how i tanned my coons

[ruger357]

I tanned a few coon hides and just thought that maybe there would be a few of you that may like to see what they ended up like. I dont realy like the cemical tanning solutions os i have used this one in the past for a deer hide that i tanned about 15 years ago. the hair has never sliped or shead it is in as good of shape today as the day it came of the deer. The solution is 1/4 lb alum 1/2 lb salt to a gallon of water. I have found it works the best to dissolve it in warm water to get it to mik the best. the first thing I do is flesh the fat and get the hide as clean as you can then wash in water with some gress cutting dish soap, next salt them down good and put them in a place where they will drain all the liquid away from the hides, this took two days for mine to do, then shake out all the salt mix up your solution and place the hides ie it all the way under lossly turning them ever other day this will take about two weeks 10 days or so you are looking for the hides to look a white color all the way through, it will not hert them to stay longer if you need a few days to have time to get to them, so next you need to dry them and work the hide so the fibers dont lock it up making the hide stiff, for this I just stretched them every few days. here are some pics of what i ended up with and how I did it.sorry for the bad grammer and spelling.lol

[batch]

nice write up. i have been wanting to tan some coyotes i have in the freezer. they keep disappearing . i suspect the wife is tossing them!

[pd]

nice write up. i have been wanting to tan some coyotes i have in the freezer. they keep disappearing . i suspect the wife is tossing them!

What did you have for dinner last night?  Are you sure?

[ruger357]

Yeah i have had lots of the go missing my own self lol   

[BiggLuke]

Have you ever used Brain Tannins?

[ruger357]

I have not from every thing i have read and talked to people that have it is good for buckskin but with hair on hides it is not as good after time the hair will start to slip. But like I said I have never done it.

[WA hunter14]

you have any pictures of the skin side?

[duckmen1]

That's cool. Just so happens I am in the process of doing a coon hide as we speak to. Pretty similar procedure. Could you post another pic of the skin side for a reference for me. Thanks
The coon I fleshed by hand with a scauple blade
Took forever.
 Found a hand tool like a die grinder that speeds up the process quiet a bit for fleshing. Going to start some yote hides and deer hides soon. It is addicting.
Good job

[ruger357]

I will put a few pic up in a few it is addicting I do a few every year and I like to see the end product. The coons I did took a few hours to flesh it is real tedious around the head.

[WA hunter14]

what are you doing with these tanned coons?

[ruger357]

I dont have any specific plans for thes ones the wife would like me to make a hat out of them may just hang them on the wall or something. Here is a pic of the skin side they where verry oily as they dryed but now that they are 100% dry the oil is gone and the feel good.

[WA hunter14]

yea i hate fleshing greasy coons, we de-grease all fur bearers especially coons. ive got a few tanned in the shop now but i dont have any pics(yet).

[ruger357]

What do you use and how do you degrease your coons