After years of learning a lot of stuff from UA-cam, this is the first time I actually have ever posted a message. I just wanted to thank you for your video tutorial, I followed your instructions down to the dot on my black bear and it turned out great! No hair slip, great rug. This was also my very first tanning project, so once again, THANK YOU!
My son and I did a bear for our first one. Followed your instructions and it turned out great. 3 years later it still looks new. No hair loss. Thank you
Glad it worked out for you sir:) Some people get pissed at me with this technique? As long as you don’t take it in the shower with you it should be fine!
Just want to say thanks for the tips. I spent 4 days scrapping and salting my bear hide. I'm in the pickling process right now. Will be drying the hide in a day or two and smearing on the tanning oil. I figured out the claws and head but had a little trouble with the ears and getting all the fat off the hide. Your video helped me figure out how to do the ears, thanks so much!
I recently used yer video as a tutorial towards tanning my first black bear hide, and the results were absolutely beautiful (besides all the stitching from my over-zealous moments during the fleshing, heh). It really is a tricky one, being how thin it is in many areas. Definitely was a test of perseverance, and makes most other hides feel like a cake-walk to flesh out. A couple things I did differently ; instead of softening the head, I let it dry with a prop inside it so as to look more dimensional as a rug after tanned, since I had no plans to go ahead with a head mount for it. Hopefully it holds up without cracking for awhile. Also, I put some salt on the flesh side of the ears before turning them back to the hair side, and put salt in the knuckle cavities during the softening phase. And for the softening, I made a grapeseed oil/dawn emulsion instead of using neatsfoot oil . Overall I was actually surprised at how soft this hide turned out to be in the end. Really happy about it. I just figured I'd let you know this and tell you I'm really thankful how you took the time to share yer experience so comprehensively. Cheers a billion ~
I know you said you could have just went to work and paid a taxidermist but I don't think you would have had the same appreciation as you do now by doing it yourself. Job well done! I'm sure in the future once I get my bear "just bought home in northern Maine" I'll be referencing this and previous videos over and over thank you in advance... Cant wait to get my first bear!
OMG yes, just go to work :) I'm doing mine now & I'm at that part of breaking & softening. Even though I'm at retirement, it's eating up so much of my time. But this is something I've been wanting to try for years & experience the process. It certainly will test a persons patience & perseverance! I appreciate what you've shared here. Thank you!
a razor sharp knife is great to use because of less work pressure needed ,however very nice job on this one right down to skinning the paws around the pads,they tan nicely with pickling crystals and tanning oil coyotes are a pain compared to a bear
Very nice video. I just took another bear & have it in the freezer. Yes the cost has gotten to be high to have someone else do it. I've already had 2 done & I've given a few others away. I'd hate to throw this hide away & no one wants to spend the money to have it done. So I'm thinking about trying this, but I know it takes a lot of commitment & time. Your video is very inspiring! Thank you!
+Bill Campanelli Thanks Bill:) It does take some planning of time. Thankfully the salting and pickling process takes care of itself, other than refleshing the areas you miss;)
Thank you for this! My wife and I are wanting to start making things out of the hide and furs we've been accumulating. Going to try for bear this fall. Looking for encouraging words, advice, or anything really.
Thanks for the very helpful video! Do you think it is possible to leave the bear in the brine for an extended duration (2 weeks) without damage to it? I am following this process with a bear step by step right now but my neets foot oil has been delayed.
The residual smell dissipates after awhile. I can’t give you an exact time frame that it will smell like roses and daffodils? But, if you wear it like a house coat, you will grow hair where there wasn’t hair before!
Okokokokok Fleshing : check Vinegar solution :check Baking Soda : check Dawn bath: check Water bath :check Just slathered on the neet foot oil mix today. Let’s see what happens over night. Pretty exciting 🎉 Let’s see ! Thanks !!!!
What is the recipe? White vinegar is more easier to obtain than waiting for alum to get delivered in the mail, (I'm female btw 😊) playing with dead things comes natural. I really enjoy your video! I agree going natural for tanning by whats there but sooaking hides with greens to derive tannin from would rather be a pain.
Not entirely sure? It was a fairly small bear; probably a little over 200 if I was lucky lol It was a little over 5 feet in length 5’4” I believe? Can’t remember what I said in the vid? The taxidermist will want to know the length for pricing. By no means, is this better than a professional tannery! The taxidermist more than likely sends the hide off to a tannery to get it tanned, then the tannery sends it back to the taxidermist to prepare it. This is a basic method of preserving the hide; all of my animals have stood the test of time, yes. But, if you get it overly wet and don’t dry it out properly, you will probably run into problems! If you store it in a humid environment and allow insects or mold to grow on it, there will be problems;) This will be the same thing for a properly tanned hide as well;) My advice would be, try something! Anything? What the hell! Giver a go;)
So you used vinegar, water, and salt no alum to set the hair? Hmm interesting. I found the use of neats foot oil with warm water and a teaspoon of dawn mixed well, forgot soaps super power over oils & fats. I have a bear skin in deep freeze i need to do something with after the snows gone learning up on tricks & techniques, the bear is skinned skull out but the paws are intact your skin turned out very well done!! Very pretty white leather too & I can tell its going to be a choir to do!! Love your video!!!
