TANNING RECIPE NO. 1:
SALT/ALUM
1 cup of coarse or granulated salt ( not iodized)
1 cup of common alum (aluminum sulfate or any of several similar double
sulfates), powdered or granulated
TANNING RECIPE NO. 2:
SALT/ACID
1 pound of coarse or granulated salt (about 1-3/4 cups)
1 ounce of full-strength sulfuric acid, or 4 ounces (1/2 cup) of battery
acid (dilute sulfuric acid)
You can buy a five-pound sack of the necessary salt at almost any
grocery store (look for noniodized pickling salt) for about $1.00. And
larger quantities (usually 100-pound sacks) are available from chemical
companies and other sources at "bargain" bulk prices.
Alum is stocked by biological supply companies, handicraft and
leather shops, chemical suppliers, pharmacies, and feed stores. It comes
in both a commercial and a medicinal grade (for tanning purposes it
makes no difference which you use) and generally costs between $1.00 and
$3.00 per pound.
Battery acid (electrolyte) is available from auto supply houses for
about $1.00 per gallon (128 ounces) and is usually sold in five-gallon
containers. (I've never worked with full-strength sulfuric acid, because
I feel it's too dangerous.)
Both recipes work well and take approximately the same amount of
time. I prefer the somewhat more expensive alum mixture because it
produces a whiter, softer leather with the feel of fine suede.
Once you've determined which method you're going to use, add the
chemicals to the water (don't let
them splash) . . . and make sure the powders are completely dissolved
before you add the pelts. Be certain to show respect for your chemicals
and to handle them properly. (Wear rubber gloves if you're working with
sulfuric acid.)
Now, drop each skin into the pickle (as the tanning mix is
called) and swish it around with a wooden stick or spoon (or use your
glove-sheathed hands) to work the solution into the fur and skin. Allow
the pelts to remain in the brine — at room temperature (65-70°F) — for
48 hours, stirring them at least twice a day. If the pelts tend to float
to the top of the solution, weigh them down . . . using a glass jug
filled with water or a clean rock.
After the two full days have passed, squeeze the excess brine from
the skins (save the solution . . . you'll reuse it later) and rinse them
in cold water.
FLESHING
Fleshing is the process of removing the fatty tissue and
flesh to expose the actual leather (or derma) to chemical action.
Rabbits have a clearly defined undertissue which, after the first
chemical soaking, can be peeled off in one piece (if you're careful).
Since the flesh separates most readily at the rump section, I usually
start there and peel toward the neck. A steak knife can be used to
scrape and loosen the difficult areas you'll likely encounter on the
belly and around the legs. Be careful not to peel too deep and expose
the root hairs, but do try to get off as much fatty tissue as possible.
When you're finished, rinse the fleshed hides in cool water and then
squeeze out the excess liquid.
THE SECOND TANNING SOLUTION
Now, go back to the recipe you chose before, add the same
amount of salt/alum or salt/acid as you used in the first soaking
solution to the reserved brine . . . and follow the same mixing
procedure. Put the pelts in the liquid, one at a time, working each hide
thoroughly to coat it with the pickle. Keep the skins soaking at room
temperature for seven days, stirring them at least twice a
day.
You can test for tanning "doneness" after the week's up by simply
boiling a small piece of hide for a few minutes in water. If the leather
curls up and becomes hard and rubbery, return the pelt to the solution .
. . because a well-tanned skin will show little or no change in boiling
water.
DRYING AND FLUFFING
After one pelt has tested "done", remove all of them from the
solution and squeeze out the excess pickle. The tanning brine will
likely be pretty much used up if you've soaked the recommended number of
skins, but any liquid that does remain should be dumped out. Take care
to discard the mixture where farm animals can't drink it and the
chemicals won't contaminate drinking water. (Although it's not poisonous
to handle, the brew might be fatal if taken internally.) I generally
pour any leftover solution along pathways to keep them free of weeds.
