Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Primitive Skills => Topic started by: jandersson on November 26, 2015, 11:44:19 am
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Hey guys,
I have a deer hide that I'm working on that I have a question about. After I cleaned it I pickled it in a vinegar salt pickle, neutralized it and since I didn't have time to work on it I froze it again. This weekend I have some time and want to tan it but do I need to dry it completely before tanning it? For tanning I was gonna use a Neats foot oil mix.
Thanks!
Joakim
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I'd hate to see you loose a hide.
I can't really help to much. perhaps other members can.
To late for the weekend.
There are lots of how to threads here. have you searched?
Zuma
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Neatsfoot oil is a leather dressing. I don't know if you can tan with it. If you can, I'm not familiar. If it is an oil it won't penetrate into a wet(h2O) hide. Oil and water, don't mix so well.
I assume you don't want to brain tan? I suggest you look up instructions on using ivory soap. The leather is almost white and really soft when your through. You can use egg yolk in place of brains but... the hide gets yellowish and it still needs to be smoked. You can find a local taxidermist if you decide to take the easier less primitive way. They will typically sell you enough chemical for a hide if you ask.
good luck
ps raw hide is an option if you think you may have to toss it. Use it for backing or trade it. It's a desirable commodity around here.
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Not sure all I do is Brain tanning and am not familiar with the pickling you are doing. Maybe someone will chime in that chemical tans with an answer. :)
Pappy
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Urine tanning? :p
Apparently that's what the Inuit do
I could only find an instructable on urine tanning salmon skins... said it had to be "clean" urine (??), maybe to avoid making the hide too smelly. Don't know if too strong urine would damage the hide or just make it very smelly. Seems to take a pretty long time to tan, sealed
What about wood ash tanning?
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I would defiantly want to use my own pee. :o ;) ;D ;D ;D
Pappy
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I came across this that you might find useful: http://www.texasmonthly.com/the-culture/how-to-tan-a-deer-hide/
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ill try to explain as easy as i can. i know nothing of pickling a hide. but i do know first you want to get fat and membrain off of the flesh side. then if you want you remove hair from hair side.two ways of doing this. one way you soak it in ash water till the hair slips and you "push" it off.use something simular to a draw knife. or a deer leg bone, it works too. or you let it dry and you scrape hair and epidermal layer off with it. then resoak it. then put in frame.now if you do not have brains, its o.k. lard works the same way.warm it up and i use a base ball bat to push on the hide then i rub in lard or brains, then bat to push on hide, then big wooden scraper to scrape hide. then add more lard, more pushing with bat, more scraping. keep doing this untill hide is dry {all water has dried from hide}. when its nice and dry and very soft, smoke it over a smoldering smokey fire. some things that help....that ash water to slip hair, well you can ad oak leaves and crush acorns to it to help "tan" the hide.heres why it works.. you remove fat and membrain and hair. you soak hide. it takes out blood in hide, it also makes hide plyable. you tie in frame and work it till its dry and soft while adding fat { fat sticks to separated fibers of flesh keeping them from sticking together and getting hard again...unless it gets wet again....so......you smoke hide. this adds carbon to that fat on those fibers. carbon is water proof! once smoked real good. the hide if it gets wet may get a little stiff, but nothing like rawhide. all you do is twist it and pull on it to get it soft again. but it wont rot. get a brooks leather jacket wet once. leave it wet, see what happens....thats why i dont commercial tan anything.lol its a lot of work. you work that hide. the more you put into it, the softer it will be. if you stop before its dry and soft. start all over again. lol lets say its getting late, your getting close but your tired. freeze it at that point. itll keep. i dont know how youd freeze it in a frame but if you did it would be fine untill you could get back to it.i know this works. done it for years this way. remember brains is fat, lard is fat, carbon {smoke} sticks to fat, fat sticks to individual separated fibers of flesh.carbon is water proof. fat is water resistant but washes out with enough water.the flesh /hide, its full of fibers that have their own glue to hold it together. without the fat and carbon you have rawhide :) .... that will rot unless you cure it somehow....like smoke.Tony
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Urine tanning? :p
Apparently that's what the Inuit do
I could only find an instructable on urine tanning salmon skins... said it had to be "clean" urine (??), maybe to avoid making the hide too smelly. Don't know if too strong urine would damage the hide or just make it very smelly. Seems to take a pretty long time to tan, sealed
What about wood ash tanning?
I have heard that morning pee the strong stuff worked best, & that this is where the terms "piss poor" or "can't afford a pot to pee in" People used to sell pee to the local tanners. Yuck!