I tan hides every year. I've tried the stuff from vandykes and it's great stuff but kind of complicated. Here's how I've always done it without buying anything special.
You say it's already salted? That's a great start. Hides are easier to tan after they're salted. Now hold a knife blade at a 90 degree angle to the hide and scrape all the salt off. Once it's off, buff the hide with some medium or fine sand paper. Not hard, just enough to raise the grain. Now wash the hide with clean water. Now the big part... Take at least 6 eggs and break them onto the hide. Squish it all around and when the hide is rehydrated and not stiff, wring the hide like a towel. Do that a few times to make sure the egg gets all the way through the hide. Now, work the hide back and fourth in your hands and wring it until it's dry. You have to keep it moving so it breaks the fibers down in the hide. It'll take about 4 hours, but when it's done, it'll be soft and it'll stay that way as long as it doesn't get wet. If it gets wet, it'll dry stiff. To make it water proof, hang it over the smoke from a fire until it turns brown. Smoking the hide will take a few hours too (don't use pine in the fire, it'll form tar on the hide). The resin in the smoke will keep any water from making the hide stiff again. You'll be able to just rub it around in your hands and it'll get soft again. Hope this helps!
Note; traditional cultures typically used the animal's own brain to tan hides. Eggs have similar properties and oils to break in the hide. This is how I tan all my hides and it's hard work but it's worth it. You'll want to shampoo the hide after smoking it too (don't use anything with dye in it), otherwise your whole house will smell like smoke.
Last edited by kodiakhuntmaster; 07-21-2011 at 07:42 PM.
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