The quality (value) of animal skins depends on their breed characteristics, feeding and keeping conditions, slaughter time, correct shooting of skins, their primary processing, storage conditions and dressing methods. The concept of "quality of skins" includes the following properties: size, defectiveness (defects); grade, wear (strength), thickness of the skin, density and evenness of the fur, color, appearance and other. To obtain good-quality skins from animals, the following conditions must be observed:

• For a tribe, select the largest purebred animals with a typical color, thick and uniform hairline;
• slaughter for skins should be carried out in the period from November to March, and always after molting;
• the conditions for keeping and feeding animals must meet zootechnical requirements when they are grown for slaughter for skins;
• strictly observe the rules of primary processing, conservation and storage of skins.

Nutria and rabbits different breeds have different hair density. For example, rabbits of such breeds as: silver-brown, Soviet marder, Soviet chinchilla, white giant, Viennese blue, silver have the most dense hairline. Therefore, young animals of these breeds should be grown for slaughter for skins, first of all. Rabbits of the breeds: gray giant, veil-silver have a significantly lower density of hairline. However, among them there are many individuals with very thick hair.

To obtain high-quality skins, young animals up to three months of age can be kept in groups (5-6 heads in a cage, with a floor area of ​​0.2-0.3 sq.m per rabbit). Group keeping in the same cage of males older than three months of age is unacceptable, since at this time they become aggressive and often, during fights, injure each other, which leads to damage to the skins - the vice "snacks". To avoid this, males from the age of three months should be kept alone or castrated. After castration, they can be kept four heads per cage.

For breeding use, young animals are left in the herd, which by the time of slaughter for the skin, reaches the highest live weight and has a typical color for this breed.

When determining the term for slaughtering animals for the skin, the state of molting and the season of the year are taken into account. A good-quality skin with lush thick and shiny fur can only be obtained from faded animals. Slaughter should be carried out mainly from November to March. When animals are slaughtered summer period receive, as a rule, skins of the third and second grades, since at this time, even faded animals have a sparse hairline.

Shedding is understood as a change in the hairline in animals, which depends on the age of the animals and the season of the year. In rabbits, the molting stage is determined by the presence of pigmented (dark) skin areas and the growth of new hair, which are clearly visible when the hairline is inflated against the direction of hair growth on different areas the body of the animal, as well as the strength of the bonds with the skin of the remaining old hair, which is checked in various parts of the body by lightly twitching them. If the hair is easily pulled out, then this means that the rabbit is in the molting stage.

Distinguish diffuse molting- scattered throughout the body, and zonal- passing through separate areas of the skin. During diffuse molting, mainly single guide and guard hairs fall out and grow again over the entire surface of the body; with zonal - the hairline is replaced symmetrically, moving from one zone to another.

In addition, rabbits have age(peculiar to the young), and seasonal(in adults) molting. In adult rabbits, spring molting occurs at the end of March - beginning of April, and autumn - in September - October. Shedding individuals have a thick, lush, shiny and elastic hairline. The formation of winter hair usually ends in early November. In this form, it remains until April. When slaughtering rabbits at this time, as a rule, skins of the first grade are obtained, and in the rest of the year - no higher than the second grade. The speed and time of molting of animal hair is significantly affected by the conditions of keeping, feeding and health of animals. In sick or emaciated animals, molting is delayed or stops altogether, while in healthy and well-developed animals it proceeds relatively quickly and coincides with the indicated periods.

SHOOTING

Photographing rabbit skins. The most widely used are two types of shooting rabbit skins - "stocking" (tube) and "layer".

To remove the skin with a stocking, it is necessary to make circular incisions around the hocks and inguinal limbs, as well as skin incisions along the inner surface legs, thighs and perineum. Then the front legs are cut off, along the carpal joint; tail; ears, at the very base. Having seized the skin at the hips, they carefully pull it down, towards the head, with a stocking, while the hairline is turned inward. In places of strong connection of the skin with the body, a knife is used. After the release of the forelimbs, they proceed to shooting the skin from the head. This is done in the following way. Knife makes incisions around the mouth, nostrils, eyes; cut off the mimic muscles, tightly connected with the skin of the head.

Hung spacer:

1 - metal tube; 2 - steel wire hook (M5 thread is cut at the base)

When shooting the skin in a layer, circular ^ incisions are made in the skin around the carpal and tarsal joints. Cut the skin from the lower lip along the midline of the neck, chest, abdominal wall to the anus; then from the annular incision of the wrist along the inner surface of the forearm and shoulder, through the chest, to the annular incision of the other limb, and, from the circular incisions of the tarsus, along the inner surface of the lower leg and thigh, to the anus. After that, the skin is removed (pulled off) first from the abdominal and chest walls of the carcass, and then from the hips and shoulder, and finally from the spine (back, loin, neck) and head.

Photographing nutria skins. The time between slaughter and skinning should be kept as short as possible to avoid under-warming. Nutria skins are removed with a tube. Shooting begins with skin incisions. Make incisions on the paws and tail, on the border of their omission, as well as along the edge of the rump to the anus. The anus is cut around. After the incisions are made, it is better to hang the carcass at chest level. With a well-sharpened knife, the skin on the thighs, in the groin and on the rump is separated. Then the skin is carefully pulled up to the forelimbs and pulled out. Removed from the front legs, the skin is easily pulled up to the head. When shooting from the head, the skin is taken not by the rump, but as close to the neck as possible. Pulling it with the left hand, with the right hand, they carefully cut the muscles, ear cartilage, the skin around the lips and eyes. When shooting the skin, you cannot pull it with great force, since the skin in this case is greatly stretched, as a result of which the fur thins. On the removed skin, a muscular film remains, with the skin under it, cuts of meat and fat, which are removed during subsequent processing.

Shooting goat and sheep skins. Skins from goats and sheep are removed in layers. To do this, make a longitudinal skin incision from the neck and beyond, in the middle of the chest and abdomen to the base of the tail. Then cross-sections are made along inside front legs to the hock joint. Next, in a circle, cut the skin on the front legs. Then the front legs, along the incision at the carpal joint and the hind legs, along the incision line of the hock joint, are separated from the body. From the chest and abdomen, from the longitudinal line of the cut, as well as from the legs, the skin is removed with a knife, and then manually. To do this, the carcass is hung up by threading wooden lath(length - 30 - 40 cm, diameter - 3 - 5 cm) with notches at the ends, between the tendons and the tibia of the hind legs. The skin from the hanging carcass is removed from top to bottom, avoiding tears and cuts. To save good qualities skins, it is very important to properly skin the animal, preserve it well and save it for dressing.

PRIMARY PROCESSING OF SKINS

In order to avoid excessive contamination of the fur, hair loss and steaming, it is not recommended to pile the skins taken from rabbits in a pile, and leave them in the cold in winter, due to freezing and damage to the leather tissue. It is better to hang paired (only removed) skins on a hanger, and after one hour, trim and degrease. Subcutaneous muscles, fat deposits, tendons are removed from the skin. Cuts and tears that appeared during the shooting of the skins are sewn up with a furry seam. For degreasing, the skin is pulled on a wedge-shaped rule or on a conical blank with the skin outward. Having fixed the skin and the blank, the fat is removed with a knife, dead end, spoon or other adapted tool. The blade of the tool is placed at a right angle to the mezdra, fat is driven off only in the direction from the tail to the head, because. when the tool moves in the opposite direction, the hair roots are cut and they fall out (defect - "draft"). After degreasing, the skin is thoroughly wiped with sawdust, a rag, rags or newsprint slightly moistened with gasoline. The hairline is degreased only with sawdust of deciduous trees.

TOOLS FOR PRIMARY SKIN PROCESSING

The skins of nutria are degreased immediately after shooting their carcasses. The remaining fat and cuts of meat are cleaned from the skin tissue, especially on the head, neck, at the root of the tail and under the front paws.

This work is carried out on a smoothly planed oval-shaped board (blank). The blank is made of dry wood (not coniferous) with a diameter of 14 - 15 cm and a length of 75 - 100 cm. The skin is put on the blank with fur inside. Skins are degreased with knives of various shapes. The most convenient is a knife with a long straight blade, a slightly curved tip and a rounded handle. The blade of the knife should be thin, but strong (not bending). Easily curving knife, you can trim the leather fabric. When degreasing, with their left hand they grab the skin by the rump and pull it towards themselves, and right hand, armed with a knife, cut the film together - with cuts of meat and fat. The blade of the knife is held at an angle of 40 - 45 degrees in relation to the surface of the skin tissue of the skin. Care must be taken to avoid undercuts, especially when degreasing white nutria skins, as their skin is thinner and the hair sits deeper than in standard animals. The peeled skin is wiped with sawdust, a rag, rags.

In the process of shooting and degreasing the skins of rabbits and nutria, cuts in the skins or tears of old snacks are sometimes formed, which must be sewn up before straightening the skins on the rules. Cuts and tears are sewn up with white N10 threads, a thin needle, over the edge. The leather fabric is sewn together with a frequent and even stitch so that the edges of the skin touch and do not find each other.

Rules for different designs:

1 - standard for large and small skins; 2 - sliding; 3 - rule-board; 4 - wire rules

SKIN PRESERVATION

Conservation of skins is carried out to ensure the possibility of their long-term storage and transportation, while maintaining their marketable qualities obtained by raising animals and primary processing of skins.

Thanks to canning, the content of free water in the skin is reduced, and bactericidal substances are introduced into the skin, which kill microorganisms and suppress their development.

The most famous types of conservation are:

• fresh dry
• dry-salted
• wet-salty
• pickle (preservation with organic acids)

FRESH-DRY conservation. The skin, with the skin outward, is pulled onto a spinning wheel and fixed with nails, if the skin is removed with a "stocking". If the skin is taken off with a "canvas", then it is stretched on a frame or hung on hangers with the skin up. Spines, frames or hangers with skins are placed in the driest and most well-ventilated places. Drying near hot stoves, batteries, fires and in the sun is completely unacceptable. To protect against insects, the skins are pollinated with poisonous or repellent preparations. You can just cover with gauze.

With excessively hot and fast drying, the core becomes keratinized, the proteins gelatinize. Overdried or improperly dried skin is difficult to dress, some of its sections are not dressed at all.

Under normal drying conditions, the skin is ready in 3-4 days. It is quite hard (like cardboard), flexible and springy well.

Before packing, the skin must be carefully inspected to identify and destroy possible pests and lightly knock out the hair with a stick. Wipe the coat with sawdust (deciduous trees) moistened with gasoline or turpentine for degreasing.

Special bags or inhalers with camphor, naphthalene, paradichlorobenzene, etc. are put into the packed skin. insect repellants.

DRY SALT conservation. It is most widely used in places where humidity does not exceed average values.

The stretched skin is covered, from the mezdra side, with fine table salt and rubbed evenly over the entire surface. After the salt is rubbed into the mezra, the whole mezra is once again covered with an even layer of salt, 0.5 - 1 cm thick. The skin covered with salt rests for 3-6 days. During this time, the mezra is gradually dehydrated and brine appears on its surface, which must be wiped from time to time with a rag. When salting a large number of skins to remove the brine, it is recommended to use a pedestal - these are knocked down on a frame with legs 15 - 20 cm high, 2 sheets of thick lacquered or painted plywood, set in a hut. The freshly salted skins laid from the skin to the skin are stacked in a pile on the undercarriage. In this form, the skins are well salted and do not fade, the remnants of blood and brine flow down the sides of the undercarriage. Inspection of the skins on the stock is carried out after 2 - 4 days. If poorly salted and under-salted skins are detected, those places of the skin are salted where there is not enough salt or it is too wet or bloody.

To speed up conservation, especially during prolonged rains or near water bodies, it is recommended to add a mixture to salt per 1000 grams:

• potassium alum 20g
• ammonium chloride 40g
• insecticides 100g

When the secretion of the brine stops and the flesh acquires an even light gray color, the salt is shaken off the surface of the flesh and the skin is hung out to dry for 3-5 days. Conservation can be considered complete.

WET SALT Preservation it is mainly applied to the skins of a sea animal - a seal, a walrus, etc. The skin, cleaned of fat, is spread with the skin up and covered with a layer of salt, 1 cm thick. Then, a saturated solution of sodium chloride - brine is prepared in an oxidizing container. AT ready solution freely lower the skin for 3 to 7 days. Having taken it out of the brine, the skin is slightly squeezed, spread with the flesh up and again covered with salt. In this form, without shaking off the salt, it is folded skin to skin in an envelope and placed with other similarly prepared skins in a wooden or polyethylene container, carefully sprinkling the layers with salt.

This preservation method is not suitable for light skins (for example, polar bear), as the fur becomes rusty-red and the value of the skin is lost.

PICKLE conservation. Otherwise, it is called acidic. The skin is stretched on a spinning wheel or a frame (board), with the skin side up, and the entire surface is smeared with a solution of acid and sodium chloride using a brush or swab. This operation is called namaz. Preservative solution - pickel.

The PIKEL solution is made up of a mixture of organic acids - acetic, formic, lactic, or any one of them can be used. The ratio between the acids can be any, but their total content in the solution should not exceed 3%. Recommended pickling solution:

• concentrated acid (or mixtures thereof) 30 g
• table salt 30 g

  Namaz is repeated every 5-6 hours for 1-2 days, depending on the thickness of the mezdra. After each namaz, the skin is folded in half, skin to skin. Pickel can be prepared in advance - it does not deteriorate in a separate, non-oxidizing container.

  For poorly cleaned skins, it is better to use the dipping method rather than namaz. At the same time, the skin is lowered into the pickel solution, all completely and freely, for 3 - 1 hour, depending on the thickness of the skin. The skin in the pickle must be periodically mixed.

  Pickling solution for the dipping method:

  • concentrated acid (or mixtures thereof) 60g
  • table salt 60g

  Pickel consumption - 2 liters per 1 kg of skin.

  The readiness of the skin is judged by the fact that the flesh acquires a light gray color and becomes rough to the touch, the finger does not slip on the surface of the skin.

  A true indicator of the readiness of the skin during pickle preservation is the dryer - a white cross that remains if you fold the skin into a quadruple fold and squeeze this fold tightly with your fingers.

  The pickled skin is dried. Pickled skin does not rot, does not fade and is not afraid of pests. In essence, this is a semi-finished dressing of skins, but pickle preservation, in no case, replaces the full dressing of skins.

  It is possible to make pickle preservation with inorganic acids (hydrochloric, sulfuric, etc.), but these acids inevitably, to one degree or another, destroy the dermis of the skin, as a result of which the mezra gradually disintegrates, the normal natural color changes due to the destruction of pigments, and the hair falls out.

