Greetings all! I am very new to the world of tanning and I am trying to find a good begginers way of tanning. I am going to learn on rabbits and I found this information on a sight but they didnt say how much acid to add on step six... any help would be greatly appreciated!you can post it here or email me...which ever easier for you! Thanks!
Instructions------1. After dressing the rabbit, toss the raw hide (split down the belly, not cased) into a ziploc bag and put into the freezer. DO NOT SALT or DRY OUT, don't even try to flesh them out either! When you
have 4 or more, you'll have enough to make it worth your while to tan.
2. Thaw out the frozen hides, run under warm water to remove ice. DO NOT put hides in hot water as
this will ruin them.
3. Wash hides with a mild dish detergent to remove blood & dirt. Rinse well and squeeze out excess water - DO NOT WRING THEM!
4. You will need: 1 plastic 5 gallon bucket
2 lbs. rock salt (or any cheap salt)
8 oz. battery acid (from auto-supply store) stick or wooden spoon for stirring a scrubbed brick or rock
5. Run 1 gallon of hot water into the bucket, add salt and stir to dissolve. Add 1 gallon of cool water
(not cold). Water temp. should be about 70 degrees.
6. Slowly add acid by tipping the bucket toward you and allowing the acid to dribble down the inside into the water. Be careful not to splash liquid and stir carefully with a non-metallic spoon or stick till blended. You may want to wear rubber gloves for this.
7. Lower the completely thawed hides one at a time into the bucket. Submerge in liquid with the stick and slide brick or rock down the inside of the bucket while tipping the bucket toward you. Set the bucket upright and allow the rock or brick to settle on top to the hides. At this stage the acid is not strong enough to do any real damage to your skin but you DO NOT want to splash it into your eyes!
8. Put a piece of plywood on top of the bucket and stash away in the garage or a closet where no one
will disturb it or get into it. Make sure that wherever you put it, it will stay at approx. 70 degrees. Too
hot and the hides will be damaged, too cold and the tanning process will be delayed.
9. Leave the bucket alone for 1 week. Put your rubber gloves on then gently remove hides from the
acid solution with the stick. Allow them to drip to over bucket then squeeze to remove excess liquid.
DO NOT throw out the acid mixture! Toss the hides into a dishpan and take to the sink. Run under cool water and add dish detergent to remove remaining acid mixture. Rinse and squeeze out.
10. At this point the flesh on the underside of the hide should be thickened and somewhat separated
from the hide. Grasp a piece on the edge and you should be able to simply peel the flesh off, often all in one piece. Be very careful with junior hides as they tend to be very thin and easy to tear. If the flesh is very tight on the hide, it isn't "prime" yet and should be returned to the acid solution for a few more days.
11. After fleshing, return the hides to the acid solution and leave for another week (can be safely left for up to a year, if you haven't got the time to fool with them).
12. After at least a week, remove the pelts and wash as described earlier. Squeeze as much water out as possible. Now lay pelts over the porch railing, back step, wherever to dry. At the first sign of drying (white patches on the flesh side), work the hides gently over the back of a chair, pulling the pelt back and forth and then pull gently till the flesh side turns white all over. Pelts can be thrown in a very cool clothes dryer and tumbled for a while to help the drying/softening process.
13. Once the hides are worked till soft and completely dry - you're done! If you have allowed the pelts to dry stiff without working them, toss them in a pan of water to soften and then start over with the drying/working process. It doesn't take more than a few minutes each to work the hides to a nice suede like softness. Rub the fur side over the back of a chair also to make the fur soft and natural looking. Good luck!
Step four lists 8 oz. No one here (unless they use this same technique can answer your question. My guess is you are being told to pour in the amount mentioned in step 4. Again I do not know for certain, perhaps you could write the publisher or author for clarification.
Thats what I figured..I tried to find the author but there was no name or email... I just decided to go out on a limb and see if any one else practiced this technique. But any information from anyone on any techniques would be appreciated aswell. Thanks for taking the time to reply! Take care!
Jesse - The method you describe is what was once called "Acid Tanning" using Sulphuric Acid (in your case Battery Acid). The skins appeared tanned, but in reality they were only pickled, or acidified. They had a very short shelf life and weakened quickly. Also during humid weather they would draw moisture from the air and become damp, or "weep". Why not go all the way and simply "Tan" them? You've already accomplished a lot of the work involved, and tanning would only include a few simple steps to insure all your work made a lasting tanned piece that you could enjoy. Here are a few suggestions for you.
1) Get rid of the rock or brick in Step 7! It will kill the acid and raise the Ph making the acid ineffective! You dont have to weight the skins down if you stir them at least once a day.
2) Add Step 11a. Simply neutralize your skins with 1 oz. of Baking Soda added to each 1 gallon of water used, soak your skins for 30 minutes, then remove and rinse.
Then prepare a tanning solution. Use EZ-100 or Lutan F (N). Follow the easy directions - usally tanning them in the solution overnight, then rinse, drain, and oil.
3) After tanning in Step 12 - DON'T Wash the skins, only rinse them with plain water, then proceed as usual.
If you want more detailed instructions for using our EZ-100 product - simply click on our name - Rittels. E-Mail me your US Postal mailing address and I'll send you a free copy. It may be helpful.
Bruce Rittel
Rittels Tanning Supplies
Just in case any one has any techniques that work on a variety of animals I am open to them aswell. I am pretty much going to be learning on what ever I can cauch so it isnt definately going to be rabbits. Thanks to everyone that has helped and to those who decide to help!I really appreciate it!
If i were you i would not use battery acid to dangerous i use Rittel's saftee-acid and it's very cheap to use and vary safe.1 qt. will last you a long time.
thank you for your help it was very usful know i know how to skin rabbits your websit is the best i have ever used yet
Brittany
HI, I tried this method and found several problems and have a few questions.
1. I put two hides in about 2 weeks later than my first batch and within a couple days the hides almost seemed to rot and the hair came straight off......although the hides i had in there prior remained strong still.
2. The hides in there didn't ever seem to flesh off......the leather became thicker but the flesh still remained?
3. What exactly does the baking soda do?
4. What does the brick have to do with anything invovling ph?