No alum sir, there is a lot better tanning recipes out there! I wanted to achieve a basic “tan” preservation without all the chemicals. When the shit hits the fan, the average joe is not going to be able to come up with the professional tanning chemicals! Period.
@@SaskHunting I have a greasy coyote hide with a bullet wound to the nose, the critter survived the sht & healed but it looks like it narrowly dodged a arrow at a angle, the bear is the same size as in your video both shot by boyfriends youngest son. I used to raise rabbits & tan them up making use of them than just raise them for just meat.
I braintan deer hides very frequently and I also use an emulsified oil solution that I tan with. Then I break the hide and it comes back about a 1/4" thick. I then smoke the hide so it will stay soft. I wonder if one could do a LOW TEMPERATURE smoke and it would keep it soft... Thoughts?
+Tyler Rose Hi Tyler, sorry about that, I failed to mention how long I left the salt on! Lol! I left the salt on 24 hours for each salting and fleshed again between saltings:)
Let the hide dry again and use a wire wheel to help clean off the rest of the flesh and anything else off. Be carefully not to get too close to the side as it catches on the wheel, you can sand too with tools.
Will this method work for a Fox and maybe a Boar? Also, what can i use instead of neets-foot oil? It's not available where i live. Could lard or vegetable oil do the trick?
Great video I am going to try it out on my own bear. One question you said 24 ounces of baking soda and water was the 24 ounces of baking soda to the 50 Liters of water? Thank you @saskhunting
Ben tuzladim Civiyle çaktım güneşte kuruttum .Ama alt tarafı çok sert oldu yumuşak olması için ne yapmam lazım 🙏🤗🤗❓🤗 ❓ suyun içine ne attiginizi soyleyebilirmisiniz
Hey, thanks for the video, its inspired me to do my own! I'm going to take on fleashing and tanning my own bear, and its a big one! Actually I just found out it ranked 2nd for the Henery Kelsey records for 2019! Anyway just curious how yours is holding up? Is there anything you would do differently? Also how come you never put yours in a rack to stretch it? Thanks for in advance for your time!
Congrats sir! Sorry for the late reply... Being a trophy bear, you may want to consider getting it professionally done? BUT, if you are like me and you don’t have the money currently available, you may want to freeze it? Or, if you’re are like me and you end up freezing it for a year or two and 2 grand hasn’t magically appeared in your bank? Then yes, this may be an option for you;) This is a preservation of a hide. My hide is as good as the day I tanned it “Preserved” it. Proper and thorough fleshing, humidity and insects are the most important thing to consider in preserving these hides.
@@SaskHunting Yes, we are in the same boat! And I'm big on DIY, Mine is in the freezer now so its good for a bit! I think the end game will be too make it a wearable carpet....you know, so its good for a scare at Halloween or other times! Lol anyway tanning is the next step! Thanks again for the information!
Regarding your first post...if I had to do something differently....I would invest in a fleshing machine. I think a person has to experience a fleshing by hand numerous times to appreciate the difference in pelts. The next time I do it by hand, an ulu fleshing knife is a must! A sharp one! You have to get ALL of the fat off the hide until you see blue!! Must!! I think if a person invested in a proper fleshing machine, the sky is the limit. I do not want to flesh my next bear the first way I did it!
@@SaskHunting i know this may sound stupid but pick up your self a well made flint or obsidain knife. I have found for fleshing a hide nothing compares to it also for some reason it seems difficult to really nick or cut the hide. Its hard ti describe really all i know is for me i could flesh out a hide faster with a knapped blade then i could a sharp steel blade and also have no nicks in the hide.
Been wanting to snag me a bear and take its pelt… along with the meat of course but recently watched true grit and loved the scene where that guy has the bear mask on his head, hoping I can do something like this
Questions on the fleshing.. Did you do the fleshing in one go (day) or did you do it over multiple days? Other question is can you do fleshing over multiple days and how would you store it between fleshings? Thank you in advance. Going to give this a shot this fall if I get lucky
+sam chanek Multiple days of fleshing; before each salting and after pickling if needed. You want to get as much of the fat off as possible. Happy fleshing;)
+benney boy I have never tried just salt, I think it would start to go rather quickly. Even a hide properly tanned would start to go in a garage that's susceptible to heat and humidity. Insects and critters would have a hay day with it I'm guessing. If you end up trying it with just salt, let me know how it holds up:)
Hey there! I’m about to start tanning my first bear hide and I’m going to use your video... however... it’s Covid 19. I can’t find Neats foot oil anywhere near me and can’t order it online in time. However I have a giant tub of mink oil. Would that work?
