home Credit Primary processing of cattle skins at home. Proper dressing of fox skins at home

Primary processing of cattle skins at home. Proper dressing of fox skins at home

Igor Nikolaev

Reading time: 5 minutes

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How to tan sheep skin at home and at the same time maintain its quality and presentation? Basically, sheep are kept for the sake of obtaining meat and wool from them, and many owners simply throw the skins into a landfill. And more often than not, it’s not at all a matter of mismanagement or lack of demand for this material.

It’s just that few people know how to make it correctly.

Many novice farmers immediately give up this activity after the first unsuccessful attempts. But this, although not the main, but not at all an extra source of additional income, and processing sheep skin yourself, although not easy, is quite possible. You just need to know the technology of this process and follow it exactly.

It should be made in several stages. This sequence must be strictly followed. These are the stages of the process:

soaking (aging);

fleshing;

wash;

pickling;

tanning;

fatliquoring;

drying.

The main thing to remember is that processing must begin as soon as possible after removal, or all further efforts will be a waste of time and the material will lose all its presentation and will only be suitable for a landfill. Next, let's look at all stages of this technological process and analyze in detail the actions required at each of them.

After removing the skin from a killed animal, first of all it must be carefully examined.

If there are residues of fat, pieces of meat or tendons on the inner surface, they should be carefully scraped off with a knife. Then the wool needs to be cleaned of excess debris, since for the first stage of processing it is important that the sheepskin is clean. After completing the above steps, the workpiece is folded in half and placed in a cool place for two hours.

An important point is that freshly skinned skins should not be dried or frozen.

Stages of the manufacturing process

To perform work at this stage, a large container is needed. This is due to the rather large size of these animals, and the removed sheepskin must be completely immersed in a saline solution. To prepare this solution, you need to take:

table salt;

formalin or furatsilin;

acetic acid.

Next, we follow the following proportions: dissolve 0.1 milliliter of formalin or two tablets of furatsilin for every one liter of water. Salt is added to this solution in an amount from 30 to 50 grams at the discretion of the owner. As an antiseptic, it is recommended to add acetic acid to the solution in the amount of five grams per liter of water.

More experienced furriers use additives such as a decoction of willow, birch or oak leaves, based on proportions of no more than 500 grams for every ten liters of water.

It is necessary to soak and keep the material in such a solution for at least twelve hours. If the skin does not soften during this time, the entire procedure will have to be repeated again. How do you understand that the first stage is completed and you can proceed to the second? To do this, scrape the mezra (inner part) with your fingernail. If it gives in easily, this indicates the readiness of the raw material for the next procedure.

Flesh

The essence of this process is to remove possible fat and sebaceous residues, as well as excess layers of skin.

This process is as follows: first, the skin should be stretched either on a special kind of machine, or (if there is none) simply on a flat surface. Next, scraping begins using a specially dull knife or a special iron scraper. The sharpness of these tools is unacceptable, as in this case they can damage the material. In most cases, fleshing begins from the back, in the process reaching the head.

Wash

At the end of the fleshing procedure, the sheepskin should be washed.

For this purpose, it is immersed for five minutes in a pre-prepared cleaning solution, which includes: 20 grams of table salt and 3 grams of washing powder per liter of water.

Then the material is taken out and squeezed out, after which it is ready for the next procedure.

Pickling

The purpose of this procedure is to improve the quality of the sheepskin. After pickling, the fibers of the material soften and the sheepskin acquires better elasticity.

The solution for this process consists of acid, table salt and water. The acid can be used either acetic acid or formic acid.

The proportional composition of the pickling solution is as follows: add 15 grams of acetic acid or 5 grams of formic acid and 50 grams of table salt per liter of water.

As in the first stage of processing, the material is kept for approximately 12 hours. You can check whether the procedure went well in this way: the material is folded in half and then squeezed. When the skin straightens, the folded area should be distinguished by a clearly visible stripe.

Tanning

Without this stage, it is simply impossible to obtain a quality product at home.

It is tanning that gives the necessary commercial strength.

Like many previous ones, this process also requires the preparation of a solution.

For it you need to take 6 grams of chrome tanning agent and 50 grams of table salt (also based on one liter of water). This solution must be hot. The material is completely immersed in it and kept for 24 hours. This procedure must be constantly monitored, since the solution should not cool. If this happens, then the solution should be heated.

Fatliquoring

The purpose of this procedure is to give the material shine. You also need to prepare a solution from the following ingredients:

The prepared composition must be applied to the inner part (inner part). Then you should fold the skins so that they are in close contact with the inner surfaces.

