Fleshing tool talk

[Outbackbob48]

Ed, just reread your Big fella to Briantan thread. Excellent job of explaining the process. I still have not reached consisty, One hide I get really soft and the next one is card boardy. Not sure if my bucking is not completey rinsed or to stingy on the brains. Bob

[bjrogg]

BJ...I can almost gaurantee your going to have questions when first brain tanning.Somewhere along in the steps.The thread is still there..pictures and all.It's different then chemical tanning of which you've done a great job with.

Ed I'm sure your right there. I've had a lot of questions about the chemical tan to. I'm sure I'll have lots of questions about the brain tan and I know who I'm gonna be asking them. Trying to get really muddy equipment washed with the temperatures just above freezing during the day. Lots of fun.lol
Hopefully it gets a little less busy in a week or two. That's I'm hoping one of my first projects.
Bjrogg

[BowEd]

Outbackbob48....The hide done on that thread was about as thick a whitetail hide as I've ever done.About like a yearling elk or a cow I'd say thickness wise.It was at least a 6 year old animal.Making sure all epidermis is off and ringing it a few extra times during braining can make the difference.I used an over amount of brains on that big buck but wanted to make sure.Wrung and twisted the water out of him from dunking in the brain solution at least 8 to 10 times before roping dry if I recall.Elk hides are even more work but when done they are very nice.Excellent pants material.
BJ....mostly,brain tanning is just plain more hand labor all together,but the leather you get from it is kinda special.Sounds like the year is done though if your cleaning up.Another year in the books.Congrats.
Zuma....I hope your taking some of this in.There are many different ways to prepare hides for tanning.I've done enough to figure out the easiest way and the best way and sometimes there's no getting around hand labor sometimes.A person learns to appreciate the native american squaw after a while if brain tanning is the thought in mind.Nowadays wonderful chemicals are out there to produce a pretty good product with less hand labor.The rittels company that sells tanning products is pretty good for that,but if your wanting authenticity and durability brain tan is the king.

[Zuma]

Thanks Ed
Here is what I have so far. 
1- Hair off working a little on flesh
2-Hair side, done pressure wash I guess this would make rawhide
3 Hair side fleshed
3- tomorrow is another day. Just fleshing the one side liked to kill me
legs back arms shoulders.
4- Me very poor squaw material

[nclonghunter]

Nothing easy about brain tanning....
I recently read something interesting about brain tanning. Using soy lecithin in place of brains. You can get soy lecithin in GNC stores and other places. It is the same oils that are in brains. You purchase the lecithin in granules and then add cool water in a quart jar and let them dissolve then use it like brains. Never use hot water. I have not tried it but many said it worked great and does not have the brain smells. I plan to try it on my next hide tanning.

[Outbackbob48]

Don, Now ya know why they get $18 a sg. ft for good hides that are buttery soft, and I think they are still working to cheap. The first picture looks like ya missed a lot of grain but hard to tell. I think your going to have a nice pc of rawhide. You just need to pack an extra sandwich when graining Bob

Lyman, I have used the soy lechthin a little when I didn't have brains, I really liked it in the hot summer, doesn't go sour near as fast as brains in the heat an flys are not near as bad. Bob

[Zuma]

Thanks for the tips Lymann
Bob I still need more advice,
If I make rawhide should I just dry it flat?
Do you recommend freeze- refreeze or should the
buckskin go right into a dressing solution?
Zuma

[bjrogg]

Zuma looks like your getting closer. Your doing better than my squaw would.lol I'm going to let the other guys answer your questions but I would say it depends on what you want when your done. Rawhide or a tanned hide?
I took a couple pictures of my "tin cup" scraper. I use it for almost every thing I flesh from muskrat and mink to coyotes, and coon. I can use it either pushing or pulling and with one or two hands.
I misplaced it one year and cut off about a three inch length of 4" exhaust pipe. It worked but not as well as my "tin cup".
Bjrogg
Ps keep up the good work

