Coyote help please

[powersteve]

I'm fleshing a coyote right now for the first time and I need some help. It's much harder than it looked!

The biggest question I have is... how deep do I go? Have I taken too little/too much off?

There was a membrane over the whole hide under which was a thick white layer of fat. I scraped most of that membrane off except on the head where I couldn't get under it. Then I scraped most of the white fat off that was under it. However in some spots I now see 1/8" of hair on the inside, so maybe I went too deep?

Feedback appreciated.

Thanks!









Btw I think a part of the problem is that my fleshing beam isn't rounded enough. I was having to scrape on the edges and then I went too deep.

[HunterDave]

You pressed down a little hard where the hair is popping through the hide. After you push the membrane down exposing the fat, just go a little lighter taking off the fat. For now, don’t pull the hair out, just leave it like that.

The belly down by the penis is a lot thinner than other areas so take your time down there to prevent putting in holes. Go either side of the penis with your fleshing knife, not right over it. You can grab the penis area between your finger and thumb and cut the big chunk of fat/membrane with a knife.

Overall, i’d Say that you did pretty darned good for your first coyote! Figuring out how much pressure to use comes with experience and it may take some practice to really get a good feel for it. Under front legs and belly are a lot thinner than elsewhere. I think that you’ll pick it up pretty fast.

[powersteve]

Thanks Dave. I definitely noticed it a was lot thinner towards the end of the coyote. I was pushing really hard to get the membrane off which made some holes. I didn't push the membrane the whole way because there was a massive amount of fat at the bottom which screwed me up (I went at it with a knife). Next time I'd try removing that fat first and pushing the membrane the whole way. Or maybe I could have left the membrane at the bottom as there wasn't much fat under it?

Definitely going to do a few more to get a feel for it!

Cheers

[goose slayer10]

If coyotes are a little blue they tend to have hair come back through the inside easier than fully prime imo.

[5911ryan]

https://youtu.be/E56TbpYR8lg

Hope this helps. Easier to see than to explain

[Marty S]

Don't use a sharp blade, use a keen but dull edge and like you say, do watch your pressures. The back can take a lot more than the belly. I highly recommend a necker knife, but th cheaper MB knife will get it done just fine too. Don't use a Caribou flesher on coyotes!

[powersteve]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I will revisit these along with learning from my mistakes on the next coyote.

Originally Posted by 5911ryan

https://youtu.be/E56TbpYR8lg

Hope this helps. Easier to see than to explain

I like that video, especially the part about it taking 30 coyotes before you get the feel for things.

Flipped the coyote this morning!



Wasn't able to get the rear taut on the stretcher last night, maybe because I let it sit too long before putting it on and it was already starting to dry. It was too wide.

Later today I will gently wash some of that hair around the exit wound and I'm going to pick up a hair brush.

[HunterDave]

Originally Posted by 5911ryan

https://youtu.be/E56TbpYR8lg

Hope this helps. Easier to see than to explain

I watched this vid years ago looking for tips and it’s really good.

Just wondering though, why don’t you leave the ear buds on the carcass and save yourself from cutting it off? When skinning I found that if you put weight on the hide until it stops, the hide will pull down past the bud and part way up the ears. Then you just have to cut across the back of the ears and you are just left with a piece of cartilage to cut out.

Not trying to be a smart ass, everyone has their own way of doing things, I just find that doing it that way saves you an extra step.