tanning hides

[PhoneticHalo]

what do i need? and where to i goet it? i see alot of places on the internet saying i need things i cant seem to get hold of.... The more back to basic's the method the better? i heard somewhere to use the brains of the animal??? is that right?? any help would be good

oh by the way im starting with a rabbit.

thx

phonetichalo

 

[Forked_Stick]

The Native Americans were fond of brain tanning...and yes you use the brains of the animal...as they say "every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide"
check out:
http://www.braintan.com/
They have great information, as well as a store if you need anything.

BTW, traditional brain tanned leather is super soft, had great color, is water resistant (if not proof) and just overall much better then any chemical process I know of.

 

[SAS_MAN]

i am curently tanning my own hare hide i just used salt on it untill the animal fat peeled away and then brought it in to dry. I heard ur suposted to frease it first though to stop the hair falling out as mine has started to do

 

[SAS_MAN]

I also heard thet allum is good to make it flex. If this is good and were u get it i dont know maby someone could tell me

 

[Eric_Methven]

You can use soap or eggs or a combination of both if you don't want to use the animal's brains. www.braintan.com is a good place to start. Also go visit Paleo Planet for plenty more information and tutorials on leather, tanning, buckskin and rawhide.

As for materials, and chemicals and such, you may need to import them from across the big pond. But if you do it the traditional way, you won't need a great deal that you don't already have.

You'll need a fleshing beam for larger hides (you can make one with a 1m length of plastic drainpipe filled with sand and capped off at both ends. This is propped up on crossed poles at one end and the other end rests on the ground).

You'll need a scraper to remove the gunk (you can use an old dull drawknife or even a sharpened deer leg bone).

You'll need some plastic buckets to soak the hide in.

You'd be well advised to get a book on braintanning as well, or one of the many videos showing you the technique. You can get most stuff from braintan.com.

Eric

 

[Toadflax]

I'd thoroughly recommend the book "Deerskins to Buckskins" written by the 'owner' of braintan.com. The book costs about £10 from Amazon. I'd also HIGHLY recommend the DVD/video that goes alongside the book, though this costs a little more. It's the most useful training video I've ever seen. If you contact braintan.com they may be able to do a deal on postage costs to the UK (their online web site only lists default postage charges).


Geoff

 

[Forked_Stick]

I'd thoroughly recommend the book "Deerskins to Buckskins" written by the 'owner' of braintan.com.
Geoff

This is a great book.