I was fleshing and working on a bear hide last night. I thought that I'd get into the archives and look into "degreasing" discussions.
Now I'll admit that I didn't get to read all of them but, the ones that I did all involved some solvents, degreasers of some kind or another.
I read about 1 feller that couldn't get his bear skin to dry.
Here is my view on degreasing. Degreasing is a three step process:
1. Physical removal of the heavy fat and other tissues - most often removed by beaming and/or fleshing wheel and/or knife.
2. Removal of the oil present on the flesh side - Usually taken off by heavy salting by what I've read in some of the posts.
3. Chemical removal of the oil within the skin. This is where those nasty solvents come into play.
#1. is pretty much etched in stone - no easy way to get around it.
I have my own methods for step #2 and #3
Salt is only ionic - it will only dissolve in water, it will not suck up fat or oil. What you are seeing is the water comming out of the hide and absorbing the salt.
My step #2 is kitty litter, yep plain ole non-scented clay litter. Spread it on the flesh side of the hide to about 1/2" thick. Let it stand for awhile, rub it around, work it loose from the hide and toss it away.
It will absorb a lot of the oil! Now salt the hide again! watch that water come out now! That hide will tighten up right quick!
#3 Also non-toxic or about as low as you can go. Dish detergent. Plain old Palmolive, Dawn, or whatever cuts it off of your dishes best.
Now I only do this just before the hide goes into the tanning solution. Soap it up in warm water and work it nice and sudsy. Let it stand for about an hour in the soapy water, rinse well.
I spin mine in an old washer to remove the excess water and into the tan it goes!
Give it a try!
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please e-mail me , would like to go into this and a few other thing a little furthure. Brad
Cyclone,
There are several degreasers that do an excellent job without being toxic. In order to effectively breakdown animal fat you need an alkaline degreaser. The problem with dish detergent is that it is basically a neutral detergent which means the PH is about 8.5 with some wetting agents. Most dish washing is done in hot water which helps to remove the cooking greases. In fact you could probably do just about as good a job of dish washing by just scalding your dishes with very hot water. It would remove the greases and left over food particles about as well. More effective degreasing is accomplished at a higher PH.
Steve,
I'm not trying to take anybodys business away but,
Higher pH's remove grease by saponification. It chemically altars the fat itself. High pH substances are toxic and caustic
by their nature. How does one prep a hide for hair off tanning? High pH solution soaking loosens the hair.
Not desirable for making rugs and such.
Dish soap is a detergent. Detergents romove oils by forming "micelles" around the globs. The outer portions of the micelle are water soluable and are then carried away by the water.
Ice cold water can be used. It is better if it is warm as many reactions it is speeded by heat. But don't go hot...
Ever dump some lye (sodium hydroxide) into a jar of water? It's alkaline. Stand by and don't hold the jar because as it dissolves it gives off heat, about 200 degrees worth!
Try my method out - say on a coon at first....let me know if you like it.
I became a chemist after I became a taxidermist.
Cyclone,
I agree with you to a point, but perhaps our material is different than using sodium hydroxide. There are detergents with higher PH levels with adequate surfactants able to accomplish the job. What we market has been approved for useage by the Smithsonian for bird useage. It also works extremely effectively on mammals and fish. We don't recommend degreasing in warm water, my mentioning hot washing was just to make a point, washing with Dawn in cold water is not all that effective on greasy dishes.
What is your product?
Cyclone,
Epo-Grip Bloodout/Degreaser, there is plenty of info in the archives about the product. If you want more information call me at 800-888-2467 or drop me an e-mail.