Can anyone give me some pointers (or even a good step-by-step) on tanning rabbit hides?
I usually kill a dozen or so every summer, they really wreak havoc on my vegetable garden. Just got two more tonight. We usually stew up the meat but I hate having the furs go to waste.
Most of the instructionals I find online involve buying 12oz of "XXXXX tanning solution" or some other kit and using that, I'm really looking for more of an old-school method. I mean, people have been doing this for thousands of years right? Why do I need some $30 kit?
I tried one earlier this spring but it didn't turn out so well. I don't recall the exact procedure but it involved coating the fleshy side of the hide with a mixture of salt and ash, leaving in a baggie in the fridge for several weeks, then a soak for several days in a diluted battery acid solution. The fur stayed intact and very fluffy, smelled fine (like a clean dog), but the hide itself wasn't supple at all, very crinkly like wax paper. I tried wetting and stretching it several times, just didn't seem to make much difference.
I have a half-dozen or so rabbit hides in the freezer right now so I can experiment a bit. Anyone have any pointers? Procedures they have used that work well? I promised my kids little snugglies made from the bunnies we shot . . .
I usually kill a dozen or so every summer, they really wreak havoc on my vegetable garden. Just got two more tonight. We usually stew up the meat but I hate having the furs go to waste.
Most of the instructionals I find online involve buying 12oz of "XXXXX tanning solution" or some other kit and using that, I'm really looking for more of an old-school method. I mean, people have been doing this for thousands of years right? Why do I need some $30 kit?
I tried one earlier this spring but it didn't turn out so well. I don't recall the exact procedure but it involved coating the fleshy side of the hide with a mixture of salt and ash, leaving in a baggie in the fridge for several weeks, then a soak for several days in a diluted battery acid solution. The fur stayed intact and very fluffy, smelled fine (like a clean dog), but the hide itself wasn't supple at all, very crinkly like wax paper. I tried wetting and stretching it several times, just didn't seem to make much difference.
I have a half-dozen or so rabbit hides in the freezer right now so I can experiment a bit. Anyone have any pointers? Procedures they have used that work well? I promised my kids little snugglies made from the bunnies we shot . . .