  Rabbit-breeding raw materials are preserved in several ways, but the most common and most accessible is the fresh-dry method, when the skins are dried without the use of preservatives, to a moisture content in the tissues of 10-17%. Fat-free and wiped skins are stretched on the rules with the flesh outward, evenly, without wrinkles and folds. The back and belly (belly) should fall in the middle, and the sides should fall on the edges of the rule. The skin is stretched so that its length in the straightened form does not exceed three times the width in the region of the hind legs. The skin distributed and stretched on the rule is fixed (with small nails, twine or thin and flexible wire) and dried. Rabbit skins are best dried with room temperature, in a heated room - in winter and under a canopy or in a barn - in summer. Optimum temperature drying of skins is in the range of 20 - 35 degrees, and the relative humidity should not exceed 30 - 60%.

  Goat and sheep skins can only be preserved when cooled, but no later than two hours after shooting.

  The most common dry-salted method, as it achieves the best canning result. With the dry-salty method; the cooled skin is spread on a clean floor or flooring, with the skin up and well straightened, sprinkled with clean salt, and the thickest areas are rubbed with salt. The second sheepskin is laid on the first sheepskin (with wool to the inside), then the third, etc. Salted skins are left to lie in a dark, dry and cool place for 2-3 days. After that, the skins are still salted and rolled up in a bag, like a fleece. Inside the package, the mezdra does not dry out - it gradually salts out in 6-8 days. The skins are then dried; in summer under a canopy, in winter - in a heated room, at a temperature of 20 - 30 degrees. When 0.8% naphthalene is added to the salt, the preservative effect of the salt is enhanced. Fresh-dry canning involves the usual drying under a canopy. With this method, the skins are saved only if they are kept dry all the time. Even with slight moisture, conditions are created in them for the development of putrefactive bacteria. Known acid-salt method, for which a preservative mixture is prepared from 90% sodium chloride, 5% aluminum alum and 5% ammonium chloride. The consumption of the mixture is 1.5 kg per skin. The mixture must be stirred. Preservation of sheepskins in this way ensures the preservation of the quality of the skins during their long-term storage. The skins are laid in the same way as with the wet-salt method. This method of preserving goat and sheep skins is used successfully at any time of the year.

  STRAIGHTENING AND DRYING SKINS

  Fat-free skins of rabbits and nutria must be straightened on the rules and placed in the dryer. When landing on the right Special attention give the shape of the mandrel of the skins. The skins are ruled with leather fabric outward on wooden rules. Rules made of thick metal wire recommended in some manuals should not be used because with a temperature difference between the rules and skins at the points of their contact, hair falls on the skins and clearings without fur (bald patches) form. Rulers are made in three sizes, with a width in the middle part of 200 mm, 160 mm, 120 mm. The right selection rules for the size of skins provide normal (without stretch marks) editing of skins of any size. The skin is put on the rule freely, keeping the natural size. On a strongly stretched skin, the hairline turns out to be sparse, which is why its quality decreases, and consequently, its value also decreases. When dressing the skins, the ratio of width to length must be observed, as 1:2.2 - 1:3. The skins are dried in a well-ventilated room at a temperature of 25 - 30 degrees. In order to constantly maintain this temperature, the room must be equipped with an appropriate heating system. It is not allowed to accelerate drying by raising the temperature in the dryer, by placing the skins near the stove. It is necessary to regularly monitor that the drying of the leather tissue takes place evenly, over the entire skin, without streaks. Therefore, if necessary, the skin is turned, interchanged with other skins on the rack. The skins on which droplets of fat have appeared can be wiped with a rag, rags, paper.

  SKIN TREATMENT AND CURRENCY

  Here are general provisions, methods, methods and recipes with the help of which it is possible to produce skins, both domestic and wild animals.

  Dressing skins is a complex, time-consuming process that requires compliance with the temperature regime, norms for the concentration of solutions, the duration of their exposure, unremitting attention, experience with chemicals. Deviation from the technological norms of dressing leads to damage to the fur raw materials. In order to learn how to dress skins and gain sufficient experience in this, it is better to start with obviously defective raw materials, and try to prepare solutions yourself, choose convenient dishes, organize workplace. Only after a positive result is obtained on defective raw materials, it is possible to start dressing skins High Quality.

  Dressing is understood as a complex processing of skins by mechanical and chemical influence in order to change the properties of the skin, making it suitable for use and long-term storage skins and fur products.

  The two most effective methods are:

  • fermentation (bread or Russian way)
  • pickling with organic acids

  All other operations performed on skins are related to the processing of skins. But the whole process of working with skins wears common name - dressing.

  It should be distinguished dressing after fresh-dry, dry-salted and wet-salted canning from dressing after pickle (acid) preservation.

  In the first three cases, dressing consists of the following workflows in a strictly defined order:

  1. 0tmoka
  2. Mezdrovka
  3. Degreasing wash
  4. Dressing-fermentation or pickling
  5. Tanning
  6. Drying
  7. Relaxation
  8. breakdown
  9. Mezdra cleaning
  10. hair cleaning

  When dressing skins preserved by the acid (pickle) method, the same order is preserved, but the process is much shorter:

  1. Tanning
  2. Drying
  3. Relaxation
  4. breakdown
  5. Mezdra cleaning
  6. hair cleaning

  OTMOKA- this is the process of soaking a canned skin, in order to bring it into a paired state, with a perfectly soft and elastic mezra.

  Soaking is carried out in a sufficiently capacious, non-oxidizing dish.

  Skins for soaking are laid so that the solution can completely cover them, and so that the skins do not float, they are sunk with some kind of load. Soaking lasts 1-4 days, depending on the thickness of the skin and the duration of storage after canning. To avoid the development of microorganisms, soaking should be carried out at a temperature of no more than 18 - 20 degrees.

  • Borax crystalline - 30 g
  • Carbolic acid (phenol) - 2 g
  • Table salt - 50 g
  • Zinc chloride - 3 g
  • Formalin - 1 g
  • Water - 1 liter

  Borax speeds up the soaking process.

  Phenol inhibits the development of microorganisms.

  Table salt binds and removes part of the soluble proteins from the mezdra.

  Zinc chloride contributes to a good fixation of the hair in the mezra and is especially useful when working with rotten skins. Its presence in the wash solution is not required, but desirable.

  Formalin is used only in the case of rotten skins. From formalin, the quality of the mezdra worsens somewhat (it becomes somewhat hardened), but decay stops and hair loss will be stopped.

  Strongly dried skins (especially thick-skinned), not amenable to soaking completely or in separate places, must be loosened, for which the method of fattening is used - swelling of the skin. The skin is placed in a 3% solution of acetic acid, after swelling of the skin, add to this solution table salt(50g). The skin in this solution is mixed and left in it for soaking. Nazhor gradually disappears, the mezra takes water well. Soaking goes on as usual.

  Poorly soak skins that are not sufficiently cleaned of fat, as well as skins with a keratinized surface of the mezra, as a result of accelerated drying. Horny areas of the skin do not accept water, are cut off with great difficulty during skinning, do not lend themselves to dressing, remaining hard, rigid and brittle. These are live bait - separate white areas on the surface of the mezdra. When soaking such skins, special amplifiers are used.

  If the hair is firmly held in the skin and well fixed, then you can use alkaline enhancers by adding to the wash solution:

  • ammonia- 50 g or
  • soda ash - 10 g
  • water - 1 liter

  With weak hair, the use of alkaline enhancers can lead to its complete loss. In these cases, it is recommended to add 1 gram of organic acid to the wash solution. A stronger concentration of organic acid causes the flesh to burn. To protect against nazhora, 30 grams of table salt is added to the soaking solution.

  Do not use hard water for soaking. If there is no soft or normal water, then ammonia (10 - 12 g) is added to hard water or it is pre-boiled with some kind of alkali to neutralize.

  The most well and quickly soak the skins preserved in the dry-salted way, somewhat worse - after the fresh-dry conservation.

  The success of dressing skins depends on the quality of soaking.

  The readiness of the skin and the completion of soaking are judged by the following signs:

  1. the flesh was soaked evenly over the entire area;
  2. cartilage in the area of ​​the ears, nose, ligaments of the fingers is completely soft and flexible-elastic (very important when dressing skins for stuffed animals).
  3. the hair is held in the mezdra firmly and does not stretch.

  When the soaking is over, the skin is taken out of the soaking bath, slightly squeezed and hung on hangers to drain the water. If the fur is lush and water does not roll off the hair well, then the skin is slightly shaken and beaten out with sticks. Having dumped excess water, proceed to the mezdrovka.

  SKIN SKIN consists in its mechanical processing, in order to remove the inner layers of the musculoskeletal and adipose tissue, as well as to loosen the fibrous tissue of the dermis in order to prepare it for perception chemical substances, in the process of further dressing.

  When skinning, the remains of fat and muscles are removed from the inner surface of the skin, and with sharp knives (with a thick skin), the skin is cut so that it becomes the same thickness and as thin as possible over the entire surface of the skin. This operation must be carried out with great care in order to prevent cutting through the skin and scraping it to the bare roots of the hair.

  Skinning is done on the skin spread with the skin upside down. You can spread the skin on any flat or, better, oval surface. Any sharp knife can be used, but it is more convenient to use a specially made knife or scraper with cutting edge on the end part, the edges of such a knife should be rounded. The movement of the knife during skinning, first from the tail to the head, along the ridge, and then from the ridge to the sides.

  So that the fat does not get on the hair and does not stain the wool, the skin during skinning, it is recommended to sprinkle with dry sawdust of hardwood or burnt gypsum, which absorb fat well and reduce the slip of hands on the surface during work.

  LAYOUT made with blunt knives - dead ends. You can use a regular blunt knife or scraper, as in the case of skinning, only blunt. This operation is performed in order to maximize the kneading, softening the mezra, squeezing and driving fat from the mezra under the pressure of the dead end on the mezra.

  No matter how cleanly the skin is beaten and broken, it must be well washed and degreased.

  WASHING AND DEGREASING skins produced, in different ways, depending on the degree of fat content. Fat skins (seals, bears, badgers, etc.) are processed twice, first in a degreasing bath, and then in a washing bath.

  For a degreasing bath, a warm solution is prepared:

  • washing soda - 8 g or caustic soda - 5 g
  • water - 1 liter

  The skins in the solution should float freely, they need to be mixed periodically. If the solution becomes dirty after 1-2 hours of degreasing and becomes rusty-brown, then it should be replaced with a fresh one. Thick mezra over the entire surface or separate thickened areas should be treated with a stiff metal brush before degreasing, otherwise complete degreasing of the thickness of the mezra cannot be achieved. The degreasing process for greasy skins lasts 2-3 hours.

  With a thin and even skin, it is enough to lightly rub the skin with your hands in a degreasing solution.

  The end of degreasing is characterized by the fact that the core of the skin turns white and its fat content ceases to be felt - the core creaks under the fingers.

  Having finished degreasing, proceed to washing the skin. The skin is removed from the degreasing bath and rinsed in clean water, after which it is transferred to the washing bath. Here it is poured with a warm soapy solution (100 grams of soap per 1 liter of water) or a solution of washing powder that has no contraindications for wool. Washing the skin consists in carefully rubbing it with your hands until a characteristic squeak appears on the wool.

  After washing, the skin is rinsed well in clean water.

  If necessary, degreasing and washing with appropriate rinsing is repeated.

  A well-washed and rinsed skin is lightly squeezed out, shaken from the remnants of water and hung on hangers to dry. Here it is pierced with sticks and, wiping with a clean, dry rag, the remaining water is carefully removed from it. Water after washing should be removed as completely as possible, since if water remains on the skin, this will disrupt the course of the subsequent operation - pickling or pickling.

  For thin skins with low-fat skins, the degreasing and washing processes can be combined into one process if the use of soap and washing powders gives the desired results.

  SEWERING the skins consists in using chemicals produced during the fermentation of dough or kvass to remove sticky substances from the main layer of the mezra - the dermis, free collagen fibers from them, change them physicochemical characteristics increasing their strength and softness.

  A solution for pickling - jelly or kvass is prepared as follows.

  Kvass is made from wholemeal oatmeal (with bran), stirring 200 grams of flour (per 1 liter of hot water). Bread yeast (7 grams per 1 liter of water) or pieces of rye bread(200 - 300 grams per 1 liter of water).

  You can prepare a pickling solution in advance, 1 - 2 days before starting work with the skin. This is done in a container that is not susceptible to oxidation. Dishes with talker “put in heat (30 - 40 degrees) and leave until soured; after about a day, white bubbles and a characteristic odor appear bread kvass. With the appearance of signs of souring kvass, the skin is immersed in kvass. In the next 2-3 days, the softening properties of kvass weaken and it will have a tanning effect on the mezra.

  Therefore, it is better to lay the skins in a freshly cooked and cooled talker. At the same time, during the first two days, while the mash is sour, the mezra will gradually soften, and then, as the acidity increases with the development of fermentation, the fermentation process will also pass.

  Before lowering the skins into the mash, add table salt (20 - 30 grams) to prevent the jelly from rotting during fermentation (3 kg of kvass is needed for every 1 kg of skins). The skin should float freely in the jelly, it must be turned daily, while stirring the mass of jelly, each time immersing the film formed on its surface to the bottom or removing it.

  The skins are ready in a few days: 5 - 7 thick skins, 3 - 5 medium skins, 2 - 3 thin skins.

  Skin ready is determined by the dryer held for a sufficiently long time on the quadruple fold of the thickest sections of the skins.

  Overexposure of the skin in kvass is dangerous, as it leads to hair loss and flaking of the skin.

  The fermentation method is quite complicated in determining the time for the skin to be ready, the film that forms on the kvass causes trouble, the process is accompanied by unpleasant odors and a lot of dirt. Therefore, fermentation should be used only in the absence of chemicals for pickling, the process of which causes less trouble and trouble, and gives better results.

  PIKELING(treatment of skins with organic acids) is a process that is easier to implement and, at the same time, a method of chemical treatment of skins that is excellent in its results.

  Pickel solution (pikel) can be prepared in advance, since the unused solution does not deteriorate during storage. The amount of the required solution is 3 liters per 1 kg of skins; the skins should float freely in the pickle.

  The composition of the pickling solution:

  • Concentrated acid (acetic, lactic, formic or a mixture of them) - 60 g
  • Table salt - 30 g
  • Water - 1 liter

  The duration of pickling is 5 - 48 hours, depending on the thickness of the core.

  The readiness of the mezdra, as the end of the pickling process, is judged by the appearance of dryer on the quadruple fold. With the advent of the dryer, the skin can be immediately removed from the pickel. Pixel overexposure indefinitely long time completely safe for the skin.

