Rex Rabbit Fur
I have created this page as a result of my own frustration when looking for information on Rex type coats.  The information contained here is just my own experience and may or may not be anything you see in your own herd.  Rex coats are also a combination of many of the traits that follow in this discussion.

Before starting and when a new word comes up... I will cover some basic terminology which will be listed in this orange color.

Texture- This is the feel that the coat gives the hand when it is rubbed.  Texture can be smooth, of medium texture, which is not slick but not harsh, and harsh or coarse.  It can also be very grippy (harsh or coarse) to super slick.  The slick coat is very smooth and soft and the fur is often very shiny.   A medium textured coat is somewhere between slick and coarse but is not really either.  Not too soft or slick and not too harsh or grippy.   The final type of texture is harsh or coarse which feels rough when it is rubbed.  Most judges and breeders feel for texture by flattening the coat from head to tail then drawing the hand slowly backwards from tail to shoulders with the heel and outside edge of the hand feeling the coat as the hand drags backwards across it.  As with the sense of touch it can be affected by the caluses or softness of the hands of the person feeling the fur.  Texture is highly subjective because of this but through repetition of feel it can be compensated for.

Length-  This is the overall length of the coat.  Both the undercoat and the guard hairs can be of different or the same lengths.

Density-  Density refers to the amount of hairs per square inch.  The more per square inch the denser the coat.  The exception of this is the coat that is double or in moult.  This is often a "false density" as it does not stay once the coat is moulted and primed out.

Guard Hairs- These are the hairs that offer substance or resistance to the coat.  On a normal coat they are the longer hairs that stand above the shorter undercoat but with the rex genetics the guards are made very close to even or exactly even with the length of the undercoat.

Finish or prime- in my opinion these two terms are somewhat interchangeable yet are very different.  It is said that when a coat is finished (meaning finished shedding) it is in prime.  There are different degrees of a coat being finished (or not finished (also called "open") and therefore different degrees of "finish" but prime is prime and the coat is finished shedding and in prime or pristine condition.  Got that all???  If not, you may want to read that one again...it confused me too at first :).

Color- I will not deal with color in this article as so many other articles cover it well.

Resistance- Resistance is the feel of the coat when you "bounce" your hand lightly on the end of the coat when it is standing straight up.  I compare it to feeling the springiness (or resistance) of a mattress which can be soft or firm or anything in between as it is with a rex type coat.  The more firm the resitance the better, in the case of a rex coat.  This firm resistance can be mistaken for density but very firm resistance is often an indicator of an extremely dense coat.  Don't mix up resistance and density as it is possible to have extreme resistance and not a ton of density.

"Even" or "uneven" coat- this refers to the LOOK of the coat but it also controls the feel of the coat in some ways.  It can be seen when the coat is examined close up by being pinched between the pointer and middle finger or when the coat is looked at from a distance.  Coats can look uneven or even and oftentimes a coat is referred to as uneven when the guards stand above the undercoat a little.  When standing back the coat will LOOK even but when examined closely (by pinching) it can often be determined that the coat lengths are uneven and therefore it should be determined up close rather than from a distance.  This is not to be confused with a prime coat being an even coat...because a prime coat can be a very uneven coat that is in prime condition.

I have personally seen several combinations of rex fur and I am sure you ALL have seen different degrees of finish.  The main two types of coats I am referring to are  a normal (as in normal length rex) coat and an english coat.  When describing the english coat it tends to be considerably shorter than the normal rex coat and is often (but not always) smoother and more even in texture and it appears that it finishes to prime faster and easier as well.

I will first try to define what the basic differences in lengths and structures of coat are.  The lengths are pictured below with the guard hairs being in black and the undercoat being in red.
Even in length.
Long Guards
Curly or altrex.
Short Guards
Wavy
From right to left the coat lengths are even, long guards, short guards, wavy and curly.  The even coat is (or should be in my opinion) the preferred coat by rex breeders but at present it isn't the choice of judges.  The short guards coat (a slick coat) is preferred by judges.  The long guards coat is often a harsher feeling coat due to the thicker guards standing above the undercoat.  The short guards coat is a softer sometimes slicker feeling coat.  The wavy coat often feels like it has tremendous density and is acceptable as long as the wave isn't seen in the overall look of the senior animal.  ***In a young junior coat this wave on the surface is sometimes an indicator of what will be an extremely dense coat.  The altrex coat is a curly coat that curls back over itsself and this coat is considered a DQ in rex circles.

Keep in mind that these differences in length of coat and wave or straightness of the fur shaft can be seen in either the english or the normal type rex coats.  Although the wavy coat in the english length coat is somewhat rare it IS possible and I have seen it.  I personally have never seen an altrex coat but I have heard of others who have and they say they feel and look much like the coat of a poodle dog. 

Next, I will define diameter...which will refer to the diameter of the hair shaft itsself...in a cross cut section the fur diameter of the guards and the undercoat will be either thick or thin.  Remember: guards are black and undercoat is red. 
Thin guards and  thin undercoat
Wide undercoat, thin guards
Wide guards, wide undercoat.
Wide guards, thin undercoat
In keeping all width's of hair shaft respective the thin guards and thin undercoat and the wide guards and thin undercoat are about the only coats you will see.  By nature the undercoat is softer and thinner like the down on a bird.  This is where the softness of a rex coat comes into play...this undercoat is meant to be there for warmth by nature and the guards are meant to protect the undercoat from harm (on a normal furred non-rex animal).

Texture can be controlled by the amount of guards, the thickness of the guards and the smoothness of the individual hair shaft of the guards.  Below is an illustration of the smoothness of the hair shaft of a guard hair.  (Undercoats can have this too but due to the thinner diameter of the hair shaft it is very difficult to feel.)

As fur (or hair) grows it forms scales on the surface of the hair shaft that can only be seen under a high powered microscope but they CAN be felt and the barbed coat will often have more "drag" as the hand is pulled backwards across it.  This drag can be confused with coarseness as it cannot be seen but only felt.  and are pictured (as if magnified) below.
Barbed
The scales formed are pulled away or grow away from the center of the hair shaft much like the scales on a fish with dropsy (research this fish disease at your own risk...it gives me the shivvers to look at it...AACK!!!)  Long story short...the unconnected overlapping ends of the scales stick out away from the body of the fish (AACK!!!  Shivver!!!)
Smooth
The scales formed as the fur grows are very close together and tight to the center of the fur shaft.  This coat will often be a very shiny reflective coat and will appear and feel very slick.  This reminds me of the scales on a healthy fish.
Drag- Drag is defined as the grippiness of the coat, a coat with alot of drag will feel sticky, kinda like velcro but not as harsh as velcro.  It will cause your hand to slow and feel like you are being held back in your movement as you bring your hand backwards across the fur.  Drag can be caused by a barbed coat, a coat with guards that are thick or a coat that has guards standing out above the coat's shorter guards.  Slick smooth coats will often have very little drag and very harsh coats will have a ton of drag.  In my opinion somewhere in the middle should be preferred (but at this time the slicker coat is preferred by most judges).

The trick is to find a balance between all of these traits and then to be able to MAINTAIN that balance in generations to come.

And YOU thought Rex coats were EASY to determine the quality of...still think so???