I know from some of the posts that Krowatan is an alum tan which have been around forever. I also know that many people are getting good results, so they say. I am currently using liqua-tan after I pickle.
I have read that alum tans deteriorate the skin over time. Is this true?
How long can you expect a krowataned hide to last vs liqua-tan?
I am under the impression that liqua-tan is forever, DP for 15-25 years, and krowatan is somewhere inbetween is that correct?
Be gentle
Thanks, John
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I only used DP when I very first started taxidermy about 7-8 yrs ago. Those mounts look as good as the day I mounted them . I have used Liqua tann and now I use Krowtann. The results are great and the proceedure is extremely easy to use. I would imagine that the mounts I did 2 yrs ago with krowtann will hold up as good than any of the other mounts I have done with liquatan. Or even with te DP that I used many years ago. I'm sure you are gonna hear pros and cons of the krowtann, as far as i can tell so far in my experience I have only had pro's. good luck . ps you should just give krowtann a try and be your own judge.
Alum tanning has been around for hundreds of year.
Lutan series is even ALUM based and its been around since the 1940's
Today our forms are better than 100 years ago, of hide paste are better than 100 years ago.
So with the IMPROVEMENT if basic materials, why do we need to upgrade a good tan?
Some people will say
Cons' Pros'
"Alum Washes out." Who is going to wash a mammal mount than wet?
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"Alum tans crack over time"
Well if you live to be 100 years old does it really mater?
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"Synthetic tans will last longer"
Bull$crap noone knows for sure as the Syn tans are NEW most less than 10 years old! So how can anyone with half a brain say this?
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Now bare in mind, if a dped hide will last 40 years and a alum tan will last 60 years, how old will you be in that time period?
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I have recently looked at some mammals that were mount in the mid 1960's and earlier, these mounts have been housed in a museum. These mounts are ALUM TANNED, gezz Alum has outlasted the taxidermist and the man who owned the mounts and even his wife and several of his children.
These mounts are in Damn good shape for 40 year old. Some on these animals I saw alive.
I also base part of MY OPINION on my experiences with ALUM TANNED HIDES, less slippage, 100% penetraition.
Now if you go thru all the steps to pickle and then skimp by painting a tan on, almost anything will work.
Aluminum Sulphate can be poured out on your grass when used with potassium chloride ( not salt aka sodium chloride)
AS and PC is used in the lawn and garden industry.
Using AS your hides can go right into the tanning solution without salting and pickling, just check the pH. YOu dont have the slippage problems either.
Great for fox, yotes and the animals that slip so easy.
Krowtann has other things in it.
People can arguee over what it does, what it will do in 30 or 40 years, but they are spitting in the wind, they are assuming.
They will not be around to arguuue the pint in 30 or 40 years.
I have L-T mounts that have been around 20 years. they have cracked.
I have AS tanned mounts around and they are still fine.
I think you will do well using Krowtann or I would not say its a good product.
There are items I have done field testing with, that honestly are crap! I dont go around telling people if a product is not up to par.
But I will tell you if the product works as advertised, I will endorse the product that work.
I dont get freebies from all the suppliers. If someone has a product and needs field testing done I will do that for them, just send the product to me. I will tell them what needs improvement and what I think is wrong with it.
When Gene Halet decided he had a paint product I was one of the feild testers, then Gene went to market with LIFETONE PAINTS, later GENE DEVELOPED HDYRO-MIST
Bob Williamson gave me several jars of paint at the Southern Regionals way back when, they were great compared to what we had back then. These paints are still top of the line in my book
The parent company WASCO owns this site.
Steve S. developed the 2 part urethane glues, they are great one of the best improvements every! They beat the hell out of everything else! Nothing else works as well!
So yes I stick with ALUM TANS because I feel they are the best for this job!
i use sivko fur tanners in new york and they use a modified alum tan which im happy with. i know other professionals in the business that use them and love their product, granted im only 25, but 40 or so years down the road ill let ya know how they look!
You ridicule the comment that alum tans wash out. After you use this magic elixir that you're so proud of and it is "tanned", do you just wring it out and mount it, or do you do like most normal people do and neutralize it IN WATER and then rinse it IN WATER before you mount it? How much magic elixir goes down the drain during those processes and are you REALLY mounting a tanned hide or a raw one?
I just did some whole deer hides using Krowtann, i tanned, neutralized and washed. I put some oil on them and let them dry, working them some during drying. The hides are very soft and pliable just like my lutan F hides were. past years i would get some occasional slipping, i used Lutan, Liqua tan, Curatan and McKenzie tan after i pickled the hides. I used saftee acid for a pickle and always maintained the PH. I got occasional slipping with all of those products. I have mounted approx 90-100 deer with Krowtann and have never had any slippage problems. I have also tanned Beaver,Coyote,Elk,Bobcat,Goats,Raccoon and sheep with out any problems. I don't know what they will look like in 40 or 50 years, but i sure feel good with the results that i have had thus far.