  The skin taken out of the pickel is slightly squeezed out, folded into an envelope with the skin inside and deposited for a sore bed, for 10-12 hours at room temperature. The bed is required. During this time, the skin soaked with pickel is finally worked out, the skin will reach. Overexposure on the bed for the skin is safe.

  IN PERCUSSION PIKELING

  • rabbit skins - t - 30-40 C, H.K. = 7
    acetic acid - 10-15 ml
    table salt - 40 g
  • fur sheepskin - t- 38 C, H.K.=8, 6-8 hours
    sulfuric acid - 4 ml
    table salt - 50 g
  • fur coat sheepskin - t - 38 C, 10-14 hours
    sulfuric acid - 5 ml
    table salt - 40 g

  Spread pickling is carried out on the leather tissue with more concentrated solutions and the skins are sent to the bed.

  tanning skins. Tanning is carried out after pickling, in order to fix the separation of fibers obtained during pickling, to make the fur skin resistant to heat, moisture, chemicals and enzymes. Tanning is usually carried out with a solution containing basic chromium salts, the raw material becomes resistant to moisture, heat and chemicals. If you do not carry out tanning, then when wearing a product made from only pickled skins, there is a violation of its strength under the influence of rain and snow, the so-called pickling.

  The skin stretched on the frame, sticks or board is lubricated from the skin side:

  1. Salt solution - 50 g
     potassium alum - 100 g
     Lubrication is carried out 3-4 days, 2 times a day. After that, the skin is dried without removing it from the board.
  2. Infusion (decoction) of oak, - willow, pine bark or horse sorrel roots until the skin no longer absorbs the infusion (decoction). Lubrication is repeated 5-6 times at intervals of 1-2 hours. Then the skin is moistened with water and rubbed with fine table salt for 2-3 days, 2 times a day.
  3. Special "dough" table salt - 5 parts
     oatmeal - 20 parts
     wheat flour - 1 part
     hot water - 300 parts
     after cooling, kvass grounds - 10-15 parts

  The skin is folded in half along the ridge with the skin inside and left to lie down, for 1 - 2 days in a dark place. Then it is dried near a heated oven or warm battery, the dough is removed, the mezdra is sprayed with salt water and soaked with an infusion or decoction of oak, willow, alder, pine bark or horse sorrel roots.

  After tanning, the skin is soaked on the skin side with heated fat (lard, fish oil, castor oil), crumpled in the hands, lubricated again and rubbed against a stretched rope until the skin becomes soft. After that, the skin is moistened with water, rolled up into a tube, wrapped in a rag and left to lie down for 10 - 12 hours. Then the skin is dried in a stretched form.

  DRYING it is made on hangers or on sticks with the flesh up. After drying the skin a little, the skin is turned upside down and the pile side is dried until completely dry. Then the skin is again turned upside down and finally dried. A well-dried core should be similar in hardness to cardboard.

  Drying should be done away from fire, hot batteries, in a shaded from the sun and well ventilated place.

  The dried skin can be kept indefinitely before further processing, but it is always better to finish the dressing right away.

  WORKOUT aims to soften the core of the dried skin in order to prepare it for breaking. Softening consists in light wetting of the cardboard-like core (2-3% aqueous solution of carbolic acid or, after fermentation, old kvass). The skin is gently moistened with a soft brush or tampon, then the skin is folded in half along the ridge with the skin to the skin and rolled tightly into a roll, the roll is wrapped in a damp rag, and then in oilcloth or polyethylene film and put under oppression for 1 day. When the skin is unrolled, the skin should be soft over the entire surface and acquire a grayish color. If some parts of the mezdra are poorly removed and remain hard, then they are re-moistened with carbolic water for additional local softening.

  LAYOUT is the final stage in the processing of the skin, which ends, in fact, the real dressing of the skin. The essence of the breakdown is to make the mezra completely soft and elastic by mechanical processing.

  Collagen fibers after the previous chemical treatment are easily amenable to mechanical stress and, retaining their high strength, become quite flexible and elastic. The breaking process consists in repeatedly pulling the skin with a sharp bend through the corner of the board, a metal bracket, through a rope or slingshot. The breakdown is carried out first along the ridge over the entire area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe skin, and then in the transverse direction.

  After breakdown, the mezra acquires a creamy White color, the ability to stretch in all directions, becomes completely soft and elastic. The fur becomes "alive", shiny; its surface is smooth, uniform and fluffy. The dressing of the skin is essentially finished.

  CLEANING THE MEZDRA It is produced to ensure that the skin surface is sufficiently even and uniform. They do this on a wooden deck with a 3-layer coating of burlap or skin, put on the deck with the fur down. You can cover the deck with linoleum with a felt base.

  The covering of the deck gives it the necessary elasticity, which can protect the skin from possible cuts during stripping.

  The skin for stripping is placed on the deck with the flesh up, and then processed with a sharp skin knife, scythe, cycler or other similar tool. To prevent the possibility of slipping of the point and accidental cuts in the skin, the surface of the mezra is sprinkled with chalk, ash or sawdust of hardwood before scraping.

  When the scraping is completed, the mezra is cleaned and polished with sandpaper screwed on wooden block, pumice or bars of fireclay bricks. Stripping is carried out until the mezra acquires a milky white color and a completely flat surface.

  HAIR CLEANING is made by knocking out the skin "with light blows of a stick, and then it is necessary to iron it over the pile with a clothes brush. Fur on skins with a dense and thick undercoat, after being beaten out with sticks, is carefully rubbed with hot large sawdust of hardwood trees. The sawdust is sifted, heated on a baking sheet and some kind of organic solvent(turpentine, acetone, gasoline, etc.) and mix thoroughly.

  Hot, solvent-moistened sawdust is rubbed into the fur, especially into the depths of the undercoat. Then the skin is beaten out with a stick. If required, rubbing sawdust and knocking out are repeated.

  The skin after pickling can simply be combed with a rare comb or clean clothes brush. The finished skin is hung out for 1 - 2 days for final drying and is now ready for indefinitely. long storage as a raw material for fur products.

  TREATMENT OF RABBITS AND NUTRIAS

  Here are a few specific ones that have received wide use ways of dressing the skins of rabbits and nutria.

  Method 1. Before starting the dressing, the skins are weighed and, based on the result obtained, all subsequent calculations are made of the required amount of chemical reagents. First, the raw material is soaked in water, at a temperature of plus 40 degrees and a liquid coefficient of 9. The operation is called soaking. Liquid ratio (l.c.) is the volume of processing liquid in liters per unit weight of skins in kilograms. For example, if your mass of dry skins is 1 kg, then you need to take 9 liters of water. The duration of the soak depends on the condition of the skins. If they are paired (recently removed from carcasses), then the soaking time is 3-4 hours. The first stage is exactly the same as for paired skins. The second stage is in a solution containing 15-20 grams of table salt per liter of water. In this case, the skins are in a saline solution for at least 10-12 hours; at the same time they are occasionally moved (turned over). Proper soaking largely determines the quality of the final product and facilitates subsequent operations, because this removes dirt and, after soaking, the skins are more easily amenable to mechanical and chemical action.

  After soaking, a second operation is carried out, which is called mind-blindness. Mezdrenie is carried out in two ways. In the first case, the subcutaneous fat layer is knocked down on a blunt staple or spit, (on the fill). In the second case, this layer is cut off on a sharp spit, or on a sharpened rotating circular knife (for cutting). The operation that comes after the mezdreniya is called pickling. Pickling is that the skins are soaked in a solution consisting of acetic acid, sodium chloride and water for 4 to 6 hours. The components of the solution are taken in the following proportions: acetic acid 10-15 grams per liter of water, sodium chloride - 4 grams per liter of water, while the liquid coefficient is 7, and the temperature of the solution is 30 - 35 degrees. After the completion of this operation, the skins are placed on a sore bed in stacks for one day, and after the expiration of the daily period they are squeezed out. In addition to pickling in solution, it is possible to carry out spread pickling, in which the concentration of the solution is twice as high as in the first case. When carrying out smear pickling, the solution is applied to the leather tissue with brushes, the raw materials are given a sore, and so 2-3 more times, followed by sores, during the day. To control the pickling of the skins, they are folded over, and squeezed with fingers at the fold points. If at the same time a white characteristic strip is formed, then the pickling process can be considered completed.

  Subsequent process - tanning. For the tanning process, the basic chromium salts are usually obtained from sodium dichromate, potassium (chromic) or chromic alum. It is difficult to prepare a tanning extract from chrompic at home, it is best to use dry chromium tanning agent, which is sold in the form of basic chromium sulfate, with a given basicity. Chrome peak itself and chromium oxide do not have tanning properties. However, all calculations during tanning are based on the content of chromium oxide, which is necessarily present in any amount of chromium extract. The solution in which the tanning skins are immersed must contain the extract in the following ratio: 1.5 grams of chromium oxide per liter of water. Tanning is carried out at a solution temperature of 35-40 degrees and a liquid coefficient of 9, for 6 hours, periodically stirring the solution and moving the skins from the bottom of the dish up and back. In the absence of chromium oxide, chromic alum can be used, which is taken in a slightly larger proportion, 6 grams per liter of water. After the end of the tanning process, the skins are removed from the solution and placed on a bed for 20 - 24 hours. After lying, the skins are carefully squeezed and fattening is carried out.

  Fattening carried out with a specially prepared emulsion. The fat emulsion is prepared in the following way: in water heated to 40 -45 degrees, dissolve laundry soap, based on 200 grams of soap per 1 liter of water. Gradually stirring the resulting solution, add lamb or pork fat, at the rate of 80 grams per 1 liter of water and ammonia - 10 ml per 1 liter of water. Very good results are obtained if mutton or pork fat is replaced by fish oil (blubber), in the same proportion. The mixture prepared in this way is applied to the leather fabric with a brush, without soiling the fur of the skin. Burnt skins are stacked in piles for lying, for 20 hours. As a result of the fattening, the skins become softer and more plastic.

  Last operation - drying, carried out at a temperature not exceeding 30 degrees. After drying, the skins are laid on a bed and broken over the entire surface on a blunt spit. The hairline is cleaned of contaminants using sawdust (not conifers trees). Finished products should have loose hair and soft plastic leather tissue.

  Method 2. Dry skins, the mezra of which was previously cleaned of muscles and fat, must be soaked. To do this, prepare a solution consisting of warm water (about 25 degrees) and table salt, at the rate of 30 grams per 1 liter of water. Too long stored raw materials that do not soak in a day, it is necessary to knead and change the solution from time to time, at least once a day, otherwise the skins will rot. At the end of this process, the skin resembles fresh in softness. Then it is thoroughly washed in warm water with powders like "News", "Lotus", etc., rinsed and ventilated to moderate humidity. Then put the skin back in salt water. After 30 minutes, soda ash is added there, at the rate of 1 gram per 1 liter of water. After the soda dissolves, formalin is poured in two doses, with an interval of 30 minutes, in the amount of 2 grams per 1 liter of water. Stirring and maintaining the temperature at 25 degrees for 6 hours, the skins are kept in this solution. Then concentrated sulfuric acid is poured in, at the rate of 5 ml per 1 liter of solution, the skins are kept in the resulting solution for another 8 hours, stirring it periodically. Next, ammonia is added, in the amount of 4 ml per 1 liter of water! and stirred for another hour. Then the skins are fattened with the following composition: 50 grams of laundry soap and 0.5 liters of spindle oil are added to 1 liter of boiling water, mixed and 20 grams of ammonia are added. The skins taken out of the solution are processed with the resulting mixture at a temperature of 50 degrees. Then the skins are turned inside out with the hair, they are allowed to lie down for a while so that the mixture dries slightly. If you are not satisfied with the softness of the mezdra, then the process is repeated. The processed skins are dried, kneaded, polished with fine emery tape. To make the fur shine, it is wiped with technical alcohol.

  Method 3. With a raw, freshly skinned skin, immediately while it is warm, fat and muscles are removed from the mezra. Then the skin is sprinkled with fine salt, rolled up with the hair outward, and left in this state for two days. Then it is unfolded, the remnants of connective tissue and fat are removed. After that, the skin is immersed in a solution prepared as follows: 70-80 grams of sodium chloride are taken per 1 liter of water and dissolved in water. Next, pour into the prepared saline solution from 7 to 15 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid. In this solution, the skins are from 8 to 10 hours, then they are removed from the solution and the liquid is allowed to drain. Why are skins hung for two hours? After the liquid is removed from the glass skins, the skins are fattened with the following composition: 50 grams of fish oil, 25 ml of oleic acid, 10 ml of 25% ammonia, 1 liter of water. This fat is prepared in two vessels. In the first, fish oil is mixed with oleic acid, in the second - ammonia with water. After preparing such mixtures, the contents of the first vessel are poured into the second, at a temperature of 25-30 degrees, mixed. The resulting fat is lubricated with the leather surface of the skins and left in this state for 4 - 6 hours. Then the skins are straightened and stretched on the rules, first with the fur inward, then with the fur outward and drying is carried out. In the process of drying, the skins are removed several times and carefully stretched in different directions, and when they are completely dry, they are crushed by hand to the end.

  Method 4. Dressing of skins by fermentation. Fermentation is classic way skin dressing. At present, it is rarely used, since the processing time is much longer than with other dressing methods. Purebred karakul skins, squirrels, and moles are made only by boasting. Fermentation has a number of advantages compared to other methods of dressing skins. The main one is that the strength of dressed skins almost doubles compared to such a method as pickling. A large amount of flour is needed for fermentation. So, in an enameled or glass bowl, 200 grams of wholemeal oatmeal or rye flour is dissolved in one liter of hot water and stirred until smooth. Gradually stirring, add 20 - 30 grams of table salt, 7 grams of yeast, 0.5 grams baking soda. When the solution has cooled, the skins are immersed in it. The skins are in it for two days, they swell and, as the acidity in the solution increases, ferment. For one kilogram of the weight of paired skins, three kilograms of a solution (kisel mass) prepared by the above method are taken. During the two days that the skins are in the jelly mass, they are periodically turned over, and the jelly is mixed so that a film does not form on the surface and the solution does not rot. The end of the fermentation process is determined in two ways: by pinching and by drying. How to find dryer? To do this, the skin taken out of the jelly is bent four times, in the groin area, with the skin up. Then, at the place where the angle is formed, it is tightly compressed and a fingernail is drawn along the formed rib and released. If the skin is ready, then for some time a white strip - a dryer - will be clearly visible at the place of the nail. The pinch test is done as follows: in the groin area, voskas are plucked, and if this can be done without much effort, then the fermentation process is over. Further, the skin is subjected to any method of tanning and oiling. After that, it is taken away and it is ready for use.