+Casey Fenton Smell it:) if it smells like it's turning you may get hair slippage in areas. I would flesh and salt it asap. It still could be salvaged.
How about an update video? Would love to See how its holding up. I am about to take on a bear hide in the coming week. ALSO, It would be great if you explained, in the writen description, what each step is actually doing for the process. For example, the neets foot oil. What exactly is that for? Also, Do you test the pickle and tanning solutions for pH?
"Hey Sask Hunting, did this work out?" I just salted a skin and it is drying in my basement now. Do you recommend this process for long term preservation? Also, I did not flesh out the ears, I thought they would be okay without removing any material. Thoughts?
The hide is doing really well sir. You will need to turn the eyes, lips, nose and split the ears and remove as much flesh as possible. Then salt all the above before you pickle. There are some people who feel that this method isn’t good for long term, everybody is allowed to have there opinion :) personally if you properly flesh and keep your hide in a place with relatively low humidity you will be fine.
We're did you get the info on the tanning the bear as I have books on tanning but none talk about bear. I can tan coon and other animals,I have one in my freezer.
My grandfather must be done it in a wrong way, as the BEAR SKIN RUG at his summer house quite rough, and not as soft as I wish it to be. I am using it as my hummock cover now. Watch my video " 🔴 SLEEPING ON BEAR SKIN RUG 👀 🔴 " and see for yourself.
Can you do more than one hide at a time I have a bunch of bear and coyote hides and it would be easier to just through them all in a 50 gallon bucket and do them all at once
You 100 million percent shouldve beamed this. Its bonkers that you didnt lol. Bears dont cut holes easily, because of their fatty grease your knife will glide through it like butter, fleshing bears is my fave.
Woww ! That's a great video ! Congrats ! I'm learning to tan small games likes rabbits/squirrels/groundhogs.. I'm now working on a cowhide. Can I use the same process ? Any tips ? Is there anything I can replace the neatsfool oil with, since I can't have it where I'm from :/
+Abbass Badat You can purchase the neats foot oil online perhaps. Cow hide is quite a bit thicker; you would need to shave it down quite a bit more than bear as bear hide is very thin. Plus you would need to change the pickle after 3 days as the ph would raised too much. I'm assuming you are keeping it hair on?
I'm really curious. How to you keep the ph where it should be ? Also. I noticed you don't stretch it @ any point. And, do you split your yotes like you did your bear ?
Question how long did the hide take to start hardening? I am tanning a bear but the weather has been cool highs in the 50s lows in the 30s I have the bear hanging to dry after tanning, I have no hair slipping but the hide is very flexible. I have been expecting it to start to harden, it has been 2 days since I applied the tan. Any thoughts?
Well done. Just curious, did you ever try brain tanning? I've just finished a bear and it turned out great would like to combine some of your methods though looks great.
No sir, that’s the way to go I’m thinking. I was trying to “tan” with readily available items. I was trying to avoid kits that I had no idea how to replicate. Along the way I realized my method and brain tanning would essentially be similar processes. Unlike the tanning today. Yes it preserves the hid, assuming you have removed all of the flesh and fat. But, if the hide or finished product encounters water and or insects, you would have to be on top of this. Also, general humidity is a major issue. Our method is or from what I have experienced is generally good if you are very attentive to the conditions. Whereas a tan from tanneries can withstand these conditions such as water and humidity considerably better.
@@SaskHunting with brain tanning I would smoke the hide after the brain solution soaks in and softens it. The smoking helps prevent the hide from turning stiff after it gets wet.
I agree sir, it doesn’t stiffen up once wet, I would just have to be on top of it if it did. I just moved and found my bear hide today, which has been in a Rubbermaid bin for over a year now. I was worried something may have gotten into it or slippage. It’s still in perfect condition, thank God!! Kind of ironic seeing your post today lol
Not sure, never tried wild boar. Make sure all fat and grease are removed, if the skin is super thick you may have to shave it down. Let me know how it goes sir.
Curious where you purchased your salt from. I am having a hard time finding industrial salt. Is this similar to pool salt? Can you give me specifications?
+mld123 123 I purchased it at a Co-op feed store. It's not pool salt. It's a fine granulated salt. The brand name on the bag is Sifto. Try going to a agricultural feed store:) Hope this helps.
Possibly, remember this is more of a cure than a tan than what you would receive from a professional tannery:) For instance, a deer has a much thicker hide than a coyote or a bear; you would have shave quite a bit of the dermis down to achieve a proper cure. (Not an actual tan from a tannery) My method is for the home “tanner” who wants to preserve an animal hide without relying on ingredients that are difficult to obtain. Now, by no means is my quick and dirty method not a good method of preserving a hide for years to come. Using my method, you will have to ensure the humidity level is quite low and temperatures and insects are at an absolute minimum:) Then yes, this method is a great cheap alternative to an actual commercial tan! I have had zero issues with this method with bear and coyote. I haven’t tried a deer as of yet though. I have a couple hides in the freezer waiting for me to stop procrastinating;) More like waiting to purchase a shaver for hides! I wouldn’t attempt a deer without a good method of shaving down the dermis quite a bit so the pickling would work. I could be wrong, but that’s where I would start with my preserving method.