Preparation for dressing

The skins of fur-bearing animals are often used by hunters for sewing various fur products and making hunting trophies. In order for the product to serve for a long time and not to deteriorate from precipitation, moths and skin beetles, it must be made from high-quality tanned skins. To do this, it is best to contact the appropriate fur dressing company. Only in this case will there be a guarantee that your rare beautiful trophy or expensive fur coat will not fall apart ahead of time.

Many, of course, would do this, but the trouble is that such companies exist only in some cities, so hunters have to learn how to do the dressing themselves.
By the way, in many situations, factory dressing is generally useless; for example, for sewing a winter hat, self-processed skins will do.

At home, it will not be possible to achieve the same quality of product as at the factory, no matter how hard we try. The main task in this case is to get as close to it as possible, trying to strictly follow the rules and recommendations during the work process.

The whole process can be divided into three main stages: preparation for dressing, dressing and finishing operations.

Preparation for dressing

The skins of game animals must be removed and processed in compliance with all rules. Requirements for primary processing for each type can be found in the corresponding article in the ““ section.

When starting the initial stage, it is worth remembering that skins shrink by approximately 20% in their area during the dressing process.

It is best to start dressing skins when they have just been removed from the animal, but for obvious reasons this is almost never feasible. For the most part, processing of raw materials begins only during free time from hunting, i.e. at the end of the winter season. Until this moment, the skins, as expected, are preserved in a fresh-dry state. In this case, the primary task is to return them to their original state, close to steam, before dressing; this is achieved during the soaking process.

Soak

It is carried out in a special aqueous solution. Ingredients: pure water, per 5 liters – 250 g of salt, 3 furatsilin tablets, 2.5 g of detergent.
Approximately 8 liters of solution is taken for 1 kg of dry skins. Too small a volume leads to hair becoming frizzy, and a large volume leads to a rapid increase in the number of microorganisms. Therefore, it should be noted that for skins with short fur it is necessary to slightly reduce the volume of the solution, and for long and soft fur, on the contrary, increase it.

The skins take a long time to soak, so to prevent the growth of bacteria, salt and furatsilin are added to the water as antiseptics. The detergent is used to remove various contaminants from fur and flesh, as well as to speed up the soaking process. Any powder that does not contain biologically active additives can serve as such a surfactant.

Pour water (30-35 degrees Celsius) into a container of the required volume, add salt, add furatsilin and washing powder. The ingredients are mixed until they all dissolve and only then add the skins. During the soaking process, the raw material must be stirred, and if it was not initially processed properly or is very dry, it is worth taking it out of the solution from time to time and kneading it. Also in this case, it is advisable to replace the old solution with a new one a couple of times.

The duration of soaking in warm water is approximately one day. If required, it is extended for some more time in the newly introduced solution.

Flesh

After soaking, the skins must be additionally cleaned of any cut meat, tendons and fat. To do this, fleshing is carried out in the same way as during the initial processing from the rump to the head, while observing all the rules - avoiding cutting the hair roots, cuts and tears. This operation is necessary for all skins, including those that were previously treated with high quality, because... During fleshing, tissue is broken down, which significantly increases its permeability to substances during subsequent operations.

For skins with thick flesh, the layer of leather tissue is cut off, this is mandatory, otherwise in species such as beaver, otter, the tanned skin will turn out thick and rough, which is not acceptable.

Washing

It must be carried out even taking into account that the previous solution contained detergent. Washing is carried out with regular shampoo in warm water. For especially oily fur, it is allowed to add a special product (such as “Fairy”) to the water.

Dressing

Pickling

This is one of the most important operations during dressing. Thanks to it, the leather tissue of the skin becomes elastic, soft and durable. Its essence is as follows - as a result of the action of a solution of water and acid on the fabric, it becomes loose, which ensures that the skin subsequently acquires the above qualities.

Pickel composition: water, table salt 40-50g, acetic acid (70%) 8-10g per 1l. For the pickling process, acetic acid is most often used; it loosens the flesh well, is safer than other acids and is the easiest to buy. Hydrochloric and sulfuric acids are used much less frequently; in addition to the danger they pose to humans, they can also damage the thin skin tissue of valuable fur-bearing animals if handled improperly.

The process is recommended to be carried out at a water temperature of 30-35 degrees C for 1 day.
Sometimes they resort to accelerating pickling, increasing the acetic acid content to 20 g per 1 liter. In this case, the process is completed within 7-10 hours. Just remember that an excessive concentration of acid in the solution can lead to a significant decrease in the strength of the skin.
The end of the process will be known by the so-called “sushina”. “Drying” is a white stripe remaining after strong squeezing with fingers at the fold of the mesra.

