dave,in one of the latest Breakthrough issues you mentioned a whitening agent on your bald eagle.can you use that on ducks, buffs oldsqaw,etc,without discolering the feathers.can you dip the whole skin into it.thanks for any help.
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John, I have been adding around 2 ounces of 35% technical grade Hydrogen peroxide to every gallon of water to all my fleshed duck skins during my washing process with great results. I tried it on a bloody Goldeneye, and loved it. I have done it on several species, and have had no adverse effects that I can speak of. I will say that it sort of colors the skin a bit, but it doesn't break down the integrity of the skin. I also rinse it very well, and use Borax as a preservative. Haven't seen anything that would indicate that there is any chemical reaction. Hope this answers your question a bit. No discoloration of the other colored feathers either. I've washed everything from a Harlequin to Teal and have seen no problems.
I purchase Mrs. Smith's Liquid bluing from the grocery stores, blue bottle with a white top, and a picture of a little old lady on the cover. It is BLUE, and a type of mild bleaching, used to take the stains and color from white, handmade fabrics. I simply squirt two healthy squirts into a gallon or two of clean, cool, soapy water, stir a bit, and add my already soap washed skins. I don't use this product on color, as in, the entire ducks, just white ones, like snow geese, or, white areas of skins. It is great on ptarmigan, also. The hydrogen p. works well, as stated above, but, I don't use it on colored feathers, either, as I have found, with age, it creates a much faster, over-all feather bleaching. Good Luck!