I would like your opinions on Rex rabbits

So I keep seeing Rex rabbits everywhere and they seem pretty popular and they are absolutely beautiful. I was kinda thinking about getting some possibly some time along the road. If I do I'd be buying them more with intent of them being show rabbits and of show quality.
My questions on this breed are
1. If I want to use this rabbit for meat, say I get one not quite show quality, is it enough meat to make it worth it?
2. Are they too popular? Like overbred or too many breeders already?

1) Yes, Rex are a commercial breed and as such are quite meaty. If they are show lines you can expect them to grow out slower. They "should" be at least 5lbs by 12 weeks, but your mileage may vary.

2) Depends on where you are located. When I first started looking for Rex, the closest breeders were 4 hrs from me.

i have rexes and i love them. they were one of my first choices when we decided to get rabbits because i am a taxidermist and i love rex fur ;P i think they're beautiful and have great personalities.

i think it's enough meat to make it worth it, but they grow slow in comparison to a meat breed. my rabbits sure weren't 5lbs at 12 weeks old - it took another month or so it hit that mark. but even with the slower growth, it's plenty of meat in my opinion to make a good meal. i've fed ten people at a campsite with only two 3 and 4lb rabbits in a stew, and one rabbit that size feeds my husband and i for a couple days with leftovers.

in my area they're almost nonexistent. mini rex is crazy popular but standard was hard to find. i feel like i got lucky and found my breeder on craigslist and she turned out to be wonderful and has really nice rabbits. it depends on the area you live in, i think. visiting a local show can give you a feel of what's widely available.

they seem to be a pretty healthy breed, and the only thing is that you have to really be on top of the feet situation. they don't have as much fluff on their feet as normal-coated rabbits and they'll get sore hocks at the drop of a hat, especially adults. i lined the floors of my rex's cages in resting mats and it seems to be doing the job. my doe has a couple spots where there isn't fur, but they aren't red/swollen or anything. hoping it doesn't get worse because i tried the solid-bottom cage thing before and it ended up in gross, smelly rabbits. i'm hoping better made cages with a better gauge wire will help them out more.

I have been breeding and showing for a year now. It is hard to get good stock as most breeders keep their prime rabbits for breeding themselves. Still you can get good stock in the 50.00 and under range and cull according. I have now got my 4 pounds at 8 week good size bunnies, and am working on that ever hard to get combo of fur, and type. I would start out with self colors and go from there. That way you don't have to worry about things like ring color and correct hue besides. You will find you have to cross lines with rabbits that are good in say, shoulders to rabbits that are good in rear ends and fur, to MAKE the rabbits you really want. Look for rabbits on facebook groups in your area for sale, and look for the deep bodies and wide rabbits you need. You will learn a lot just looking at pics of winners and going to shows and watching the judging. Beware though, that there are some beautiful breeds out there and you may find they are like potato chips. I limit my holes to 20 and it makes me really be picky on what animals I keep to breed the better ones. You will have runts and oddballs to eat, so be ready to do that job as well. The fur is so nice, I freeze pelts till I have about ten to do.

In my area, there are tons of rex. The most common breed at shows, most rabbits, most exhibitors. They do not have as good of meat type or growth rate as other commercial breeds, but still provide meat and nice fur.

Never too many breeders unless you are going to be dependant on sales. My Rex are mostly too big for show, got lucky getting a super big line after helping friend get them in back in 2013. My biggest doe is almost 14lbs. Not fat. Some show breeders seem to have issues getting Sr min. I have tri/harlequins, broken lynx, and chinchillas. My broken lynx buck from a lineage that has several show wins is smaller, he weighs in at 9lbs. Have to find some one with similar goals and grow time plus size wanting.

I have yet to show them but some of their cousins and other relatives have done well in KY.

I raise Rex, and possibly one of the nicest things about them is the ease of care. Not only of the rabbits themselves, but of their cages.

When power washing my cages, I can always tell if it housed a Rex or another breed. The Rex cages have very little calcium buildup on the wire in their pee corners, whereas the other breeds sometimes have crust that needs to be chipped off. I believe this is because the Rex fur is so short that it easily falls through the wire, whereas longer hair gets caught and gives the minerals a handy surface to adhere to.

My lines are incredibly sweet rabbits, good mothers, and clean in their habits. They don't spray urine as a rule, rarely soil their nest boxes, and are just a pleasure to care for.

Well what I'm doing right now is breeding Silver Fox and then some meat mutts crossed with silver Fox just for meat. I live in a house of 7 people so I'm looking more for meat the income although the income is definitely nice lol. I was thinking of rex for the hides as well. I wanna make a few rex hide blankets.. Maybe in a year or so I'll free up some space and get a trio. Although I am really enjoying being able to read everyone's opinions on them. They sound like a wonderful low maintenance breed. And just want to point out I had never knew bucks sprayed people until rather recently, I've never had it happen thankfully.