finer the building material, the better, unless you're using Horse hair for tailheads or down the back of a leg or flank, but thats a different deal.

 

[The Show]

Good point

 

[Show Heifer]

When I was younger I watched the "open to the world" calves come in for the state fair. The calves were nothing but common shaggy feedlot calves. Within hours, you couldn't recognize them, and by the next day, you would have sold the farm to own one!  Absolutely amazing what some talented clippers/fitters can do with nothing but a hair ball!! 
We used to sit at our pens and discuss who would win the "create a calf" contest! We were wrong many, many times!!

 

[chambero]

For white legs, straight tail adhesive works well.  Turn the can upside down and barely push the nozzle down and it will come out pretty stringy.  You can build them just enough they don't look as fake as they often do with twine.

 

[katie_k]

how important is it to have the legs of a breeding heifer trained?