Sequence of work: pour water into a plastic or enamel bath, dissolve salt in it, add half of the calculated mass of acid, then load the skins into it and mix everything. The second part of the acid is added after 10-12 hours, thus achieving better penetration of the acid into the skin tissue.
During the entire process, it is necessary to stir the skins in the solution from time to time.

Layover

During pickling, the main part of the acid penetrates the leather tissue for a short period of time, the rest of the time it is simply distributed throughout the tissue. In order for this process to take place fully, the skins with the “dryer” are left to sit. Its duration is 24 hours.

Breakdown and Neutralization

After curing, the skins are thoroughly wrung out and kneaded, stretching them in length and width. After this, they begin to neutralize the excess acid remaining on the leather tissue. To do this, the skins are placed for 30 minutes. in a solution consisting of water and soda. For 1 liter of water take 1 tsp. soda

Tanning

This operation is required because it consolidates the condition of the leather tissue achieved as a result of previous processes. After tanning, the skin becomes resistant to moisture, temperature and chemicals.
The most suitable substance for tanning is the so-called chromium. Depending on whether it is potassium or sodium, it is green or white.

Chrome tanning agent

Composition of the solution: water -35-40gr.C, tanning agent 4-5g and salt 50g per 1l.
Tanning duration is 7-8 hours. Readiness is determined as follows: a small piece is cut from the edge of the skin; at the cut site, the leather tissue should be completely blue (if green chromium was used).

After tanning is completed, the skins are removed from the solution and laid with the fur outward for curing, its duration is 12 hours.

After curing, the skins must be washed with shampoo or detergent without biological additives. It is also advisable to carry out a breakdown of the mezdra.

Fatliquoring and drying

This process is also important; fatty substances, penetrating into the fabric, prevent the fibers from compacting during drying, which in turn gives the skin elasticity and softness. If possible, fattening is best done using special fat pastes. If they are not there, then you need to prepare the fat emulsion yourself.

Composition of the solution: spindle or transformer oil, laundry soap.
Preparation: the required amount of oil is poured into a container, 5% of the weight of the oil and grated soap are added and placed in a water bath. You need to cook the composition at a temperature of 60-70 degrees C until the solution reaches a creamy consistency.

At this time, the skins are straightened with the fur outward on the rules appropriate for each type of animal and slightly dried. Then turn it over with the leather fabric facing out. As they dry, the skins are removed from the rules and broken - crumpled, stretched in all directions, on a blunt object. When the flesh is dry, about half dry, a fat composition is applied to it. Excessive fat or, conversely, insufficient fat is unacceptable.
The skins are then removed from the racks and hung for final drying, without ceasing to knead them.

Finishing operations

This is the final moment of dressing the skins, the task of this process is to give them a marketable appearance - softness of the flesh, and shine and friability to the fur.

This is achieved:

- by sanding the leather fabric using abrasive stones or sandpaper,
- degreasing hair and flesh using hardwood sawdust,
- combing fur.

Dressing skins at home is quite complex and labor-intensive; achieving a good result will not be possible right away, so you should acquire skill with low-value furs.
But when you fully master this, your products will be only slightly inferior to factory products.

Content:

The ancient clothing of primitive man was skins. Therefore, one of the first professions that he had to master was their manufacture. By the way, the profession of the hero Nikita from Russian epics was a leather worker. His name was Nikita-kozhemyaka. Surely this work helped him become strong and not be afraid of the stinking breath of the fire-breathing Snake-Gorynych. These are the qualities that a skin tanning specialist needs.

Modern processing methods are simpler - chemistry helps. Now you can make high-quality skins even at home. This could be a small business idea or a good additional income.

If, for example, you decide to breed rabbits, then you simply need to learn how to tan their skins. Let's consider the technology of this process.

Technology

It is a set of sequentially performed operations. The quality of the fur will depend on the careful and correct execution of all stages.

Let's consider each operation separately.

Preparatory stage - conservation

If you do not process the skin right away, it must be preserved. That is, save it until the time comes to process it. It happens like this.

After slaughter, the skin is removed with a stocking. You cannot leave it unstraightened for a long time (it may rot). Should be stored as follows:

the stocking is turned inside out,
pulled onto the rule,
the lower end is secured so that the stocking does not wrinkle.

