I was needing some advice on tanning a bear hide that I got in New Mexico a couple of weeks ago. Since I got the bear in August, and I am concerned about making sure that the hair doesn't slip. It also has a nice cinnamon color so I don't want to discolor the hide either. Does anyone have any recomendations as to what tan I should use given the situation. I know that a lot of people would send it to a commercial tannery, but given the circustances I would rather do the tanning myself. Any other advice in tanning the hide would be appreciated as well.
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Ron, not saying you can't and shouldn't but I leave the bears up to the pros!. I tan all my hides with no problems at all and enjoy every step of the tanning process.
There is no way I have the proper equipment to really degrease the bear properlly. That's the only reason I send it out. The cost of buying all the stuff I just can't really justify. So I let East Coast Tannery do all my bear hides 1-877-tan-furs. They can deal with my dirty work.
But if your going to try it out and you can for sure I like to use two different tans in my shop. I've tried plenty of tans and my favorites are EZ-100 or Liqua-tan. EZ-100 is a tan that the hide soaks in and Liqua-Tan is a rub on tan. I would also oil well after any tan that you use. Also the other tan that is used by many is Lutan-F. I've used it and just don't care for it that much. Tanning is or should I say it's a personal choice on what you like but you can't go wrong with the two I spoke of. Just make sure you flesh it well, and the bear needs to be pickled also for any tan to work properlly.