How to tan a hide
05-19-2004, 11:09 AM
#2
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Cambridge Ohio USA
Posts: 744
RE: How to tan a hide
There's really no way to answer that. Or, more specifically, there's MANY ways to answer that. Most modern methods include salting, rehydrating, pickling, shaving, and tanning steps. Go to www.taxidermy.net and go to the forums. Then, type your questions in the search function. Get ready to read a lot about tanning.
05-19-2004, 10:02 PM
#3
Join Date: May 2003
Location:
Posts: 239
general tanning
To tan any hide or cape the following steps are:
After caping, and or skinning you flesh down the skin. Remove all red meat and fat. Then salt down for 24hrs. shake off old salt, flesh down again to remove membrane, always use fresh salt when salting the second time. Then salt down again. Never roll up a skin when salting, this prevents the moisture from draining. Fold the skin then lay this on a slant or angle to allow moisture to escape. Dry the skin until it's rock hard. Depending on the humitity in your area this can take from a week to 2 weeks. If possible dry skin around a dehumitifier. This will help in the drying process.
After the skin is fully dried it needs to be rehydrated. When skin is soft again, if it needs to be washed, now is the time to do this. Now it need to be put into a pickle bath. Always check the PH of your pickle, 1.5 to 2.0 is what your looking for in a pickle bath. After 1 day in the pickle, pull out skin and shave down, and degrease the skin. Then return to pickle for another 2 days.
Now you need to neutralize the skin. After the skin is neutralized, proceed to the tanning. After the skin is tanned you need to oil the skin. After the oiling is complete you can dry out the skin, If the "fur" has oil on it, you can remove this by tumbling it in hardwood sawdust with a little ordorless mineral spirits.
Hope this give you some insight on what your looking for. Good Luck.
Coyote Caller
After caping, and or skinning you flesh down the skin. Remove all red meat and fat. Then salt down for 24hrs. shake off old salt, flesh down again to remove membrane, always use fresh salt when salting the second time. Then salt down again. Never roll up a skin when salting, this prevents the moisture from draining. Fold the skin then lay this on a slant or angle to allow moisture to escape. Dry the skin until it's rock hard. Depending on the humitity in your area this can take from a week to 2 weeks. If possible dry skin around a dehumitifier. This will help in the drying process.
After the skin is fully dried it needs to be rehydrated. When skin is soft again, if it needs to be washed, now is the time to do this. Now it need to be put into a pickle bath. Always check the PH of your pickle, 1.5 to 2.0 is what your looking for in a pickle bath. After 1 day in the pickle, pull out skin and shave down, and degrease the skin. Then return to pickle for another 2 days.
Now you need to neutralize the skin. After the skin is neutralized, proceed to the tanning. After the skin is tanned you need to oil the skin. After the oiling is complete you can dry out the skin, If the "fur" has oil on it, you can remove this by tumbling it in hardwood sawdust with a little ordorless mineral spirits.
Hope this give you some insight on what your looking for. Good Luck.
Coyote Caller
05-20-2004, 06:17 AM
#4
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 11
RE: How to tan a hide
http://freespace.virgin.net/sts.northwales/intro.htm
this may have some info for you, along with thousands of products.
If the link hasn't worked, go to google and type in snowdonia taxidermy.
The company is based in Wales in the UK and is the best place i have seen for this dieing art.
[8D]
this may have some info for you, along with thousands of products.
If the link hasn't worked, go to google and type in snowdonia taxidermy.
The company is based in Wales in the UK and is the best place i have seen for this dieing art.
[8D]
05-20-2004, 10:11 PM
#5
Join Date: May 2004
Location:
Posts: 39
RE: How to tan a hide
1. After capeing, flesh the meat and all fat from the skin.
2. Salt the skin for 24hrs. on something that the excess moisture can drain thru (one of those plastic bread trays than are about 2' by2' over a plastic bid works well) lose lay the skin do not roll it up or it can't drain.
3. shake off that salt and resalt with new salt for another 24hrs.
4. shake that off and put into a pickle bath (I use Saftee-Acid)
5. after the skin has been in the pickle bath for two days (with the correct pH maintained) flesh the skin and put it back in the pickle bath for another two days to swell more, then flesh in again
6. after the second fleshing, neutalize the skin with something gentle and has a basic pH (try bakeing soda)
7. tumble (or drip dry if you don't have a tumbler) the skin till it is damp not soaking wet
8. use some tanning oil on the skin (try Liqua-tan by Knobloch they also have other oils for softening skins) follow the instructions for that product
9. wash, tumble and mount ( fablic softener is ok to wash skins in and they smell great and are soft to the touch, Hair-sheen by Knobloch can be used before or after the hide is mounted)
* for carnivors are small mammals or bears degrease the skin and use bacteriacide tablets or some bacteriacide that can be added in the pickle ( I sometimes use either Pre-tan #110 or Basacryl NB-KU by Knobloch)
2. Salt the skin for 24hrs. on something that the excess moisture can drain thru (one of those plastic bread trays than are about 2' by2' over a plastic bid works well) lose lay the skin do not roll it up or it can't drain.
3. shake off that salt and resalt with new salt for another 24hrs.
4. shake that off and put into a pickle bath (I use Saftee-Acid)
5. after the skin has been in the pickle bath for two days (with the correct pH maintained) flesh the skin and put it back in the pickle bath for another two days to swell more, then flesh in again
6. after the second fleshing, neutalize the skin with something gentle and has a basic pH (try bakeing soda)
7. tumble (or drip dry if you don't have a tumbler) the skin till it is damp not soaking wet
8. use some tanning oil on the skin (try Liqua-tan by Knobloch they also have other oils for softening skins) follow the instructions for that product
9. wash, tumble and mount ( fablic softener is ok to wash skins in and they smell great and are soft to the touch, Hair-sheen by Knobloch can be used before or after the hide is mounted)
* for carnivors are small mammals or bears degrease the skin and use bacteriacide tablets or some bacteriacide that can be added in the pickle ( I sometimes use either Pre-tan #110 or Basacryl NB-KU by Knobloch)