You can make the straightening yourself from two wooden blocks measuring 20x50 mm. They are cut along the edge and tied with ordinary metal tape. It looks like clothes tongs. A movable wedge is installed between the bars, which moves them apart to the width of a rabbit stocking.

The skins are dried on straightening in a well-ventilated area, but not in the sun or near heaters or radiators. Otherwise they will become brittle. From the inner side they are rubbed with salt. Dried skins are stored in a cool place.

Soaking (soaking)

Before you can start processing dried skins, they need to be soaked. A special solution is prepared for this. The proportions of the components are as follows:

For all leather dressing operations, only warm water (35-40 degrees) is used.

The total volume of water in relation to the weight of the skins is as follows:

9 parts - water,
1 part - weight of skins

The soaking process can last six hours or four days. But if soaking is delayed, then after 12 hours the solution is changed.

The readiness of the skin for further work is determined by the degree of softness of the core.

Skins that are processed immediately after removal do not require soaking. Their processing can begin with the fleshing.

Flesh

It is carried out for two purposes:

first, remove the subcutaneous layer of fat and all organic residues,
secondly, loosen the dermis.

After this operation, the skin will become susceptible to chemicals during further processing.

It begins with the removal of residual muscle and scraping of fat. A sharp knife is used to remove excess, and a blunt knife is used to break and loosen the dermis. He does not cut the flesh, but only drives it away. Simultaneously with the removal of the flesh, you need to press on the skin. Then fat will come out from the thickness. It can be collected and used later for fatliquoring.

Fleshing begins from the tail along the ridge and to the head. If the skin is steamed (just removed), then the skinning can be done by hand. To do this, use a knife to pry up the inside of the tail a little, move a couple of centimeters, insert your fingers there, and then do everything with your hands.

With this method of removal, no metal objects affect the skin. Pulling and pressing to squeeze out fat is done only with your hands. In this case, there is no danger of damaging the skin and overdoing the scraping.

Mezdrovka is not an easy procedure. But the result justifies the effort - the skin becomes absolutely clean.

Degreasing

The proportions of the composition for degreasing are as follows:

Salt is added to all solutions necessary for tanning leather. If there is no salt, the skin will absorb a lot of fresh water and become glassy. Further processing will become impossible, since subsequent chemical solutions will not be able to penetrate inside. This phenomenon is called gluttony.

The proportion of the total amount of water is the same as for soaking:

9 parts - water,
1 part - the weight of the skins.

The degreasing process takes about an hour. After this time, the skins must be washed to remove powder and blood residues.

Rinsing

It prepares rabbit skins for subsequent operations and washes away excess fat and powder. The procedure is performed in ordinary warm water (35-40 degrees). The inner layer is washed thoroughly, the outer layer is fur. Then everything is slightly wrung out.

Pickling

The word pickling is of English origin (pickle - pickle, brine). The meaning of this word explains the essence of the process. It involves exposing the skin to acid and salt (their aqueous solutions).

Fat-free skins are dipped into an acid-salt solution. The simplest and most affordable option is to use 70% acetic acid (acetic essence). You can also use sulfuric acid, but it is difficult for an ordinary person to acquire. Pickel solution proportions:

When working with acid, be sure to wear protective gloves. It is better to carry out this procedure in some isolated room, since vinegar has a specific smell. All components of the solution are mixed well. The total amount of water is taken depending on the number of skins. The proportions are the same:

9 parts - water,
1 part - weight of skins

Fat-free and washed rabbit skins are dipped into the solution. They should be completely covered with the pickle mixture. Just don’t put a press on top for this. It may interfere with the mixing of the skins. As a result, they will not be able to be evenly saturated with the pickle solution. Stir the skins at least once an hour.

Checking the readiness of the skin by drying

The pickling operation lasts on average from 5 to 12 hours. The readiness of the skins is checked by the “drying strip” (white stripe). To do this, fold the skin into four edges, press on the fold, open it and look. The “drying mark” in the form of a cross should remain visible for three to five seconds.

Duration and neutralization

Remove the skins from the pickle solution. Then

squeeze slightly
turn the fur inside out,
put in a pile,
put a press on top.

Some people use tiles as a press. The skins are kept in storage for up to a day.

After curing they are neutralized. Solution proportions

The duration of neutralization is maximum 30 minutes. If you add less soda, then you need to lengthen the residence time in the solution to one hour. Being in a neutralizing solution eliminates the smell of acetic acid.

Tanning

Treatment with tannins gives the leather

plastic,
strength,
wear resistance,
elasticity.

