Part 1. Chanti Combs, Cushion. PHOTO HEAVY

Iz dont know nuttin' 'bout gradin no Chanties.
Here are some photos of good, ok and questionable combs. In part 2 I will post some bad, funky and ugly combs.

Please! feel free to coment and distribute any wealth of knowledge you have. like this is a pea comb, this is a good cushion, this is a rose, this is what happens when you feed GMO corn, etc etc.

For reference these are all from the same 2012 hatch. There are hens and roosters. They are on pasture with feed at night.

I have one question to start... undstanding that a line of little feathers horisontally accross the top 1/3rd of the comb indicates there will be a transverse groove, what does it mean when the whole cob has little feathers? Do I worry about it?

ONE.
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TWO
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THREE
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FOUR
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FIVE
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SIX
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SEVEN
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EIGHT
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NINE
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TEN
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ELEVEN
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I don't know nuttin' about grading no chati combs, except....

Your pictures are Awesome!

And I want to do a painting of number 9.

Me too. And I think we should have a caption contest for number 9.

LOL! Go for it!

I don't like 11 & 4 as far as combs go. Watch your head type, as strong head is important in both the females and males. I think you have some good choices in there for the strong heads.
You will have fun with this breed. Remember to keep a bit of diversity in there, combs are not the be all and end all of the breed. Keep your best body types even if they do not have an idea comb at the begining and work from there.
Looks like you have some nice birds to start with.

Four has a cuchion type but it is hint lumpy.
Eleven has the transverse groove, ok, got it.

It is more important to me that I have healthy and highly productive birds than pretty. Oc course I want them to be of correct type, but a little variation in style is ok. If some genetic diversity makes my chanties better meat and egg birds and hardier, then Im all for it.

Im just learning this stuff, so Im starting with things that I can see to choose from that are fairly simple phenotypic and genotypicly. I am looking for big bodies, sturdy legs, broad backs, full deep chests. Then yellow legs and correct combs.

This is my second start at Chanties, mu first birds were all crap, to be blunt. I bought birds to serious faults and DQ features, but I didnt know any better then.
Im learning!

Just looking at heads I'd pick 8, 5 and 2 in that order. Shape of the head is strong, color and curve of beak, small even wattles and larger cushion comb with nice shape.

I read somewhere comb size is related to fertility, hen is more attracted to large comb and wattles so there is an intrinsic conflict here between cold hardy and fertility. Listen to his crow, according to old books, the one with the clearest loudest call should be the better choice.

My opinion is that comb on chanteclers are a matter of function first, then aesthetics. Fertility, cold hardiness, then looks.

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Thank you so much. Learned lots.

And ya.... that Cocka-Doodle-Dont is rather "special looking" in a chernobyl sort of way.lol...