I'm interested as to why your merino has all those holes in it, what sort of use it had, was it washed wrong or too frequently. I thought it was supposed to be quite durable...
I'll be putting mine in the neutralizing bath this weekend and working on it all week! Looking forward to using all the steps you've explained so thoroughly. Thank you for this incredible information!
Great vid, I've been looking for something comparing these! i'm also in BC and just got a pair of attacks last week but find them super baggy, especially thru the leg (6'1, 170). Do you find the medium SG Dehavillands fit any narrower than the new attacks? I'm a pretty slim dude and felt like I was swimming in the attacks (which I had to size up on - usually i'm a 32 but got 34 after reading tons of reviews). Thinking of getting the SG and selling the Attacks
I believe this video overlooks the importance of layering and the benefits of merino wool as a base layer. While synthetic materials have their place, stating that they are superior ignores scientific evidence supporting the advantages of merino wool. For example, merino wool can absorb up to 30% of its weight in moisture without feeling wet, which helps regulate body temperature and keeps you dry during physical activities. Its fibers are naturally odor-resistant due to antimicrobial properties, reducing bacterial growth by up to 99% compared to synthetic fibers. Additionally, merino wool offers better insulation, with a higher thermal resistance (R-value) per unit thickness than many synthetic materials.
Thanks for staking the time to make the video! I genuinely enjoyed watching the process and hope to give her a go this fall. I would love to see the predator edition of the process as well.
You told me good luck on brain tan.well it's the way of native American people.my grand parents did it and it makes really nice hides .my brother does it makes a soft long lasting hide or leather .he done commercial tanning and the hids just don't hold up .five years ago he tanked mountain lions bears coyotes deer elk their falling apart .how ever the brain tan froze the same time production year look and feel smell fantastic still strong .so I guess you methods.other people right to choose.
It's an option, but there aren't any full-time tanneries that use pressure washers. Most of the hides I do are in the winter, so it's not an option at -10C
Just got back from a 4 day sheep hunt using these exact boots and had the exact issue. Started looking for other reviews and found this. Not impressed to hear about the customer service bc I’m in Canada. Guess I’ll try and waterproof the shit out of them with snow seal and keep them for day trips. 👎🏽 thanks for the review
Thank you for your video! I shot my first deer of 2024 season last week, and I kept the hide for exactly this kind of project. I did one before with just a salt bath soak and the tanning oil you get in the orange bottle from retailers, and the hide ended up stiff as a board, so I apparently did not stretch enough. Two questions for you; I've heard using a pressure washer with some care will flesh the hide out pretty easily. Do you have opinion? Also, I was thinking to get a good stretch on the hide this time, I was going to secure to a frame and use straps to stretch the hide. Is the intent of the stretching to break up fibers, or to keep the hide from drying thick? I'm hoping to have a product soft enough to use as a throw.
Personally, I'm not a fan of the pressure washer method, and no professional tanneries use it for fleshing. Second, stretching it on a form will only keep the shape. You need to stretch it as it dries for a sift end product. The tanning oil you use also play6a huge roll in the softness of the end product
This was fantastic. Thank you for really giving detail and showing everything! I’ve done one attempt at brain tanning buckskin but this is my first back skin. All was going well until I think I misunderstood and going from pickle to neutralizing bath I started w freshwater and fresh salt and baking soda. I was supposed to keep original pickle water and ADD to it wasn’t I? I caught it fast cuz the ph after the first 15 min was 6 so I have tried to get the ph backdown hopefully I didn’t ruin my process. What do u think?
The neutralizing bath is with fresh water. I dump my pickle out then I make the neutralizing bath. It is supposed to raise the ph of the skin. The tanning products won't absorb properly or at all in a low ph. Also, if you don't raise the ph, you wil end up with acid rot. It will be brittle and fall apart. If it gets wet, it will turn to mush.
@@shuswapoutdoors oh boy. I could have sworn the video said try to bring it up to 3.5 to 4. I am going to have to re-watch again I guess. Well I guess we will see what happens. I had it at about 4.5. Tan oil is on now and it is in the dry/stretch process. So far so good. When would acid rot show up if i did screw it up? You are so kind to help. Thank you.
Synthetic materials have now also been found to poison us with PFAs and micro plastics. Natural fiber underlayer. Maybe a solid synthetic windbreaker but man the research on PFAs is very sad.
PFAs are in everything, lip balm, shampoo, paint, WATER PROOF CLOTHING, ect. There aren't any in fleece long underwear. And they only become dangerous when heated.
@@shuswapoutdoors Thanks for the information. I have several hides in the freezer. Most I will brain tan, but I will do 2 or 3 hair on using your process. TC
Did my first kayak trip with a whisperlite international. Cooked bacon, eggs, pancakes, and hashbrowns. Never burnt a single item. Not sure why so many people say "they arent for real cooking". My whisperlite surpassed my expectations and was easy to control the heat. Maybe some of those people need to learn to cook at home first 😆. Buddy has a dragonfly, so i decided to go the whisperlite direction and have zero regrets
@@shuswapoutdoors did you get a predator version up that shows the Degreasing differences? Follow up... Have you worked with wolverine pelt before? The fur is supposed to be uniquely suited to hoods, and faces because it doesn't frost like other pelts.
@@shuswapoutdoors It because I often go to Africa with a lot of sun . I've tried a thousand synthetic t-shirts, but I haven't tried merino yet, but I haven't tried a t-shirt with merino wool. But I don't know what thickness it should have to travel under the African sun.
Dear Sir, Thank you so much for giving your knowledge freely. I just bought my boat 3 months ago and was a little intimidated until I saw how easy you made it. I have a 50 HP Honda, 4 stroke engine. I owe you a beer if I ever get to Canada. Your American friend.-Paul
You know you have to hand wash or maybe in the washer with cold water and lay it flat to dry. It requires special care but it pays you back in that you're choosing natural over fake. Natural is healthy, hypoallergenic, and gives a positive charge rather than negative which you can feel in your heart.
I get a first responder discount from SG, so it's a lot more than a $30 difference. Plus, I've never been a big fan of the fit of Kifaru. There stuff always fits baggy
Interesting comparison and thanks for sharing ur view. I think several factors affect our choices, ie: preference, skin problem, cost, wearing purpose and etc. If I am going for 1 month ski trip, I will pick merino because I can bring less layer, reduce my changing & washing frequency and stinkless luggage. Hand wash in cold water really annoy me during winter time. If I am going to work, synthetic is best for me as it is less chunky and I can move around easily during my work. Recently my skin have some reaction / allergic to synthetic after covid, my suspicion goes to the vaccine that possible change my skin condition, but this is a wild guess. So I change my shirt back to merino (winter) and thin layer cotton (summer), since then no more red dot from my skin. I do agree with u that merino cost a fortune, but the convenience (less washing frequency), stinkless & odorless feature are the price I need to pay. If price is a problem (assume i got no skin allergic) , I will probably buy synthetic, wash and dry the shirt inside hostel everyday ... lol
@@shuswapoutdoors thanks so much , new subscriber earnt! i did check a few comments also. Terrible to see the workmanship going down on multiple bits of kit and the price keeps going up £200-300 for decent looking boots that leak (i found a pair for £160 on sale) you would think the companies would take notice! I will just get army surplus brown boots perhaps..good hunting/bushcraft/mountaineering kit is hard to find in the UK - and some of the reviewers are terrible so appreciate you guys out there!