  Method 5. Before dressing, the skin is immersed in a concentrated salt solution (30 g/l, preferably 60 g/l). It is recommended to add a little ammonia. Keep in the solution for several hours (or a day) until completely softened.

  If the skin is not very dry, then it is abundantly sprayed with salt water from the side of the mezra and left for several hours. Spraying is repeated as the solution dries until the skin is completely softened.

  The soaked skin is minced. After skinning, the skin is tanned by one of the three methods listed below.

  Method 1

  The skin stretched and nailed to the board is moistened from the side of the mezra with a solution:

  • aluminum alum - 100 g/l table salt - 50 g/l

  This should be done 3-4 days, 2 times a day. After that, the skin is dried without removing it from the board.

  Method 2

  The skin from the side of the mezra is rubbed with an infusion of oak or pine bark until it stops absorbing the infusion (5-6 times, at intervals of 1-2 hours). Then the skin is dried in a stretched form. Then it is rubbed with fine table salt, for 2-3 days, 2 times a day. Before rubbing, the skin is moistened with water.

  Method 3

  The skin is lubricated with a special "dough". It is prepared on the basis of:

  • wheat flour - 1 part
  • oatmeal -20 parts
  • table salt - 5 parts
  • hot water - 300 parts

  This mixture is cooled and 10-15 parts of kvass grounds are added. Now the "dough" is ready. They lubricate the inner side of the skin, the skin is folded in half with the fur up and left for 1-2 days in a warm place. Then the skin is unrolled and dried near a heated oven or battery. After drying, the "dough" is removed, the skin is sprayed from the side of the mezra with salt water and soaked in an infusion of oak or willow bark.

  After tanning, the skin is impregnated with some kind of fat: lard, fish oil. The fat is heated and smeared on the skin from the mezdrya side, wrinkled it in the hands, greased again and rubbed on a stretched rope until the skin becomes soft.

  After this procedure, it is moistened with water, rolled up into a tube, wrapped in a rag and left to lie for 10-12 hours. It remains to dry the skin in a stretched form and, if necessary, paint it with special dyes for fur.

  Method 6. Prepared skins for 3-4 hours are dipped in a solution (at 35-40 degrees) containing 2-3 g / l detergent(powders Neptune, Lotus, Selenium shampoo). Every 30 minutes, the contents are stirred, if the solution becomes contaminated, it is replaced at the rate of Zl per 1 kg of skins.

  Soaking - pre-picking. The washed skins are turned inside out and squeezed. Prepare a solution:

  • table salt - 40 g
  • sodium sulfate - 0.5-1 g
  • sodium silicofluoride - 1 g
  • detergent - 2 g
  • acetic acid - 1-1.5 ml or lactic acid - 0.5-1 ml or formic acid - 0.5-1 ml or sulfuric acid - 0.25 ml

  In this solution at a temperature of 34-40 degrees, stirring occasionally, the skins are kept for 12-15 hours. Liquid coefficient - 5.

  Upon completion of the soak, the skins are squeezed out and again placed in the old (washing) solution, adding 4 ml / l of 80% acetic acid to it and heating it to 35-40 degrees. Pre-picking, periodically stirring the skins, is carried out for 8-10 hours. Then, slightly squeezed skins with the inside are folded for 10-12 hours for a sore.

  Spin. As a wringer at home, it is convenient to use the rollers from the washing machine, wrapping the skin in gauze.

  Mezdrenie. The skin is put on with the skin outside on a plank (10-12 cm long and 60 cm wide) with a rounded end. With a sharp knife, cut the edge of the film along the tail part of the skin, then carefully remove it from the tail to the head with a stocking. To remove fat, small sawdust of deciduous trees or dry rags are used. When removing the film, pressing the knife too hard on the skin can damage the hair follicles and cause them to fall out.

  Pickling. Depending on the thickness of the skin and the thoroughness of degreasing, the skins are placed in a solution for 1-3 days (35 degrees):

  • table salt - 50 g
  • acetic acid - 8 mg
  • detergent - 0.5 g

  The skins in the pickel are often mixed. Pickled skins are folded with the skin inside for a sore, for 24 hours, after which they are carefully squeezed.

  Tanning. The skins are placed in a solution (at 35 degrees), for at least 8 hours, with frequent stirring. The composition of the solution:

  • table salt - 40 g
  • hyposulfite - 8-10 g
  • chrome-potassium alum - 6-7 g

  Alum is introduced into the pickle solution in two (sometimes three) doses: 2-3 hours after the start of tanning (2 or 3 step tanning). After tanning, the skins are aged for 1 day, folded with the skin inside and pressed on the rollers.

  Fattening begins with the preparation of the fat emulsion. It can be made according to the recipe:

  On a coarse grater, rub 100 g of laundry soap and dissolve it in 0.5 liters of hot (50 - 60 degrees) water, adding 50 grams of melted animal fat. With stirring, 5-10 ml of ammonia are added to the emulsion. The emulsion is applied to the mezra with a tampon, after which the skins are folded with the mezra inside and left to lie down for 5-6 hours.

  Drying. If the room is warm (about 30 degrees), then the skins are immediately put on the rules (spindles) with the core out. When they begin to dry out, they are removed, kneaded thoroughly and with effort, moderately stretched and put on the rules again with the fur outside, for final drying.

  breakdown produced on a narrow wooden board. The skin tissue is stretched with a blunt (dead end) knife in all directions. If the skin is dry, then its mezra is slightly moistened before being broken down and placed for several hours with the mezra inside to evenly distribute moisture. After breaking down, the fur is combed.

  Method 7. Start the skinning from the tail, just drive it away - then sprinkle wood ash, put to lie down for 10-15 minutes. Then fidget again. And so 2-3 times.

  Degreasing. Water temperature 40-50 degrees, solution:

  • table salt - 40-60 g
  • mustard powder - 1 handful
  • turpentine - 4-5 ml
  • washing powder - 10 g
  • caustic soda - 3-4 g
  • zinc chloride - 1-2 g or sodium silicofluoride - 1-2 g

  Exposure time - 1.5 - 2 hours.

  Pickling. At 18-20 degrees, withstand 12 hours in solution:

  • formic acid - 4 ml
  • sulfuric acid -0.25 ml

  Tanning. Soak for 1 hour in solution:

  • table salt - 40 g
  • alum 7-8 g

  Add to the solution:

  • urotropin - 1 g
  • chromium alum or (better) chromium extract 4 - 5 g

  Soak in this solution for 4 hours, add alumina-potassium alum (10 g) to the solution and soak for another 6 hours. Squeeze and put on a bed for 12 hours.

  Zhirovka. The composition of the solution:

  • water - 0.5 l
  • castor oil - 150 g
  • fish oil - 50 g
  • ammonia - 25 ml
  • turpentine - 50 ml
  • oleic acid - 75 g
  • table salt - 1 teaspoon
  • flour - 1 cup

  All this is thoroughly mixed and brought to 1 liter. Spread the skin with this mass, roll the skin inside and put it on a bed for 12 hours. Then repeat spreading and soaking, dry, sipping the skin from time to time.

  Method 8. The easiest way to dress rabbit skins. Produced using sour milk. Paired, freshly removed skins are rubbed with coarse salt and placed in piles with the flesh inside, in this state they lie for 3 days. After that, the salt is shaken off, the skins are rinsed and squeezed, and then their skinning is carried out. The cleaned skins are placed with fur inside, in well-sour (within 5-7 days) cow's milk, in which they lie for three days. Then, they are taken out, rinsed and tanned, using one of the methods already listed. Sour milk (curdled milk) is taken at the rate of 1 liter per one medium-sized rabbit skin.

  MANUFACTURING OF SHEEP AND GOAT SKINS

  The dressing of sheep and goat skins is a very laborious process. Before starting the processing of the skin, its mass should be determined, since this is very important for the accurate calculation of the concentration and amount of the solution during degreasing, pickling, skinning and tanning. Degreasing is carried out in two stages, in a bath, with a liquid 32 coefficient of 8 and 9 and a water temperature of 35 - 40 degrees, if the skins are dry. For a solution with a liquid coefficient of 9, a detergent is taken (for example, "News" or "Lotus"), at the rate of 3 grams per 1 liter of water. Washing lasts 2 - 3 hours.

  You can use one of the old simple and available ways sheepskin degreasing. It consists in lubricating sheepskins with liquid clay. The clay is dried and ground into a fine powder, which is then sifted through a sieve. After that, the clay powder is diluted to the density of sour cream, and this slurry is generously lubricated with the sheepskin core, which is spread on a flat surface. You can smear with a brush or a brush made of bast. Particularly carefully lubricate the mezra in the thickest places. Then the sheepskin is dried.

  In summer, in good weather, this can also be done on outdoors. When the sheepskin dries up to such a state that pieces of clay easily fall off, they hang it on a hook and beat the sheepskin with a small but heavy stick until the clay stops falling off it.

  After that, it is again smeared with a clay solution, dried and beaten with a stick. For low-fat sheepskins, 2-3 repetitions are enough, for fatty ones - 5-6. greasy spots, then only stains are treated. After all the skin has been degreased, they begin to dry and preserve it.

  Soak off. The soaking process lasts 14-16 hours, with a liquid coefficient of 8 and a water temperature of 35 degrees. Skinning can be done with a blunt staple, scythe, or a sharpened, rotating circular knife. Pickling is carried out at a liquid coefficient of 8, a water temperature of 25 degrees for 16-18 hours in a specially prepared solution. The solution is prepared as follows: from the calculation of the liquid coefficient 8, take required amount water heated to a temperature not lower than 25 degrees and dissolve in it 60 grams of table salt, 12 grams of acetic acid per 1 liter of water. The skins immersed in the resulting liquid are turned over from time to time. At the end of the pickling process, the skin is folded inward with fur and kept a little in such a pressed state. If, after the skin was released, a white stripe appeared on the skin, then this indicates that the skin was sufficiently pickled.

  Tanning. For the tanning process, basic chromium sulfate or chromic alum is used. To prepare a tanning solution, per 1 liter of water, take 1.5-2 grams of chromium salt, 8 grams of hyposulfite and 40 grams of table salt. Tanning is carried out at a liquid coefficient of 8 and a water temperature of 35 degrees, for 10-12 hours. After that, the skins are taken out and stacked one on top of the other for a sore bed, which lasts for 6 hours. At the end of the sore, the skins are squeezed and treated with an emulsion consisting, per 1 liter of water, of 80 grams of fat, 100 ml of ammonia and 200 grams of laundry soap. The emulsion is prepared as follows. Soap is first dissolved in water at a temperature of 45 degrees, then gradually stirring, fat (mutton or pork) and ammonia are added. To obtain an effective fat emulsion, it is necessary to follow the above procedure for its preparation. The fat emulsion is applied to the mezdra (skin) with a brush or swab and placed on a bed for 20 hours. At the end of the process of dressing the skins of sheep and goats, drying is carried out, at a temperature of 30 degrees and the dried skins are kneaded, pulled, after which fur products can be sewn from them.

  RECIPES FOR PREPARING HYDRO-FAT EMULSION

  RECIPE 1. Laundry soap (100 grams), fish or other animal fat (1 kg) are placed in boiling water (based on 1 liter). The mixture is thoroughly mixed, removed from heat and 5-10 ml of ammonia are added, mixed again, allowed to cool (so that the temperature is not more than 40 degrees) and applied to the skin of the skins.

  RECIPE 2. For one liter of water, the temperature of which should be 40 - 50 degrees, take: 200 grams of laundry soap, 80 grams of lamb or pork fat, 10 ml of ammonia and all components are thoroughly mixed. AT this method emulsion preparation can be replaced: up to 5 percent with machine oil, up to 6 percent with glycerin, up to 50 percent with egg yolk.

  RECIPE 3.

  Dissolve in 100 grams of boiling water:
  • laundry soap - 30 g
  • machine (spindle) oil - 20 ml
  • unsalted pork fat - 30 g
  • glycerin - 30 ml
  • ammonia - 30 ml
  • chicken egg yolk - 3-4 pcs

  After mixing, a white creamy paste (fat emulsion) is obtained. It is applied thin layer on the skinned surface with a brush. After fattening, the skins are folded with the skin inside for a 6-hour soak.

  RECIPE 4. Glycerin and egg yolk are taken in equal proportions, one to one, beat well and fatten the skins with the resulting composition.

  RECIPE 5. 25 grams of spindle or transformer oil, 30 grams of glycerin, 250 grams of egg yolk and 30 ml of ammonia are thoroughly mixed until a characteristic white color is obtained, after which the resulting emulsion is applied to the mezra with a brush or swab.

  NATURAL TANNERS. THEIR PREPARATION AND USE

  One of the natural tanning agents is willow bark, which is also called belotal, verbolaz, eared willow and water willow. The bark of adult willows is rough and dark in color, it contains up to 12 percent of tannins. Willow bark tanning agent is prepared in the following way: enameled or stainless steel dishes are taken and filled almost to the top with willow bark and small twigs, poured with water and allowed to boil for 30 minutes. Then the solution is drained, 50 grams of table salt per liter of water is added to it and cooled. Dubitel is ready. The skins are kept in it from 12 hours to 4 days, after which they are taken out and given a sore for several hours. Willow bark is also used for tanning, which contains up to 7 percent of tannins.

  Another tanning agent is oak bark. A decoction is prepared from it in a similar way. The disadvantage of oak tanning is that it tightens the hide (it becomes more rigid) and slightly stains the fur and skin in a yellowish color.

  The following composition is considered the best of natural tanning agents: 2 - 2.5 liters of decoction of horse sorrel roots are added to a bucket of willow broth. Overexposure in such a tanning agent is undesirable, the end of processing is determined in the following way - in the groin area, a small piece is cut off from the skin and on the cut they look like a tanning agent (tannin - slightly yellow color) has penetrated deep into the skin. If the skin is completely saturated, then the process is stopped. After tanning follows a soak, which lasts until full ripening for two days.

  In the old days, grass hay was used as a tanning agent. This tanning agent was prepared as follows: well-chopped hay was placed in a tank with a volume of 30 liters. Then it was well tamped and poured with boiling water, then wrapped in an old blanket for steaming. The broth was in this state for 30 minutes, after which it was drained and salted, at the rate of 50 grams of salt per 1 liter of broth. No more than one rabbit skin was immersed in a decoction cooled to 35 - 49 degrees. The end of the tanning process was checked by coloring to the full thickness of the skin on the cut.

