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smoked deer hide w/ tipi

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El Destructo:
You get a nice Bed of Coals going....then you put either wet Wood...or Punky Rotten Wood and wet Leaves on the Coals....and just let them Smolder....making Lots of Smoke....not any heat.....you should be able to put your Hand in the Smoke right above it....and not get Burned....you put Heat to the Hide....and you are making Doggy Chews out of it

billy:
hey brownhillboy,

I've tanned many deer skins.  First off, brain or egg tanning deer skins with the hair on can be done, but it increases the amount of work you have to do at least 4-fold.  The grain (epidermis) of the skin is usually removed in the tanning process.  If you don't remove it, it tends to form a stiff crust that will lock up, prevent the underlying fibers from stretching and resulting in stiff, rawhide-like skin.  I've never tried tanning a deerskin with the hair on, what I'm relaying is just what I've read. 

And yes, you need to pull, stretch, and work that skin until it's totally dry.  I've softened deerskins that have taken 8 hours till they were dry.  I softened an elk skin that took 9 hours.  It's the most physical and testing part of the entire tanning process, but that is what makes them buttery soft.   

I use the wet-scrape method that I read in  Deerskins into Buckskins by MAtt Richards.  It's a great book and results in excellent quality buckskin.  If your skin isn't soft to your satisfaction you can re-brain (or re-egg it), and then stretched till dry, but usually it must be done several times.     

JackCrafty:
I don't think smoking a hide makes it softer.  I've heard that it makes the hide soak up the brain (or egg) better (after it has been smoked).

I know for sure that smoking will keep the bugs off it, though ;D

ricktrojanowski:
I don't know anything about smoking hides so I can't comment on that.  But that looks like a nice way to spend some time with the family. ;D

El Destructo:
             Oh....I don't know about the Smoking not making the Hide Softer.....Look what it does to Peoples Brains!!!!!!!

                                                      Seems to do a Good Job Tenderizing Them!!!

                                                              Not that I even Smoked any Rope

                                                                         Just Read About It
                                                     
                                                                                     >:D

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