help tanning fur.

G

Gunnut

New member
I promised my little brother that I would tan the first thing he killed, and sure enough it was a rabbit. I have already skinned it, and then I froze it, the point of this post being can I use a vegetable tan for fur on hides or do I need a chrome or alum tan? I would prefer to stay away from chemicals seeing as how the drug store people look at a 15 yearold funny when he ask for alum sulfate.
 
A vegetable tan will work fine Gunnut.
There's also a ton of kits available through VanDykes supply for beginners like yourself.

As with any kit, follow the directions to a T. No short cuts, no substitutes, and you'll be fine.

Preparation is the ticket to any successfull tanning. Make sure your rabbit is thoroughly fleshed. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
Thanks river runner. I am using alfalfa leaves and stems, with just about a table spoon of baking soda, with one ounce of salt. is this the correct mixture.
 
I don't use any vegetable formulas Gunnut. I'm not going to be a lot of help to you as far as that recipe goes.
I have seen a few vegetable tanning recipes and have to wonder about the baking soda though. That's usually used after the tan to neutralize the skin. Not mixed with the tanning solution.
 
oh okay. The book said that I should let the tannin seep out of the stems and leaves for 48 hours. What do I do after that.
 
Well, like I said...I've never used a vegetable tan. But here's what I know about them.
Usually the bark, tannin blend, gambier, or here in your case, Alfalfa stems and leaves, are boiled to extract the tannins.
Mix up one ounce of salt to each gallon of water that you will be using and set it aside for now. If you used a gallon of water to boil your tanning agents in then add another ounce of salt to your salt water solution now.

After the boiled tanning agents cool, add the solution to the salt water that you have ready.
You'll need to get some PH papers and keep the acidity level of your tanning solution between 4.5 to 5. You can adjust the PH level down by adding very small amounts of dissolved baking soda to it. Chances are, once you have your salt water and boiled tanning agents mixed the Ph level will be somewhere around 3 to 4. You can adjust it down from there. When I say down I mean raise the number level. (by adding the baking soda) The higher the number, the lower the acidity. All vegetable tans need to be 4.5 to 5 to properly tan.
Once you have you PH level adjusted you can add your skins. Agitate the skins in the solution as often as possible. Small light skins will need to soak for approx. 5 days. Larger heavier skins anywhere from 5 to 14 days.
Once the tan has fully penetrated the skins you can remove them, drain them, oil them, and stake them.
Check your skins for full penetration by making a small slice on an outside edge. The color should be uniform all the way through.
 
I gotta ask, what kind of rabbit and how did you get the skin off in one piece? The only ones I've ever skinned were cottontails and the skins were sof thin and soft they always came apart while skinning. Different kind of rabbit, or is there a trick I'm missing?
 
Fleshing the cottontail and keeping it from tearing is the trickiest part. Once you've mastered the skinning, of course.
Breaking the flesh side membrane up with a wire brush before taking the draw knife to it really helps. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Pre pickling helps even more. It swells the skin a bit and allows the membrane to seperate from the skin a little easier.
 
Thanks RR I gust realized that you said to boil the parts of the plant, Can i use the metal cook wear or do I need a special kind.
 
Absolutely not, Gunnut.
Don't use any metalware at all. Don't even use anything metal to stir your solutions.
No metal at all anywhere.

Metal has some pretty adverse effects with tanning chemicals.
 
You'll have to use a glass or ceramic, 4-6qt pan, Gunnut.
Or you can even put em in your crockpot if she'll let you get away with it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
my mom is pretty cool about that so she will probably let me use a crock pot. thanks again RR. Oh yeah is there a certian type of bark that is better for coyote or are they all the same. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
 
Keep in mind Gunnut, I've never tanned this way.
All my chemicals are premade from Rittels.

The only bark I've ever heard of being used before is, ground oak, or hemlock bark.
You've changed your recipe on me now.
When using bark you should use 16oz of bark to each gallon of water, and 1oz of salt for the actual tanning solution.
When preparing the tannin blend soak your bark for atleast two full days to extract the tannins.
 
Geez RiverRunner, for not knowin' much about vegatable tanning you sure know a lot about vegatable tanning! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Thanks you answered almost all my questions before I even had 'em. :rolleyes:

I only have one, how much stretch does coyote hide have in it (I have only stretched squirrels and rabbits and I know how delicate they are), how tough is dog hide? :???:

Jeff /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
You'll get a lot more stretch out of a Coyote hide then your getting with your rabbits and squirrels Krusty. The skin is thicker, is the reason.
But they still can be a chore to skin. The skin really clings on, on a coyote /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
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