  SEVERAL SIMPLE AND QUICK WAYS TO PROCESS SKINS

  The skin removed by the layer is stretched and fixed on the board with small nails, with the skin outward. Mezdra, for 3-4 days, 2 times a day, lubricate with a warm solution:

  • table salt 50 g
  • aluminum alum 100 g
  • water 850 ml

  The skin after processing remains on the board until completely dry, after which it is removed from the board, fattened, dried and broken. The skin removed by the layer is stretched and fixed on the board with small nails, with the skin outward. The mezdra is rubbed with infusion of willow, oak or pine bark until it stops absorbing the infusion. As a rule, the infusion is required to be applied to the mezdra 5-6 times at intervals of 1-2 hours. Then the flesh is moistened with water, rubbed with fine table salt 2 times a day, for three days in a row, dried on the same board, fattened if necessary, dried and broken down.

  The skins of the skins are processed with a specially prepared dough:

  • hot water 300 parts
  • oatmeal 20 parts
  • table salt 5 parts
  • wheat flour 1 part

  cool down

  • kvass grounds 10-15 parts

  to stir thoroughly.

  The skin smeared with dough is folded with the flesh inside, placed in warm place for 1 - 2 days, for drying. The dried dough is removed, and the mezdra is moistened with salt water and soaked in an infusion of willow or oak bark. Finally, the skin is fattened, dried and broken down. When fattening, heated fish or other animal fat is used.

  Dressing of skins is carried out according to a shortened scheme - no more than one day (excluding preparatory operations). Carefully degreased skin is placed for 30 - 35 minutes in an alkaline solution, the following composition: three tablespoons of washing powder in a bucket of water, the temperature of which is 35 - 40 degrees. After vigorous and thorough washing, the skin is placed for 24 hours in a warm (18 - 20 degrees) solution consisting of 400 grams of table salt, 35 grams of lactic acid, 10 grams of aluminum alum, per 1 liter of water. After a daily exposure, the skin is re-treated with an alkaline solution and washed with water at room temperature. The skins are dried on the hoop, as they dry, they are stretched, without great effort. In conclusion, the leather skins are processed until the entire surface of the skin is velvety.

  The most laborious and at the same time in a simple way handling is fiddling. This method has been used by various peoples since ancient times. The essence of the method is as follows: they take the skin after fresh-dry preservation, moisten its limited area with milk and pull sequentially, centimeter by centimeter. Pulling can be compared to removing dry dirt from clothes. In the process of pulling, the collagen bundles are stratified into individual fibers and partially torn. All this makes the skin soft. A similar result is obtained if the skin is broken on a bracket. Stretched through "dead ends" or kneaded for a long time. Since this mechanical method is very laborious and requires a lot of energy, it is not widely used among leather makers.

  SKIN COLORING

  The most difficult process of dressing skins at home is coloring. Achieve uniform and uniform color various categories hair having different color zones along the length is very difficult. And if the reader has the opportunity to color the dressed skins at a specialized enterprise, then it is better to take advantage of this opportunity.

  For dyeing skins black prepare a solution of the following composition: 3-5 grams of chromic acid, 1 gram of sulfuric acid, 10-20 grams of common salt are taken per liter of water. The volume of the solution should be 10 times the mass of the skins, i.e. the liquid coefficient is 10. In this solution, heated to a temperature of 25 - 28 degrees, the skins are placed for 3 - 4 hours, stirring occasionally with a stick, then they are squeezed out and transferred to a container, with a solution of hyposulfite and sodium chloride, with a liquid coefficient of 10, by 8 - 10 hours, and stir occasionally. The solution is prepared from 10 grams of hyposulfite and 10 - 20 grams of sodium chloride per 1 liter of water. After the skins are taken out of the solution, they are washed in clean water at a temperature of 20 - 22 degrees, squeezed and lowered into a container with a previously prepared dye solution at a temperature of 28 - 35 degrees. The dye is prepared as follows: for 1 liter of water, 2 grams of pyrocakhetin, 4 grams of paraphenylenediamine, 1 gram of washing powder and 1 ml of 25% ammonia solution are taken. The skins are kept in this dye for 30 minutes, then 30% hydrogen peroxide is added to the container, at the rate of 6 ml per liter of solution. The skins are kept in this solution for another 3-6 hours, with frequent stirring. It is very important that they are completely covered with the solution.

  If the skins are dyed light brown color, then sulfuric acid is not added to the solution.

  Henna, basma, gamma (hair dyes) are often used as dyes, which color the skins in golden chestnut or black. These dyes are widely known and available, they are usually accompanied by rules for their use.

  After dyeing, the skins are washed, for 1 hour, in water with washing powder (1 gram of powder per 1 liter of water), then another 30 minutes in clean water, until the dye residues are completely removed.

  In conclusion, they are dried, kneaded and combed, sometimes treated with a fat emulsion, for better preservation.

Rabbit fur is beautiful and soft, you can sew various fur products from it - hats, fur coats, vests. Sometimes it's hard to find a good specialist dressing (furrier). Therefore, you have to learn on your own. Dressing rabbit skins at home is a long process. It may not work right away - do not be discouraged. Try again and again. Experience will come with time.

Rabbit skins are used for a variety of products

Slaughter for fur at the age of 6-8 months in November-March. At this time, rabbits have the most fluffy and thick fur coat.

For slaughter, you must prepare a sharp knife, chemicals and salt for dressing, rules.

Primary processing and storage

To obtain high quality skins, a slaughtered rabbit must be properly skinned, that is, carefully separate the skin from the carcass. Take your time so as not to spoil the flesh with a knife, let someone help you.

The dressing of rabbit skins begins with the removal of the remnants of meat and fat. We turn the warm skin inside out with fur and carefully scrape it from the end to the head. The knife is perpendicular to the work surface. You can also remove manually in layers. Avoid processing dry skins. It is very difficult to remove meat and fat from them.

It happens that there is no way to dress the skins right away. To prevent damage to the blanks, they must be preserved. We stretch the skin on the rule. The rule is a capital letter "A". The horizontal crossbar is usually made mobile, so you can adjust the rule to the size of the workpiece. We fix the lower end of the workpiece so that it does not gather in folds. The fur melts into them, and then crawls out.

Sizes of rules for skins

If you leave the blanks not straightened on the day of slaughter, they will deteriorate. Storage of rabbit skins without rules in the cold will not save either - the quality of such products will be low.

The blanks are stored together with the rules in a dry, well-ventilated place. The maximum temperature in it is + 30 ° С. Do not store near batteries or any heat source. Subsequently, they will become brittle. In order to accumulate more blanks, the dried skins are put in a clean, tightly closed box. Moth remedy can be put in bags there. Before soaking, the workpiece must be removed from the rules.

Dressing

It takes a lot of hard work to get quality products. The process of dressing rabbit skins consists of several stages. Each of the stages is important, and none of them can be ignored.

Tools for dressing skins: a) a wooden blank for degreasing, b) a dead end, c) a scythe, d) a knife for degreasing

It is used for canned blanks. The solution contains 50 g of salt per 1 liter of water. To destroy putrefactive bacteria that feed on protein, it is better to add borax or carbolic acid to the solution:

• carbolic acid (in crystals) - 2 g;
• borax - 30 g.

Instead of borax and carbolic acid, you can use any of the drugs listed below:

• zinc chloride - 2 g per 1 liter of water;
• norsulfazol - up to 2 tablets per 1 liter of water;
• formalin - 0.5-1 g per 1 liter of water;
• double sodium sulfite - 2 g per 1 liter of water.

Dry skins are soaked in the solution. For 1 kg of blanks, there are 3 liters of water. A capacious container made of glass, stainless steel or enameled is taken for soaking. We press down so that they do not float up and are at a depth of at least 2 cm from the surface of the water. Soaking ends when the skin becomes like fresh, the mezra has become soft, and the hair is not pulled out of the skin.

Change the solution more often, avoiding fermentation, about 2 times a day. For uniform processing, the workpiece is mixed from time to time. Soaking takes from 6 hours to 4 days.

Soaking skins

Mezdrenie

Soaked skins are allowed to drain, and then wiped dry. The process of skinning is the removal of the subcutaneous layer. It is necessary to completely remove the remnants of fat, cut the meat, the film. If after slaughter the initial processing was thorough, then the skinning is much easier.

The remains are scraped off and scoured on a special convex wooden deck. They clean from the tail to the head, and the sides - from the ridge to the stomach.

Degreasing

To do this, we prepare a special warm solution: for 1 liter of water - 4 g of washing powder. We carefully erase the material until it “squeaks”, that is, the flesh will become whiter and begin to creak on the fingers. We rinse in the water. And now it's the turn of the soap solution. For 1 liter of water (warm) take 10 g of soap. We lather the hairline with our hands directly in the solution. We rinse again. After hanging the skins, shake off the water by tapping with a stick and wipe with a dry cloth.

Degreasing skins is a rather complicated matter.

Pickling

Fur products need strength, or durability. Strength is achieved by treatment with an acidic solution. This processing is called pickling. To prepare the solution is used:

• water - 1 l;
• salt - 30 g;
• vinegar in the form of essence - 15 ml.

We lower the skins (fur inside) into the solution. Don't forget to stir them often. Pickling is a long process and can take up to 48 hours.

A test for "drying" will make it clear about the end of the procedure. A test is made as follows: we take out the workpiece from the solution, bend the core and compress it.

If a white strip appears during opening, “dryer”, and does not disappear in 5 seconds, so the process is completed.

After the pickling solution, the skins contain acid residues. To neutralize the acid, place the blanks in a baking soda solution for 20 minutes. Then we squeeze the blanks and turn them inside out with the fur. We lay out in piles, and press the load on top. The laying time of rabbit skins ranges from 12 to 24 hours.

Bedding skins

Tanning

An important quality of the finished fur is elasticity and water resistance. These properties, as well as additional strength, are imparted by tanning. It is carried out in a special solution. A decoction of oak bark makes the products somewhat rough and is good only for durable things. Willow or willow bark will give strength and softness.

For tanning, we select a large old pan, which we will use constantly, since decoctions from the bark of trees are poorly cleaned.

We cook the bark plates for 30 minutes, drain, filter and add 40 g of salt for each liter of water. Please note that if you soak the blanks completely in the solution, then the fur will also be colored. Therefore, with a brush, we apply an infusion of the bark on the mezra, turn it inside out and put it on a bed.

We dry on the rules. For softness, elasticity, periodically remove from the rules, slightly sip. The workpiece is ready for fattening if it has become soft. For this, you can process the mezdra with sandpaper.

Varieties of rules for rabbit skins: a) wedge-shaped, b) sliding, c) forked

Fattening

This is The final stage dressing. The fat mixture is made from one part egg yolk and one part glycerin, that is, 50 to 50.

Spread the mixture evenly on the mezra and leave for several hours. We dry the skins and knead. To absorb excess fat, the workpiece must be rubbed with chalk. We comb the fur, the product is ready.

Cotton bags are used to store dressed skins. Do not store in polyethylene, they may become moldy, acquire bad smell and sloppy look.

Fur products made from handmade skins are especially dear to us. And if you also know how to sew, then you can make unusual things for yourself. Learn and try, everything will turn out!

