You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly. You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. Thread starter HomesteaderWife Start date Feb 10, I talked a little bit in this thread called " Processing hides" about how we tan hides, and wanted to open an actual discussion, so people with questions could stop by and get answers from others who may tan themselves. I'll post some of my text from the other thread here, and also answer some of my own questions from below.
Tanners: How long have you tanned? What is your main hide or fur that you tan? Any tips or tricks to help others? Do you have a workshop set up? What made you interested in learning to tan? Show us some photos of your work! Why do you want to learn to tan? What sort of hides or furs are available for you to learn with?
Last edited: Feb 10, How long have you tanned? Before deer, I did a lot of squirrel fur tanning. Fleshing the hide immediately is super important to prevent the hide from being spoiled and no good. It's messy work- use gloves! Highly recommend a skinner's apron too. Make sure to have a good knife set with a sharpener, and a fleshing knife. Clean them every time or they'll rust!
Don't fret if it turns out not the way you want! Practice and note-taking are so important- I still make notes in a journal of what I was not pleased with, and how to fix it. Squirrels are the best, easiest to start with in my opinion. Rabbits have a thin hide- they're easy to tear if not careful. Raccoons have a great deal of fat to their hide and are very greasy. Hogs are like a raccoon but x5! Deer are a lot of work- they can take 2 to 3 hours just to flesh a large one well.
Getting enough wood ash to make the hair slip properly on a deer hide is sometimes difficult- I prefer lye like soap-making lye if I don't have wood ash built up. Split the tail and de-bone it. Highly recommend " The Ultimate Guide to Skinning and Tanning " by Monte Burch Many tanning solution recipes call for the use of "soft" water- save clean rainwater for this purpose.
I use a separate, enclosed area for the messy work of fleshing because it has a concrete floor. I like doing fleshing indoors because we get swarmed by yellowjackets otherwise. I have an outdoor fire pit with a tipi-pole-type setup for smoking. I got passionate about deer hides mainly, because most of the time they go to waste. People just toss them- which is such a shame to me. I enjoy bringing new life and beauty into a raw hide by tanning it. To me, tanning hides teaches responsibility, and respect for the creature even after they're gone by not wasting it.
Last edited: Feb 28, I have it on our homemade beam, with the fleshing knife sitting behind it. Don't make my mistake of letting the knife rust! I've had it 4 years now- I made an early mistake not cleaning it after a use. Select grade will be limited in imperfections such as skinning cuts and holes. TR tannery run grade will be subject to natural range marks, skinning cuts and holes with Gloving Utility grade having the most imperfections. Moose hides average sq ft, Elk hides average from square feet while Deer Skin will range from square feet.
Typically, this material is used for all types of Buckskins including native dress, black powder, pants, shirts, hunting gear, taxidermy mounts, beading and crafts. These skins are light weight 2 to 3 oz and average sqft in size. Colors available in gold, saddle tan, chocolate, black and white as well as some bright colors like red, turquoise and blue. Please check with our warehouse for current colors in stock as they will are limited in availability.
Pelt: The origins of this word are a little murky. It may come from the Middle English word pelett meaning animal skin , or it may not. Either way, this word can be synonymous with fur, or it can be applied to an undressed skin that will become a fur leaving the hair, wool, or fur intact. Buckskin: This is typically deer or sheep skin, tanned through a conditioning process and stripped of all hairs.
Hair, fur, and wool are all made from the same substance keratin and are chemically indistinguishable from each other. These skin coverings are one of the features that differentiate mammals from other creatures like birds or reptiles. Hair is also a hollow-shafted skin covering, like you find on a deer.
Wool is another covering on the skin of an animal. The hair that most people would recognize as fur can have three layers, each one consisting of a different hair type.
Down hair: This is the undercoat or innermost layer of the fur, consisting of wavy or curly hairs. Awn hair: Filling the gap between down and guard hairs, the awn hair start off growing like guard hairs, but they become wavy and thinner about halfway through their growth.
The tips of these hairs help shed water, while the bases of the hairs keep the animal warm. Guard hair: Sometimes called the topcoat, guard hairs are longer, straighter, and typically coarser than the other hairs.
These stick out through the other hairs, and are the most visible part of the coat. These longer hairs are protective, and many mammals can raise their guard hairs as a threat display when alarmed. Meat will rot and lead to the decay of the skin. Fat will become rancid, and also contribute to decomposition.
If the hide has just been peeled from a fresh kill, the meat and fat can be scraped off the skin and thrown into a soup or stew. If the hide has been lying around for a few days or for too many hours, in warm weather , the meat and fat pulled from it may no longer be safe for human consumption. In that case, use your scrapings for trap or fish bait. Fleshing can be done in different ways, but I prefer to scrape with the square edge on the back of a drawknife handle, while pressing the hide against a smooth log for support.
The brain of every game animal contains the perfect volume and balance of conditioning oils to tan its own hide. All you need is your animal hide, the brain of the animal, and a few other items to make tanned pelts just like our ancestors.
Fleshing the hide: Start by fleshing the hide to scrape off all of the meat and fat. Dry and sand: After fleshing and drying the pelt, sand the flesh-side with sand paper to make it more receptive to the brains. Sand it until the hide feels velvety. Look for the resulting liquid to be the consistency of hand lotion.
If you are doing this off the grid, simply mash the brains up by hand in a quart of water. For tanning one deer hide: mix one deer brain into a gallon of hot water, and mash the brain up so it looks like a soup. Next, boil the solution for 2 to 3 minutes. Then let it cool to the touch before bringing it into contact with the skin. And for those hunters concerned about CWD, you can use egg yolks as a brain tan alternative.
Two or three yolks no egg whites included are enough to tan something small like a rabbit pelt. Get to work: Lay the pelt on a flat surface and use your fingers to work the brain solution over the skin until thoroughly covered.
Roll the skin up in the damp towel and set it aside. Soak the hide in the brain soup for 2 to 8 hours. The longer you soak it, the better.
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