If tanning cannot begin within one day, hides or pelts must be treated or cured to prevent deterioration
One more quote...heres another link
http://www.cahe.nmsu.edu/pubs/_l/l-103.html
Also states
While a skin must be soaked until soft, do not allow it to stay wet longer than necessary because the hair may start to slip. Soaking time depends upon the condition of the skin; some skins require only about two hours, while others need a much longer time.
Hey I thought salting "set the hair" How can you blame hair slippage on bacteria after hide has been salted? Nothing lives in salt so I would think your hide would be technically sterile while on its way to the pickle.
No mention of a pickle. either! Why am I such a hardcase on the DP issue? because if you say something doesn't work PROVE IT! Seems current methods being used are really not needed. All mounts are one thing, skin aka hide. What are we trying to achieve? preservation of the hide aka mount. '
My question of the day will be does leather last longer then a DP'd hide? Salted hide? Well if we look around egypt,chili all those mummies are salt and air dried. Don't see to many leather goods around. Doesn't leather need to be treated with oil now and again so it doesn't crack? How 'bout those shrunken heads in the smithsonian? Not tanned, Ever see beef jerky rot? Does a dp hide absorb water/moisture? I really don't believe it does. Take one of your salted hides that is dried rock hard, How long does it really take to soften it again? Just soaks up the water real fast I bet LOL. Heres a real mind blower. All things try to return to a natural state. A dp'd hide is in a natural state in my opinon just dehydrated. Leather?
I'm not so sure.
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Ok since I believe that I have proved my point about tanning a mount lets discuss our real issue. Dp? Is this the best product to preserve a mount? Making a hide into leather is great for garments/rugs/etc but is leather the best preservation method? no. Is leather easier to mount and handle? For storage yes, mounting not sure probably. Lets move on. What is top priority for your mount.
Preservation
Bug deterent.
Does it need to bend? be durable? no
Seems dp has this covered. Maybe someone should be working on a new and better dp for the industry. Leather is for shoes, preservation is for taxidermy. Don't worry In two weeks I'll have 2 fresh deerhides. i'm going to tan one, DP the other. im going to treat them just like a mount. Then Ill stick em outside and we will have the finale test! I bet the first thing the leather will do is grow mold! Texas humidity is a killer. Are we having fun yet.?
Type in leather preservation on yahoo. Seems leather has to be preserved? say what! So now your mount which is supposed to be preserved has to be preserved. HMMMMMM pretty weird. You have taken a hide and made a product out of it..leather. well leather has to be preserved or treaty to maintain it. A preserved hide is just that a preserved hide...no treatment.....so talk to me people...lets see some intellect
If you want to insist on doing cheap work cheap there is a market for that in taxidermy. Good Luck to you. You need it. I also like the remount work and seeing clients willing to pay extra after learning cheap and quick cost them all but the antlers or horns of thier trophy plus the experience and knowledge to avoid the hipe of DP taxidermists in the long run. Besides, the tanning creams on the market now are light years in advancement over DP and just as fast acting; why are you still insisting on this DP junk? Commercial tanning from a reliable, established tannery is THE best choice for proffessional taxidermists wanting to provide quality work that will leave a mount looking good and lasting for years. Period. This really can not be debated except to maybe a fool.
Hold on, one thing. Life CAN go on in salt. Salt removes the water. Molds, bacteria and lots of other goodies do just fine in salt. So that theory is already flawed. Some of us guys dont knock DP the way you THINK we do. I wouldnt use it anymore, but its because I prefer the FEEL, and the workability of a tanned skin. You wont hear me say its not preserved. There IS a difference.
When something undergoes a chemical change, it cannot "return to a natural state". You are thinking about physical changes like ice melting. Leather is not going to change back into a raw skin. And mummies had lots of different oils and herbs rubbed into the skin to preserve them (turning the skin to leather)..... They where not salt or air dried.
Les