SHINING IN HOME CONDITIONS
PRACTICE OF THE MASTER FROM THE SCHOOL OF FURMERS
Skinning begins with a selection of skins for work. The proverb “Is the skin worth the candle?” is very appropriate here. That is, would dressing costs be appropriate? Is the skin worthy of these costs? So, first of all, we select the skins, form them into technological batches for dressing. By quantity, batches can be large and small, depending on the availability of certain skins, the technical capabilities of the equipment for liquid treatments of the workshop and the urgency of the process.
Rabbit skins are easier to form into technological batches according to the features of the batch: thin, medium, thick. The ability to purchase skins from the population allows this. At the same time, other types of raw materials: mink, muskrat, fox and even nutria, cannot always be harvested in quantities for which the equipment is designed. In this case, they are formed into small batches and cured in small containers with manual mixing.
In the process of forming technological batches, the master is guided by his own practice and the capabilities of the workshop, especially containers for liquid processing of hides.
The batches of skins are selected:
• by species (rabbit, nutria, muskrat, fox, etc.)
• by individuals (male, female).
In the parties themselves, the skins are divided by thickness - into thin, thick, by size - into large, medium, small. When forming parties, it is taken into account that old skins are dressed separately from fresh ones.
It is better to store skins before dressing in the autumn-winter period in an unheated, dry, ventilated room - a garage, a barn, summer kitchen. At low temperatures air up to + 6 degrees. the main pests of skins - moth larvae, kozheed and cockroaches are not terrible. But with an increase in air temperature, the skins must be treated with agents against moths and skin beetles.
OTMOK A
Soaking is the first liquid operation of dressing fur. The concept of "soaking" involves soaking skins in an aqueous solution in the presence of salt, antiseptic, acid, surfactant.
The purpose of soaking is to bring the dry skin to a state as close as possible to the pair. A pair skin is a freshly skinned animal skin. Of course, no matter how you soak the skin, it would be pointless to turn it into a steam room. But to bring it as close as possible to this state is the task of a properly set soak.
In the process of conservation and storage in the leather part of the skins, aging processes continue. Structural fibers of dried skins shrink and age. Not removed fat ages and turns yellow, destroys skin proteins. When preserving skins by a dry-salted or, even worse, wet-salted method, salt takes part in the destruction of structural fibers. Under its influence, the hair loses its shine, becomes brittle.
In the process of soaking, the structural fibers of the skin are watered, swell, and acquire their former dimensions. The leather part increases in thickness, the skin acquires the ability to deform, that is, to bend, crumple into a lump. At the same time, in the process of watering, the microorganisms present in each skin in a frozen state receive an environment for life and reproduction. The process of their detrimental effect is not necessarily characterized by a putrid odor.
The first sign of the action of microorganisms is the weakening of the connection of the hair with the skin, the next is the increased flow of the hair, then the decay and decomposition of the leather tissue. To prevent the development of microorganisms, a certain amount of antiseptics is added to the soaking water solution. As a rule, their number ranges from 1 to 2 grams per 1 liter of solution. A smaller amount of antiseptic does not give the desired result, an increase leads to unnecessary consumption of the chemical preparation, and sometimes to coarsening of the leather tissue.
To better water the skin, table salt is added to the solution, and acetic acid, baking soda, and surfactants are added to exacerbate the action of antiseptics.
Formalin, sodium silicofluoride, and zinc chloride are used as available antiseptics in fur production. Formalin has good antiseptic properties, but has the ability to tan the leather part and is harmful to the human body.
The tannin properties of formalin appear in a neutral environment, are more pronounced in an alkaline environment and weaken in an acidic environment. The antiseptic properties of formalin are aggravated in an acidic environment; this is convenient to manipulate when soaking raw materials of different freshness and types. Based on practice, it is known that the older the skin, the stronger the hair is held in it. The fresher, the more likely the hair to flow. For example, when soaking nutria with formalin, washing powder is added to give the soaking solution a slightly alkaline, and, accordingly, tanning property. The antiseptic properties of sodium silicofluoride are manifested in a slightly acidic environment. Therefore, when using it, a little acetic acid is always added. When using zinc chloride, sodium sulfite is added to the solution or soaking is carried out in a neutral environment. The exact data of these and other drugs are given in the technologies. The use of antiseptics should not be neglected, there may be negative consequences for the skins.
Temperature regime the wash solution is maintained within + 25- + 30 degrees. The older the skins, the higher the temperature should be and vice versa. Lowering the temperature delays soaking, increasing it speeds up the process. At the same time, the soaking temperature should not be higher than 35 degrees, in order to avoid damage to the leather fabric. During the soaking process, the master controls the process by temperature and time.
Mixing during soaking should be normalized, according to the technology. Too frequent and intensive mixing can lead to felting of the fur, especially long-haired skins.
The liquid coefficient must be specified in the technology. A neutral surfactant is sometimes added to the wash solution. Its purpose is to promote the breakdown of fat on the hair, loosen the structure of the skin, and facilitate the rotation of skins in a longboat or other container.
Carrying out the soak:
In accordance with the technology, a solution is prepared, skins are laid in it, pressed down on top with a wooden grate or a plastic plate. A load is placed on top of the grate so that the liquid level on top of the grate is at the level of 4-5 cm. The skins should not peek out from under the grate. As the grid sinks, the load is removed.
As a load, you can use a stone-but different sizes, a piece of concrete, sheets of lead. The use of iron and bricks is not recommended. Iron - rusts, bricks - limp. The load is laid out over the area of ​​​​the grate so that it does not turn over.
In the process of soaking, the skins are mixed according to the scheme indicated in the technology, as a rule, this is mixing for 5 minutes every 2 hours. The soaking time is indicated in the technology. After the time specified in the technology, they check for readiness. The signs of readiness and the end of soaking are the condition of the skins, in which the muscle film (if any) is removed without much effort, the fat is easily peeled off, and the skin itself becomes soft, slightly viscous, there are no under-soaked places on the skin.
Fresh skins are soaked in one step. That is, the skins from the beginning to the end of the soaking are in the same solution. The soaking of old skins can be carried out in two stages. A soaking solution is being prepared - the skins are soaked until softened, interfere. Then the solution is drained. The skins are broken on a disc. A fresh solution is prepared, an additional soak is carried out, then the skins are removed from the solution - they are skinned. The master independently determines how to soak.
Due to the rise in the cost of chemicals, even the very salt, it is recommended to soak in one stage, and use a double soak only when dressing old, poorly soaked fur skins and sheepskins.
MEZDRENIE
They call mezdrenie - mechanical removal muscle-fat layer from the skin. Normal skinning is possible only when the skin is completely watered. Insufficiently watered skins are difficult to process even on hand tools. Special equipment can cut or even tear them.
From the surface of the leather part of the skin, the muscle film, fat, cuts of meat are removed. When skinning, as a result of friction of the skin on the metal parts of the instrument, breakdown, softening and some loosening occur, which contributes to the favorable conduct of further liquid treatments.
Mezdreniya devices:
For skinning skins in the home workshop, an old reliable grandfather's device is used - a scythe. They take a non-riveted braid No. 7. Sharpen the cutting part on a grinding wheel or with a file. Cut off the holder at the heel of the braid. A structure is made to hold the cutting part. The blade is welded or bolted to a metal square. The structure is attached to a wooden bench with long bolts and nuts.
In the process of work, the blade is brought down with a whetstone. After finishing work, the blade is lubricated with machine oil. In this order, the cutting part can serve you for a long time. A scythe device is used for skinning small and medium-sized skins: muskrat, rabbit, mink, ferret, fox, nutria, astrakhan, etc.
For processing larger skins: beaver, sheepskin, goat, etc., it is better to use a dead end. A dead end is also made from a braid. They take a braid, attach it on an emery wheel desired shape. Part of the blade is leveled on a more even surface, reliefs are turned around the edges for handles. They put on pieces of durable rubber hose with thread lining. You can not cut these reliefs, but weld the pipe trimmings by welding and wrap them with plastic tape. The dead end is sharpened on an emery stone or with a file. Bring the sharpness of the dead end with a grindstone.
To work with a dead end, a tragus is made. It consists of a board planed into an oval and a stand made of timber. The tragus should be adjusted to the height of the master, stand steadily on the floor. The design of the tragus by the master can be chosen arbitrarily. In the process of work, the master lays the skin with the fur down. He presses the skin to the edge of the board with his stomach and with a dead end cleans off the muscle film, cut the meat, fat. The slope of the dead end when working "on the breaks" should be away from you. With certain skills, you can cut the skin “for cutting” by cutting it with a combined movement away from you. In this case, the dead end must be sharply sharpened. Skinning with a dead end is carried out from the rump - to the head - to the edges, moving the skin along the tragus.
When fat and muscle film stick, the dead end is cleaned with a rag located at the bottom of the tragus. They work with a dead end carefully, especially at first, avoiding cuts and snatches of the skin. With certain skills, it is possible to skin the skins of a large rabbit, nutria, fox with a dead end.
If possible, it is better to purchase a disk skinning machine. When working on a disk machine, the master sets the knife gap with movable restrictive jaws, takes the skin with his hands, runs the leather part along the cutting part of the machine, as a result of which the muscle film is cut into strips. By car, you can cut especially thick places in rabbits, minks, beavers, goats. Rotating circular knife undermine with a bar, bring with a sharpened awl. In the absence of the specified equipment, skins can be skinned with a knife, a scraper, but this method is less productive than skinning on a spit, a dead end, and even more so on a skinning machine. On the skinning machine, you can trim the skins after dressing.
After skinning, the skins are laid on the table with the fur down, and the unremoved film on the skin is cleaned with a brush with a short metal wire (for cleaning metal).
When skinning thin skins (especially muskrats), if the film has not been removed from the scythe, it is loosened with a brush, otherwise the penetration of solutions into the skin will be difficult, and after drying, there will be a film screed in this place, and the skin will look like an unextracted skin.
Mezdrenie is an operation that should not be neglected. In the process of skinning, the skins are degreased, broken, softened, become more loose, soft, viscous. The success of subsequent liquid treatments largely depends on the quality of the skinning.
For mezdreniya selected right amount soaked skins, squeeze them into the solution, put them in a basin, cover with oilcloth. The skins are put into another basin or pan, and also covered with oilcloth, preventing the leather part from drying out. Tumbled skins are used for subsequent operations.
M O Y K A
In the process of soaking and skinning, part of the fat is removed from the skin, the hair is freed from part of foreign substances: dirt, blood, dung, sawdust used in hauling. But if the skin is not washed, the remaining fat will not make it possible to carry out high-quality pickling and tanning of the skin, and the fur will be dirty. When washing, grease and dirt are removed from the surface of the hair, the skin is degreased, loosened. Poorly defatted skin is worse watered, after dressing the skin remains oily, and the fur loses its fluffiness. In the process of pickling, fatty fiber structures of the skin are less susceptible to acid, and during tanning, chromium or aluminum complexes, combining with fat, form insoluble soaps and roughen the skin.
Washing of skins is carried out at a temperature that provides splitting and washing of fat. The temperature should not exceed 40 degrees, because at a higher temperature, welding of the leather tissue begins. When washing, at a temperature below +35 degrees, the washing properties of the solution decrease. Washing time should also be measured. As noted from practice, at first, detergents have a degreasing property, then there may be a reverse effect, fats from the solution can settle on the skin, grease the hair. When washing, surfactants are used, abbreviated as surfactants.
Surfactants are the same detergents that are used when washing clothes and linen. There are a lot of detergents in the trade now. At hand wash most of them can be applied to wash fur. Powders with bioadditives are not recommended. Bioadditives can cause a weakening of the hair-skin bond. Bleaches can change the natural color of the hair, reduce the shine of the fur coat.
When washing in washing machines technical detergents give a good effect. Technical surfactants should not be strongly alkaline. When purchasing such detergents, they should be tested when washing individual skins, then after dressing, compare the results with skins treated with known surfactants. If the result is not worse, they can be used in the future.
Most detergents are slightly alkaline in nature, the presence of skins in an alkaline environment for too long is undesirable. Therefore, after washing and rinsing, the next operation, pickling, should be started without delay.
Washed skins are washed several times clean water. In the process of washing, detergent is removed from the skins, along with fats, dirt, and sawdust. The skin is brought to a neutral state.
Regardless of the dressing technology, washing can be done by hand or mechanically. It is better, of course, to mechanize washing and washing. They usually take a lot of time and effort.
Manual way:
The calculated amount of water of a given temperature is poured into the container, the required amount of detergent is added, and mixed. 3-4 skins are put into the washing solution, each skin is separately washed by hand. You can use a washboard, a brush. Water for manual and mechanical washing is recommended soft, rain or snow. At the end of washing, each skin is individually wrung out by sorting the skin with hands from top to bottom, without pulling the hair. After that, the skins are washed 2-3 times with clean water until the soapiness disappears. After washing, the skins are squeezed out by hand, in a centrifuge or using a press for squeezing fruit for juice.
Mechanized car wash:
It is carried out in a washing machine with a rotating drum, such as the old reliable Vyatka. You can use any drum household and industrial washing machines. It is advisable to turn off the software in such machines and switch the machine control to manual mode. Ideally, you can give a program to such a machine for washing fur. The skins dressed with a tube (stocking) are first washed with the skin out, then the solution is changed, turned inside out and washed with the fur out. Washing is carried out on both sides, periodically turning inside out. Any mechanical laundry equipment must not damage the hair and skin, be
PIKELING
Pickling is the treatment of skins in an aqueous solution of acid and neutral salt. The solution in which the treatment is carried out is called a pickle. In the process of pickling, a change in the fibrous structure of the leather part of the skin occurs. The skin is dehydrated, compacted, acquires a specific roughness. When the skin is squeezed at the place of the fold, a characteristic light strip appears - the so-called "drier".
In the process of acid-salt treatment, complex processes of transformation of the proteins that make up the skin occur. With a properly set processing process, the proteins that make up the hair do not change. When pickling, the desired concentration of acids is used. The acids themselves are selected so that they, acting on the skin, do not spoil the hair. For example, acetic acid is used in the pickling of almost all types of fur. sulfuric acid- when dressing a rabbit, sheepskin. Hydrochloric, nitric, etc. acids are not used at all. With the wrong choice of acid, the skin loses its ductility, the leather fabric can be destroyed during operation (torn like blotting paper).
The method and duration of mixing is also important. Mixing of skins in solution during pickling is standardized by technology. If you interfere intensively and often, increased hair flow (falling out), fur felting (knocking into lumps) may appear. If you shorten the mixing time or increase the periods between mixing, the pickling process lengthens and the result decreases. This also applies to the subsequent process - tanning. It is especially important to maintain the technology of mixing when adding additionally introduced substances into the solution and the order of mixing with mechanical mixers, especially when pickling in longboats.
To mechanize the processes of liquid processing in the workshop, it is desirable to have a longboat. Longboat is a special container with horizontally arranged blades. Barkas allows carrying out the following operations: soaking, washing, washing, pickling, tanning, dyeing, dipping fatliquoring. With this versatile equipment, you can not only facilitate manual labor, but also save time for carrying out manual operations. Mixing in the longboat is carried out by horizontally arranged four blades. In order to avoid hooking skins with blades, circles are equipped on the sides of the blades. The rotational speed of the blades is 40-60 rpm, depending on the volume. The larger the volume, the lower the rotational speed and vice versa. Capture of water by the blades is 5-10 cm. The lower bottom is an oval in front, a square in the back. In place of the square, a false bottom is installed with holes for draining the liquid. Under the false bottom, heating elements are installed to heat the solution, and a drain hole, pipe, and tap are equipped.
Manual mixing does not lead to felting, but under the action of an oar, hair can break out of the loosened leather tissue.
When mixing the fur, it is necessary to prevent the skins from twisting together. Twisting starts with the tails. If the fur is dressed with tails, it is necessary after each mixing to check the skins for twisting and, if necessary, to unwind the skins.
Nutria skins dressed in layers (cut along the gut) are sometimes rolled into a roll from head to rump. To prevent this, lips are cut off in the head part of the skins, the forehead area between the eyes is cut out.
In the process of pickling and tanning skins tanned with a tube, their condition is periodically monitored, the skins must be constantly turned inside out in solution (with fur inside). In case of involuntary turning out of the fur, the skins are returned to the desired state directly in the solution.
The temperature of the pickle solution must be maintained within the specified limits. Too high a temperature can lead to welding of the leather fabric. For example, after +45 degrees, the skin will begin to turn into a jelly-like plate, and at temperatures above +50 degrees, it will begin to disintegrate (turns into jelly).
If pickling is carried out at a lower temperature than specified in the technology, the pickling effect will not be achieved in a given time and the results will be worse. When pickling with sulfuric acid, this drawback is especially noticeable, since a solution of sulfuric acid has a positive effect on the skin only at a temperature of +35 degrees and can significantly reduce its effect at a temperature of, for example, +25 degrees. The lengthening of the pickling process does not compensate for the violation of the temperature regime.
Until now, many artisans use pickle solutions for tanning. That is, tanning is carried out on spent pickle solutions. I rarely use this method, only for dressing a fat rabbit, beaver, ostrich. The remaining skins are duplicated in a separate way, on a separately prepared tanning solution. In my opinion, the dressing of rabbit, nutria, muskrat, mink, fox skins is better and more cost-effective, obtained by using a separate dressing method.
Pickling is a fairly simple operation, it requires only care in the implementation of technologies, skills in controlling the readiness of pickled raw materials. Much depends on the master himself, his understanding of the signs for which it is necessary to stop the processing process or continue. Here the master balances between the need to preserve the hair (to prevent hair loss) and the desire to hold the skin longer in the solution in order to obtain a soft, elastic leather fabric.
COUNTRY
The aging process consists in the fact that the skin, after liquid treatment, is certain time laid out for maturation outside the solution. Bedding is carried out after pickling and tanning.
The role of bedding after pickling
