First attempt at home tanning - any advice?

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I'm just starting my first try at home tanning. Using the Rittel's EZ-100 kit, planning on basically following the instructions to the letter. Doing 3 coyotes at once for my first try. They are relaxing right now and I plan on putting them into the pickle tomorrow. Then pulling them out of the pickle, neutralizing and then putting them into the tanning solution Fri. evening. Then take them out and oiling and "sweating" on Saturday.

That sound "okay"? Any tips or advice that you think I could use? I've never had any experience with this whatsoever - like I say, just following the instructions in the Rittel's kit.

One part of the instructions, the last step, mentions a "staking tool". Can you tell me what a staking tool is and how it works? It obviously has something to do with finishing and "breaking" the hide. Any advice on that part of the process in general? That seems like it might be the hardest to get right without any equipment.

Almost forgot - another question. These coyotes are all tubed. Will it work better to cut them up the belly at some point (I'm thinking for the oiling/sweating)? I kind of like the way a fur looks in the tube state, so would like to keep at least one of them that way. But I guess I can always sew it back up like that if needed - if it will really help to cut the belly for the tanning process.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can pass along.

Wish me luck!

- DAA
 
Hi DAA,
Everything looks good to me. One point I want to make is that it is pretty important to leave those hides in your pickling solution for at least three days. (36 hours) minimum. You can leave them in for up to a month with out any harm being done as long as the solution is kept at or below a PH of 1.5 to 2.
Be sure to agitate them in the solution once in a while to make sure every square inch of that skin is being submerged at one time or another.

The staking tool is for "breaking the hide".
Or as you may know it, softening the hide.
Most tanneries, mine included, use tumblers to eliminate this step.
If you can get away with it, meaning your wife not busting you, you can use your cloths dryer for this process. Make sure the heat is turned off.
The best time for this step is right after the 6 to 8 hours of sweating time. You'll want to stretch the hides out as much as possible from every possible angle you can by hand. Then toss them in your dryer and tumble them for an hour. After that take them out, hang them up for 12 to 16 hours and tumble them again. Keep doing this until they are completely dry. The dryer isn't meant to dry them but to break them, (soften them). It's the constant rise and fall of the hides that softens them and eliminates the staking process. Kind of like a new pair of leather boots. You have to walk in them a while to break them in. Same goes for leather and furs.

One more thing, make sure your hides are fleshed thoroughly before you pull them from the pickle. Coyotes will have a white, porous appearance to thier flesh when properly fleshed. Any inner membrane left on the flesh will only restrict the tanning solution from penetrating that area resulting in an uneven tan, and a hard spot in the pelt. Leave the skins in the pickle for another 24 hours after any fleshing.

No need for splitting your skins either, DAA. It's all personnal preference. One has absolutely no adverse effect over the other.

Good luck, and I'll be here if you need any help.

~River Runner~

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Thanks for the feedback River Runner.

Based on your advice, I think I'm going to pull them out of the pickle tomorrow (3 days) and do a little fleshing on them, then put them back for another day (put them in the tanning solution on Sat.). I had all the meat type flesh off them already, but after two days in the pickle now there are a some white stringy looking things that look like they can and should be scraped off. Some sort of membrane I'd guess.

I gotta tell you, I'm doing this for "fun" have just wanted to learn how to tan my own skins for a long time. And, I AM having fun with it and don't regret starting the project one bit. BUT, considering the amount of effort, the time, and not even to mention the expense of the chemicals and salt and what not, I now believe that the rates charged by a commercial tannery are practically doing it for free!

- DAA
 
The pickling solution does a good job of loosening that inner membrane if you missed it the first time fleshing, Yes. Facial cartiladge also.

Don't forget, DAA...to keep your tanning solution between 65 and 75 degrees F and the PH level at 4.

LOL, Believe me, sometimes I feel like I am tanning for free.

Good Luck and let us know how it goes
wink.gif


~River Runner~



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www.predatormasters.com
 
Okay...

Took them out of the tanning solution this morning. The skins have been oiled and "sweating" for several hours now.

Over all, they seem to be looking pretty good at this point. The leather side especially.