[Outbackbob48]

Don, if you are going to just make rawhide you need to lace in a frame and let dry, if you lay it out flat it will kinda shrivel  up and still be rawhide that could be stored for later re-hydrating and making braintan, or just freeze for later use of making rawhide or braintan. Decisions,decisions, one more option wring your hide out and put into brains  or what ever you are going to use  and continue the process, also some people freeze with brains in hide. When we get a really cold spell here in the north I like to brain my hide and freeze dry on the closes line. Freezing  and thawing is like a free soften spell, You do need like 20 degrees and below for this to work, probably not and option for ya. Confused Yet?  Bob

[BowEd]

Zuma...For dehairing the wet method on the beam all flesh needs to be removed first for a smooth surface on your beam.Risk of tearing a hole otherwise.The first pic looks spotty of epidermis on there yet.Could be your surface was not concave enough to take of a fine 1/4" wide line of epidermis off.Less resistance.To brain tan that you would have hard stiff spots where that epidermis is.Smoking would be lighter or none there too on those spots.I think you can touch that all up and remove it all yet myself.
Lace it into a frame to dry flat if you want rawhide.Otherwise for brain tanning the epidermis needs to be removed first if that is epidermis that I see and I'm pretty sure it is.
Freezing the wet hide for better break down of fibers has some merit I think.I usually freeze my hide prior to fleshing etc.If you've done that already refreezing might help but I don't think it's needed any more.
Massaging in brains onto rawhide and letting the sun bake it into the rawhide then immersing it into water I've heard of workng too.I've never needed to myself but can see why it might help too.Put it somewhere then that no animals can get it.

[Zuma]

BJ that's a cool scraper. Are you actually just using the leading edge
or getting some benefit from the entire edge?

Great Bob thanks

Ed the first picture is where I  stopped pressure washing to photograph the tick
you can see. Not scraped at all. The photos on the pipe are of the hair side scraped .
I still have to scrape the other side. Thanks so much for all the help.
Zuma

[bjrogg]

Zuma I use the square edge it's pretty thin. I can control how agressive I want to be by how much I tilt it. If I want a more aggressive thinner strip removed I tilt it more and push or pull with one hand and apply downward pressure with the other. If I'm just lightly scraping I may hold flatter and not apply as much down pressure. The round shape makes it easy to control your width of "bite"
Bjrogg
Ps might be a bit unorthodox but it works good for me and feels good in my hand. For really grizzly stuff I can squeeze the fat out but the membrane may still have to be removed with a knife. For really fatty hides like coon or coyotes I like to skin them warm but get the cooled down for fleshing. The fat is much easier to work with cold.

[Zuma]

BJ so it seems to me,  you are using the inside of the cylinder?
Also I skinned a coon this am.Tthat sucker is fat fat.
I also shot a fox Sunday. If the fur is not totally tight is it worth messin with?
Thanks Zuma

[bjrogg]

Yes Zuma I use the inside 90 degree edge to scrape with. The picture where it's up against the rat I would be pulling down. If I push I would tilt it opposite angle. Coons can have a large amount of fat this time of year. I like to get that fat cold and stiff for scrapping. If you do it warm it's slippery and slimy. If it's cold the scrapper will bite into it and it's much easier to control your mess. From my experience with fox they taint pretty quickly. I'm not saying it won't work but I've done ones that guys gave a day or two later and the belly was already green. I'm sure the fur buyers deal with far worst though. It helps to hang them from back legs to get guts to enter chest cavity if you can't skin them right away. By lose  fur I'm not sure if your saying hide isn't prime or mange or green and slipping. None are ideal but not prime would be the best option. Fox aren't nearly hard of work as coon. Especially a big boat coon.

[Pappy]

I flesh mine with a dull draw knife bevel side up on a beam I made by splitting a small poplar tree . You are looking good so far. I dry scrape the hair off  laced up in a rack. I have tried the wet scrape but just to messy and stinking for me.
 Pappy