I was given a salted and frozen bison hide. It needs tanning and I don't have the 500-700 it will cost to have Halford do it (or anybody else likely). I was planning on tanning a couple coyote hides myself that I hope to get from a buddy up north, but the bison is a whole different ball game.
Anybody have tips on doing this myself?
I can use the quancet at my work or the heated basement in my house.
Thanks - this forum is really useful!
You should really have some experience under your belt with deer hides etc first. But in anycase go to braintan.com and they will have the answers for you. I braintan deer hides and it's a ton of work but kind of fun too. If you're close to Calgary I could give you some pointers. You can also go to AAA taxidermy supplies and they might have the chemicals (ug) to help you out.
For starters,the buffalo hide is super thick and if you want to do something with hide after being tanned-you would want it shaved.I made the mistake of getting hide tanned and was going to get a buffalo coat made-long story short,the seamstress said hide was too thick to do anything with.If I had known before hand,I could have asked tannery to shave the leather side so I could have done something with it-too late and too thick now!
I have tried tanning bear hides on my own and that is a very big project to tackle,not to mention the hide is probably a 1/4 thickness of the buffalo hide!
Tiss prolly still in the freezer as the original thread was dated 2009....
Rob
__________________
We sleep safe in our beds because rough men & women stand ready in the day/night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.
RIP Pte Terry J Street 2nd Battalion, PPCLI, Shilo, Man. EOT, April 4 2008 Panjwayi District Afghanistan,Constable Jimmy Ng,RCMP EOW,Sunday, September 15, 2002
Oh boy, I've tanned a lot of critters and small bear and wolf are about as big as I want to go.
The shoulder and neck leather on a buffalo can be an inch thick.
That need to be shaved right down to be soft and pliable.
The size of container for the pickle and the tanning solution would need be pretty big.
On thick hide like buffalo, Make a frame large enough to lace the raw hide into. The hide must be tight, when it is hard dry, I use a course belt sander to thin the hide here needed, then continue with rest of which method you chose. Careful not to grind the hide down to hair roots or hair may slip.
On thick hide like buffalo, Make a frame large enough to lace the raw hide into. The hide must be tight, when it is hard dry, I use a course belt sander to thin the hide here needed, then continue with rest of which method you chose. Careful not to grind the hide down to hair roots or hair may slip.
Good advice for the budget minded home tanner.
And you forgot to mention just how much fun this is to do.
__________________
Alberta Fish and Wildlife Outdoor Recreation Policy -
"to identify very rare, scarce or special forms of fish and wildlife outdoor recreation opportunities and to ensure that access to these opportunities continues to be available to all Albertans."
Tanning for a greenhand?
Linear Mode