Next, wash each pelt thoroughly with a mild detergent. I use an
inexpensive cologne-scented shampoo that leaves the fur soft, fluffy,
clean, and sweet smelling. Then rinse the hide several times in lukewarm
water and squeeze out the excess liquid. Hang the pelts in the shade to
dry (I usually put them on a temporary clothesline suspended over the
bathtub). It'll take from six hours to two days for the skins to become
fully dried, depending on the temperature, the humidity, and the
thickness of the leather. (Don't ever put wet hides in direct sun or
near a heat source, as they'll quickly shrink and become brittle as they
dry.)
When the pelts are just barely damp, toss them in an electric dryer,
with no heat, for 15 to 45 minutes. This step can be omitted .
. . but the machine fluffing does make the fur easier to work with and
the next procedure less difficult.
WORKING THE LEATHER
Ever since animal hides were first turned into leather, they've been
pounded, rubbed, chewed, and beaten — and often annointed with grease or
oils — to make (and keep) them flexible and soft. I stretch
partially dried hides to soften the leather, using a process known as
breaking the skin .
Pull the skin of your damp pelt in all directions, working only a
small area at a time. The leather will begin to turn soft and white. The
trick is to catch the hide while it's still slightly wet and limp. If it
becomes too dry and turns hard, resoak it with a wet sponge (this is
called damping back ) until it's pliable enough to stretch
again. Be firm as you pull the leather, but don't use too much force, or
you might tear it. Keep up the skin-breaking procedure as long as
necessary . . , until the pelt remains soft as it dries. ("Broken" hides
may be tacked to a board or frame to encourage them to dry flat.)
FINISHING AND STORAGE
After the hide has dried and is sufficiently soft, give the fur a
good brushing with a small hairbrush. Then massage mink oil (I buy it at
shoe stores . . . where an eight-ounce container, which is enough for
several dozen pelts, costs about $2.00) into the skin side of
the hide with your fingers. (You'll be glad to know that mink oil is a
wonderful hand conditioner.) As a final — optional — step, try buffing
the leather
with pumice or fine sandpaper to give it a soft, velvety feel.
Rabbit fur, like all leathers, breathes . . . that is, it contains
microscopic spaces for air circulation. Therefore, it's best not to
store rabbit pelts (or any other fur or leather) in airtight containers
(except, of course, when you're freezing them before tanning). I keep my
finished hides in a cardboard box with a bar of sweet-smelling soap,
which repels insects and helps to scent the furs.
SEWING RABBIT FUR
Working with thin leather — such as rabbit skin — isn't all that
different from working with thick cloth. Therefore, any person who sews
should have no great difficulty making the transition from fabric to
fur.
The following list should serve to give you an idea of the variety of
items an ingenious homesteader can craft with rabbit pelts: bedspreads,
coverlets, robes, cushion covers, pillows, handbags, toys, hats, caps,
hoods, mittens, baby bootees, vests, coats, capes . . . in short, the
scope of your furs-titching projects is limited only by your
imagination!
The first step in constructing any article of rabbit hide is to make
(or buy) a full-sized pattern for each piece to be cut (the jacket shown
in the accompanying photos was made from a purchased pattern). If you're
not sure about the fit of the finished product, sew a muslin dummy and
make any necessary adjustments to the sections before cutting into the
pelts.
After you're satisfied with the size and shape of the pattern pieces,
organize them on the skin side of the pelt. (For some articles you'll
need to sew several pelts together to get a large enough section of
"fabric". To do so, cut the pelts to be used into one or more squares or
rectangles and stitch the blocks together. You can either make a large
sheet of fur to accommodate all the pattern pieces, or combine just
enough squares to fit one part of the pattern at a time.) You may need
to rearrange the pieces several times to avoid objectionable bare spots
and to make efficient use of the best sections of the pelt. Keep in mind
that the thickest fur is found around the neck and in a band down the
back.
