Rhinehart Tanning Cream

[SHansen]

Has anyone used Rhinehart tanning cream on shoulder mounts and if so how was it I am currently using DP an think it would be a easy transition and don't  have to pickle and it seems cheap enough if it's not the way to go could some one offer some at home tanning methods just like doing the whole process at home.  I am building a PVC fleshing beam.  Do you sharpen the fleshing knife with a bench grinder or a stone.  How do I tell when tell when the hide is fleshed enough.  Thanks

[hounddoggy]

hansen here is my advice. i was taught fleshing with a single edge razor blade simply by pulling the cape over a large piece of pvc.adding a little borax or dp helps with the slim while fleshing. i just lean the pipe to my work table. push against pipe with blade and cut downward so as not to cut into or through skin. took me a while to catch on but it really works.also some people have luck buying fleshing balls or cones for face areas! i wish i was good with the mini flesher or grinding wheel. ive tried em all and i came back to a razor. i feel that i have a more intimate feel. i can know where i am by feel. i wasnt good with other methods that may be faster. good luck

[hounddoggy]

by the way im in the same boat as you. im considering using the jrts.ive learned that alot of info is market mess. people trying to push a product. there are some on here you can trust and from what i can tell all of the pros on here are helpful.george,becky,oldshaver,matt,and a few others are honest and helpful.ask them for advice because they sure helped me. i still havent made up my mind to stop being a powder jockey.(dp guy)...we never loose capes and never have slippage. there are tricks to make dp work fine and last.there are so many risk with tanning however IF i would trust anyones advice on this issue it would be george. he uses jrts (i think) and i trust what he says.i may try jrts however i feel i owe it to my customers to make certain any new method i try is foolproof and will not be less than what they are now happy with.i was taught by a person i consider to be very knowledgable and he went back to dp after tanning a few years.there are certain things to do that ensure a quality/lasting dp mount.always remember this.......its what the customer is happy with that counts.....do dp correctly and you will be fine....if you tan...well.........know what you are doing FIRST!! BEST OF LUCK

[Mark D]

Go up to the top of the page and click on "advanced search". Then type "JRTS" in the search box, and type "George" in the "by user" box.
Next click on the button that says "search".
Next click on any and all links that show up, and read them.
There will be 2 pages of information.
If you don't have the answers to your question after you have read all of those then redo the search omitting the "by user- George" option.
Then read all of those links.      If you still don't have the answers then come back to this post and re ask the question.
Here is one link to start on
http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/topic,127455.0.html

[rd_doctor]

I have used Rhinehart tanning cream since 1983 on everything from coyotes to buffalo. I have 15 year old elk mounts that look like the day I mounted them. When I started using the cream it was ATS (Authenic Tanning Systems). After McKenzie bought them out; the cream changed and I and I tried some other tans for a while, but nothing was a simple and worked as good as the Rhinehart.  I bought a gallon from Dan Rhinehart's a while back ( he says it is the original ),but the cream looks a lot different and the hide didn't seem to whiten up after application like it did with the other cream. Have you tried this cream George?

[pir^2h]

I used John Rinehart Tanning cream in the late 80's and the mounts are still good.  I left taxidermy for about 10 years and when I started back I bought JRTS again and those mounts still look good also.  (This was before the sale of JRTS to McKenzie)  I had read on here that the JRTS cream had been changed.  Dan Rinehart advertised his as the "original formula" so I purchased a gallon expecting to get the original JRTS formula.  I don't believe it is the same for a minute.  Both of the hides I used the DRTS (TASCO Tanning cream as he calls it) on had a bad odor to them.  I did washed them out with Dawn and ran them through a Rittel Pickle and EZ-100 tan and the smell went away.  I purchased some JRTS from McKenzie last November.  It smelled and looked like the original to me.  My daughter has used the JRTS on two deer capes and a grey fox, no smell and they seem to be OK.  I have moved onto Rittels as my primary tanning method although I may still continue to JRTS from time to time if I am only tanning one hide at a time.

All I know is I will not be buying the TASCO brand again.    

[ginevive]

I am relatively new, but I have used JRTS on three squirrels and a rabbit backhide so far. It worked well. I never used it on anything larger, though. After tanning but before rinsing, it left the skins with a slight chemical smell that was not unpleasant. After rinsing well, neither skin has any kind of odor that I can perceive. I did spend a lot of time breaking the rabbit hide when drying, though, and it created a satisfactory result; the leather was not pure white like when I used the Rittel's tan kit that includes a pickle. I may just go to the Rittel's wet tanning again for my larger pieces that I have salted now.

I tan the skins overnight using the JRTS, though. An hour might work, but it is a mental thing with me; it does not seem long enough; lol. This is still relatively fast in my opinion; I don;t have much spare time, so anything that helps me make the best of my time is good.

[ginevive]

My daughter has used the JRTS on two deer capes and a grey fox, no smell and they seem to be OK.  I have moved onto Rittels as my primary tanning method although I may still continue to JRTS from time to time if I am only tanning one hide at a time.

All I know is I will not be buying the TASCO brand again.   

Or maybe, reading that, I will try it on a larger hide. If it works well, it could be a serious time-saver for me!