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Post by Stef on Mar 15, 2007 20:45:17 GMT -6
How many more days does it takes for a coyote pelt to dry properly when its boraxed and fur out on stretcher??
Normally... In my fur drying room when I used to turn the fur out after 24 hrs... It usually takes 3 days total and its dry.
Stef
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Post by mikespring on Mar 16, 2007 3:57:36 GMT -6
What kind of temperatures do you have in the shed...fan blowing???
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Post by bobwendt on Mar 16, 2007 4:40:42 GMT -6
this boraxing in our 90% humidity east is a very long drawn out process. with rain 3 out of 4 days always , no setting out in the sun and wind. even with heat and fans I`ve still got some cats on boards nor dry yet, and they went on a month ago. heavy eatern coyotes, even scraped excellent, look for several weeks at least. the western guys with their 10-20% humidiy and always sunnt dry days don`t reralize the rest of the world lives in a molded greenhouse. they will ( should not)not rot stef, but it will take a looooong time.
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Post by Stef on Mar 16, 2007 6:01:10 GMT -6
Temperature is 50-55F in that room Fan is blowing
Now, I can understand that they won't rot but I can't wait a month and I don't want a see coyote pelts on stretchers for weeks....
Zagman uses the borax method and he's in the Northeast I wonder how long it takes for him to dry his coyote pelts that way? (zag if you see this post..please answer)
I wanted to speed up the process by not turning the pelts... I can live with that method if it takes a little more time for drying but if it takes a week or more .... To me its a too longgggggg process. I'll need too many stretchers.
Later
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Post by bobwendt on Mar 16, 2007 6:08:00 GMT -6
I can`t justify it in the east on common stuff like coyotes, for the same reasons as you, I`ve not a month to dry stuff here. on the cats I can, as it isn`t just saving the turning, but gives a better end product too. if cats do quit shining,like go under a 100 bucks, I`ll probably just retire from fur trapping totally and just do live and adc.
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Post by Stef on Mar 16, 2007 6:19:49 GMT -6
Well, I did not know that Bob. So in other words... If its only a humidity problem to make it work.
A dehumidifier machine in the drying room would solve the problem in the east... Yes - No?
Stef
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Post by bill1306 (Phil) on Mar 16, 2007 6:46:37 GMT -6
In my drying room I run a dehumidifier, heat and a fan. It only takes three or four days normally, here in the winter. The fur I did in NM, where they don't have humidity, was a couple of days fur side out from the start. We also don't have the thick heavy fur on our hides that you have there.
Phil
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Post by bobwendt on Mar 16, 2007 7:20:23 GMT -6
I`d say in ks it is dry, relative to indiana, but humid relative to the real west. we get essentially 100% every night here in indianma,i.e. dew on everything in the morning, or frost if winter. days varies here, but usually 70-100% humuidity.
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Post by mikespring on Mar 16, 2007 9:44:51 GMT -6
Its as humid here as Indiana or close enough, with those temps, fleshed to the leather, with a mink board up inside the coyote board...should`nt take any longer than 4 or 5 days Stef. Zags showed me his method of boraxing(in person) and I jumped in with both feet and I`ll never go back to turning coyotes or fox again.
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Post by Stef on Mar 16, 2007 10:07:08 GMT -6
you mean a belly stick?
At souper time... it will be 72 hours (3 days) I'll wait and see the result.
Thanks Mike
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Post by bobwendt on Mar 16, 2007 10:25:19 GMT -6
I can`t understand how you guys (eastern ) are getting 4-5 day dry time if the humidirty is the same as here ,and I`m going on a month now and still soft spots and running a fan around the clock, heater when over there . I`m thinking I can say how much rain, humidity, gloom and clouds indiana gats and no one is grasping it. assuming it couldn`t possibly be that bad or wet. I`m looking out the window now and can see for miles. in the summer all is dry except a small stream. now there is more under water than on top of the water, i.e. over 50% of our land mass submerged. I`d reckon same as living in the la. swamp land and trying to dry anything.
