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So, are there any people here who have tried different colour "options" on the same bow? Was there any real difference?
I am not taking into consideration synthetic, processed or bleached bow hair, I am wondering about hair that are approximately on the light side (from beige to almost light brown and orange) vs hair which seem to be really dark, from brownish to almost black....
Is this just a matter of appearance?
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Darker hair is usually more coarse and grabs better. There was a period where I used black hair on my bow.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Fiddlerman said
Darker hair is usually more coarse and grabs better. There was a period where I used black hair on my bow.
Interesting 
Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?
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The dark hair is normally what's found on bows for the double bass and sometimes cello. Generally, the less course white hair is used for violins and violas. However, be aware that some hair that is sold (or so I am told) has been bleached and should be avoided. How one can tell if it has been bleached, I cannot say.
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright
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This topic reminds me of a question about bow hair that occurred to me the other day. The little hooks on the hair are what cause it to be course and hold the rosin. Assuming that they get worn away and not very many hairs have been broken, why don't people just flip the hairs over and use the other side instead of using all new hair? Or do they?
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright
My take on this, Uzi is that bleach dissolves the little projections and if left on the hair too long will also dissolve the hair. On the worn out bow hair, you wear out 3 sides: top and both sides, by the pushing and pulling the bow. If you flop the hair over all you gain is a new top; the sides are still worn out. But as you are aware, I'm just guessing.
@Uzi I think that bleached hair could be, you know, too much "even" and similar to each other. There would be no apparent variations in colour. When my bow is rehaired and there is no rosin, I usually spot many colours, even in the same "thread" of hair. I have come across bows with all of their hair at the very same colour, which seemed a bit weird.
@mryikes , I think that you're right, but this could not only be the case. I mean, I find rehairing a tricky task, and I think that having to align the hair in this exact position (opposite to what they were before) could complicate it even more...
P.S I am also guessing...:)
Never use bleached hair.
Here is an article on horse hair for stringed instruments.
http://www.cpr.org/classical/b.....ayer-s-bow
Ken.
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Hermes said
Interesting
Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?
I wanted more power and a better bounce. My technique was good enough to smooth the bow changes and my violins didn't sound coarse so it suited me fine. Several people were doing the same thing in the orchestra at the time and I thought it was worth a try. I might still do it today if I had great quality black hair readily available. Not sure why I stopped. Probably one of my favorite bow makers didn't have the good stuff in stock and I forgot about it after that. The most common is the finer white Mongolian horse hair on all violin, viola and cello bows. As Uzi mentioned above, the black hair is sometimes used on bass bows for that added grip on those thick heavy strings.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
Fiddlerman said
Hermes said
Interesting
Was there some special reason that you needed that extra grip? Is it worth the try? Is it in a way similar to switching to a much stickier rosin for example?I wanted more power and a better bounce. My technique was good enough to smooth the bow changes and my violins didn't sound coarse so it suited me fine. Several people were doing the same thing in the orchestra at the time and I thought it was worth a try. I might still do it today if I had great quality black hair readily available. Not sure why I stopped. Probably one of my favorite bow makers didn't have the good stuff in stock and I forgot about it after that. The most common is the finer white Mongolian horse hair on all violin, viola and cello bows. As Uzi mentioned above, the black hair is sometimes used on bass bows for that added grip on those thick heavy strings.
I see...I think I'm going to experiment with this, whenever I get the chance...I hope my luthier agrees as well 
He usually stocks only one hair type, that corresponds to his quality standards, and it's mainly white.
Thank you
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@Uzi
My educated guess is that it's not just the underside of the bundle that gets worn. Fibers twist as they vibrate, so the wear will occur all around. Perhaps the very topmost fibers are somewhat protected, but even they are rubbing against the fibers below them.
Besides, the cost of a rehair is mostly in the labor....
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Today I tested a synthetic hair that I really liked. Progress.....
More to come later.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
@fiddlestix , interesting article, I'll quote this: Once a string player finds a person who rehairs a bow just the way they like it, they may never have their bow rehaired by anyone else. Ever.
Yeah! 
I suppose, that the main reason you'd ever have someone else rehair your bows could me moving in a different place etc.
@Fiddlerman , any info about this trial you mentioned? price? brand?
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