While in the pickling solution, the skin absorbs the acid from the solution. For its more uniform distribution over the structure of the skin, the skin is removed from the acid solution, placed in a straightened form for a certain time outside the solution. The loosening action of the acid continues, but due to the fact that it is no longer the absorption of acid, but its redistribution in the structure of the skin, the acidity of the skin becomes uniform in all places, in thickness. This contributes to obtaining a softer, filled, viscous leather fabric, creates a fertile ground for subsequent tanning.
The role of bedding after tanning
During the tanning process, the leather part of the skin is filled with tannins. In order for them to evenly fix on the fibers, contacting them, a certain period of time is needed. If the skin is left in the solution instead of a sore, skin soreness may occur, which is undesirable. Finding the skin after tanning outside the solution excludes such a defect. The tanning agent is evenly distributed on the fibers, leveled in thickness and area of ​​the skin.
Laying time:
Bedding after pickling is carried out for a period of time from 12 hours to 4 days. The duration of the sojourn depends on the type of fur (rabbit, mink), on the sex of the animal (male, female), on the thickness of the leather tissue (thin, thick), on the method of preserving raw materials (dry, wet-salted). After tanning, the bedding is carried out for 1 day.
Bed temperature:
As a rule, bedding is carried out at room temperature from + 18 degrees. It is not desirable to lie at a lower temperature, since the leather part of the skin has unwashed fats in the structure, which, when solidified, interfere with the distribution of substances and loosening of the skin structure.
A good effect is obtained by freezing the skins after sojourning, following the pickling, that is, keeping the skins in the cold at a temperature below -10 degrees in a suspended state for 2-3 days. After freezing, the skins are placed on tables for thawing and heating, then they are tanned general scheme. Obviously, moisture crystallization occurs in the skin structure, as a result of which additional loosening of the fibers occurs. Good results are obtained by freezing the skins after the sojourn following tanning. The skins are hung out in an unheated room in frosty weather for 7-10 days, then they are thawed, heated, fattened. This method is good because the skins do not dry out, and this makes it possible to take a break from work.
Carrying out a bed:
The bed is carried out in a container (bath, large basin) with the possibility of draining liquid from this container. A wooden stand is placed in the container. The skins dressed in layers are removed from the solution, slightly squeezed by hand, straightened, stacked one on top of the other on a stand, skin to skin, fur to fur - in a pile. Skins dressed with a tube (stocking) are turned inside out with fur, squeezed slightly, laid on a pallet in rows, one row on top of another - in a pile. The liquid from under the skins should drain through the hole in the container into the sewer or a substituted bucket.
In the process of laying after pickling, they practice breaking down the skins. This operation contributes to additional loosening of the skin. The breakdown is carried out on the disk. They take the skin in their hands, rub the leather part on the tip of the disc, dip it into the spent pickling solution, and lay it on the further bed. Breakdown of skins is carried out during the sojourn. The master selects the number of breakdowns independently.
TANNING
The tanning process consists in the treatment of pickled skins with various substances that have tanning properties. Such substances are called tannins. The most common tanning substance in nature is the bark or wood of trees - oak, willow, pine, spruce. Probably, from the word - oak and this name came from. Natural tanning agents were used by our ancestors, until now these tanning agents are used by tanners. In the fur industry they were replaced chemical compounds chrome, aluminium. To a lesser extent, aldehydes, formalin, synthetic tanning agents are used.
The most common substances, with their relatively low cost, are chromium tanning agent, potassium alum, an aqueous solution of formaldehyde (formalin).
With chrome tanning, a high degree of resistance of skins to various influences is achieved. In the process of tanning, an irreversible decrease in the reactivity of the skin is achieved. Pickled, but not tanned skin, after soaking in clean water without salt, goes into a gluttonous state. If you take it out of the water, stretch it out on a shield and dry it, it will externally turn into its former fresh-dry state. If the skin is tanned and dried after pickling, then regardless of the quality, skin covering will have a different state inherent in the dressed skin. That is, the tanned skin can no longer get wet, go into heat, it withstands a higher heating temperature than untanned. The skin becomes light soft, loose, viscous, rough. Of course, this is possible if the dressing process before tanning is set up correctly and these positive results are secured by proper tanning.
Finished chrome tanning agent industrial production can be purchased from companies - distributors of chemical products. In the majority, these are products of Russian and Kazakhstani production.
To characterize the tanning ability of dry chromium tanning agent, the concept of basicity is defined, which shows the ratio of the number of OH hydroxyl groups present in the basic salt to most them that chrome can hold. The more OH groups in the chromium salt, the higher its basicity. There is a close relationship between basicity and tanning properties of chrome tanning agents. With an increase in basicity, particles of basic chromium salts increase, their penetration into the thickness of the leather tissue slows down, but the tanning properties of such particles are high. At the same time, chromium salts of reduced basicity penetrate the skin more easily, but their tanning properties are lower. There needs to be a middle ground here.
Calculations on the amount of tanning agent in the solution are based on the content of chromium oxide in it. The tanning agent itself must have a fixed content of this substance (Cr2O3), the standard dry tanning agent contains 25% chromium oxide.
PARAMETERS OF THE TANNING PROCESS
Tanning is carried out at the same liquid coefficients as pickling. The temperature of tanning solutions ranges from +32 degrees to +38 degrees. In practice, tanning starts from +35 degrees, then during the operation, the temperature drops. It is not necessary to maintain it, but it should not fall below +25 degrees. When carrying out the process at a given temperature, tanning takes place within the time specified in the technology. Time given is approximate. The numbers indicated in the technologies are the beginning of tanning control. The exact tanning time is determined by the signs of tanning. When processed in a colder solution, the tanning is delayed.
CHECK FOR TANCHING
The principle of checking for tanning provides for the ability of the leather part of the skin to acquire certain properties, including such as heat resistance. Pickled, but not tanned skins, at a temperature of +50 degrees and above, are welded and turned into a jelly-like plate or jelly. Such a skin can even be pierced with a finger and easily torn into pieces. During the tanning process, the skin becomes resistant to high temperatures. If you set a goal - fur skin can be tanned to such an extent that it can withstand even prolonged boiling, like leather. But in this case, it will be tough, like a sole.
For fur skins, there are certain temperature indicators of tanning at the beginning of welding of the leather part. On average, this figure is not lower than + 75 degrees. At the same time, the master must keep in mind that these indicators are for skins that do not go into further painting. When tanning skins that will be subsequently dyed with oxidative dyes (urzols, aminophenols, etc.), tanning is carried out until the beginning of welding of the skin is reached at least + 80 degrees. 85 degrees. This is due to the fact that dyeing of skins with acid dyes is carried out at a temperature of +65 degrees and weakly tanned skins will simply boil.
The procedure for testing for ductility:
• At the end of the tanning time, the thickest skin is removed from the solution, squeezed out by hand.
• In the thickest place, along the edge of the skin, cut off a piece of leather 4 cm long and 1 cm wide. The cut should have a uniform bluish tint.
• Take a thermometer. An elastic band is put on the tip of the thermometer from the side that is dipped into the solution. It can be a narrow strip of thin rubber or a rubber insert made of ordinary gum, which is tucked into underwear. You can use a rubber ring from a condom or cut off the fingers of rubber gloves. The elastic band is wound around the tip of the thermometer so that the elastic band does not fall off, and at the same time, so that the strip of skin is easily released from under the rubber ring.
• On a strip of leather, cut off the fur with scissors and trim the width of the strip with scissors so that the width of the strip is half a centimeter. Trim the length of the strip to a length of 4 cm.
• One end of a strip of leather is tucked under an elastic band, the other end is tied to a thermometer with a thread. The strip is pulled up so that the elastic band holds the skin, but with further pulling it is released from under the elastic band, remaining fixed with threads.
• Put a heat-resistant glass flask on the electric stove, fill it with cold water, insert a thermometer with a strip of leather attached, so that the water level is 1 cm above the top edge of the strip. The water starts to heat up slowly. The temperature of the water should rise no faster than 5 degrees per minute.
• Observe the behavior of the strip. As soon as the lower edge of the strip pops out from under the rubber band, the flask is removed from the heater, the temperature is allowed to equalize for 15 seconds, and the water temperature is recorded. This will be the temperature at which welding starts.
• Upon reaching desired temperature tanning is stopped. If the set temperature is not reached, tanning is continued, with a check for readiness every 2 hours, sometimes baking soda is added.
At proper conduct tanning, the skin reaches the desired quality within the time specified in the technology. But at the same time, it must be borne in mind that there are many factors that can lengthen the tanning time. The master himself works out for himself the exact time of tanning, and uses this practice in his further work.
In the process of tanning, in addition to water, salt and tanning agent, additional substances are introduced into the solution: hyposulfite, hexamine, baking soda, etc. Increasing the basicity of chromium salts, these substances increase the tanning properties. Their number depends on the amount of tanning agent in the solution, the acidity of the leather part after pickling, the nature of the substances introduced. The concentration of injected substances is determined by the values ​​specified in the technology.
After checking for tanning, the finished skins are laid out on a bed for a day (see above for a bed after tanning).
SUSh K A
After soaking, following tanning, the skins going to further dyeing are squeezed out and dried without washing. Skins to be used in their natural form, washed quickly cold water, press, dry. You can not do long-term washing, and even more so washing, skins. During such operations, desalting of the leather part of the skin will occur, which will affect its softness and ductility.
The skins are dried in a ventilated, dry room at a temperature of +20 degrees and above. In the summer, the skins are dried in the open air, in the shade. For drying, a plastic-coated wire is stretched. The skins are straightened, shaken, hung to dry. Those that were dressed in a layer are hung on the wire with a fold (like a book), with the skin out. Those that were dressed with a tube (stocking) - fur inward, tails down. You can’t stuff such skins on shields and put them on rules. This can only be done when drying the skins after fattening. The skins are dried to "rusk", without breaking and stretching. Skins that have dried to “rusk” are immediately prepared for fattening. Skins over skin moisturize warm water, cover with oilcloth, let it rest for 24 hours, warm up (break down), then grease and dry until completely dry.
The warm-up (breakdown) of the skins is carried out on a disk. The device is made from a seeder disc. The disk is welded to the base on spacers, sharpened, bolted to the bench. The craftsman sits down on a bench, to which the device is screwed, takes the skin in his hands and rubs the skin over the sharp surface of the disk with a broach on the sides.
The skin, dressed in a layer, is first broken along the ridge, then in a circle along the edges, they pass again along the ridge. When broken, the skin is pulled in different directions. If necessary, the skin is once again moistened with warm water, allowed to settle, and then broken and sipped in different directions, laid with the fur down on the table and fattened, hung out on the wire (like a book), but with the fur out. After drying, break on a disk, sip in different directions.
The skin, dressed with a tube (stocking), is taken by the hands by the edges, and the skin is rubbed (back and forth) along the bracket from stainless wire attached to the wall. Then, the skins are sipped, if necessary, they are also broken on the disk, dressed with fur inside on the rule, the lower edge is fixed with nails. The leather part is fattened and allowed to dry in this state. After drying, the skin is removed from the rule, broken into a staple, disk.
SKIN GREASING
This operation is the processing of skins with greasing materials. Burnt skins have higher operational qualities than lean. The period of wear of fur products made from non-burnt skins, even with proper dressing, is reduced by 2 times. In such products, the skin in places of constant deformation is torn, the hair at the base is broken.
The properties of skins depend on a properly set fatliquoring process: softness, elasticity, durability. The essence of greasing lies in the fact that greasing substances are introduced into the leather part of the skins, they must penetrate the entire thickness of the skin, evenly cover the surface of the skin fibers, and create fatty membranes around them. Fatliquoring materials strengthen the tannic bonds formed between the fibers, the fat prevents the fibers from sticking together during drying, gives the leather increased water resistance, wear resistance when the fibers are rubbed together.
When greasing, it is important not only to introduce the necessary amount of greasing materials into the leather tissue, but also to distribute them as evenly as possible in the skin structure. This is achieved:
• the correct selection of fat components, their concentration in the solution, the ratio between them;
• the amount of emulsion applied to the skin;
• the ability of the emulsion not to delaminate into fat and water within 1 hour (emulsion stability);
• the ability of the emulsion to separate into fat and water within 3 hours (separation of the emulsion);
• the temperature of the fat emulsion introduced into the skin is not lower than +60 degrees;
• recommended temperature, humidity and looseness of the skin at the time of application of the emulsion;
• emulsion application technique;
Fatting is carried out in two ways: dipping and spreading. Okokunochny - it is more of a production method, it requires special equipment: a drum for liquid processing and a drum for hauling, a shaking drum. In the case of dipping fatliquoring, the skins are treated with an aqueous fatliquor solution, followed by soaking, hauling with sawdust.
The spread method is simpler, does not require special equipment. Fatty emulsion is applied with ointment at a time, followed by drying and breakdown.
Before preparing a fat emulsion, it is necessary to determine how much is required for a given period of work. Grease emulsions are prepared, immediately before fattening, in an amount based on the experience of previous work. Fat emulsion is applied to damp skin. When applied to dry skin, the emulsion penetrates worse into the thickness of the leather tissue, salts the surface of the skin, and inside the skin remains unburnt. The prepared fat emulsion is applied to the leather part of the skin after it has been broken. Apply with a foam or rubber sponge. Rub into the skin. In the process of applying the fat emulsion, do not allow it to get on the fur. The temperature of the fat emulsion is maintained at 60 degrees, while cooling, it is heated on an electric stove;
Signs of normal living:
Early signs (after 2-3 days) - the skin is velvety, suede to the touch. Even after complete drying, there is a slight oiliness of the skin.
Late signs - (after a month) this oiliness disappears, but the skin does not feel dry to the touch, remains soft and viscous.
LEATHER FINISH
If necessary, the leather fabric of the skin is polished. Grinding is done after complete process dressing. For grinding, it is best to make a grinder with a rotating wooden drum, on which the sandpaper is attached with nails. You can use a drill or grinder with a grinding wheel or brush, a grindstone, pumice stone, etc.
The purpose of grinding is to make the skin velvety, suede, remove the remnants of the film, muscle tissue, sawdust, as well as thin thick places, make the skin more uniform in thickness. In the process of grinding, there is an additional breakdown of the skin.
HAULAGE
To clean the fur, make it fluffy and silky, haul with sawdust. A good effect is the rollback of the skins after painting. Rollback allows you to clean the hair from the remnants of the dye. To carry out the rollback, it is necessary to make a rollback drum. Dry sawdust of deciduous trees is poured into the drum. Softwood sawdust is not suitable for hauling. They may contain resin that knocks down hair. The best types of wood for sawdust are: oak, beech, linden, aspen, and so on.
The haulage drum is made of thick, planed boards 40-50 mm thick. Drum diameter from 1.5 to 2 meters, width from 70 cm to 1.5 meters. The drum is equipped with a hatch for laying skins, sawdust and their excavation. The drum is mounted on massive supports on bearings. The rotation of the drum is given by an electric motor connected to the drum through a reduction gear and a belt drive. The revolutions of the rotating drum are about 9 to 12 per minute. The drum is equipped from the inside with wooden, plank shelves - ribs across the entire width. The distance between the shelves, 40-50 cm (depending on the diameter of the drum). A trough is installed under the drum for pouring waste sawdust. Instead of a drum, you can use a large wooden or metal barrel. I have a retractable drum in my workshop, made of stainless steel with holes along the side. For hauling, the holes are closed with plastic plates. After hauling, the plates are removed, and the haulage drum works like a shaker.
Operating procedure:
Dressed skins are put into the drum, sawdust is poured. The hatch is closed. Rotate 1 hour. The skins are taken out, shaken off from sawdust or freed from sawdust in a shaker drum. The shaking drum is made according to the same parameters as the retractable one, only instead of wooden planks for the manufacture of the drum, take stainless steel. Along the entire perimeter of the shell, holes are densely drilled, with a diameter of 15 mm. The side walls do not have holes. The skins after hauling are loaded into a sifting drum, rotated for 1-2 hours. In the process of rotation, the skins are cleaned of sawdust. The sawdust spills through the holes into the pallet located under the drum.
Haulage is sometimes used after skinning especially fattened skins to remove fat. In this case, when hauling, gasoline is added to the sawdust at the rate of 1 liter per 20 liters of sawdust.
To make the fur cover shine, especially dyed skins, 25% aqueous ammonia solution is added to the second haul at the rate of 100 ml per 20 l of sawdust or gum turpentine 80 g per 20 l of sawdust. Additives are poured into heated sawdust, mixed, and then poured into the drum. The amount of additives can be increased or vice versa reduced. The master determines this independently, according to the results of the condition of the fur cover after hauling. An excessive increase in ammonia can lead to coarsening of the leather part, and an excessive increase in gasoline or turpentine can lead to an increase in the cost of the process. When using combustible materials, fire safety rules must be observed.
After reading my article, you will probably exclaim, “Where are the recipes, where are the technologies?”
I have been dressing and dyeing fur and leather for over 30 years. And during this time I became convinced that none of the real masters gives their technology to others. And not because he is greedy. Not!
The specialist knows that in the process of dressing and painting there is a wide range of visual control over the stages of these processes. The slightest deviation from the technology threatens to damage the fur. And the one who did something wrong will not be guilty, but the one who gave him "bad" technology.
A lot of this depends on the type of fur, the thickness of the leather fabric, the sex of the animal, the method of preserving it before dressing, chemical preparations, etc. So, for example, a fresh skin can be overexposed in an acid solution - hair will climb, an old skin can be underexposed and the skin will be rough. The same nuances exist in tanning. They can sell low-quality drugs or drugs of reduced concentration, expired, etc. Fur dyeing is generally a serious technology.
There is a lot of literature on dressing fur in an artisanal way. But the fur, dressed in a handicraft way, does not have the softness and malleability inherent in the so-called factory dressing.
There are methods distance learning. But everything goes right on the disk, but nothing works for you. And all because it is better to see once than hear ten times! And it’s even better to do it with your own hands once than to see it a hundred times.
My advice. If you want to dress skins for fur or leather, entrust this to a specialist. If you want to learn professionally, to dress, dye fur or leather, find a master and work with him as an apprentice and learn something. Better yet, go furrier courses. Dial FUR COURSES in search engines.
Sincerely, Vyacheslav Zabolotny. Poltava city.