Always lay your pattern with the grain (the direction in
which the hair grows) so that the fur of the finished article will run
in the same direction as it did when it was on the animal. (In the case
of rabbits, the grain runs from neck to rump.)
Using tape, long pins, or small dots of rubber cement, attach the
pattern to the hide. Trace the outline of each section with a ballpoint
or felt-tip pen, or simply cut around each pattern piece. A razor blade
or a utility knife might prove useful, since it won't snip as many hairs
as will scissors. However, you can use sharp shears if you take care to
avoid cutting more than just the skin.
Most soft leathers, including rabbit, can be sewn by hand using a
glover's, leather, or furrier's needle . . . waxed nylon, linen, or
heavy carpet-weight thread . . . and a running stitch, whipstitch, or
cross-stitch. (Most good leatherworking books and sewing guides will
include instructions for making these stitches if you're unfamiliar with
them.) To hold the pieces together for sewing, use thin quilting pins,
paper clips, or spring clips.
If you prefer, rabbit pelts can be stitched on a good sewing machine
fitted with a No. 16 to 19 needle (some manufacturers market needles
designed for leather) and all-purpose thread. The machine should be set
to produce seven to nine stitches per inch.
Do follow the directions for assembly that come with the commercial
pattern, whether you decide on hand or machine sewing. (Of course,
you'll
probably already know how best to assemble a project of your own
design.) To flatten seams and hem edges, place a warm, damp cloth over
the seam/hem line on the skin side, and pound the leather with a wooden
mallet or hammer.
To finish your creation, brush the fur side well with a small
hairbrush, paying particular attention to the seams (you may need to use
a sharp object, such as a long needle, to pull out hairs that are caught
in the stitching.
And what about the scraps? Well, find a use for them. You might try
piecing odd bits of similar weight together to achieve a crazy-quilt
effect. Or turn the leftovers into small pouches, flaps for purses and
jackets, and other novelties. (For instance, I make little catnip-filled
toys for my cats.)
Sewing with rabbit fur is an enjoyable, and often profitable,
handicraft. In fact, I've actually discovered that the sale and barter
of my fur items more than pays the cost of raising the rabbits . . . so
the meat I get is free!
PREVENTING FAILURES
Although the procedure itself is simple enough, really successful
pelt tanning is usually the result of ingenuity and perseverance. The
secret is not so much the chemicals used as it is the elbow grease that
you apply to make the hides soft and supple.
Keep in mind that each piece of leather is different. And even among
hides that were all tanned in the same batch of solution, something will
occasionally go wrong with one or more of the skins.
The problem I encounter most often is hairslip : bare
patches that appear as the fur pulls or slips off the leather. This
condition, which is also called taint , results from the growth
of bacteria on the outer skin (decay) and usually occurs in folds and
wrinkles, where the surface wasn't exposed to the tanning solution. It
can be prevented if you stir the pelts around in the solution frequently
and make sure that the liquid comes in contact with all parts
of each hide. Take care, too, that the brine ingredients are dissolved
and mixed well before adding the skins. Finally, don't store the pelts
in the solution at temperatures over 80°. If hairslip does afflict a
pelt or two, however, you can trim away the damaged sections when
constructing garments or other articles.
Once
the butchering duties are finished, thoroughly rinse the
hide in more cold water to finish cooling it as quickly as
possible. Don't worry about any remaining fat and tissue at
this point . . . rather, apply your effort to washing away
all the blood left in the skin, since any that's not removed
will leave permanent brown stains in the leather after
tanning. (Soap or detergent is really unnecessary, but if
you do use such a cleanser, be sure that all traces of
that are rinsed out before you proceed, too.) With the
rinsing done, carefully squeeze (never wring!) the excess
water from the pelt. 
your machine has one), but there is a possibility
that bits of fat and hair will plug up the drain hose. To
avoid this problem, I prefer to handwash the pelts (which
also gives me a chance to examine the furs closely).