DH wants to tan hides...

DH doesn't really have much interest in the rabbits... he is warming to the idea of them for meat (if I can get a homerun sausage recipe I am sure he would want me to grow my herd exponentially! :lol: ). He has always had an interest in taxidermy and asked if he could try tanning the hides. I would like to start simple, and with as few chemicals as possible since we do have little ones around. Are there any processes that would fit both criteria? Any tutorials I can print out and hand him would be even better (we are very much pen and paper type people still).

I use the salt & alum method .... Cheap , easy & non-toxic.

1 cup salt 1 cup alum 3-4 gallons of water toss the hides in 8-10 hides and let them soak for 5 days or so.

Take them out , flesh them , add another cup of both salt and alum to the original mixture and put them back in for 10 days.

Take them out and wash with a mild detergent (Palmolive or some similar) , rinse thoroughly and pull / stretch them & hang to dry.

Done.

Ramjet, after the method you described, what would the pelt be called? Is that a "tanned hide"?

Joe

Ramjet, where can I find alum? I have seen it in stores for canning and such, but only in very small containers.

Joe n TN":1dqfoety said:

Ramjet, after the method you described, what would the pelt be called? Is that a "tanned hide"?

Joe

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Its a finished product - tanned hide ready to use in whatever you like.

The final step is the key to getting a quality product as you really have to work the hides (pull & stretch) by hand to get them soft. There really is no alternative .... tho you can do some of this by throwing them in the dryer on AIR DRY with a few old tennis shoes then dampen and finish them off by hand.

The finished product will be very soft , supple & easy to work with. I've made a few small items like hats out of them. Saving up hides for a blanket next.

DBA":1dqfoety said:

Ramjet, where can I find alum? I have seen it in stores for canning and such, but only in very small containers.

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The stuff you find in the grocery store for canning is the same stuff but .... going that way is expensive as a cup sized container is ~$4.


I had a hard time finding it myself , I found it at an independently owned Ace Hardware as well as a local feed lot .... it comes in 5 & 25lb bags.

If I were to make some boards for stretching the hides, roughly what dementions would I need?

DBA":1e0vogze said:

Ramjet, where can I find alum? I have seen it in stores for canning and such, but only in very small containers.

Click to expand...

25# bag here is ~$35.00.
http://www.myworldhut.com/products/Aluminum-Sulfate-Alum-Iron%2dFree-Powder-Food-Grade-Bulk.html

DBA":3p5suxrm said:

If I were to make some boards for stretching the hides, roughly what dementions would I need?

Click to expand...

I don't use boards to stretch them. I do it by hand after fleshing.

While slightly damp , use a gentle yet firm pressure pulling in all directions. You can both see and feel the fibers in the hide give way. The color of the hide will go from a dingy color to a clean white as each section is done.

If it dry's out , you can mist it to re-dampen and continue the process.

It's a LOT of work just to get one hide done but the end result is well worth the effort at least in my opinion.

Homer":3p5suxrm said:

DBA":3p5suxrm said:

Ramjet, where can I find alum? I have seen it in stores for canning and such, but only in very small containers.

Click to expand...

25# bag here is ~$35.00.
http://www.myworldhut.com/products/Aluminum-Sulfate-Alum-Iron%2dFree-Powder-Food-Grade-Bulk.html

Click to expand...

That's kinda expensive. I pay $5.99 for the 5lb size at Ace and $14.99 for the 25lb at the feed lot.


I forgot to mention , you have to use Non-Iodized Salt.

Ramjet":2s94irku said:

...

That's kinda expensive. I pay $5.99 for the 5lb size at Ace and $14.99 for the 25lb at the feed lot....

Click to expand...

It's food grade. I never thought about a feed store having it.

Remember Non-Iodized Salt!!

Salt with iodine in it will cause the fur to slip.

Ramjet":nz6imygw said:

Remember Non-Iodized Salt!!

Salt with iodine in it will cause the fur to slip.

Click to expand...

Very good to know!!

I'll try and post some pics later showing the difference between the stretched and un-stretched hides , you can clearly see the difference in the color and texture.

This process isn't difficult at all , the hand work is the crucial step to making a nice pelt.

Could anyone tell me what you use to do the fleshing, a little description of the process and maybe a before and after picture? How do you know when enough of the flesh is off? Thanks