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Post by Wright Brothers on Mar 16, 2007 10:53:01 GMT -6
Wood burner room dries them quick. I had the stiffest coyote at our sale, others were limp, mine was like a surf board. Don't know if good or bad, just how it works for me.
Before I lived here I dried without heat, never a problem but the borax, no turn, hang them upside down method I'm going to try.
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Post by mikespring on Mar 16, 2007 11:39:43 GMT -6
Stef, just got off the phone with Zags( really did`nt want to hijack cause you directed the question to him...but got the ok to continue from him). The mink board is put in side was to allow more air flow, also help the mane really stand up when dry.
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Post by Zagman on Mar 16, 2007 14:54:41 GMT -6
I honestly dont know how long it takes.....I guess I have the luxury of having enough wood that I dont have to take the coyote and fox off quickly in order to put the next one on....some stay on for a month or more.......
My guess is 4-5 days......
Stef, the mink board thing is with adjustable wood stretchers.....and that's all I use so with you using solid boards, we may be talking apples/oranges.
Zagman
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Post by Possum on Mar 16, 2007 15:09:02 GMT -6
Couple of things. 1) I live in northern IN which (this year) was slightly drier than the good Doc's southern IN climate. Still, I put a milkhouse heater in my somewhat insulated drying room which keeps the humidity lower and temp somewhat warmer than the outside air. Fan is blowing constantly, as well.
2) I use wooden boards and put in additional wedges. I put 3 wedges on the topside up the bottom. Two smaller wedges go down the ear holes. On the under side, I put a wedge down the mouth hole and one up the belly. This process allows the air to circulate under the pelt.
In warm weather, say 55 degrees and up, outside, probably 4 days average, give or take a day. In cold weather--below freezing outside, maybe as much as 8 days give or take a day or two.
In short, fans, a small heater and plenty of wedges.
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Post by Stef on Mar 16, 2007 16:14:38 GMT -6
ok thanks guys. I don't give up, I want a see it work ;D
thanks again
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Post by Steve Gappa on Mar 16, 2007 16:20:14 GMT -6
adjustible might be key- it would allow more air circulation.
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Post by Stef on Mar 16, 2007 16:31:15 GMT -6
With foxes..not a problem.. I have plenty of ranch fox stretchers (air system board) but the problem is that I don't have anymore fox to do...LoL
2 little sticks on both sides should be plenty.
Stef
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Post by foxtrapperwoman on Mar 16, 2007 22:41:34 GMT -6
Very interesting.
I had been putting borax in the ears on fox this season as it was quite warm most of the season. The ones that didn't have it started smelling! So I started sticking in in there and it stopped the tainting problem. Of course peeling the ears would work better, but oh well.
A plus to borax use is if you have some held over hides and the warm spring weather comes, the borax helps protect against dermestid beetle larvae in your skins. They chew on any borax and it kills them. I soak animals for the freeze dryer in a borax saturation solution, and put borax in the body cavity and also dust it into the fur. When completed the excess is brushed and blown free of the fur, but some remains down next to the skin, helping to bugproof the animal.
Borax is basic so it WILL cause PH problems in tanning if not all washed out in the rehydration stage. Dusting it on the flesh side of fur skins should not cause a problem, however rubbing it hard into the flesh side can create pickle bath headaches for fur dressers.
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Post by Stef on Mar 17, 2007 8:33:43 GMT -6
A good check was done after 72 hours yesterday night and it started to dry. Tail is already done "dry"... I should say "better and faster" than the usual. I could touch inside the leather and I could feel that it won't be long, it will be ready and dry. Even if i could feel that it was "still green"... Was not wet, rot etc... just getting better everyday.
With the temperature I have in that room and the humidity level... Like Zag and Mike wrote above... I bet that 5 days will do the trick.
Thanks
Stef
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