It is better to use the bark of willow trees as tannins. It is not recommended to use oak bark for rabbit skins. It makes them rude. Willow gives the skins a creamy tint. Natural tanning solution is prepared as follows:

Boil the bark in a saucepan for half an hour,
For one liter of this boiled solution take 40 grams of salt.

In the chemical tanning method, chrome alum is used instead of bark. The proportions are like this

	Chrome alum

Chromium alum is dissolved in very hot water, almost boiling water. Alum is diluted in a small amount of water.

While the water is clear, table salt is dissolved in it. Then diluted chrome alum is poured into it.

To lower them into the tanning solution, rabbit skins are turned inside out. In it they are carefully straightened, especially the tips. In this case, everything is evenly soaked.

The tanning time depends on the method of its implementation - natural or chemical. When using chrome alum, the tanning time ranges from 12 to 24 hours. If you use willow bark, the process will take much longer.

In order for the skins to tan evenly, they must be stirred periodically. But they do this less often than with pickling - once every two to three hours.

After the tanning time has elapsed, the skins are removed, straightened and placed under a press to ripen for 24 hours.

After the press, they need to be stretched on the rules, where they will dry out for the next operation with them - fattening. Dry it for five hours.

Zhirovka

The purpose of this operation is to obtain softer and water-resistant skin. You can use animal fat

beef,
pork,
rabbit

It is better not to use lamb, as it hardens quickly.

Proportions of fat mixture

Cooking method

Application method

The resulting substance, which is not hot, is applied to tanned skins. Use a regular paint brush. It is easier to apply when the skin is on the straightener. Be careful not to stain the ends of the fur. It must be done quickly, but carefully. The fatty substance hardens very quickly. When it cools down, it needs to be warmed up again for easier application.

It is good to fatten in the evening. Then by morning the fat will be well absorbed into the clean flesh. Then the rabbit skin is cut along the belly and finally dried.

Drying and kneading

Dry for approximately 12 hours. The skins must be periodically removed from the rules and pulled in different directions.

After drying, knead the skin with your hands to achieve softness. As a result, hairs and tubercles appear on the flesh. For cleaning, use zero or one grade sandpaper. You can use pumice.

At the final stage, comb the fur with a massage brush.

That's all - the rabbit skin has become soft, clean, and pleasant to the touch. She's ready.

There are many ways to tan skins. The most accessible and proven ones will be presented here. The process of dressing skins takes place according to the following scheme: soaking - washing - fleshing and degreasing - pickling or pickling - tanning - drying - finishing.
Before dressing, inspect the skin; if the skin is contaminated with resin, remove it (resin) with alcohol.

Soak
the process of soaking skins processed using the fresh-dry method. Produced in a solution of table salt, concentration - 40 - 50 grams per liter of water. The amount of solution should be such that there is a layer of water 2 - 3 cm above the skin. To prevent microbes from developing in the solution, add an antiseptic - zinc chloride (2 g/l), formalin (0.5 - 1 ml/l) , 1 - 2 tablets of furatsilin. When soaking, you can add a little washing powder to the solution. If the skin does not get wet within 12 hours, the solution must be changed. Soak until the nose and paws are soft.

the washing up
Wash the leather in a warm (not hot) solution of washing powder. Some recipes recommend washing “until your hair squeaks.” When washing, it is necessary to rinse the skin of sand and remove the smell of dog from the fur. This is especially important for foxes and raccoons. When washing, the skin is partially degreased, so washing can be carried out after fleshing/degreasing. After washing, the skin is wrung out and the inside is wiped with a dry cloth.

Flesh
the skin is scraped with a blunt knife in the direction from the tail to the head, stretched onto the board. It is good to make a special convex board from a hardwood slab. The purpose of fleshing is to remove residual fat, film, and cuts of meat. If the initial processing was done well, then the skinning will be easier.

Pickling
This is a classic method of tanning hides, providing higher quality tanning and greater strength of the leather. The disadvantages are the processing time and the unpleasant odor. The recipe is as follows: 200 g of wholemeal oatmeal or rye flour is stirred in 1 liter. hot water, add 20 - 30 g of salt and 7 g of yeast, 0.5 g of soda. When the solution has cooled, immerse the skin in it. The duration of fermentation is 2 days. The solution must be stirred periodically so that a film does not form on top and the solution does not rot.

