Tanning his first hide - just a child with big dreams

**treeman** · 10-06-2019, 00:15

Originally Posted by Theunsb

A boy/man for the outdoors.

Well done Cody. One day I will meet you hopefully in person and your dad.
The years have flown since your first .22 and your old man is still teaching you, means you are a good student.
Keep it up.

......You gave me a .22 for Cody, I wanted to keep it for ever. Little point of interest, it took 4 years about, but we shot it to pieces, I mean to fkn pieces, there was no moving part that functioned to speck. The last time we shot it it needed hand help to line up and some times a second hammer fall to shoot. It threw lead left and right every shot, it was klaar - finito mate, we enjoyed it into the eye ear protection and bite bottom lip stage,

**DaavG** · 10-06-2019, 09:13

Treeman, can you take me through the tanning process?

**Toxxyc** · 10-06-2019, 09:32

Originally Posted by treeman

.....
same - a striped field mouse

Very similar to your son then. He's holding a field-stripped rat.

**treeman** · 10-06-2019, 09:43

Method is very basic and it seems only works on thin hides ( though they use it on seal and otter hides). The skin is cleaned of any flesh etc and packed in salt, clean shake off, roll work hide a little bit, repack a few times till biltong affect takes place. Then the hide side is painted with alcohol allowed to dry, painted wet again and allowed to dry, once twice a day till you see its dried out, roll work hide a little bit paint hide again allow to dry. Then mix some mineral turps with alcohol paint on hide side, repeat 2/3 times, I had a kudu ball bag that Cody wanted - it took days of drying and many coats of alcohol - thicker skin I guess. Always scrunching hide a few times. Salt dries it fast but not entirely, the alcohol takes water with it when evaporating and the turps softens preserves hide.
I have never done anything bigger than rabbit, learnt the method from fly fishing guys that tie their own flies. The fly tying folk do not drive past road kill, its all potential fly tie material. The skin becomes very thin and like parchment.

**treeman** · 10-06-2019, 10:54

Originally Posted by Toxxyc

Very similar to your son then. He's holding a field-stripped rat.

...
thought it was just a Normal Grey Rat (Black Rat by name), never heard of a Field Stripped Rat

**Toxxyc** · 10-06-2019, 11:14

Originally Posted by treeman

...
thought it was just a Normal Grey Rat (Black Rat by name), never heard of a Field Stripped Rat

I made a joke. Like how you field strip a gun by taking it apart, taking apart the rat he "field stripped" it into it's parts, and he's holding the hide

But the joke is gone now that I had to explain it... :(

**DaavG** · 10-06-2019, 12:25

Originally Posted by treeman

Method is very basic and it seems only works on thin hides ( though they use it on seal and otter hides). The skin is cleaned of any flesh etc and packed in salt, clean shake off, roll work hide a little bit, repack a few times till biltong affect takes place. Then the hide side is painted with alcohol allowed to dry, painted wet again and allowed to dry, once twice a day till you see its dried out, roll work hide a little bit paint hide again allow to dry. Then mix some mineral turps with alcohol paint on hide side, repeat 2/3 times, I had a kudu ball bag that Cody wanted - it took days of drying and many coats of alcohol - thicker skin I guess. Always scrunching hide a few times. Salt dries it fast but not entirely, the alcohol takes water with it when evaporating and the turps softens preserves hide.
I have never done anything bigger than rabbit, learnt the method from fly fishing guys that tie their own flies. The fly tying folk do not drive past road kill, its all potential fly tie material. The skin becomes very thin and like parchment.

Thank you.

**treeman** · 10-06-2019, 12:55

Originally Posted by Toxxyc

I made a joke. Like how you field strip a gun by taking it apart, taking apart the rat he "field stripped" it into it's parts, and he's holding the hide

But the joke is gone now that I had to explain it... :(

...........
You way too complex for me

**Theunsb** · 10-06-2019, 19:00

Originally Posted by treeman

......You gave me a .22 for Cody, I wanted to keep it for ever. Little point of interest, it took 4 years about, but we shot it to pieces, I mean to fkn pieces, there was no moving part that functioned to speck. The last time we shot it it needed hand help to line up and some times a second hammer fall to shoot. It threw lead left and right every shot, it was klaar - finito mate, we enjoyed it into the eye ear protection and bite bottom lip stage,

At least you can say it was never a safe queen. It was for Cody (and you) to enjoy and I am glad it was used as it was designed for.

Shooting a .22 moertoe takes a lot of shooting.

**treeman** · 10-06-2019, 19:22

Originally Posted by Theunsb

At least you can say it was never a safe queen. It was for Cody (and you) to enjoy and I am glad it was used as it was designed for.

Shooting a .22 moertoe takes a lot of shooting.

.............
Gert - the barrel was likely fine, I said moving parts. The cylinder did not line up and you had to give it a turn clock wise by hand and some times the hammer changed its mind on the way down and landed gently.The trigger started jamming and sometimes the cylinder had to be wiggled to get trigger working. Those Ruby's were never known as top grade Q/C and the case hardening was maybe maybe not existent. Its hard to guess how many rounds, but not that many in our ownership - about 200 some days on the farm but never less than that for a week end. Between the rifle and the Ruby we shot out more than 8000 rounds, I bought 6000 s/velocity and 6000 h/velocity + a shoe box of mixed .22 that a man in the service gave me. I do not know if thats a lot or not in .22 revolver terms, and it was 50/60 years old.