hunting to support fly tying habits

[jeremy.badgett]

how many of you hunt to support your fly fishing / tying habits? also how do you cure the hide or feathers?

[fishbum]

Funny you should ask. My son just called to inform me he had shot his deer and was going to bring me the hide tomorrow. I have enough deer hide now to last to the middle of the century. It only takes an hour or so to take care of a whole hide so I will just work it into my busy schedule. You retired folks know how that works, don't know how I had time to work when I was working.

Deer is easy to take care of.

Throw the hide into a garbage cah with enough warm water to cover, a half cup of Dawn dish washing detergant and a handfull of borax. Let soak while you drink a fresh cup of coffiie. Then wash well and rinse.

Scrape the hide making sure that ALL the fat and muscle tissue is removed. I have a fleshing board and I scrape with a hand axe.

Put fresh water, detergant and borax in the garbage can and wash the hide again.

Rinse well with clear water. Sling as much water as you can out of the hide. Lay out over some bushes in the shade and let the hide start to air dry. When the hair is almost dry streatch the hide on a frame that allows air to circulate around it until it is dry.

When dry, cut into usable pieces and store untill needed with some moth balls containing paradichlorobenzine as an active ingreadiant.

Don't bother with salt, It will only make a mess. If the weather is on the warm side a little borax will keep the flies at bay.

That is it for animal hides.

Bird skins get the same treatment except they are always sprinkeled with borax. No salt here either.

Have fun,

fishbum

[quivira kid]

I fish and tie flies and jigs when there's not something to hunt!
Got a bunch of CDC, mallard flank, gadwall flank, and widgeon flank, as well as some bronze mallard feathers this past weekend. Headed out tomorrow after work for another weekend of duck hunting... from the report I just got, I should have a ton of mallard feathers shortly.

[Fatman]

When I can I do, also it gives me something to trade which this year is ZIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No hunting allowed due to my hip injury. Zac I ain't got much in way of trading materials but you get a bunch of mallards we're gonna have to talk about some Lemon Flank feathers LOL

Fatman

[Normand]

unfortunately i have to work to support my fly tying habit. if i hunted i'd be bankrupt

[quivira kid]

Fatman, the lemon flank comes from wood ducks... it and the bronze mallard are my two favorite tying materials! If I get into a few woodies, we will talk.

Zac

[Panman]

Jeremy: About the feathers. I think that feathers from birds other than waterfowl can be preserved by ensuring all the meat is removed from the skin and the skin the cured with either salt or borax. However for waterfowl I find is is much much much easier to simply pluck off the feathers you wish to save, ensure they are dry and store is a bug proof place until use. Waterfowl skin has too much fat in it to make curing the skin an easy task for me.

Tim

[mahanvey]

Panman: That's what the Borax does... it removes the oils and takes care of the hide by killing the bugs that are present and any that want to get on it and destroy it while you are treating it. Borax is the miracle tanning solution created by man other than urine. Urine was used for hundreds of years by natives in Alaska and North America partially because of the salts ... then after that they would scrub with the animals brains. Isn't Borax wonderful?

[Panman]

I have tried borax on ducks and will stick to plucking.
Tim

[Lake Erie High Ball]

Panman: That's what the Borax does... it removes the oils and takes care of the hide by killing the bugs that are present and any that want to get on it and destroy it while you are treating it. Borax is the miracle tanning solution created by man other than urine. Urine was used for hundreds of years by natives in Alaska and North America partially because of the salts ... then after that they would scrub with the animals brains. Isn't Borax wonderful?

Now that you mentioned it Borax is the bomb.

Jeremy,

I never hunted before; not ducks and deer anyhow. But I do plan on it for the reason you stated and my wife’s uncle was a hunter and he would make the best pheasant stew quail breasts and duck I have ever had and now have the recipes.

Just thinking about them makes me hungry.