@@SaskHunting In fact, this process is a tanning method. I have a book that mencioned Clayton, who is a tan researcher and afirms that fatty acids acts on the protein of the skin. My book has 30 years, so the researcher has some years too. Im from Argentina so Im unable to find too much information. Maybe you can find a book o something like that writed by Clayton. Regards!!
Yes, he's got a father, but you can't never find him these days. He used to lay drunk with the hogs in the tanyard, but he ain't been seen in these parts for a year or more.
After years of learning a lot of stuff from UA-cam, this is the first time I actually have ever posted a message. I just wanted to thank you for your video tutorial, I followed your instructions down to the dot on my black bear and it turned out great! No hair slip, great rug. This was also my very first tanning project, so once again, THANK YOU!
Very good sir:)
My son and I did a bear for our first one. Followed your instructions and it turned out great. 3 years later it still looks new. No hair loss. Thank you
Glad it worked out for you sir:)
Some people get pissed at me with this technique? As long as you don’t take it in the shower with you it should be fine!
Just want to say thanks for the tips. I spent 4 days scrapping and salting my bear hide. I'm in the pickling process right now. Will be drying the hide in a day or two and smearing on the tanning oil. I figured out the claws and head but had a little trouble with the ears and getting all the fat off the hide. Your video helped me figure out how to do the ears, thanks so much!
I recently used yer video as a tutorial towards tanning my first black bear hide, and the results were absolutely beautiful (besides all the stitching from my over-zealous moments during the fleshing, heh). It really is a tricky one, being how thin it is in many areas. Definitely was a test of perseverance, and makes most other hides feel like a cake-walk to flesh out. A couple things I did differently ; instead of softening the head, I let it dry with a prop inside it so as to look more dimensional as a rug after tanned, since I had no plans to go ahead with a head mount for it. Hopefully it holds up without cracking for awhile. Also, I put some salt on the flesh side of the ears before turning them back to the hair side, and put salt in the knuckle cavities during the softening phase. And for the softening, I made a grapeseed oil/dawn emulsion instead of using neatsfoot oil . Overall I was actually surprised at how soft this hide turned out to be in the end. Really happy about it. I just figured I'd let you know this and tell you I'm really thankful how you took the time to share yer experience so comprehensively. Cheers a billion ~
I know you said you could have just went to work and paid a taxidermist but I don't think you would have had the same appreciation as you do now by doing it yourself. Job well done! I'm sure in the future once I get my bear "just bought home in northern Maine" I'll be referencing this and previous videos over and over thank you in advance... Cant wait to get my first bear!
OMG yes, just go to work :)
I'm doing mine now & I'm at that part of breaking & softening. Even though I'm at retirement, it's eating up so much of my time. But this is something I've been wanting to try for years & experience the process. It certainly will test a persons patience & perseverance!
I appreciate what you've shared here. Thank you!
+Bill Campanelli
Thanks Bill, yes it takes awhile to flesh:)
Bill Campanelli sheep
a razor sharp knife is great to use because of less work pressure needed ,however very nice job on this one right down to skinning the paws around the pads,they tan nicely with pickling crystals and tanning oil coyotes are a pain compared to a bear
True, although the most recent coyote I fleshed was a horror;)
Very nice video. I just took another bear & have it in the freezer. Yes the cost has gotten to be high to have someone else do it. I've already had 2 done & I've given a few others away. I'd hate to throw this hide away & no one wants to spend the money to have it done. So I'm thinking about trying this, but I know it takes a lot of commitment & time.
Your video is very inspiring! Thank you!
+Bill Campanelli
Thanks Bill:) It does take some planning of time. Thankfully the salting and pickling process takes care of itself, other than refleshing the areas you miss;)
The best Video ever seen on diy Taxidermy j think every one can make it on home hust watching your video
Good stuff, end product was awesome thanks for the knowledge. ,.....cheers
Thanks for the info and great video! very detailed .. Nice job !
Thanks:)
looks like you nailed it.good job
Thanks:)
Thank you for this!
My wife and I are wanting to start making things out of the hide and furs we've been accumulating. Going to try for bear this fall. Looking for encouraging words, advice, or anything really.
ua-cam.com/video/vc7WzlnTEhA/v-deo.html
That candian accent is amazing ♡ hello from ontario ♡
Oh ya hey:)
good job there. doing a couple porcupines right now myself.
+Mark Logic
Thanks Mark, a porcupine would be cool :)
Did you end up rugging it? I'd like to see it done!
