@mollybuck, thank you for the pics! And you have given us a great example of why we need to let our cockerels grow out as long as possible before choosing breeders. Grown in, that first cock does not look very much like a Legbar. I would guess that he is a cross since the barring is off and appears to only be showng like one set instead of two. Plus he may have been crossed with a silver meatier bird. Rusty definitely is closer to standard, in fact he looks pretty close color rise in those pics. For pairings, I would look for hens with long bodies, low tail sets, and deep breasts (long keels). If you would like to pursue cream, definitely look for hens with gray barred bodies. If you would like to pursue a more golden crele, then look for hens with reddish gray brown ( is that taupe?) bodies and darker golden hackles. Looks like your gut was right on! Sorry for any confusion and thank you again for taking pics. Best wishes!
Thanks for that.
Do you have any examples of really dark barring in the CL?