Pickling (acid treatment)
used instead of fermentation. Pickel composition (per 1 liter of solution): 60 ml of 70% acetic acid, 30 g of salt. You will get a strong pickel (4.2%). Stronger pickel destroys the skin, so it is better to make 3% pickel - 43 ml of 70% vinegar essence per liter of water. Salt is required. You can use sulfuric acid (2.5 - 5 g/l), but mineral acids reduce the strength of the product. Pickling lasts from several hours to two days, depending on the thickness of the skin, the quality of degreasing, etc., and it is better to under-expose the skin than to over-expose the skin in the pickle. The end of pickling is determined by the drying and pinching test. The “drying” test is done like this: the skin is taken out of the solution, near the groin it is bent in four with the flesh facing up, the corner is pressed tightly and a fingernail is drawn along the fold. If the skin is ripe, a white stripe will remain on the fold for some time - a “dryer”. The “pinch” test is simpler: hairs are plucked out in the groin area; if this is done easily, the skin is ready. Another sign of ripeness of the skin is that the inner layer of skin can be easily separated with your fingers. After pickling is completed, the skin is lightly wrung out, folded in half with the fur facing up and placed under a small weight. The stay lasts 10 - 12 hours. Since acid remains on the skin, the skin is placed in a solution of baking soda 1-1.5 g/l for 20 minutes.
After pickling, the skin is dried on a straightener. First they dry with the flesh side up, then with the fur side up. Remove excess solution with a rag; when drying, straighten the fur by shaking the skin. Finally, dry it with the inside side up, but if it’s too dry and you can’t turn the skin out, don’t break it, leave it like that, you’ll still get the skin wet anyway. Or you may not dry it completely.

Tanning
performed in a solution of chrome alum (potassium alum can only be used in a mixture with chrome alum), 2 - 3% carbolic acid, or in a decoction of oak or willow bark. You can use a decoction of willow bark, since alum must be obtained, phenol (carbolic acid) smells unpleasant and is harmful, oak makes the skins too rough, and willow is always at hand and colors the skin a pleasant creamy color. The recipe is as follows: you will need bark from willow trees that have fluffy leaves. Suitable and willow. Fill the pan with bark (tightly, but not tamping). Fill with water and boil for half an hour, then drain the solution, add 30 - 50 g of salt per 1 liter, and cool. Instead of soaking the skin, you can soak the inside, repeatedly applying the solution with a brush. The skin should be soaked in tanning agent. After this, the skin is folded with the flesh inward and left to cure for a day.

The skin is then dried
This is where we need to work. The skin will have to be dried almost by hand. As the skin dries, it is removed from the straightener, crumpled, and stretched in different directions. You need to catch the moment when the skin is semi-dry; when stretched, it will turn white and become “suede-like” to the touch. The paws and muzzle are stretched across. After drying, the core can be carefully treated with sandpaper. Now the skin has become soft.
To increase its water resistance and softness, fattening is performed. You can soak the skin with a 1:1 mixture of glycerin and egg yolk, or with this solution: dissolve 50 g of soap in 0.5 liters of boiling water and add 0.5 kg of fat (pork, fish, etc.), add 10 g of ammonia alcohol You can replace part of the fat with glycerin, part with yolk, and a small part with machine oil (up to 5%). Lubricate the inside with the mixture and let it sit for several hours. Then the skin is dried, kneaded, the fur is combed, the inside can be rubbed with chalk, it will absorb excess fat and the inside will be light. Thick areas can be rubbed with sandpaper, but don’t get carried away! This is where the torment ends, the skin is ready.

After the slaughter of farm animals, the question arises of what to do with the skins. Leather and fur are popular goods on the market, so simply throwing them away is not rational, and handing them over to specialized enterprises for processing is not always profitable from an economic point of view.

You can tan the hides at home. True, the dressing process is quite lengthy and includes the following stages: soaking, fleshing, degreasing, pickling, tanning and fatting.

Tanning hides involves working with various chemicals, including acids and alkalis, and requires strict adherence to safety precautions. Deviation from the rules can, firstly, spoil the skins being processed, and secondly, harm your health.

If you are dealing with freshly skinned skins, they must be cooled and treated with salt before dressing. Using a knife or scraper, the remaining fat and meat are removed from the inside (the flesh) of the skin that has just been removed. The cleaned hide is spread fur side down on a flat, level surface, such as a concrete floor. In order for the skin to cool faster, the sun's rays should not fall on it.

When the skin becomes cool to the touch, its interior is thickly sprinkled with edible non-iodized salt, which absorbs moisture, thereby preventing the processes of skin decomposition and fur loss. It takes from 1.5 to 2.5 kg of salt to process goat or sheep skin. For skins of smaller animals, appropriate adjustments should be made.