This is a good video! I've been looking for the vinegar pickle solution for a while! Thanks 😁
Thanks for the very helpful video! Do you think it is possible to leave the bear in the brine for an extended duration (2 weeks) without damage to it? I am following this process with a bear step by step right now but my neets foot oil has been delayed.
Working great so far, but how do I get the smell of vinegar out of my hide. It did not wash out. And now the hide is dry.
The residual smell dissipates after awhile. I can’t give you an exact time frame that it will smell like roses and daffodils? But, if you wear it like a house coat, you will grow hair where there wasn’t hair before!
Have you ever made a coat with the fur before? Can you please show us how?
No, but coyote underwear is next on my list!
Okokokokok
Fleshing : check
Vinegar solution :check
Baking Soda : check
Dawn bath: check
Water bath :check
Just slathered on the neet foot oil mix today. Let’s see what happens over night.
Pretty exciting 🎉
Let’s see !
Thanks !!!!
Good on ya!
Let me know how it turns out!
When you skinned the bear. Did you remove the ear cartilage or just leave it?
Removed them sir
Great Video! Question, you said you worked the head right away as it dries up quick, do you know roughly how long you waited until you started on it?
+Shaina Fersch
Hi Shaina, I believe it was after a day or so, depending what humidity level is and if you are using a fan as well.
Cool, great work on that bear tanning.
Thank you sir
Hi, how's the fur holding so far? Thanks.
TANNING A BEAR (6 YEARS LATER)
ua-cam.com/video/6T8S2GpSTyU/v-deo.html
Spot on.
What is the recipe? White vinegar is more easier to obtain than waiting for alum to get delivered in the mail, (I'm female btw 😊) playing with dead things comes natural. I really enjoy your video! I agree going natural for tanning by whats there but sooaking hides with greens to derive tannin from would rather be a pain.
The recipe should be in the tanning a bear video. I verbally stumble my way through the recipe.
please making more of these videos i.e. skinning etc... ! this was super awesome!
definitely think the arms would be nice on leather bracelets
Now that 5 years has passed, would you do anything different now to the hide process. Great vid. Go gainer
TANNING A BEAR UPDATE 6 YEARS LATER
ua-cam.com/video/6T8S2GpSTyU/v-deo.html
I also noticed a foot pumice stone worked wonders on sofening up a hide much like it does for your feet left a nice felt like feel to the hide.
Years later, has it held up well? Thanks
Yes sir, spot on:)
@@SaskHunting Excellent
Looks great, taxidermist want over $1000. How much did that bear weigh? Thanks.
Not entirely sure? It was a fairly small bear; probably a little over 200 if I was lucky lol
It was a little over 5 feet in length 5’4” I believe? Can’t remember what I said in the vid?
The taxidermist will want to know the length for pricing.
By no means, is this better than a professional tannery!
The taxidermist more than likely sends the hide off to a tannery to get it tanned, then the tannery sends it back to the taxidermist to prepare it.
This is a basic method of preserving the hide; all of my animals have stood the test of time, yes. But, if you get it overly wet and don’t dry it out properly, you will probably run into problems! If you store it in a humid environment and allow insects or mold to grow on it, there will be problems;)
This will be the same thing for a properly tanned hide as well;)
My advice would be, try something! Anything?
What the hell! Giver a go;)
So you used vinegar, water, and salt no alum to set the hair? Hmm interesting. I found the use of neats foot oil with warm water and a teaspoon of dawn mixed well, forgot soaps super power over oils & fats. I have a bear skin in deep freeze i need to do something with after the snows gone learning up on tricks & techniques, the bear is skinned skull out but the paws are intact your skin turned out very well done!! Very pretty white leather too & I can tell its going to be a choir to do!! Love your video!!!
No alum sir, there is a lot better tanning recipes out there!
I wanted to achieve a basic “tan” preservation without all the chemicals. When the shit hits the fan, the average joe is not going to be able to come up with the professional tanning chemicals! Period.
@@SaskHunting I have a greasy coyote hide with a bullet wound to the nose, the critter survived the sht & healed but it looks like it narrowly dodged a arrow at a angle, the bear is the same size as in your video both shot by boyfriends youngest son. I used to raise rabbits & tan them up making use of them than just raise them for just meat.
Follow the tanning recipe for the bear video and the coyote tan. If you properly flesh, you will nail it! You can do this!
@@SaskHunting how ling did the bear take in the vingar/salt bath a safe estimate to jot diwn for my notes. 😉
I can’t remember exactly, probably mentioned in the video, but I would say 5 days.
is the neatsfoot oil the preservative? What exactly is the preservative compound in these steps that keeps it from rotting?
Vinegar
do you use 100% pure neatsfoot oil or neatsfoot oil compound (with other chemicals added to it?)
please tell us how to make it into a coat always wanted to know
I braintan deer hides very frequently and I also use an emulsified oil solution that I tan with. Then I break the hide and it comes back about a 1/4" thick. I then smoke the hide so it will stay soft. I wonder if one could do a LOW TEMPERATURE smoke and it would keep it soft... Thoughts?
