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Framed beef rawhide
gifford:
Yep, I'm in the 'use it up, wear it out, make do' school of thought.
BowEd:
Well I got my brains and will continue the progress of brain tanning this beef hide.Taking some pictures along the way.I'll wait for some suitable weather to stake this hide dry.Right now it's hotter than blazes.Not the most ideal conditions.It'll dry too fast for me to keep up with.
Up till now as a green hide I've fleshed it on the beam/laced it into a frame to dry/dehaired it dry scraping and sanding/cut it out of frame/resoaked it/cleaned it up better on the flesh side on the beam/cut new lace holes & relaced it into the frame to dry/thinned it scraping with my disk blade scraper and resanded it with palm sander and 40 grit paper.Here are the steps.
Currently it was brained both sides with very hot brain solution onto dried rawhide by using a large paint brush/left to bake in the sun a half hour each side while massaging in brain solution.It was around 110 degrees F. in the sun.About 85 degrees F. in the shade.
My solution for ambitious little doggies.
On a tarp on the ground while I baby sat it.
Reintroduced into brain slurry in a plastic cattle mineral tub I had while solution was warm but not blazing hot.
Left to set soaking overnight.
Next day twisted many ways/multiple times and redunked into brain slurry many times.This helps to break the fibers up and drive the brain oils through the hide.
Relaced into frame.
Retightened and set up on edge.
Staked,prodded, and stretched for about an hour hair side.Thanks to Robin for taking the picture.It stretched pretty good.Some promise there.Focused a lot on the spine/hip/and neck areas.
Folded and put into black plastic bag while wet yet and refroze into freezer along with brain slurry in bucket.
I'm of the opinion freezing and the ice chrystals formed can help stress the fibers to be stretched farther.Some say it is better done freezing it while stretched onto frame in the winter time.It's all about getting it properly brained.I'll let it get hard as a rock in the freezer.
I did throw a capfull of downy fabric softener into brain slurry too like Robert Badine uses for good luck.....ha ha.
As said earlier I'll wait for more suitable weather to stake it dry and see if I got it properly brained.It still is thicker than I'd like.It is a challenge for sure.
Digital Caveman:
Is this about how buffalo hides would have been done? That photo of you standing net to the hide makes it look very large. What do you plan to do with it?
BowEd:
The hair on buffalo I did I just massaged the brains into the flesh side after fleshing and drying in the frame.Let partially dry for a couple of hours.Then layed a wet blanket onto the flesh side to completely rehydrate it.Then roped them dry on the flesh side.
With the epidermis on the hair side yet a hair on hide needs to be scuffed,pulled or stretched and abraided across the rope to break up that epidermis on the hair side.Doing it in a frame does not do that.Your hide may be pliable doing it in the frame but card boardy like and stiff yet.Doing it on the rope by hand makes it robe like and very pliable.
This beef hide has the epidermis removed so it can be done in the frame.
The hide as of now is close to 35 sq.ft.I'm 6'3" tall.Softening it in the frame will actually make it larger than it was as rawhide,and will become thinner overall if done in frame till dry.I'm counting on that.
Roping hides dry will get hides finished that are slightly or around 25% smaller than they were as rawhide and a bit thicker than too.All because it is'nt being stretched as much as in the frame.Regardless if it is brained properly either way will produce velvety soft leather.
"Ai'nt nothing like brain tanned leather".
I've made about everything under the sun out of brain tanned leather and multiple times.With this beef hide I have plans to make another pair of full length pants and then some.As I'm sure Ill have plenty left over yet.Some really thick moccasins come to mind also even though I have 2 pair already.A hard soled and a soft soled pair.I usually don't have any problems thinking of things to make out of this stuff.Maybe a nice beaded vest.
I try not to put the cart before the horse here yet.It has to be suitable brain tan.I'm not there yet.A happy day will be when I'm satisfied and it's getting smoked.
JW_Halverson:
I got to thinking about Joe Brandl at Absoroka Tannery in Dubois. He is set up to do large hides with the hair on as he does lots of bison.
You are gonna have a nice hide when you are done, Ed. Gotta say, you don't get scared off a big job easy, do ya?
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