beaver tail for bow handle

[jimbob91]

Has anyone ever used this for a grip?I know BW does.I was wondering if someone could give me a few tips on prep of the skin and the process of puttting it on a longbow.Ive got a few tails to skin.Thanks

[troutms]

I've got one already salted and thawing in the frig. I want to put it on my shelf for rest material. Need help w/ prep also. Thanks.

[jimbob91]

Im at work right now a friend of mine brought three to me this morn,one big and two small.Is that all you did is skin and salt?These are fresh and im going to skin them tonight when i get home,looks pretty simple to skin,at least i hope they are .Think ill use arazor blade.

[trapperDave]

dont waste that meat when youre done  

[mjh]

I tryed tanning some tails a while back.  Found out that yea want the skin underneath the brown shiney outer covering of the tail.  Hope the process works out for yea.  I'm not so sure I would do it again unless I learned of a better way.  

I used a fillet knife for splitting and an ulu for scraping out the flesh.  Then used a commercial hide tanning product(followed instructios of bottle).  Tails turned out hard and brittle.  Maybe not enough chemical?? Anyway the brown outer covering was very brittle but the inner skin seems more plyable and may be the skin your really after.  Good luck!

[jimbob91]

Hey Trapper,just tell me your not gonna use it for jerkymeat lol.mjh:Ive never helda bow with this kind of grip,is the out side suppose to be supple,im wondering if you can break these down like say a piece of deer hide,by just working it by hand.

[jimbob91]

Oh yeah and as far as the good luck.Thanks ill probubly need it.

[Juniper Bow]

I have made what is essentially raw hide out of beaver tail. I soften it in warm water, then form it around whatever it is to be used for (bow handle in your case). It is also best to stitch together while still soft and then let it dry on the bow, it will shrink some which will pull it tightly against the handle section.
Here is ONE way to do this (other people might have a better way):
 
Split the tail by cutting through the lateral side (parrallel to the flat sides) all the way around. When you are doing this you will feel the bone, carefully cut around the bone and then you can pull the tail apart in two pieces.
Now cut away as much flesh as you can. Then lay the tail on a hard surface and scrape the flesh side until you come down to the inside of the hide (it will be like a waxy leather). You may then want to wash it real well with a degreasing soap, it cleans off much of the grease and takes away any unpleasent smell. Finally if you are not going ot use both halves of the tail right away you should nail them flat ona board to dry. Raw hide will last essentially forever when stored in a dry and bug-free place.

Good luck, a beaver tail bow handle should be really cool, Juniper Bow

[insttech1]

There is some info in the how-to section about how to apply it to the bow after it is processed and ready to go.

I, however, did not like its application as a shelf/plate material...and quickly ripped it off in favor of sealskin.

A grip from it has a nice, semi-tacky feel, though, and is pretty cool.

See Ya,
Marc

[jimbob91]

Thanks fellas!

[Eric B.]

I did a couple and trimmed them off with snakeskin. It is very durable and looks good. I thinned mine using a belt sander after it was dry. While drying I kept applying Glycerin daily for about a week. It kept it fairly soft ( about as much as expected ) Overall it's a pain but worth it. Oh , I put mine on with contact cement after degreasing first.No stitches.  Eric

[Rigs]

Jimbob,

I bought a tanned tail from Abe Penner at Caribow.  After following Abe's instructions, it turned out great.

The feel is awesome and I used the extra for a rest and strikeplate.  It wears great.

I'm gonna try to tan some tails myself here soon.  I bought a home tanning kit from a supplier out of Wyoming.  I called him before I bought the kit.  He was very helpful.  I'll email you pics.


Happy hunting,
Jason

[Rigs]

Let's see if this works...

   
 
 

These should be the beavertail grip I did on my last bow...

Happy hunting,
Jason

[jimbob91]

Rigs that is exactly what im after,that looks really good.I scrapped my tails last night and have them nailed on a board,I was just going to salt them because theres not too much left but the skin to tan,but I bet when I do that their going to get hard as rocks.Theres probably some kind of solution in your tanning kit to soften,I may have to go with akit like that myself.Thanks R