09.09.2013 | old recipe skinning: how to skin a skin

Skinning recipe: How to skin a skin

Many hunters, having obtained a trophy, think about its preservation in the form of a skin. However, not everyone knows the recipe for dressing skins and often wonders: how to dress the skin so that it looks beautiful and pleasant to the touch? Carefully read the old simple recipe for skinning and your trophies will delight you for a long time.

Skin dressing begins with soaking

Very strongly salted and dried skin is first soaked and rinsed. Then they start soaking in the solution. The skin during soaking in water should float freely, and a 4-6 cm layer of liquid is needed above it. The volume of water that is used for soaking must be measured, because. exactly the same amount of solutions will be required for future processes:

• pickling (fermentation);
• tanning.

The skin contains a lot of bacteria, which in the solution multiply at a tremendous speed. To destroy them, antiseptics are introduced into the cleaning solution.

Recipe for cleaning solution for dressing skins

For 1 liter of water, add 40-50 g of table salt (a tablespoon), 0.5-1 ml of formalin or 1-2 tablets of sulfidine (norsulfazol, furacilin or tetracycline). In addition, you can add a decoction of oak, willow, birch or eucalyptus leaves to the water (0.5 l of decoction per 10 liters of water).

Usually the skin soaks (becomes like a steam room) in 12 hours. If this does not happen, it is again placed in a fresh solution.

The next stage of dressing the skin is skinning

The skin dressing recipe recommends scraping skin turned inside out with the hair inside and put on a wooden block (board, smooth log, conical frame of thick poles) with a blunt knife (the reverse side of a hacksaw blade or a steel brush), removing the remnants of meat, fat and removing films. The direction of movement of the scraper is from the tail to the head, while the side parts are scabbed - from the ridge to the stomach. The skin is stretched tightly without folds, but without stretching too much. If any skin is clearly oily, then it can be washed after skinning in a good powder or soapy solution of laundry soap. Do not rub the soap on the skin so that there are no undissolved pieces of soap left. After washing, rinse thoroughly and rinse the mezra and fur with clean water.

The next stage of dressing skins - fermentation

(classical dressing method), which was previously used for all types of fur raw materials.

Recipe for fermented solution for dressing skins

Fermented solution is prepared in a glass or enamelware/ For each liter of hot water:

• stir 200 g (faceted glass) coarse rye or oat flour;
• 20-30 g of table salt (incomplete teaspoon);
• 0.5 g of drinking soda (on the tip of a knife);
• when the solution cools down to 28-30 degrees, 7 g of yeast (steamed as for yeast dough).

After cooking, put the fermented solution in a warm place. It is good to make kvass in advance, at least a day in advance, so that it will take "(fermented). This is determined by the bubbles of the released air.

According to the dressing recipe, the skin is immersed in a cooled solution for about 2 days. For 1 kilogram of the mass of paired skins, 3 liters of fermented solution are required. The skins must be turned over more often, and kvass must be stirred so that a film does not form on its surface and it does not rot.

The fermentation (picking) process can last from 5 hours to 4 days and depends on the quality of raw materials, room temperature, age of the animal, its sex, disinfection conditions, etc. The warmer the kvass, the faster the fermentation. But you can not heat above 38 degrees. Yeast fungus dies.

To determine the end of the process, the skins, while stirring in the solution, need to knead a little and try to dry or pinch. The removed skin must be bent near the groin four times with the skin up (into the pig's ear), tightly squeeze the corner, run a fingernail along the rib and release. If a white strip (dryer) remains in place of the scratch and gradually disappears, the skin is ready. For the same purpose, you can try on a pinch: in the groin area, hairs are pulled out and, if this can be done without much effort (with a slight crackle), it's time to finish pickling (picking). Every skin has its time. In solution, the skin is better underexposed than overexposed. We can say that in an overexposed skin (in the groin), the fur crawls out rather than pulls out. But if brought to such a state, do not throw it away. The dorsal part, as a rule, is preserved, but the next stage should be reduced by 3-4 times.

The next operation of dressing skins - lying

The skins ripened in pickel (kvass) are slightly squeezed, stacked with a hair up, covered with thick plywood or a board, and a load (for example, a bucket of water) is placed on top. The bedding lasts a day or two, at which time the skin ripens. The main thing during the sojourn is to squeeze out excess moisture from the skin, and the one that remains in it with the pickle just brings it to the condition. If the skin is one, then just fold it in half.

After lying down, you need to remove the remaining acid on the hairline, which can interfere with subsequent processes. Therefore, then it is neutralized within 20-60 minutes:

• or a solution of baking soda - 1-1.5 g / l
• or hyposulfite solution - 10 g/l (in b/w photography it is used as a fixer).

After neutralization, it is better to rinse the skins with clean water.

The next skinning operation is tanning

Tannin tanning is carried out in a decoction of willow bark. Oak bark strongly tightens the skin, which becomes more rigid, and also slightly stains the mezra and hair in a yellowish color. Willow bark is better.

To prepare a decoction, put the bark together with small branches, without tamping, in a bowl, pour water and boil for half an hour. Drain the broth, add 50-60 g of salt to 1 liter of solution and cool to room temperature.

The tanning agent is prepared in advance and the skin is kept in it from 12 hours to 4 days. Its quality can be improved by adding to 10 liters of willow decoction 2-2.5 liters of decoction of horse sorrel roots, prepared in the same way as described above.

Overexposure during tanning is undesirable, and therefore its end is determined as follows (in the groin area): after slightly squeezing (stretching a section of the groin area between the fingers), a small piece of skin is cut off or an incision is made. And on the cut under a magnifying glass, they consider how deeply the tanning agent (yellow) penetrated the skin. The process ends when it is completely impregnated.

The last stage of skinning is greasing.

According to all recipes for dressing skins, greasing is a must, because it makes the skin softer and increases its water resistance.

The recipe for a fat emulsion to finish dressing skins can be done in the following ways:

• mix and then beat well glycerin with egg yolk (1: 1);
• dissolve 50 g of soap in 0.5 l of boiling water and, while stirring, pour in 0.5 l of animal or fish oil, stir and add 5-10 ml of ammonia.

The emulsion is applied to the mezdra with a brush or swab. Then the skins are folded for a 3-4-hour soak, folded in half, skin to skin or hair up on some surface. It is advisable not to stain the fur, so as not to clean it later. After that, they are hung and dried at room temperature.

As the skins begin to dry out, they need to be kneaded and stretched in different directions. After complete drying, they need to be thoroughly wrinkled. Then the hair is combed, and the mezra is rubbed with chalk or tooth powder (they absorb excess fat and give it a pleasant white color) and treated with sandpaper. In conclusion, the skin is beaten out, dominated and the hairline is finally combed.

Here is such a simple old Siberian skin dressing technology, such a skin dressing recipe is useful to every hunter. In this way, I processed the skins of muskrats, martens, foxes and rabbits. The quality is very high, and the skins are strong and durable. Hares need to be chased away very quickly. Painfully thin.

Gennady Bannikov (G.)

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

Modern methods Processing is easier - chemistry helps. Now even at home you can make high-quality skins. This could be a small business idea or a nice side income.

If, for example, you decide to breed rabbits, then you just need to learn how to dress their skins. Consider the technology of this process.

Technology

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

• Preparatory stage- conservation.
• Soaking (soaking).
• Mezdrenie.
• Degreasing.
• Pickling.
• Bedding and neutralization.
• Tanning.
• Zhirovka.
• Drying and kneading.

Let's consider each operation separately.

Preparatory stage - conservation

If you are not going to dress the skin immediately, then 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. It is impossible to leave it unfolded for a long time (it can rot). Store as follows:

• the stocking is turned inside out with fur,
• pulls on the rule
• the lower end is fixed so that the stocking does not wrinkle.

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

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

Soaking (soaking)

In order to be able to start dressing the dried skins, they must be soaked. To do this, prepare a special solution. The proportions of the components are:

For all skin 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 - skins weight

The soaking process can last six hours and 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 skin.

Skins entering the dressing immediately after removal do not require soaking. Their processing can begin with mezdrovka.

Mezdrenie

It is carried out for two purposes:

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

Skinning starts from the tail along the ridge and towards the head. If the skin is steam room (just removed), then the skin can be done with your hands. To do this, the mezra is slightly tucked at the tail with a knife, we move a couple of centimeters, we insert our fingers there and then everything is done with our hands.

With this method of removal, no metal objects affect the skin. Pulling and pressing for squeezing out fat is done only by hand. In this case, there is no danger of damaging the skin and overdoing it with 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 leather dressing. If there is no salt, the skin will nourish a lot. fresh water becomes glassy. Further processing will become impossible, since subsequent chemical solutions will not be able to penetrate inside. Such a phenomenon is called a sting.

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 from the powder and from the remnants of blood.

Rinsing

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

Pickling

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

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

Be sure to wear protective gloves when handling acid. This procedure is best done in some isolated room, since vinegar has a specific smell. All components of the solution are well mixed. The total amount of water is taken depending on the number of skins. The proportions are the same:

• 9 parts - water,
• 1 part - skins weight

The defatted and washed rabbit skins are dipped into the solution. They should be completely covered with pickle mixture. Just do not put a press on top for this. It can interfere with the mixing of the skins. As a result, they will not be able to be evenly saturated with the pickling solution. Stir the skins at least once an hour.

Checking the readiness of the skin on the "dryer"

The pickling operation lasts an average of 5 to 12 hours. The readiness of the skins is checked by the “dryer” (white stripe). To do this, the skin is folded four times with an edge, pressed on the fold, opened and looked at. “Dry” in the form of a cross should remain visible for three to five seconds.

Bedding and neutralization

We take out the skins from the pickle solution. Then

• squeeze lightly,
• turn the fur out,
• stack up,
• put a press on top.

As a press, some use tile. On the bed, the skins are up to a day.

After soaking, they are neutralized. Solution proportions

The duration of neutralization is a maximum of 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 repels the smell of acetic acid.

Tanning

Treatment with tannins gives the skin

• plastic,
• strength,
• wear resistance,
• elasticity.

As tannins, it is better to use the bark of willow trees. Oak bark for rabbit skins is not recommended. They get rough on him. Willow gives skins a creamy hue. Tanning solution on a natural basis 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.

At chemical way tanning uses chrome alum instead of bark. The proportions are

	Chrome alum

Chrome alum is dissolved in very hot water, almost boiling water. Dilute alum in a small amount of water.

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

For lowering 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 is from 12 to 24 hours. If you use willow bark, the process will take much longer.

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

After the tanning time has elapsed, the skins are taken out, straightened and placed under a press for ripening 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 more water resistant skin. You can use animal fat

• beef
• pork,
• rabbit.

Lamb is better not to use, as it quickly freezes.

The proportions of the fat mixture

Cooking method

• Melt fat.
• Laundry soap is rubbed there.
• Poured hotter water.
• Heated over low heat.
• Pour in ammonia.
• Well stir.

Application method

The non-hot substance obtained is applied to tanned skins. Use a regular paint brush. It is easier to apply when the skin is on the right. Make sure that the ends of the fur do not get dirty. It must be done quickly, but carefully. Fatty substance freezes very quickly. When cooling down for more convenient application it needs to be warmed up again.

Fattening is good to spend in the evening. Then by morning the fat will be well absorbed into the clean mezdra. 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 sipped in different directions.

After drying, the skin is kneaded with hands, achieving its softness. As a result, hairs and tubercles appear on the mezdra. For cleaning use sandpaper zero or one. You can use pumice.

At the final stage, the fur is combed with a massage brush.

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