Tanning Deerhide?

[captezdough]

Hey all,

This is my first post, so pardon my ignorance and lack of education. Im trying to learn. I am really interested in leather working and would like to start out by using deer hide that I harvest this bow season. In the past I have always tossed away the hide unfortunately. At this point I have yet too learn much about leather crafting, and I am focusing on tanning for this '09 season. Got to have leather to work with right! lol..I have learned about the tanning process through a pdf file and some youtube, but I am looking for a little more info. Does anyone know of a good book or website devoted to this? Also, what can I expect to use this hide for? Are there special ways to tan for different results (ie holsters/quivers vs. wallets/sandals). Any specific info on deer hide would be appreciated or any tricks to tanning. Thanks for your help!

Elliott

[Jim]

Elliot,

I have used Alum to tan deer hides since I was a kid with great results. I tanned my first Brain Tanned hide after reading John McPherson's book entitled Brain Tan Buckskin.

You can brain tan a hide, then stretch it, and leave to dry to get brain tanned rawhide for quivers and such. The only difference between brain tanned leather and brain tanned rawhide is that the leather has gone through a "softening" process by hand.

Click here to see some of McPherson's publications.

www.grannysstore.com/.../John_McPherson_Prairie_Wolf.htm

Hope this helps,

Jim

[captezdough]

Jim,

Thanks for the help. Exactly what I was asking for. I would like to brain tan, but it sounded like a pita and I might be over my head with it the first time. So I thought I would go the chemical route. Would you agree, or should I just dive into the brain tan? Can you freeze the brain? I assume so...? Thanks for the readin material as well. By the way, what have you made that has worked well with deerhide? Any good starter projects?

[captezdough]

I forgot to ask, have you ever died the deerhide a darker color. Like black?...thanks again