Just one question, how long do you leave the salt on the hide before you scrape it off and start the second step off pickling?
+Tyler Rose
Hi Tyler, sorry about that, I failed to mention how long I left the salt on! Lol! I left the salt on 24 hours for each salting and fleshed again between saltings:)
Great fur we make military hats out of them in Europe
Let the hide dry again and use a wire wheel to help clean off the rest of the flesh and anything else off. Be carefully not to get too close to the side as it catches on the wheel, you can sand too with tools.
Will this method work for a Fox and maybe a Boar? Also, what can i use instead of neets-foot oil? It's not available where i live. Could lard or vegetable oil do the trick?
It would be good for fox, not sure with boar?
I haven’t used anything other than neets foot. Give it a shot, let me know how it works:)
Can you make a coat with bear hide? I can't really find anything about it just buffalo hides
The hide is really thin so it dries out and rips easily
i know u made this video a long time ago but can u make a new video about skinning a whole bear just like u did here with claws and everything
For how long has to be in salt
Great video I am going to try it out on my own bear. One question you said 24 ounces of baking soda and water was the 24 ounces of baking soda to the 50 Liters of water? Thank you @saskhunting
why do you pickle the hide?
To draw the moisture out of the hide
Good video , Thanks
Thank you sir
Im looking to go black bear hunting this month. What was the process like for the feet? Id love to keep the paws like that.
Sorry for the late response sir, hopefully your hunt was successful. Scalpel type blade and deboned until the first knuckle containing the claw.
Would you by any chance know how much black bear paw ashtrays would sell for? They are real and in very good shape, thanks.
Ben tuzladim Civiyle çaktım güneşte kuruttum .Ama alt tarafı çok sert oldu yumuşak olması için ne yapmam lazım 🙏🤗🤗❓🤗 ❓ suyun içine ne attiginizi soyleyebilirmisiniz
How’s the pelt holding up?
TANNING A BEAR UPDATE 6 YEARS LATER
ua-cam.com/video/6T8S2GpSTyU/v-deo.html
Thank you I want to ask if I can use citric acid with water and salt in first solution and same time lifted???
Did it turn out OK ? I killed my first bear this fall and thinking about training in my self
Still in great condition, humidity is what kills fur.
Sweet I’m going to do it the same way you did then. You watch it at @theunsuccessfulhunters me and a few buddy’s have started making videos
Awesome video. I'm going to follow your lead. Did it work out?
How did you stretch the hide?
How to keep the bear fur stay.is there way to prevent fur fall off?
get a wire wheel put it on a drill works well for fleshing
+Owen Bonnell
Hi Owen, I've heard that works pretty good, will have to try it some time:)
Hey, thanks for the video, its inspired me to do my own! I'm going to take on fleashing and tanning my own bear, and its a big one! Actually I just found out it ranked 2nd for the Henery Kelsey records for 2019!
Anyway just curious how yours is holding up?
Is there anything you would do differently?
Also how come you never put yours in a rack to stretch it?
Thanks for in advance for your time!
Congrats sir!
Sorry for the late reply...
Being a trophy bear, you may want to consider getting it professionally done?
BUT, if you are like me and you don’t have the money currently available, you may want to freeze it? Or, if you’re are like me and you end up freezing it for a year or two and 2 grand hasn’t magically appeared in your bank?
Then yes, this may be an option for you;)
This is a preservation of a hide.
My hide is as good as the day I tanned it
“Preserved” it. Proper and thorough fleshing, humidity and insects are the most important thing to consider in preserving these hides.
@@SaskHunting Yes, we are in the same boat! And I'm big on DIY, Mine is in the freezer now so its good for a bit! I think the end game will be too make it a wearable carpet....you know, so its good for a scare at Halloween or other times! Lol anyway tanning is the next step!
Thanks again for the information!
Regarding your first post...if I had to do something differently....I would invest in a fleshing machine. I think a person has to experience a fleshing by hand numerous times to appreciate the difference in pelts. The next time I do it by hand, an ulu fleshing knife is a must! A sharp one!
You have to get ALL of the fat off the hide until you see blue!! Must!!
I think if a person invested in a proper fleshing machine, the sky is the limit.
I do not want to flesh my next bear the first way I did it!
@@SaskHunting that was one thing I've been thinking about. I might be able to borrow one!
@@SaskHunting i know this may sound stupid but pick up your self a well made flint or obsidain knife. I have found for fleshing a hide nothing compares to it also for some reason it seems difficult to really nick or cut the hide. Its hard ti describe really all i know is for me i could flesh out a hide faster with a knapped blade then i could a sharp steel blade and also have no nicks in the hide.
bottles full water great way hold down. wish thought that.
Rocks also work great or bricks
awesome job. I've watched it through twice. Can you tell me the name of the oil you used?
+Armand Christian
Thank you Sir, Neats Foot Oil
Thank you sir!!
