Solid content. Looks like you might have done this a few times and it shows in the teaching points you make throughout the video. Years ago I tanned a lot of furbearer hides and did pretty well but would like to bring an elk hide back from my annual elk hunt and give it a try. Best video on the topic I have found. Thanks!
Jim, thank you for the feedback. Yes, we tried to cover all the steps and tricks, especially for the first time tanner. Thrilled to hear you will save your hide and tan it!
Interesting method, as a taxidermist for 40 years, I'm surprised that you end up with any hair left salting lightly and not totally drying the hide but I guess it works for you!
I hunted an elk last year and i did took the hide home but the taxidermist did not want to do it. I just left it hanging outside. I am so bummed i did not do your process here. Sorry about that. But next time i want to find someone to do it for me. Thanks for the content!
Thank you!!! I’m so glad I finally found your channel! I’m doing my first cowhide ever! First hide is a cowhide of course! I couldn’t find the process from start to finish!
Glad you liked the video. Tip on the larger hides like cow, be sure to use the angle grinder to shave it thin. This will help the tan penetrate better and make the hide easier to break (and keep it soft).
What type of grinder disc do you use on the hides. There are so many options. I was gifted 4 cowhides nd a first timer. Your fleshing beam has made all the difference. I have all 4 fleshed and salted and starting next steps this week with your system.
This is a very detailed tutorial on how NOT to tan a hide. You can see the loss of guard hairs(especially on the hind quarters)and how stiff the hide is. Use an actual tan or save your time and money and send it to a tannery
David, thank you for your comments. I am replying to all 3 here. First, this elk hide was heavily salted until there was no more moisture pulled out. Since we planned on tanning it right away, we did not completely dry salt it. Pickle Tan A-21 is very much a tan. It is a powder blend developed to be used as a pickle and tan in one bath. Yes, a new concept from traditional tanning. Our founder, Dale Knobloch, worked with commercial tanneries to test and fine tune this innovative product. Yes clearly, the hide is not as soft as it would be if it was tumbled in a commercial drum with wood shavings (one of these is on my wish list). However, this video is targeted for the DIY tanner, so breaking a hide in a tumbler is generally not an option. An elk especially, takes A LOT of elbow grease. Last comment, this hide was tanned 2 years ago and does not have any slippage. It was our son's first elk, so some of the areas you may be referring to could be from being dragged (in the high rugged Colorado terrain) prior to skinning/dressing. Since you do tanning and taxidermy, and would like to try Pickle Tan A-21, let me know.
@@TanningYourHide I've used pickle tans before, I just never liked the quality of the finished product. I've tanned several elk with Lutan and had very little trouble breaking them, stretching as they dry and a soft, supple hide as a finished product. I had to remount all the animals I mounted with pickle tans because of the shrinking and cracking after a few years. I'm not trying to knock your product, I'm just saying there are better, easier ways to get a quality tan
Great video! If unable to complete the entire process when the hides are fresh, can they be thoroughly salted, then hung up and kept that way until ready to begin the rehydration/detergent bath?
Amazing job on the Elk Hide. What would happen if you put your hide into too hot water. Eg: Moose hide. After the flesh n hair have been removed. Soaking at the last stage before smoothing out then to tanning stage. What will the hot water do to the hide? Thanks
You are tanning Buckskin - nice! We recommend avoiding putting hides in hot water as it will damage the hide causing irreversible swelling and make the hide rubbery.
I just completed my first tanning of a deer hide with hair off for buckskin. I used the traditional dulled fleshing knife and I want to commend you for your masterful skill with that sharp Ulu knife. That is amazing watching you flesh the elk. Should we assume that you only use the Advanced Tanning Solutions kit for your tanning videos? I am curious what the reasons are for two of the steps, the salting, and the pickling. This question is in regard to what do the steps do to the hide.
Ron, thank you for your comment. Agreed, Rick does a great job using the fleshing/shaving tool on the elk hide. Yes, he is using our Advanced Tanning Solutions products. In this case, showcasing our new Tan-a-Hide kit. To answer your questions, the purpose of salting the hides is to draw the moisture out (blood and fluids) and prevent the hide from degrading. The Pickle Tan product included in the kit is unique as it is both a Pickle and a Tan. The Pickle step shown here has several purposes: it washes out the non-tannable proteins, helps to set the hair (for hair-on tanning), and makes shaving easier.
We do not recommend reusing salt - as used salt has absorbed blood, and fluids from the previous hide and can build bacteria. Purchasing salt in large quantity bags is economical, so you can use fresh salt for each new hide.
Awesome instructional! I was sold on your product immediately and received my order. My question is how long does it usually take for the tanning solution to absorb into a bear hide. A little background. I defleshed it as good as I could get it. Pickled it following your directions. Due to weather and unable to do it undercover I’ve been waiting for a nice sunny week so it’s been soaking for about a month. PH was a little above 3. Last night I soaked it in baking soda water to bring the PH levels up to neutralize. Did this for an hour and a half. Then I dried it out best I could but due to it being cold here in Oregon (around 55 degrees) I pat dried best I could and let it sit for 2 hours to dry out but it was still a little moist. Applied the tanning solution last night around 10 pm. Just checked it, 9pm now, and it’s still moist. My question how long should I expect the tanning solution to absorb and take hold???? I’m worried I did something wrong. Can it usually take 48 hrs do to it being cold out??? When do I accept that something went wrong??? This is my first hide I’ve ever done. I taught myself how to shoot a firearm, went out hunting for spring bear solo putting in over a 100 miles during season and took my bear at 20 yds. So it would really mean a lot that I complete the process on this bear and tan it myself. I know it sounds silly but to me it means a lot. Thanks in advance
First, thank you for watching and using our products. Do you have the Tan-a-Hide kit or the Tan-a-Fur kit? For the products to be most effective and to have the best results, the full tanning process should be done in a warm area. Was the skin salted? When you have a chance, give us a call so we can talk about the condition of the skin and help you finish the tanning process, 303.642.3060
I do braintanning now. But I used to do hides this way except when dirt & dust & powder are in the hair I would cut holes along one side & then attach it to pole like a flag & go for a drive, people would stare wonder why I have a bison flag in back of truck, helps breaking hide too. Don’t go to fast tho.
