know I didn't get that pickle just right so I got a little hair falling out- not bad. Nuetralized and tanned yesterday. I live in a small house and it's nice to have the bathroom back to being a bathroom. I nuetralized the tan solute with baking soda and poured down the drain. The pickle has sooooo much salt though I plan to pour over a large gravel parking lot. I mean wow do pro tanners have like a super sewage plant? all that salt...
OK so here I am at work - sitting in a 12x10 draw tending shack high above the Kennebec River- with my lone deer hide hanging from a broom stick suspended horizontal to the floor. garbage cans catching the oily run-off and I got a couple questions.
1) the skin side is nice and white except for blood spots- but covered with hairs and some grit (from when I used rocks to submerge in pickle)--- am I going to be able to brush these off once the hide dries?
2) the oil got into the hair as I lugged the skin out this a.m. in a plastic garbage bag- Of course I do not have a sawdust tumbler --if I did would this get the oil out better than say a towel? should I towel the furside when it is almost dry or when dry?
Put a few hours in on this and want semi great results.
helpful hints appreciated
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nuetralized the tan solute with baking soda and poured down the drain. The pH of the tan is not the harmfull facotry, yep thats right! The chemical in the tan is what your worry should have been!
the oil got into the hair as I lugged the skin out this a.m. in a plastic garbage bag- Of course I do not have a sawdust tumbler --if I did would this get the oil out better than say a towel? should I towel the furside when it is almost dry or when dry?
How did you get OIL in the HAIR? Did you drop the hide in a greasy spot on your drive way?
What kind of OIL is it?
any residue from a trash bag is not enough to oil up your hide.
A towel is not going to really dry the fur. A good example is when you wash your hairy head, does a towel dry it? no it a towel just gets a bit if topical moisture off.
Now I did the trouble shooting for you. go back and read the arcives tanning post, this is a FAQ and has been repeated 117 times.
Hello J.Gary before you go any further call me at (705)476-0483
and I will walk you through this mess before it gets any bigger.
Laurier
Hey pardon me for not being hard core and not digging deeper. You are not a tanning equipment seller or you'd be nicer. Tanning oil John. paint it on fold the cape let it sweat. lighten up! be of good cheer! after this hide I shant be back to clutter your board. this is your cue to say : Hellelujah
Laurier went to your site www.wwdi.com/houles magnificent representations of the wild ones. Thanks for time talking me through some of the finer points of hide treatment. an honor for a kitchen sink tanner to get a little mentoring from the top dog.
JGray - let the floaters float! DONT USE ROCKS to keep them submerged. If you do - the acid will leach out the rocks and cause flucuations in your PH! It's much better (and safer) to simply let them float and turn them over 1-2 times a day while they are pickling! Properly taken care of - they will be fine!