hey, ok i know next to nothing about tanning a hide. i need help! my family "grows" cow for food and everytime we butcher we throw the hide to the dogs to chew on. i am getting sick of seeing all those skins go to waste and i want to learn how to tan hides, but i'm so confused! can someone help me? my parents are happy i'm interested in doing this but they do want to spend $ on supplies so i would like to find a way to do this "all natural" if possible.
thanks!
Jessica
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Bruce Rittel has books and supplies on nothing but tanning. There is a link under suppliers at the top of this page.
beef or dairy cows are one of the frist animals you want to start out on tanning. you'll have better succuss with a small fur bearer.
then do as the Native Americans did and brain tan your hides. No need to buy supplies, the animals has all that you need. And the tools you need you can either make them yourself or you'll probably can find them in your barn. You may want to either research on the Internet about braintanning or invest in a small book on it. Have fun doing it but like Al stated above, start out with something small like a coon or a fox, then work your way up to the big game.
www.braintan.com
it's a myth that women chewed the hides. In acutality it was the men who did all the chewing, just like nowadays. Ha ha. Except now they chew tobacco rather then raw leather. So there John, need something to chew on? LOL.