Horse hair sporran

[McMurdo]

I store my horse hair sporran hanging in a closet, rather than laying down flat. I don't want the hair to develop a 'set' or any curls/waves from laying down for long periods.

Hair sporrans can be a bit of a pain when wearing, as the hairs will fly up or stick to the wool of the kilt, or get caught/tangled on things like kilt pins. Keeping them from being unruly (is "ruly" a word?) can be a challenge! But I do the same thing with my horse hair sporran as I do with my actual horse when I want his mane and tail to stay untangled: I rub in some Cowboy Magic detangler and brush it out. It's a life-saver when it comes to getting rid of nasty tangles and mud balls that horses can work into their manes and tails when they roll in the mud after a rainstorm. Once the mud hardens in there, you'll never get the tangles and twists out without cutting the hair ...unless you use something like Cowboy Magic that slicks the hair and makes it easy to pull the tangles out. By making the hair smooth and slick to the touch, it prevents it from getting tangled again, helps it swish better, minimizes any sticking to the wool, and helps the 'flyaway' stray hairs to lay down. Horse hair is horse hair, whether it's still on the horse or on your sporran. Just a little bit of Cowboy Magic rubbed on your hands ("a little dab'll do ya") and rubbed into the hair will make a world of difference.

Its been years since I had a horse, Cowboy Magic is great stuff.

[393tho]

Its been years since I had a horse, Cowboy Magic is great stuff.

I’ll have a look on the net and give it a go it’s a pain when I’ve got the sporran on
I’m sure this’ll sort out the problem will let you know. Cheers

[Father Bill]

I do the same thing with my horse hair sporran as I do with my actual horse when I want his mane and tail to stay untangled: I rub in some Cowboy Magic detangler and brush it out. It's a life-saver when it comes to getting rid of nasty tangles and mud balls that horses can work into their manes and tails when they roll in the mud after a rainstorm. Once the mud hardens in there, you'll never get the tangles and twists out without cutting the hair ...unless you use something like Cowboy Magic that slicks the hair and makes it easy to pull the tangles out. By making the hair smooth and slick to the touch, it prevents it from getting tangled again, helps it swish better, minimizes any sticking to the wool, and helps the 'flyaway' stray hairs to lay down. Horse hair is horse hair, whether it's still on the horse or on your sporran. Just a little bit of Cowboy Magic rubbed on your hands ("a little dab'll do ya") and rubbed into the hair will make a world of difference.

I took your advice!

The link you provided found me a retailer two doors away from my last church, and yes, they had it in stock. $12.99 Canadian plus tax. Cool!

It worked like a charm - no tangles any more (I used my wife's big-tooth comb, but I think I owe her a new one - the stuff doesn't wash off easily. I'll keep it for future use.)

Now some advice from recent experience. (Fifteen minutes ago.)

• Take off your rings before you start; it doesn't wash off easily so I used a pumice / orange hand cleaner successfully, and THEN put my rings back on. Have an old towel handy for the same reason.
• Don't use a lot. The stuff works with just a wee bit.
• I only put it on from the front so there wouldn't be much that might get through to my outer apron.
• Have the doors open from the room you're working in so you can hang up your sporran and walk to where it hangs without having to touch the door-knobs. The wee bit really spreads. I guess that's why it works.

Results: the horsehair now glows beautifully, hangs straight and doesn't get nearly so tangled. I'm sold on this product.

Question Tobus: any staining on your kilt apron? (I hope not!) Does it take a while to "dry" after use? I just hung mine up as you advised.

Any other advice for use?

Much appreciated. That's why XMarks exists: so we can help each other.

[Tobus]

Father Bill, in all the years I've used it, I've never noticed any staining or other issues. We use it on my horse's white mane and tail, and they stay white.

On the horses, we usually brush the hair until it's dry, which doesn't take long outdoors. For a hair sporran, I just brush it smooth and let it dry on its own, then give it a quick fluff and combing again, perhaps 20 minutes later.

Advice for other use? Well, my wife has been known to use it on her own hair, which reaches down past her waist, when it gets tangled from the wind. Thankfully, she doesn't roll in the mud too often...

[Father Bill]

Ah! You two aren't into mud wrestling then.

Thanks for all of your help on this, Tobus.