Hello Again Fella's,
Another quick question for ya's. I started removing the cartilage from my deer ears just this year. In the past it's been bondo. What I'm finding is that when I remove it from the ears that I've tanned myself (Liquatan) it seems to come out much easier than the commercial. I've never torn an ear with MY method but with the commercial tans it seems to be much harder and is bonded much tighter. I've made a few tears in them and need to know if there is a soak or a tip to soften or loosen it up before trying to remove it. I don't care for trying to make the repairs.
Thanks Guys, your a great help.
Lance!
Return to Deer Taxidermy Category Menu
The commercial tans are more "imbedded" I would suppose in that their complete submersion allows the chemicals to bond deeper and more completely. The largest reason, I'd assume, is that the commercial work has had an opportunity to "dry" while you're getting at the cartilages while they're still "wet".
I'm ASSUMING here, but it sounds as if you're waiting until after you tan to remove the cartilage. On shop tans, it would seem more prudent to remove the cartilage while you're fleshing the skin. This will allow for better penetration of the paint on tan.
Get some Hard Tissue Rejuvinator from Whitetail Designer System and rub it into the cartilage and let is sit for around 20 min. It will soften the cartilage and make removal easier.