Diy hide tanning

[thedutchtouch]

i will say this, all that red stuff on your hide will have to come off, that is blood stained membrane , you can remove it before or after tanning to get down to the skin.

I know, just didn't have the energy to keep scraping mostly one handed last night. I also am wondering if I've messed up the salting by under salting a bit, the hide has a bit of a smell to it tonight when I brushed off the old salt and added new and it was definitely wet (if dumped the bucket once during the day). Added much more salt this time, perhaps a bit of smell is normal at this point? Didn't smell rotten, but also didn't smell good. It is a dead animal skin so not expecting it to be smell free, but I dunno. Only way to find out is to wait and see I guess

 

[arrow30]

a lot of salt is better, moister = bacteria = rot.

 

[thedutchtouch]

Checked it again, much less moisture (not really any in the bucket) and a lot of the salt on the hide was still dry but the edges of the hide were still pretty wet so I added more salt and rolled it back up. I may keep it in this state for a bit, going away this weekend and hoping to hunt a few evenings this week beforehand. Need to buy some more salt.

 

[SNIPERBBB]

Bumping. After keeping a buck hide in the freezer for almost two years, I pulled it out and gave it a go fleshing tonight. Took forever, didn't do perfect, and sliced my thumb (luckily almost right at the beginning, with the clean/sharp side of the fleshing knife, d',oh!)

I can see now why people recommend the pressure washer, but I don't own one. I think there's still a good amount of membrane attached, but I'm calling it good enough for round 1, hide is salted, rolled up, and sitting in a bucket. Amazingly, the only holes are from the arrow, though I did somehow remove some hair from one spot. I don't thing the whole hide is slipping, but we'll see, learning experience either way.
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Don't ever use a pressure washer. It's a recommendation from people that don't have a clue about hides . If you just want leather it's ok because pressure washing is a good way to cause hair to slip.

You'll have some weak bits of hair come from most critters. When slippage occurs you can clear an entire patch of fur down to the skin just by wiping your hand across that patch

 

[SNIPERBBB]

i will say this, all that red stuff on your hide will have to come off, that is blood stained membrane , you can remove it before or after tanning to get down to the skin.

Needs to come off before tanning or youll have bits of skins that didn't get full penetration.

with krowtan you elimenate the salting process. just mix 4 lbs salt and 8-10 oz. of krowtan in 2 1/2 gal of water. SUPER EASY, SUPER SIMPLE.

You never have to actually salt a hide for tanning. You just get better results salting or air drying.

@thedutchtouch lay your hide flat. If you can put it on an incline, so much the better. You need kg exposed to sit to let juices drain and let the hide dry fully.

 

[arrow30]

Needs to come off before tanning or youll have bits of skins that didn't get full penetration.

You never have to actually salt a hide for tanning. You just get better results salting or air drying.

@thedutchtouch lay your hide flat. If you can put it on an incline, so much the better. You need kg exposed to sit to let juices drain and let the hide dry fully.

krowtann will penatrate through the membrane , i have left 1/4 in thick pieces of meat on a cape and it tanned just fine, krowtan works from both sides of the skin, its not a brush on tan, it soaks in a tub for 3-4 days. then you shave the cape for mounting, salt is primarily to kill bacteria, to keep hair from slipping. but also used to dry skins for storage.

 

[SNIPERBBB]

krowtann will penatrate through the membrane , i have left 1/4 in thick pieces of meat on a cape and it tanned just fine, krowtan works from both sides of the skin, its not a brush on tan, it soaks in a tub for 3-4 days. then you shave the cape for mounting, salt is primarily to kill bacteria, to keep hair from slipping. but also used to dry skins for storage.

Krowtann isn't a tan. It's a formic acid pickle.it doesn't tan the hide. Tanning is what you do after you pickle.

 

[arrow30]

Krowtann isn't a tan. It's a formic acid pickle.it doesn't tan the hide. Tanning is what you do after you pickle.

hahaha, thats an old argument.....im not arguing with you, you use your mayonase and eggs and il use my pickle tan combo.

 

[SNIPERBBB]

hahaha, thats an old argument.....im not arguing with you, you use your mayonase and eggs and il use my pickle tan combo.

Who said anything about that. All those things may preserve a hide but tanning actually makes structural changes to the hides.

THere is no tanning agent in krowtann. You can get some lutan f, liquatan or any of the various paint on tans, or alum and finish the job after you neutralize the hide to tan it. All a pickle does is sets the hair follicles in the skin and plump up the skin so it can be shaves easier.

 

[SNIPERBBB]

salt is primarily to kill bacteria, to keep hair from slipping. but also used to dry skins for storage.