Do have a question/concern now though. The instructions in the kit didn't say anything about rinsing when taking the skins out of the tanning solution. Rinsing was specificallly mentioned at several other steps, but not when coming out of the tan. So, I did not rinse them. Took them out of the solution, let them drain for 20 minutes, then oiled them, folded them up to sweat and so they have been for the past few hours. The fur is still damp, but starting to dry out. I can see quite a bit of salt in the fur, especially on the rear and the tails. I guess there is more there because of the draining. Should I have rinsed them to get that salt out? Or should I just try and comb it all out after they are fully dried? A better way to get that salt out of the fur? Would a rinse now, or at some later point be harmful?

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me on this salt River Runner. Getting close, would hate to screw them up now!

- DAA
 
You can rinse them now if you feel they need it. But it isn't really necessary. And if you do, they should be oiled again.
My guess for the standing salt in the fur would be either too much salt was used per gallon of tanning solution, or the salt wasn't completely dissolved when the skins were added.
Your using Rittel's if I remember correctly, and that recipe calls for 1/2 lb. of salt for every gallon of water, correct?
Also...it is very helpfull to use luke warm water when dissolving the salt in your water, room temperature at the coolest. And Hot water for dissolving the tanning chemical.
I always dissolve my salt in the water first. Check it with a salino meter to make it's at 40% or higher. If your making a 10 gallon solution, dissolve your salt in 8 gallons.
Then I use two gallons of HOT water to dissolve the tanning chemical in. When I have that all dissolved I add it to the salt water solution. Thus, making my 10 gallons.

Since by the time you read this, DAA your skins will have been through thier sweating period, I'd go ahead and finish them out. You'll probably have to clean the fur a little more when your done, but that's no big deal.

~River Runner~



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www.predatormasters.com
 
DAA, I forgot to mention, you did nothing wrong as far as rinsing. Your right, the directions for that recipe do not call for a final rinse. But....it still wouldn't hurt anything. Some people do and some people don't. I choose not to, there's no real significant difference. More of a preference thing.
Like I said...if everything's dissolved completely, no more rinsing is needed.

~River Runner~

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www.predatormasters.com
 
Thanks a bunch R.R.

I'm not real sure how I ended up with the salt on them like that. Has to be from not getting it disolved as you describe I guess. But I did mix it up almost exactly as you describe and really thought it was all well disolved. Oh well. Other than the salt, they are looking to have turned out pretty darn good I think.

How would you recommend cleaning the fur? Just combing?

Thanks!

- DAA
 
If they were deer skins, I'd say yes go ahead and comb it out and it'll be fine. Deer hair is hollow like straw and very brittle, it wouldn't allow much salt to adhere to it. Therefore, no problem.

Since your dealing with coyotes, (actual fur)
what works good for me is to wipe the fur down with a wet cloth.
-Wipe it against the grain of the hair.
-Comb it down with the grain.
-And then wipe it with the grain a final time before hanging it to dry.
Brush the fur backwards again as it is drying to fluff it, if your going to display it on the wall or something.

If all the salt is not removed from the fur, the salt will draw moisture from the air whenever it is damp or humid out and the fur will appear to have dew on it, or water spots. And actualy it will.

~River Runner~

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www.predatormasters.com
 
Okay, we are looking good!

I think I made more of a big deal out of the salt than it really was. It wasn't like whole granules of salt, but more like a very fine residue - and only on the tails and rumps. Only there from draining, no doubt.

Anyway, the fur was still quite damp when I posted about it. Now that the fur is starting to get more dry, just shaking them and hitting them kind of like beating a rug seems to be getting most all of it out. I'll give them the wet rag treatment anyway, but after just a few minutes each of shaking it looks like 90% of the salt I could see is already gone.

They are all in the dryer right now - with the wife's permission, if you can believe that! They are looking "clean" and smelling of new leather, so she didn't put up too much of a fuss about putting them in there to get more softened. Speaking of soft, I'm really quite pleased with how soft the tan turned out even before I did any stretching and pulling. A couple trips through the dryer and a little more pulling on them and they are going to be as soft and limp as a bath towel.

I think it is safe to call this project a success. Thanks a million for helping me on my first try here River Runner. I REALLY appreciate it and I don't think it would have turned out as well without you!

For anybody else who is contemplating trying tanning for the first time, I can say that the Rittel's EZ-100 process is one worth considering.

- DAA
 
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