# Constructing a tail nearly 6 feet long



## She-King (Feb 28, 2012)

One animal I've never seen listed, and a lot of people don't know what it is when it is mentioned, is the Bushbaby. Adorable little rascals, cute and fuzzy with GIANT eyes for their nocturnal natures. I've never seen one in a fursuit anywhere. I like to be different and I look for the things that haven't been done before that I can easily bring to life and I have a beautiful girl that I want to bring to life. Here's some concept art I drew. My first fursuit, by the way. I've been grabbing tutorials and videos and all that jazz like mad, but this has never been mentioned because nobody is as weird as I am when it comes to tails, lol.





The only problem I have, is with the tail. Due to cost, I'll make a partial for now. But the tail is a problem.  Bushbaby's have really long tails as rudders because they can jump a good 20 feet or so and it steers them in the canopies of the forests they live in. I'm 5'7. Practically six feet tall. I want this tail to be as long as I am tall and I mean it, but constructing a tail this floofy I don't know how to achieve. I don't know about making the skeleton inside like a mascot suit with springy metal rings to give it a rounded shape or make it purely foam? Foam would be heavy, but rings would be heavy after so many as well. Dragging and wear and tear can be increased with weight. If this long puppy is dragging all the time, that will create wear quickly. And don't get me started on the dirty side of having a dragging tail.

I'm aware, a tail this long might cause a problem for me or someone else who can't see very well. I don't want to cause someone a problem or myself, lol. So, perhaps I could carry it and swish it around, looking all sexy-like? Tomedoe will be wearing a zootsuit and a fedora in the partial. If I have metal rings giving this thing body, I can't carry it. Not very well, anyways. Perhaps I should tone down the fluffiness a bit to make it more practical? I just like to have what's on the paper. I like to exaggerate my tails and fur when I draw and I wanted to incorporate that trade mark into my suits for a unique look, but I don't want to be impractical. Practicality is my life in clothing, driving, and anything else, lol.

Any techniques I could use?


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## Calico-Feathers (Feb 28, 2012)

First of all, good luck with this. The bigger the tail, the bigger the hassle.
You'll need to get a weight belt in order to even wear this thing. No matter what you use inside, the fur's going to be heavy anyhow. And you'd do better to carry it so as not to wear out the fur and trip other people. I can't tell you how annoyed I get when I stomp all over someone's massive tail simply because being in suit makes it to where I can't see it.

What I would do is a foam core, but not solid foam. Take 1/2inch foam and make a long, hollow shape out of it by curling it around and gluing it into a big tube. Then you can reinforce it with foam "spokes" to keep it from collapsing in on itself but still keep it light and squishy enough that it won't hurt someone if they do step on it. Another idea is an inflatable core but you'd have to be doubly careful with it to keep it from being punctured.


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## Flippy (Feb 28, 2012)

No but I'm having the same internal debate with my dinosaur character. She has a long tall and I kind want it to to hang on the ground for ascetic purposes but I hate looking at dirty foot pads so I assume this would irk me more so. Yeah you could carry it around all sexy like Sesshomaru's fluff thing from Inuyasha but it's gonna get cumbersome. I was also debating just making it a big chunky monkey of a tail and throwing some skateboard wheels underneath the part that hits the floor to help lug the monster along. If I trim the edges of the fur on the tail enough so it just barely is at the floor enough where it hides the wheels it will be handy so long as I'm on a level surface. If anything I could always just make the part the hit the floor out of the same color foam as my fur and have it be like an additional foot pad that can take the ware and tear. I was also thinking of throwing a bandana or rapping bandages around the tail and having it go with a theme or something. Honestly I don't know yet since the design isn't set in stone, I might just make a low arching tail and have it curl back up if need be. My best help has been looking at Kangaroo suits. Their tails have girth & are long. The first thing that comes to mind is Mangusu's performance suit. I think it's saving grace is that is has black fur. Also just try to stay indoors and away from ancient tar pits and it should stay clean.


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## She-King (Feb 28, 2012)

All right. I might even shorten the tail. I just wanted to stay true to the animal I wanted to be. But a footpad for it's underbelly sounds like a good thought-out idea, to be frank. If I could find the right wire that's durable and strong and that keeps it shape, I could install that into the tail and it could curl up off the floor or never touch it. Some monkeys curl their tails in a tight circle, but bushbaby's don't. They just drape straight all the time and flop about. It wouldn't fit the behavior of the bushbaby to have it curled, but hey, nobody said anyone had to follow the rules of the animal kingdom, lol.


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## She-King (Feb 28, 2012)

That would mean actually wearing the tail in the middle of my back, maybe and then people don't actually see the tail start until further down to the floor? What involves the constructing a weight belt? I'm so new to this. Perhaps, I'm being a little bit too ambitious, lol. I've seen long tails, but they arch out in such a way and they have segments that help them to move along the floor and only the very tips drag on the floor. I could tone down the circumference of the tail. I've seen pretty long tails, but they were tolerable because they were rather slender and not filled with hardly anything and they didn't have much wear and tear while dragging the ground. Carrying the tail would add character though. I could toss it aside and it let it lay while placing my hands on my hips for photos or standing my ground or something.


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## Trpdwarf (Feb 28, 2012)

The other option would be to simply shorten it a bit for the sake of making it more practical. I've done the whole long tail thing. If you carry it around you will quickly tire of having to carry it. If you let it hang it is a danger to others, gets caught on stuff, and gets damaged. Not every concept is practical for a fur-suit. Your best option is to shorten it a bit to be more proportional to your body and less of a hassle to wear around.

Although if you insist on still having it you may thing about building a clip into the back of the suit that you can then have someone clip the tail up to so that the tail is held up when you are tired of carrying it.


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## She-King (Feb 28, 2012)

Okay, well I guess, then I shall shorten it. It was a fun thought, but yeah, you can't have something that long and get away with it for very long, lol.


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## Osiris the jackal (Feb 28, 2012)

Having a tail that long would be a hassle to you and a hazard to others but if you made it 4 ft long and had it (clipped on to the belt ) use heavy duty binder clips or industrial sewing clasps you shouldn't have any issues. Im a commissioner and have thought long and hard about this problem before.


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