Man that was solid! Great job man. Now I feel so much better about what I'm doing. Question what kind of stool or bench was it that you used to place your hide on when fleshing. Again great job.
There are pros and cons to putting a hide in a frame - if you do, put it in after it has been tanned and oiled. It will dry flat, but you are unable to really work it. You can rub something coarse like sandpaper or a dull tool over the flesh side to help break it.
Nice. I want too tan a hide but also, to stretch / bind it in a circular ring of willow bows. When during or after the tanning process should I tie it with leather strapping to the willow bows?
Hi great video I have learnt a lot, however i just purchased the one gallon bottle of the NuTan salution I want to do hair off can you do a video on that it would be greatly appreciated
Great video, very informative. I am currently doing an elk hide and I fleshed it with a pressure washer. I hung it on a ladder to drain. The center of the hide is slightly stretched from being on the ladder. I salted it as described and wondered if the stretched portion would return to normal as I continued the process. Thank you
We've done that before too. :) Yes, you can get it to lay flat again, keep stretching it and flattening it out during each step. When you hang it to drain before shaving and oiling, put it over a pole or bar between 2 ladders and periodically adjust it so it won't get those creases.
@@cliffbaxter5180 The "Pickle Tan" that is included in the kit is a pickle and then later a tan in the same bath. The pH on other pickles will depend upon which one you use. You can call us if you have additional questions.
@@dethmaul Happy to hear you are doing the tanning process in a warm area - this is key to having the products work properly and getting a quality end result.
Could you do a video on tanning a cased coyote? I could easily follow a video done by this guy. Also if I buy a kit is it something that I can replace individual parts as I need to off of the site? Rather than continually buying the kit
It is recommended to put the shaved hide back into the Pickle Tan bath for 24 hours so that it will absorb the rest of the tan. After that time, you can adjust the pH and soak it for the allotted time - this will set the tan in the hide.
Mark, thank you for watching the video. Regarding the tan itself, we cannot speak for how other products work, as we do not know how they are formulated. The stiffness could be the result of several factors: not shaved thin enough, not pickled long enough, dried too quick, and/or not worked enough to break the fibers.
PAINT AND RUST STRIPPER DISC!!! sorry to yell.. but these open web style poly discs are many, many times faster and easier/more forgiving than normal grinding discs.. next best thing to a fleshing machine!!
@@TanningYourHide you won’t regret it. There was a VHS cassette released many years ago with this little gem in it. I can’t remember who released it and it’s very hard to find now but it’s absolute gold! Can easily shave down to blue for head mounts too! Plenty of taxidermists owe their start to how well poly discs work for thinning. Only problem is they fling material around your workshop🤦♂️🤣
The flesh side of my hide starting drying and getting stiff when fleshing. It made it very difficult to flesh it. Is there anything I can do to fix/prevent this in the future?
This has been the most informative and helpful video - thank you! I watched this countless times thinking I might dodgey my first effort at a chital deer hide - but really thanks to this I didn't and it was a success! THANK YOU!
We have not personally used a power washer to flesh a hide, but we do have customers who have and they have reported that it works. Just be careful to not get the stream too strong as to damage the hide or remove the hair.
@@TanningYourHide thank you. I'm having one shipped here from Alaska, frozen. It will be thawing out when it arrives. What is the best order to do things in? Pickle it immediately? Then power wash? Do I need to salt it ? Thank you
@@JesusisHere777 Power wash first to remove the meat, fat, and membrane, then go ahead and follow the other steps: salt, rehydrate, pickle, shave - some people power wash again vs. shaving with a tool, but this many not get the hide thin enough (you can try it). After shaving, then tan and oil. The full instructions are included.
You aren't actually tanning the hide, just pickling it and neutralizing it. It will eventually fall apart or get hard as a rock because the hide isn't actually leather without using an actual tanning solution. A real tan is a much better way to go if you want a quality hide that will stand the test of time
Joseph, a medium size elk backskin is estimated to take approx. 9-12 man hours total. The time could be shorter or longer depending upon the size of the hide and experience of the user. The total time is spread out over 1-2 weeks (which includes soak time in the different baths). The estimated man hours is broken out by: Fleshing = 1-2 hours, Salting = 1 hour (including prep time), Reyhdration Bath = 30 minutes, Cleaning (optional) = 30-45 minutes, Pickle Bath = 1 hour (including prep time), Shaving = 1-2 hours (using a wire wheel or angle grinder, longer for hand shaving), Tan Bath = 1 hour (with prep time), Oiling = 30 minutes, Breaking = 1-3 hours (broken up over several days as the hide dries).
I drew a cow elk hunt this year and in addition to having a bunch of delicious elk I want to tan the hide as well if I get one how do I order one n of these kits?
Try to stretch and break the hide before it completely dries. If the hide dries too fast before you have a chance to work it, you can lightly wet it down with water and re-work it. This will keep it soft.
Kolby, for the tanning kit, the pickling product is included. If you are using our NuTan, the directions describe a simple pickle bath to make at home. Thank you.
