How to "finish" tan a kudu hide?

[BillinOregon]

Folks, I have a hair-off kudu hide that was processed by Martin Beyer's shop in Namibia and shipped over along with my other hides and horns after a hunting trip in 2007. The skin seems to be more than rawhide, but certainly isn't tanned to any useful degree. I can't recall what process Beyer's shop uses, and was wondering if anyone here has had hides similarly processed in Africa, and if so, what additional tanning was needed here in the States to make the hide into useful leather. Any advice on who to send it to for finishing would be most appreciated, with emphasis on West Coast tanneries. Vegetable/oak tan would be the peaches, of course.

Many thanks.

[Ian]

Can't offer much in regard to your question, but I have seen tanneries online (just didn't save the link) that tan game hides for hunters. I'm no tanning expert, but I don't believe a hide can be veg tanned after another process, however veg tan can be retanned with chrome. I'm not even sure whether hair on hides are ever veg tanned - someone correct me if I'm wrong.It is possible that if your hide is stiff like rawhide it was just stretched, fleshed and dried without any chemical tanning process

Ah, just found this place

http://www.specialtyleather.com/

Edited January 22, 2009 by Ian

[jbird]

You are right about the rawhide it's not tanned.

Josh