I am totally new to tanning and taxidermy but I am a flytyer and a hunter. I need to know how to perserve some sections of skins from opposum, ground hog, fox, and some birds like pheasant and grouse? Can anyone give me a crash course on the materials and processes i might use. In some of the older materials that I have saved I found a little flea or mite would eat parts of the feathers leaving holes and black specks sometimes a shuck or cocoon what are these and how do i get rid of them?
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If your just going to keep scraps or small pieces WASCO has a small tanning kit that has everything you need to tan then. I tie flys myself and tried just drying the scrapes, But with anything just dried the wont last long before the bugs find then. Now I just save all my fly tying parts in a bag in the freazer and then tan then all in one little bunch.
Hey your suppose make great deals with your taxidermy buddies...lol
What I do is use borax on my freash roadkills and hunting hides.
You must scrape off the membrain I like a drawknife on a flershing myself but a regular knife will do .
Hopefully you salted the cape and rolled it up in a paper bag and froze it. Don't put hides in plastic bag it will definatly cause slip.
But when your ready thaw it out spread out on a hunk of plywood you can tack it down to keep it from curling flesh it and salt it down canning salt not table . rub it in good . salt is cheap.
Lift one end of the board so the fats can run off the next day scrape off the salt and do it over and leave to dry. scrape off the salt the next day and you can use as is . but I wash my hides even use conditioner on them. if you wash it you'll have to hang it to dry and when it's still damp but not dripping tack it down again.
I've even taken deer hides scaped of excess fat and tissue washed and lay out hair side up on the concrete this soaks up the moisture too.
The best hair I have is from professionaly tanned hides though make sure you know they do a good job though chemical burn can and soes ruin some hair (Brittle elk) the best thing I did was make friends with my taxidery buds though bringing them gifts of driftwood or a blonde raccoon or a six pack if they need them you'll get some good scrapes on make great friends and most likly turn out doing taxidermy to satisfy your courous nature of I wonder if you can make a black caddis with this here mushrat if I dyed it black with the ol' ladys hair dye.
Good luck it's not hard just go for it . and watch oput you don't get rabies or something from bloated road kill. fly tyer magaine had a stint about it a few years ago.