Keep your fingers crossed that I do it right. In a few weeks I'm going to be merchanting at a decent sized event and want to have some pelts done. So I'd better get going, eh? I have quite a few large cow and deer hides that I bought from a place that was shutting down, and some pigskins, but this will be the first time I've tried my own hair-on tanning. I've been re-reading all the threads and advice in this forum, and...I'm going to do it!

If anyone has advice...now's the time!!

I'll update the thread as I progress...good or bad.

No advice for you, Ann, but hope it all goes well!

I hope it goes well, too! What method are you planning to use? This is something I want to learn to do.

Salt and Alum. I'm using the method described in http://www.motherearthnews.com/Modern-Homesteading/1983-01-01/How-To-Tan-Rabbit-Hides.aspx , a link provided in another thread in the forum. Seems easy enough and I have all the ingredients

Long, long ago I tanned a couple of pelts... must be 30 years at least. I used the salt/alum method described in the Reader's Digest "Back to Basics" book. It wasn't difficult, but it took me a long time. Like anything new, I guess. The furs kept well but the cottontail skins were very thin, like parchment. Pretty though!

__________ Sat May 29, 2010 9:55 am __________

Good luck! I'm going to try it soon if I can find the time or start freezing some to do in the winter. I still haven't found alum around here, went to Home Hardware, TSC, two feed stores and Pharma Plus, everyone looked at me like I was from Mars except the drug store and they can only get it in small amounts.

I really hate throwing the skins out, it seems like such a waste but I don't have the time right now. I usually let my buns grow out to 14-16 weeks because I like the bigger carcass so the furs should be a lot better than ten week old kits.

Have you looked in the grocery stores, perhaps in the pickling/canning department or in the spice section?

Truckinguy, the Bulk Barn carries alum. You should be able to buy it there in just about any quantity you want. No idea about the price, but you could call them.

http://www.bulkbarn.ca/en-ca/products.html?product=2668

Dont use metal containers.
Dont use idolized salt.
Use prime hides. That is hides from winter. Summer hides need to be pickled before tanning with a chemical pickling solution or the hair will slip.

Neatsfoot oil works real well for finishing and softening.

Also alum tanned hides are not considered a permanent tan. They are not for garments as, water, sweat, sunlight, etc will break them down.
So keep your finished piece out of the sun and dont get it wet.
For storage of finish pieces be careful for moths. Moths will eat a alum tanned hide.

I was a taxidermist and owned my own business till my health forced me to stop. I did all my own tanning.
I never did alum myself as I had to use a permanent tan for my costumers. The chemical supplies to do rug, mount and garment tans I got from wholesale taxidermy supply companies. The professional tans are very dangerous and many are haz-mat level.

So for home use non-perm tans, alum is a popular and good choice.

Thanks Maggie, I'll try there. I went to the Bulk Barn in Woodbine Centre in Toronto and the guy didin't seem to know what I was talking about. Sometimes I get the feeling I"m in a slightly different universe than some people....

Wow, they use it in food...?

Actually alum for food is potassium alum. It can be used to tan a hide but isn't as good as ammonium alum.
But potassium alum is more readily available for the home user as its used for food so its more commonly used.

The difference between the 2 probably isn't enough for the home user to worry about.
With food alum you have a higher risk of hair slippage and uneven, less penetrating tanning and deterioration over time is a little quicker with the food alum.

Truckinguy, food alum is used in pickling, to make the pickles crisp. I've heard you can use grape leaves to achieve the same crunch. You might have to phone or email the head office of Bulk Barn and have them send your order to the closest store. Or, tell the badly-informed sales help to look it up... All their products have numbers. Sales people who don't know their products (unless they are new) are bad enough... Sales people who don't know their products and are too lazy to make an effort drive me nuts.

RP, if I wanted a hide that could be used for a garment, what would you suggest I use? Would the sulfuric acid/salt work?

Ann I would not go with a sulfuric acid mix.

You can get tanning mixes that are stable and safer from almost any taxidermy supply company on line.
I have always preferred Van Dykes Taxidermy.
You can e-mail them and ask what is a good garment tan for rabbit hides, hair on or off. They will be happy to give you advice and help. They also have an online help section for how to do things.
For a garment tan you may have to pickle before tanning, depending on the tan used, even with a prime hide but they have safe pickling solutions too.
It does cost to start out but the supplies for permanent tans are enough in their smallest quantities for several hides.

It does take time to tan hides. You cant have a finished garment hide in a week. More like a few weeks to months depending on the type of tan and the process you choose to use.

I dont tan anymore because I wont put chemicals down our septic because I dont want to throw the bacterial decomposition out of whack.
I dont want to dump anything on the ground because we are in wet lands and I dont want to fowl out the under ground aquifers.
I had my taxidermy business in Milwaukee and could toss the approved chemical baths down the drain.
But the cities sewage isnt dependent on a bacterial balance like our little septic tank and field drain is.

I still do make raw hide though!!
I use wood ash to make natural raw hide.
Myself and friends use it for crafts and my mate makes drums occasionally.

I'd be interested to hear more about making rawhide, R.Pines. Care to start a thread about it?