Curly Hair Molt

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  weibkreux

• Jun 21, 2018

you need to open the molt like this View media item 51320
you can spray some warm water to avoid it from breaking.

 

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  Prestonx

• Jun 22, 2018

Thanks for the feedback! Still very new at this......

 

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  weibkreux

• Jun 22, 2018

@Prestonx careful not to be addicted, I also only started last february and I now own 13 Ts

 

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  Prestonx

• Jun 22, 2018

I have 4 T's.....Got a Giant Blonde (5cm) and a Pink Salmon (6cm) last week......Still so much to learn an observe.

 

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  Ungoliant

• Jun 24, 2018

@Prestonx
Tips for getting a good image for molt sexing:

1. Cut the abdomen off of the rest of the molt
2. Cut the bottom off the abdomen below the second pair of book lungs. (Otherwise, it has a tendency to fold in on itself.)
3. Prepare a dish of water with a drop of dish soap to reduce surface tension. (Otherwise, the light molt has a tendency to float on top.)
4. Place the molt in the dish. Let it soak for up to five minutes (until it becomes pliable).
5. Photograph the inside of the abdomen, focusing on the area between the first pair of book lungs. Sometimes it helps to backlight the molt.

Lately, instead of removing the molt from the water before taking photos, I've been spreading it out in the water and taking the photo while it's in the water. It's a lot easier to spread the molt in water (it tends to fold on itself when you remove it), and the water acts as a diffuser of light.

Here is one I took using this method (a 3" male Acanthoscurria geniculata).

 

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  weibkreux

• Jun 25, 2018

@Ungoliant I will definitely try this for better photos