tanning

[Donaye37]

self teaching myself how to tan hides and pelt, just thought id come on here and ask for some tips and pointers on what to do. my understanding is you flesh the hide/pelt then wash it in some type of chloride and then rub the tanning solution on and then let it set and then twist the hide/pelt to soften it up, am i on the right track?

[sirmissalot]

There is a website called taxidermy.net, you will get plenty of info on there. Go on there and search the topic before you ask the question, its probably been brought up many times.

[bucklucky]

 

Every tan has a different set of directions.

First you have to turn lips, lids, and ears id the head is being done also, then completely flesh the critter. Next you salt.Salting is the first step in a quality tan. There are other (shortcut) ways but if you want to attempt to get anything close to a tannery this is the first step.  Salting and Fleshing is very important to do correctly.

The next step is the rehydration of the hide. This step brings the hide back to a natural pliable state and is also where you start the degreasing process (wich is very important) .

  Next step after the rehydration is the pickle, this is where the hair is set and the hide is plumped for shaving it thin.  Personally I will use a citric acid for the pickle as it is the best for helping to degrease and kill bacteria. I use tru-bond products for my tanning with great results. They also have phone help if you have questions that need answered . Now it really depends on what you are pickling as not all hides are created equally so you have different recipes wich really need to be followed. Alot of small game is real touchy. Bears have to be degreased very well to get a good tan and soft hide. You do need a fleshibg maching to aid in trhe shaving of the hide . Some small game to dont shave or shave very much as it is already thin.

  The tan, it really depends on what tan you use on whether or not you neytralize the hide right after the pickle or neutralize (or fix the tan) in the tan by bringing the PH up to 4.5. Other tans are different in there steps. ALot of people dont realize that. So you just follow the instructions. Tanning for the chemicles I use if I use the submersable is about 12 hours, they also have some pretty good quality paint on tans that actually work very well, with the paint on tans you will neutralize in the pickle. Whats nice about the paint on tan is that the oiling process is done at the same time as the tanning process. But on a submirsable tan you hand oil the hides and let sweat over night and tumble in saw dust the next day to finish them out. Them you dry and break the hides. HAving a 6 ft tumbler is a big help in the finishing process as it help break the hides.

  You have alot to learn about the tanning process if quality tans is what you want to do. I do not like to short cut stuff so I have re learned everything I used to know about tanning and am still learning. After having some bad issues with tannerys I made it a priority to learn there processes so I have better knowledge if ther is ever another issue.  I just barely scraped the surface of tanning. Just a quick run down. Tanning is not an easy process to do quality stuff, and anyone that says different if Full of crap. Follow the complete steps and put alot of work and Some money for equipement and it should yeild you some quality stuff. And so you know Im not very knowlegeable on tanning. If you are on facebook you can go to Tru-Bond Tanning and you will have answers for you questions. I have asked quite a few myself . Im a rookie at tanning "the right way" as I would put it. There are plenty of other methods that work though.

[FSTaxidermy]

good overview Charlie.

[bucklucky]

Did you degrease the coons?? I had some I did quite a while ago that I did not degrease and over time they leached grease out of the hide and turn orange on the leather side.

There is so much info on tanning it will blow a guys mind, methods, types, etc. 

[Donaye37]

sigh well thanks so much for the help. im gunna use deer hunters & hide tanning formula and just really follow the directions and take time with it, and hopefully it works  im gunna need alot of practice so if you trappers have an pelts that you wouldnt mind me having or atleast allowing me to try to tan them for you that would be great as well. thanks again

[Humptulips]

That was a great post by bucklucky. Thanks!

I will add this that you may be barking up the wrong tree in asking trappers about tanning     (generally called dressing in the fur trade). While there are some trappers that dress their own as more of a hobby most trappers don't. The fur trade does not as a rule want to buy dressed fur. They want raw furs. A raw fur in the trade is dryed to preserve the fur and is usually not skinned to taxidermy standards. There are standardized forms that the fur is dryed on and when dry the pelt is removed and sent to market. Furriers want to have the furs dressed to their standards and do not want a dukes mixture of dressing jobs.
Also it is so cheap to get a quality dressing job it hardly makes sense economically to do it yourself. As an example you can get a very good garment tan of a beaver, otter, bobcat, coyote, raccoon or similar size animal for less then $30.

[Donaye37]

. As an example you can get a very good garment tan of a beaver, otter, bobcat, coyote, raccoon or similar size animal for less then $30.

for less than $30 where?

[Donaye37]

has anyone tried or heard of this deer hunters and trappers hide tanning formula? i bought it and i guess i should try it since i did but theres no pickling or neutralizing process so idk people been telling me it may be genereic, well good thing i got a few deer hides to practice on. let me know what i got myself into 

[TheHunt]

Great post Charlie.  I always wanted to know about tanning and this is a good start.

[Humptulips]

. As an example you can get a very good garment tan of a beaver, otter, bobcat, coyote, raccoon or similar size animal for less then $30.

for less than $30 where?

The closest place is Moyle Mink and Tannery in Heyburn ID www.moytwn.com (866)826-3877
Ask for one of their price lists.
Understand though they do garment tanning. This means if you don't flesh completely or turn the ears, they will slip. Your pelt must be ready to go in the solution because they do not flesh for you.
If it is ready to tan when shipped you will get back a very nice fur.
There are other places that do it for the same price or cheaper but I have always been satisfied with Moyles. Usually takes about 5 months.

[Ballance1]

Go to Pacific hide and fur.  Across the Bridge from Spokane community college.