Salt helps set the hair bur it does not kill bacteria. It basically just puts them in stasis. If water is reintroduced, and salt attracts water(which is why it your salt canister is left open in high moisture settings it turns into a rock), bacteria starts growing again. Also what you can never put a salt dried hide against an air dried hide as you'll ruin the air dried if left together too long

 

[TDubbs12]

This is my first time attempting to tan.....I will cut the hide to shape after......Any idea how long will the process take to completely whiten?...It has been 3 days so far.
Trying to get the kinks out so the next one can be skinned correctly (by me this time). Used Deer Hunter's and Trapper's (orange bottle).

 

[MattS304]

Bumping this thread, so my buddy and I are experimenting with making buckskin.

Here are the steps I've followed (based on this article: https://www.themeateater.com/cook/butchering-and-processing/how-to-tan-a-deer-hide)
1. Fleshed with pressure washer (that was an experience, did it in the dark by headlamp after the kids went to bed and it was about 40F outside)
2. Soaked in Lime water for a few days to "buck" the hide and remove hair (this went rather well I think)
3. Soaked in fresh water for a few days to "delime" it
4. Pickled the hide in salt + vinegar bath for a few days
5. Neutralized it with a backing soda bath for a few hours, washed with mild dish soap, let dry until just moist
6. Coated both sides of the hide with the HTF orange bottle formula and let the soak for a day.

My first attempt has turned out pretty well and probably a good 70% of it is super soft, stretchy and supple but I've got some darker hard spots I can't get to break.I was thinking about moistening those areas with a bit of water and reapplying a small amount of HTF to it and then trying to break them again? Or is there a better way?

I was also wondering what folks thoughts were about the NuTan product compared to the HTF orange bottle? They seem to have a pretty slick setup but it's also kind of pricey. I might get their fleshing knife either way. https://www.advancedtanningsolutions.com/products/tan-a-buckskin

For this hide endgame is probably to make a belt for kicks. I do need to find some black leather dye.

 

[Jammintree]

Bumping this thread, so my buddy and I are experimenting with making buckskin.

Here are the steps I've followed (based on this article: https://www.themeateater.com/cook/butchering-and-processing/how-to-tan-a-deer-hide)
1. Fleshed with pressure washer (that was an experience, did it in the dark by headlamp after the kids went to bed and it was about 40F outside)
2. Soaked in Lime water for a few days to "buck" the hide and remove hair (this went rather well I think)
3. Soaked in fresh water for a few days to "delime" it
4. Pickled the hide in salt + vinegar bath for a few days
5. Neutralized it with a backing soda bath for a few hours, washed with mild dish soap, let dry until just moist
6. Coated both sides of the hide with the HTF orange bottle formula and let the soak for a day.

My first attempt has turned out pretty well and probably a good 70% of it is super soft, stretchy and supple but I've got some darker hard spots I can't get to break.I was thinking about moistening those areas with a bit of water and reapplying a small amount of HTF to it and then trying to break them again? Or is there a better way?

I was also wondering what folks thoughts were about the NuTan product compared to the HTF orange bottle? They seem to have a pretty slick setup but it's also kind of pricey. I might get their fleshing knife either way. https://www.advancedtanningsolutions.com/products/tan-a-buckskin

For this hide endgame is probably to make a belt for kicks. I do need to find some black leather dye.

View attachment 125770

Those stiff spot could be places where the grain wasn’t completely removed and therefore the tanning agent wasn’t absorbed into the hide. It’s also possible that those are spots that were not adequately stretched while they were drying. But I’m betting there is grain in those areas.

 

[Nathan0625]

Easiest way we have done it in the past is a piece of plywood or concrete driveway. This past year we used a pressure washer and cleaned 3 deer hides making sure to get any of the membrane and flesh that was left on after removing hide from the deer. Once this is complete you get some PH test strips, muriatic acid, and kosher salt to create a solution that the hide will sit in for 2-3 days. Checking each day to ensure the PH is at the correct level as it will change day to day. After 2-3 days take the hide out and rinse thoroughly with cold water and hang to drip dry until mostly dry but still pliable. The last part is important as you want the hide to still have some stretch to it. Apply the orange bottles that you have liberally and fold all the inner leather so it's touching while leaving the hide side out. Following the instruction on the bottle helps. Once the bottles been used and the hide is starting to get the buckskin look work the leather over something rounded to stretch and break in the leather so it becomes supple. I find the rounded edge of a washing machine to work quite will. (working hide side up and leather down against the rounded edge.

 

[MattS304]

Those stiff spot could be places where the grain wasn’t completely removed and therefore the tanning agent wasn’t absorbed into the hide. It’s also possible that those are spots that were not adequately stretched while they were drying. But I’m betting there is grain in those areas.

Admittedly I didn’t do a great job of stretching it while it dried so the odds are probably pretty good for that.

If that is an area where the grain is still on the leather, just moisten and shave a bit?