Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hey Do any of you hunters tan your own hides? be it squirrel, rabbit, deer, coyote etc.... I want to tan my own hides and there are sooo many websites with different ways. I was just wondering what is the best way to get a nice soft pelt that I can use for covers or sewing projects. Preferable without super harsh chemicals. Thanks
Brain tanning is how the Indians did their skins; it is the least chemically noxious and (in my opinion) the best end product but definitely NOT the easiest to do; it requires a very clean scraped hide with no membrane and hours of staking (softening the hide) while it dries. Then it needs to be smoked so it will stay soft if it gets wet. You can tan hair-on but like I said, it's still serious work.
Probably the easiest and least noxious way to tan hides is alum-salt tanning.
Brain tanning is how the Indians did their skins; it is the least chemically noxious and (in my opinion) the best end product but definitely NOT the easiest to do; it requires a very clean scraped hide with no membrane and hours of staking (softening the hide) while it dries. Then it needs to be smoked so it will stay soft if it gets wet. You can tan hair-on but like I said, it's still serious work.
Probably the easiest and least noxious way to tan hides is alum-salt tanning.
Sorry, I should have been more specific and stated, cheapest, fewest things to buy etc.
Brain tanning is how the Indians did their skins; it is the least chemically noxious and (in my opinion) the best end product but definitely NOT the easiest to do; it requires a very clean scraped hide with no membrane and hours of staking (softening the hide) while it dries. Then it needs to be smoked so it will stay soft if it gets wet. You can tan hair-on but like I said, it's still serious work.
You forgot to mention the Indians ( native Americans , for the PC crowd ) had their Squaws chew the hide until soft . or is that the same thing as staking ?
Last edited by ElkHunter; 03-31-2015 at 12:43 AM..
Reason: fixed quote marks
You forgot to mention the Indians ( native Americans , for the PC crowd ) had their Squaws chew the hide until soft . or is that the same thing as staking ?
Staking is basically stretching the hide as it dries to keep the hide's fibers from "gluing" together as it dries, which is what makes the buckskin soft and pliable.
Chewing is horribly inefficient for this and very hard on teeth so I highly doubt many Indians tanned whole hides that way. The standard way of doing it is to string the wet hide up in a rack and use a staking tool (looks more or less like the handle end of a paddle) to work the hide for hours until it's dry, with intermittent tightening of the hide on the frame once it gets loose.
You can also stretch a hide on a branch/rope/ring in a similar process or use a combination stretch/staking process. No matter how you do it though, it's lots of work!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