It is important that the entire core is evenly covered with salt. If some of the salt falls off when moving the skin, the bare areas need to be sprinkled again. The salt-coated skin is laid out on a flat surface, while its edges should not bend, but it should not be stretched either: this will cause the product to lose its strength. Depending on the thickness of the hide, salt treatment can take from several days to 2 weeks.

Dry skin can be tanned. Moreover, you must prepare equipment and substances for all stages of processing in advance, so that when the time comes for the next operation, it does not have to be postponed due to the lack of one or another chemical. A hitch will not have the best effect on the quality of the final product.

On the Internet and specialized literature you will find a large number of different methods for tanning hides: from methods that almost exactly replicate industrial tanning technology, to amateur recipes developed through experiments and based on personal experience. However, any of the proposed methods will include a sequence of standard steps for tanning hides. The chemicals used and the time allocated for each procedure will differ. We don’t see the point in describing many existing recipes step by step. Instead, we will present a certain generalization of the methods of each stage of dressing, listing possible options for its implementation. Dried skin loses elasticity. To restore its ability to interact with chemicals, the skin is softened by soaking in water with antiseptics and table salt.

SOAKING

Remember the general rule for carrying out all procedures related to immersing skins in water: you need to pour so much liquid so that the skins in it can be easily mixed, i.e. not too much, otherwise the water will splash out, but not too little, otherwise all the liquid will be absorbed into the lower layers without properly moisturizing the upper ones. For 1 liter of water, dilute 40-50 g of table non-iodized salt and some antiseptic substance: 0.5-1 ml of formalin; 1 g sodium fluoride; 2 g zinc chloride; 2 g sodium bisulfite; 1-2 tablets of norsulfazole, sulfidine or furacillin. For 1 liter of water, you can also dilute a mixture of 1 g of zinc chloride or sodium silicofluoride and 1 g of sodium bisulfite. To soak thick skins, it is recommended to add 2 g of washing powder to antiseptics. The water for soaking should be at room temperature, i.e. at 18-20 °C; if it is above 25 °C, it will lead to fur loss. Soaking takes several hours. If after 12 hours in water the skin is still not softened enough, the solution is replaced with a fresh one. A well-soaked skin is soft over the entire surface; there should be no hard areas left on it.

FUCKING

The soaked skin is laid out on a flat, level surface (board or block), the remaining fat and films are straightened and scraped off from the flesh.

The tool is a scraper or a blunt knife. If the skin was well cleaned during initial processing, fleshing will not take much time.

DEGREASING

No matter how carefully the initial treatment and fleshing are carried out, subcutaneous fat will definitely remain, and it seems possible to remove it only with the help of chemicals. To treat thin, non-greasy skins, use laundry soap dissolved in warm water (18-20 °C). A more universal method is to treat the flesh with washing powder (3.5 g per 1 liter of warm water). To degrease skins with a particularly thick fat layer, surfactants are used: sulfanols NP-1, NP-9 or santamid-5. 3.5 g of one of these chemicals is dissolved in 1 liter of water at a temperature of 30-35 °C. Surfactants can be replaced with a mixture of 8-12 g of soda ash and 2-3 ml of oleic acid. The skins are poured with one of the described compositions and stirred gently for 30 minutes. After degreasing, the skins are washed in running water, the fur is wrung out or beaten with a stick, then the insides are wiped with a clean rag, removing excess liquid.

PICKING

Pickling (from the English pickle - “pickle”) is the process of treating hides with acid. In industry, sulfuric acid is used; at home, it is replaced with acetic acid.

The 3% vinegar pickle is universal and can cope with the task regardless of the type of raw material. To obtain it, 42 ml of 70% vinegar essence or 250 ml of 12% or 330 ml of 9% are diluted with water to a volume of 1 liter, after which 30-40 g of salt are dissolved in this composition.

Pickling takes from 5 to 12 hours. The readiness of the skin is determined as follows: lightly squeeze it, fold it in four, strongly squeeze the fold and immediately straighten the skin. If a dryer (white stripe) remains on the fold, pickling is completed. Initially, due to lack of experience, it will be difficult for you to recognize the dryer, so start checking the skin even when it is probably not ready. Each time the dryer appears more and more noticeable. A sharp, distinct drying will indicate that it is time to remove the skin from the pickel.

