preserving deer feet

[moosehunter]

About 10 years ago I made some deer feet gun racks. I bent them at 90 deg angles and soaked them in some kind of brine, maybe salt, I can't remember. What ever I soaked them in it worked good. Anyway, I tried it this year again. I put them in a 5 gallon bucket in Oct with salt and took them out the other day and they aren't preserved like they other time I did it. Does anyone know how to do this? I must have used something else besides salt.

 

[bowmaker]

You might try a combo of salt, allum, and borax. This works well to tan hides so should work for what you want. As I remember you mix 1 cup of salt and borax and 2 table spoons of allum to 5 gallons of warm water. You should be able to find allum at most drug stores and the 20 mule team borax almost anywhere.

 

[scout]

You could inject them with Formalin (a formeldahyde solution)but the stuff will cause cancer if you inject yourself by accident!(use protective gloves and glasses)

I skin out the leg down to the joint @ the hoof. Pickle and cream tan it, then put it on a form from a taxi supplier. This works the best. You could get away with a dry preserve on this thin of a hide also. The form is worth using. it makes mounting a snap and no failed epoxy on a bone inserted ready-rod.