Regular neats foot oil or double boiled neats foot oil?
great job,your bear turned out great.
+Wallace Vivian
Thanks Wallace, all signs are pointing to a good hide:)
How is the bear hide holding up? Wanting to start mine this winter.
Very well sir, I posted a video a few months back as an update regarding its integrity.
@@SaskHunting thank you!
How much vinegar and salt that I used for one sheep leather related to water??
Been wanting to snag me a bear and take its pelt… along with the meat of course but recently watched true grit and loved the scene where that guy has the bear mask on his head, hoping I can do something like this
Really enjoyed your video. It has been a year now how has it held up? Have you had any hair slippage?
+Pam C
No slippage Pam. The bear looks good:)
Questions on the fleshing.. Did you do the fleshing in one go (day) or did you do it over multiple days? Other question is can you do fleshing over multiple days and how would you store it between fleshings? Thank you in advance. Going to give this a shot this fall if I get lucky
+sam chanek
Multiple days of fleshing; before each salting and after pickling if needed. You want to get as much of the fat off as possible.
Happy fleshing;)
Thank you so much for the response. Very helpful ..Thanks again
Does this work for shoulder mounts?
How long did you salt the pelt at the beginning?
if i only use salt, is it still gonna do a good work? i just want to put it on my wall in the garage.
+benney boy
I have never tried just salt, I think it would start to go rather quickly. Even a hide properly tanned would start to go in a garage that's susceptible to heat and humidity. Insects and critters would have a hay day with it I'm guessing. If you end up trying it with just salt, let me know how it holds up:)
alright thanks!
Hey there! I’m about to start tanning my first bear hide and I’m going to use your video... however... it’s Covid 19. I can’t find Neats foot oil anywhere near me and can’t order it online in time. However I have a giant tub of mink oil. Would that work?
Give it a shot;) as long as it emulsified with the dawn it should be ok?
I have a bear hide that has been sitting unfleshed and slightly salted for two and a half days in 50-65 degree weather. is it too late to salvage?
+Casey Fenton
Smell it:) if it smells like it's turning you may get hair slippage in areas. I would flesh and salt it asap. It still could be salvaged.
Thinner?? That's crazy man. My bears hide was so thick I could hack chunks off without going through. Coyotes has been way thinner for me.
How about an update video? Would love to See how its holding up. I am about to take on a bear hide in the coming week. ALSO, It would be great if you explained, in the writen description, what each step is actually doing for the process. For example, the neets foot oil. What exactly is that for? Also, Do you test the pickle and tanning solutions for pH?
Will do sir, maybe tonight;)
awesome video man! hows it holding up so far??
+James Richter
Good Sir, no problems.
Is it possible to retan a hide?
How did this work out?
Good, no slippage. Looks great.
"Hey Sask Hunting, did this work out?"
I just salted a skin and it is drying in my basement now. Do you recommend this process for long term preservation?
Also, I did not flesh out the ears, I thought they would be okay without removing any material. Thoughts?
The hide is doing really well sir. You will need to turn the eyes, lips, nose and split the ears and remove as much flesh as possible. Then salt all the above before you pickle.
There are some people who feel that this method isn’t good for long term, everybody is allowed to have there opinion :) personally if you properly flesh and keep your hide in a place with relatively low humidity you will be fine.
. Just wondering how well ur bear is holding up now..May 2019
Still very good:)
We're did you get the info on the tanning the bear as I have books on tanning but none talk about bear. I can tan coon and other animals,I have one in my freezer.
My grandfather must be done it in a wrong way, as the BEAR SKIN RUG at his summer house quite rough, and not as soft as I wish it to be. I am using it as my hummock cover now. Watch my video " 🔴 SLEEPING ON BEAR SKIN RUG 👀 🔴 " and see for yourself.
Can you do more than one hide at a time I have a bunch of bear and coyote hides and it would be easier to just through them all in a 50 gallon bucket and do them all at once
Yes you can, just make sure not to over pack the barrel with hides as this will raise the ph.
And here I m hoping my husband will help me with my first bear 😂
Is dawn any kind of soap??? thanks for sharing
Keller Gibson dawn is a dish soap, good for breaking down oils
Dawn is a fantastic degreaser probably the best I use it for degreasing duck skins and you know how fat they are
any kind of "Dawn brand" dish soap will work fine. Just depends of your choice of scents lol
do you check PH during the pickling?
So how did the bear tan turn out? In your video, you said we should ask you after 1 year!
Very good, still holding up great!
You 100 million percent shouldve beamed this. Its bonkers that you didnt lol. Bears dont cut holes easily, because of their fatty grease your knife will glide through it like butter, fleshing bears is my fave.
Woww ! That's a great video ! Congrats ! I'm learning to tan small games likes rabbits/squirrels/groundhogs..