If the skin is intended for sewing clothes or other products that will be in direct contact with human skin, it is advisable to neutralize the pickle with a solution of baking soda (1-1.5 g per 1 liter of water) or photographic hyposulfite (10 g per 1 liter of water). The skin is kept in a neutralizer for 20-60 minutes. This reduces the strength of the skin, but reduces the risk of an allergic reaction. In other cases (for example, if the skin is tanned to make a carpet), you can limit yourself to washing the raw material with running water.

Pickling is sometimes replaced by fermentation. This is a more complex, but at the same time more effective procedure. It is carried out with various mixtures, which include coarse rye or oatmeal flour or oatmeal, ground in a meat grinder.

The skins are fermented at a water temperature of 37-40 °C for 2-5 days. About 3 liters of kvass are consumed per 1 kg of raw materials. The readiness of the skin is determined, as with pickling, by drying.

Bread alum

Recipe 1

Stir 200 g of oatmeal in 1 liter of hot water and add 10 g of malt. Infuse this mixture for 6 hours at a temperature of 60 ° C, then lower the temperature to 40 ° C and add 20-30 g of kefir or yogurt.

Maintaining the temperature at 40 ° C, leave the mixture for another 12-20 hours. Then dilute the resulting mixture with 1.5 liters of water, add table salt at the rate of 50-60 g per 1 liter and place the skins in the solution.

Recipe 2

Stir 750 g of oatmeal in 1 liter of hot water, add 20-30 g of kefir or yogurt and leave for 12 hours at a temperature of 37-40 ° C. Dilute the mixture with 5.9 liters of water, add salt at the rate of 50-60 g per 1 liter, put the skins into the solution and keep them at a temperature of 37-40 ° C.

After fermentation, the skins are washed with running water, and then, as after pickling, they are skinned again, after drying them and removing excess moisture with a rag.

TANNING

During the pickling process, under the influence of acid, collagen fibers in the skin tissue are destroyed, causing the skin to become soft and tear easily, and tanning restores its strength. Tannins bind collagen fibers to each other, envelop them and prevent fibers from sticking together even when exposed to water.

There are 2 main methods used at home: tannin tanning and alum tanning.

Tanning is called tanning with vegetable decoctions. So, to prepare a tanning broth, pour 500 g of willow or oak bark into 1 liter of water, boil for 10-15 minutes and add 50 g of salt. After a day, the infusion is filtered. The efficiency of tanning will increase if you add a decoction of horse sorrel roots (prepared similarly) to the bark decoction in a ratio of 10 liters to 2-2.5 liters.

The flesh is impregnated with a tanning compound. To do this, the skins are either soaked in a container with tanning agent, or it is applied to the inner surface of the skin with a brush (painting).

Periodically, a thin strip is cut from the skin and the cut is examined through a magnifying glass. As soon as the yellow-brown tanning agent saturates the leather completely, throughout its entire thickness, tanning is stopped. The skins are spread out on a flat surface to dry for 1-2 days.

Among the numerous recipes for tanning with alum, the most popular and reliable is the use of chrome alum. To prepare them, take 7 g of chrome alum and 50-60 g of salt per 1 liter of water. If you want the tanned skins to become even softer, you can add 10-12 g of potassium alum to the described composition.

The skins are dipped in alum tanning agent for a day. The degree of readiness of the raw material is determined in the same way as with tannin tanning - by the cut. At the end of tanning, after 1-2 days of drying, neutralization is carried out.

RINSE

Washing is only required for hides that have been soaked in tanning agent. When treating skins with ointment, this step is skipped.

The wool is washed with running water. To make the fur silky, you can add shampoo to the water. However, be careful to

the detergent did not get on the inside. Tanned leather is strictly contraindicated for washing!

FAT

Fattening is carried out in order to make the skin elastic and soft. To do this, stretch the skin over a straightener and coat the inside with a fat emulsion using a brush or swab. The emulsion should be warm (about 40 °C).

Fat emulsion

Recipe 1

Mix egg yolks and glycerin in equal parts, beat the mixture with a mixer.

Recipe 2

Grate 100 g of laundry soap and dissolve it in 1 liter of boiling water. Then, stirring continuously, add 1 kg of pork fat. Turn off the heat and pour in 10 ml of ammonia.

When applying the emulsion to the skin, try not to stain the fur. If contamination of the fur still cannot be avoided, remove the emulsion from the hair using a cotton swab dipped in gasoline.

After fattening, the skins are dried again in the open air. Depending on their thickness, drying can take from several hours to 1 day.

DRYING

Having dried the skin after fattening, it is slightly stretched, and the inside is treated with pumice or a scraper. This procedure is carried out after white spots similar to drying marks begin to appear on the skin when stretched.