Tanning my hide

[2dream]

C'mon, folks...this is cool! Surely you had a curiosity about it, huh?

Hey Bee - that is the same basic process I read for tanning rabbit hides. ummmm..... guess I need to do some research on just plain ole tanning period instead of animal specific research. Apparently unless you plan on chewing and using the brains this process pretty much works on most hides. Now I have to go read up some more. You always seem to ask questions and post stuff that makes me have to think.

 

[Beekissed]

I do a lot of reading that challenges one to explore the possibilities! I find it an endless source of entertainment to read and imagine one day doing it myself! Gotta do something to entertain one's mind when you don't have TV!

 

[silkiechick]

It looks to me that the #1 enemy to any tanning process is the culprit. You did not flesh (scrape) the hide enough. you have to remove all traces of meat, fat, grissle, in fact you can only leave skin and hair. What did you use to scrape the hide?

You will also notice that the hide will dry much better if you have plenty of air circulation, and you need to keep it cool and dry.

 

[dacjohns]

To flesh the hide you can use a fleshing knife which looks a lot like a drawknife.

http://www.fntpost.com/Categories/Fur+Handling/Fleshing/Fleshing+Knives/

I'm not endorsing this company, it just came up first.

Van Dykes is another company. They also sell tanning supplies.

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/

I have used Van Dykes products and was happy with the results.

 

[silkiechick]

If you have trouble getting reasonably priced fleshing knives let me know. I have a few I would be willing to sell, I have some one handed I would send you if you cover shipping or I have 2 handed I would sell for $10 plus shipping. I have used the 2 handed ones for my own hides but the one handed ones were given to me, I just don't like them.

 

[Beekissed]

No sharp piece of flint or bone? Kinda newfangled, ain't we?

Thanks for the links, Dac! I didn't know you tanned your own hides. Can you post a pic of the finished products? Would love to see the quality of a home-tanned hide as opposed to a commercially tanned one.

I've been thinking of doing a deer hide for each of the boys one day and I would love to tan my lamb's hides if I should ever butcher one. Ya never know when you might have to cull one...wouldn't it be a waste to let a good lamb's hide go to waste?

 

[dacjohns]

I've only done a couple of hides, one with hair off. I set it on an oak pallet to dry and the chemicals reacted with the wood and the nails and stained the hide.

 

[dacjohns]

This song mentions hide tanning.

There's an old Australian stockman, lying, dying,
and he gets himself up on one elbow,
and he turns to his mates,
who are gathered 'round him and he says:


Watch me wallabys feed mate.
Watch me wallabys feed.
They're a dangerous breed mate.
So watch me wallabys feed.
Altogether now!


Tie me kangaroo down sport,
tie me kangaroo down.
Tie me kangaroo down sport,
tie me kangaroo down.


Keep me cockatoo cool, Curl,
keep me cockatoo cool.
Don't go acting the fool, Curl,
just keep me cockatoo cool.
Altogether now!


Take me koala back, Jack,
take me koala back.
He lives somewhere out on the track, Mac,
so take me koala back.
Altogether now!


Let me Abos go loose, Lou, *
let me Abos go loose.
They're of no further use, Lou,
so let me Abos go loose.
Altogether now!


Mind me platypus duck, Bill,
mind me platypus duck.
Don't let him go running amok, Bill,
mind me platypus duck.
Altogether now!


Play your digeridoo, Blue,
play your digeridoo.
Keep playing 'til I shoot thro' Blue,
play your digerydoo.
Altogether now!


Tan me hide when I'm dead, Fred,
tan me hide when I'm dead.
So we tanned his hide when he died Clyde,
(Spoken) And that's it hanging on the shed.
Altogether now!


1960 Castle Music Pty, Ltd.
Words and music by Rolf Harris

 

[2dream]

Henrietta23 posted about Fel Naptha on another thread and in doing some research I ran across this little tidbit.
Has anyone seen this before?

Recipe for tanning hides submitted by a gentleman in Indiana. Did you know that Fels-Naptha makes a great leather tanning solution??? It's much safer than almost any other (chromium or solvent) method for tanning. In 1980, a friend and I tanned 30 deer hides....some for leather, and some with the hair on for rugs, with great success! The hides with the hair on, STILL retain the hair to this day! Use 1 bar per gallon of liquid....we reduced the bars to shavings first, over low heat (we did this in a big cast iron kettle over a campfire), then allowed it to cool. It turns into a runny "gel". Then the hides need to be fully immersed for 1-2 months, depending on ambient temperature. Just thought I'd pass this along, as I'm preparing to do some tanning again just now.

 

[Beekissed]

That is consistent with the info about FN containing a solvent, that's for sure!