I'm now working on a cowhide. Can I use the same process ? Any tips ? Is there anything I can replace the neatsfool oil with, since I can't have it where I'm from :/
+Abbass Badat
You can purchase the neats foot oil online perhaps. Cow hide is quite a bit thicker; you would need to shave it down quite a bit more than bear as bear hide is very thin. Plus you would need to change the pickle after 3 days as the ph would raised too much. I'm assuming you are keeping it hair on?
You only apply the oil one time?
+Michael Brigman
Yes Michael, only one liberal coating, as an additional coating will leave it too oily:)
@sask, 3 years later, how's the hide held up?
So far, so good sir
I'm really curious. How to you keep the ph where it should be ? Also. I noticed you don't stretch it @ any point. And, do you split your yotes like you did your bear ?
More of a preservation than a modern day chemical tan from a tannery. This will last a long time in your house under controlled conditions.
I break it over a fleshing beam and with my hands
great video
+Owen Bonnell
Thanks Owen:)
This dude.
how much baking soda? i see 50 liters of water,
salt lol not baking soda
Question how long did the hide take to start hardening? I am tanning a bear but the weather has been cool highs in the 50s lows in the 30s I have the bear hanging to dry after tanning, I have no hair slipping but the hide is very flexible. I have been expecting it to start to harden, it has been 2 days since I applied the tan. Any thoughts?
Humidity has been high in the 50-80% range
Try putting a fan and a small heater on it.
Well done. Just curious, did you ever try brain tanning? I've just finished a bear and it turned out great would like to combine some of your methods though looks great.
No sir, that’s the way to go I’m thinking.
I was trying to “tan” with readily available items. I was trying to avoid kits that I had no idea how to replicate. Along the way I realized my method and brain tanning would essentially be similar processes.
Unlike the tanning today.
Yes it preserves the hid, assuming you have removed all of the flesh and fat. But, if the hide or finished product encounters water and or insects, you would have to be on top of this. Also, general humidity is a major issue.
Our method is or from what I have experienced is generally good if you are very attentive to the conditions. Whereas a tan from tanneries can withstand these conditions such as water and humidity considerably better.
@@SaskHunting with brain tanning I would smoke the hide after the brain solution soaks in and softens it. The smoking helps prevent the hide from turning stiff after it gets wet.
I agree sir, it doesn’t stiffen up once wet, I would just have to be on top of it if it did. I just moved and found my bear hide today, which has been in a Rubbermaid bin for over a year now.
I was worried something may have gotten into it or slippage.
It’s still in perfect condition, thank God!!
Kind of ironic seeing your post today lol
can we apply same method for wild boar?
Not sure, never tried wild boar.
Make sure all fat and grease are removed, if the skin is super thick you may have to shave it down.
Let me know how it goes sir.
@@SaskHunting thanks for reply, i will let you know the result. next week most probably i will get a skin
Curious where you purchased your salt from. I am having a hard time finding industrial salt. Is this similar to pool salt? Can you give me specifications?
+mld123 123
I purchased it at a Co-op feed store. It's not pool salt. It's a fine granulated salt. The brand name on the bag is Sifto. Try going to a agricultural feed store:)
Hope this helps.
+Sask Hunting
So just a non-iodized salt?
+mld123 123
Yes Sir, get a couple big bags. I went through 1 1/4 20kg bags after everything.
68cents grocery store..
True sir, but 7 bucks for a 20kg bag; you can’t beat that:)
thank you for video
Could this process work for any type of big game hide??
Possibly, remember this is more of a cure than a tan than what you would receive from a professional tannery:)
For instance, a deer has a much thicker hide than a coyote or a bear; you would have shave quite a bit of the dermis down to achieve a proper cure. (Not an actual tan from a tannery)
My method is for the home “tanner” who wants to preserve an animal hide without relying on ingredients that are difficult to obtain.
Now, by no means is my quick and dirty method not a good method of preserving a hide for years to come. Using my method, you will have to ensure the humidity level is quite low and temperatures and insects are at an absolute minimum:)
Then yes, this method is a great cheap alternative to an actual commercial tan!
I have had zero issues with this method with bear and coyote. I haven’t tried a deer as of yet though.
I have a couple hides in the freezer waiting for me to stop procrastinating;)
More like waiting to purchase a shaver for hides!
I wouldn’t attempt a deer without a good method of shaving down the dermis quite a bit so the pickling would work.
I could be wrong, but that’s where I would start with my preserving method.
@@SaskHunting In fact, this process is a tanning method. I have a book that mencioned Clayton, who is a tan researcher and afirms that fatty acids acts on the protein of the skin. My book has 30 years, so the researcher has some years too. Im from Argentina so Im unable to find too much information. Maybe you can find a book o something like that writed by Clayton. Regards!!
Can you use the pickle over and over
No sir, the salt content and ph would be diluted.
Did you check the ph of the solution?
Where r u from
Yes, he's got a father, but you can't never find him these days. He used to lay drunk with the hogs in the tanyard, but he ain't been seen in these parts for a year or more.