Sewing Holes in Hides

Bow Hunter

New member
River Runner,

Now that you've helped us flesh, pickle, tan our hides and build tumblers how about your thoughts on sewing up bullet holes and fleshing holes.

I've seen posts suggesting dental floss and have seen various sewing threads in the catalogs even a monofilament that "turns invisible" when you heat it with an iron. The hides are for my own use not for a fur buyer.

What do you think of the skife knife? I couldn't get it to shave anything doesn't seem to have enough angle or maybe length to the blade.

Please, a penny for your thoughts (I realize your thoughts and help are worth a lot more to us than a mere penny.)

Thanks,
Bow Hunter
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
My thoughts are; sewing a pelt stinks. lol Therefore I avoid making the holes and then I don't have to do it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

Ok...seriously now. Dental floss works good and that's because of the wax thats on it. You can buy what they call "waxed cape thread" also. Same thing really maybe a little thicker.

I honostly don't do a lot of sewing, I seriously hate doing it, and unless it is a gaping hole, most hides will cover the hole with it's own hair when combed out.

What I have learned and done regarding sewing I learned form a close buddy who is a taxidermist.
He taught me to always try to cut the existing holes into a football shape. That way when you sew them up your gradually pulling the skin back together. Makes sense because a football shaped hole is tapered on both ends right? Where a round or jagged hole, the minute you pull your first stitch, your pulling the skin the entire width of the hole. It will make the skin buckle.

The other thing he taught me was to always try to sew the skin while it's inside out. Meaning hair in.
Fold the skin in half where you cut the football shape. Half the football on one side, the other half on the other side. Holding it in your hand folded like this you should have a half moon shape.
Start your stitching on one side of the hide, at the tip of the football and run it through the skin to the other side. Coming out on the tip of the football again but now on the opposite side you made entry on.
Pull the thread tight, and loop it back over to the side you started on and go through again but this time move over a 16th of an inch or so away from your first stitch, towards the unsewn part of the hole.
Continue doing this until you have covered the entire length of the whole.
There's a million ways to tie off at the end but he told me to leave the last stitch loose and run the tail of the thread through it after you cut the needle free and tie the tail to that.

Oh one more thing.....it sucks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
Almost forgot the Skife knife.
Look at the packaging that came with your Skife. You can tip the blades in or out for depth on the shaving.
You wont get much done with a Skife knife. They are mainly for finesse work around the eyes and stuff for taxidermists. Taking off very little at a time.
 
Thanks for the come-back, River Runner. I am doing a small bobcat right now and may try to mount it. The holes are small and should cover ok as you describe.

Found alder sawdust locally. It was outside but covered. It's a little damp but fresh (not musty). I have been drying it in my garage with a fan, tossing is occasionally with a square nosed shovel. Seems to be drying fine.

Got a couple of "cam" type locks for my tumbler door, at the hardward store. Finally it is finished. What a project. Hope to break it in by the end of the week.

Bow Hunter
 
Good deal. You'll be happy with it. They save so much time.

Your saw dust situation reminds me of myself years ago. I'd pile it up in the corner of my garage, then spread it out from the corner to help it dry. Whoooo, that got old in a hurry.

Once you get some dried up you can store it probably and have plenty for a while, where I was using it faster then I could dry it.
Made the "cut-n-dried", bought type, look pretty good /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
Took my bobcat out of the pickle tonight and re-fleshed it. I Found that the aforementioned skife knife worked better now that the hide has plumped. I need to get a fleshing machine. My .22-250 almost caused WWIII, I can only imagine what will hit the fan when I explain that I need a fleshing machine. Oh well!

Put the hide back into the pickle until Saturday when I can get it into the tan and be home to get it out on time. Dying to christen my "new" tumbler.

catch y'all later,
Bow Hunter
----------------
"I'd rather wake up in the middle of nowhere than in any city on earth."
--Steve McQueen
 
Oh yeaaa, there will be a world of difference between fleshing a raw skin and one that has been pickled.
The trick here is to flesh off as much as you can while the skin is raw so that the pickle has less of a barrier to get through to pickle what you want pickled.
Once you do that and pickle it for 3 days or so, as you noticed, it plumps the skin making most fleshing rather simple.

Your catching on...you dont need me anymore. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
By the way...just checked out the rest of your tumbler pics. You did an awesome job on that bad boy.
yoyo.gif

Your gonna love it.
 
River Runner,

Thank's for your encouraging words. You've been a great help but, I'm sure I'm not done with you yet.

Bow Hunter
 
Hi Folks - Would like to weigh in on this one since I've been there, done that a few times (yes River Runner, hate to admit it). I also hate sewing holes, but last year sold a cat to a fur buyer that brought $325.00. I blew a hole in this cat the size of a dinner plate with a .220 Swift ballistic tip. Called it in, shot it, skinned it, froze it for a year (vacuum pack), then thawed it out, stiched it up, stretched it, and sold it. The fur buyer never noticed the hole. I used Berkley Fireline (fishing line) and it worked. Dental floss should be as good if not better. But desperate times call for desperate measures. All good advice from what I've read so far.
 
I forgot to mention, cats are streched with the fur out, skin in, so anything that is stretched with the skin out, fur in, can be very revealing. Or, for your own tanned hide, catch another cat. My 2 cents worth. Good luck with it.

ZS
 
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