Salting and tanning basics

[popeye]

Here goes:
Remove all fat & meat.
rub with non-iodized fine grain salt, fold skin to skin, set on incline with open end downhill to drain 24 hrs
shake off salt and repeat above step
open hide up to dry and set hair & ward off bacteria
re-hydrate in plain water - no soap!
pickle at ph of 1 - no soap! (soap will raise the ph, usually dangerously above 2)
nuetralize and pick your tan:)

[cyclone]

This is how you kill and stop bacteria growth. Your tanning chemicals will not cure the hide or stop the bacteria!!
Hope this helps
www.oregontaxidermyschool.com

While your post contains some very good advice, the part about salt killing bacteria is not accurate. While alt may kill some bacteria, it is more accurate to state that the bacteria becomes dormant or encapsulates when it cannot obtain water.  Replace that water, such as in re-hydration, and the bacteria can indeed be reactivated and go on to damage a hide. 

[popeye]

very true. Using a bacteriacide in your rehydrating solution is definately recommended. Of course, bacteria cannot survive in at a ph of 0 - 2, so once it's in the pickle it's safe from those pesky little critters.

[blb1450]

I'm new to this. I have a nephew with a critter getter business. Last year I went 14 weeks without a paycheck. I kept myself busy skinning and working beaver hides. Also did 2 otters. They all turned out pretty nice if I do say so myself.
Since I've done a couple deer hides and recently 2 skunks. The first went fairly well. I used alot of Nature's Miracle. Still quite a bit of smell. The second, I finally gave up on and 'masked' and 'tailed'. These 2 were dispatched by headshot and I froze them for several days. The hair slipped on the second the size of my fist. Probably where it had been lying in the freezer. This is my question; did the hair slip because it had been frozen? or something else?
Thanks in advance for any insight!
blb

[rasorbackq]

no the fur did not slip because it was frozen. It slipped as it sat to long before frozen  or the temp was not able to get to the spot that slipped . IE may have been in a ball or left too long after freezing to thaw and skin.

[quigley]

I have a red fox. Did the salt for two day and then put it in a salt,water tub for 3 hrs. did all my cleaning of the skin looks great but when I was rinsing the skin the hair on the back side of the ears come off. What did I do wrong?

[George Roof]

Artistry, you haven't been here long enough or you haven't looked hard enough.  This is covered in GREAT detail.

I have a post on here especially for beginners and those who believe, as you seem to, that a hide must be salted twice
http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/topic,48033.0.html

Glen Conley posted an EXPERT opinion of salting:  http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/topic,177013.0.html

Salt is but ONE TOOL of many available to us as taxidermists.  Too often methods that "we've always used" come into play without scientific reasoning or validity.  "Sometimes" we just get lucky. Salt is a dehydrating agent that has nothing to do with "pulling bacteria out".  It simply eliminates the culture that bacteria thrive and multiply in. 

As everyone knows, I'm no big fan of Krowtann, but it urges the elimination of salting as a separate steps, and from its supporters, I can only assume there are no bad sides to that being done with that product.  I'm not sure, but I think the same is true for the Pressure Tanner.

Now I'm not trying to call you out and I'm glad you're concerned with improper information being put out to the unwary, but this site has been here for 10 years.  There have been concerted efforts to reinvent the wheel and a beloved and late member, Old Terry, even showed us methods most of us old guys would rather have stayed forgotten. The site is veritable treasure trove of information.  So before you try that wheel trick, check this forum's archives (which aren't the best) and then click on those OLD Forums at the top of the page. They contain a wealth of information and that ORANGE icon has an exceptional search engine with it.

[dbess]

Did you turn and flesh the ears ?

I have a red fox. Did the salt for two day and then put it in a salt,water tub for 3 hrs. did all my cleaning of the skin looks great but when I was rinsing the skin the hair on the back side of the ears come off. What did I do wrong?