springtime in Western Washington
6-18-16
When the cold weather is upon us and all the buried decompositions are going to slow down.
i can’t wait to stay up until midnight on new years eve so i can watch 2016 die
We should have some kind of banishing festival to make sure this evil doesn’t follow us into the new year.
^^^^we really should
giant 2016 negativity banishing fest who’s in???
I am SO in.
But actually yes??
Let’s do it, gods know how I wanna watch this sucker of a year burn.
Oh my word yes! Just think of witches around the world performing banishing spells at midnight in their time zones, creating a rolling, Mexican-wave banishing to this shit show of a year.
Started working in earnest to build this macaw for a #petcommission. Using nylon string to reinforce the connective points of the various skull bones allows us to see the articulated nature of the bird’s beak.
Kewl.
#natureisawesome #science #naturalscience #skeleton #taxidermy #nature #beak #parrot
in the vulture community we don’t say ‘i love you’, we say ‘that species is protected by the US Migratory Bird Act so you can’t keep it’ and i think that’s beautiful.
I love tanning skins the old-fashioned way, but let’s be honest; it takes a LOT of time and effort, and with the number of hides some of us work with as taxidermists, it’s not always in the cards.
I’ve heard folks complain about how complicated the tanning process can be, and know that many are scared to try it themselves for fear of ruining a beautiful pelt. So I started exploring simple solutions which produce a decent long-lasting tan to get the job done. What I found was a product called TruBond 1000B for backskins.
Here is how the manufacturer suggests using this product:
Tan Application:
I’ll start by saying that the instructions are pretty vague; I have actually found a much better means of using their product than what is outlined above. Here is a much more detailed list of how I personally utilize TruBond 1000B:
Note that a hide tanned with TruBond will not be as high a quality as a pelt which is commercially tanned. It will certainly be usable, though, and will not rot or fall apart if properly done.
*De-greasing solutions can be made several ways, the least complicated of which is merely a mix of Dawn dish soap and water. You can also buy de-greasers from TruBond. I have used these with great success. Other taxidermy supply companies also sell de-greasers, too.
Important things to consider:
I have not tried to rehydrate a pelt tanned with TruBond, so do not know if it will withstand rehydration once it is fully tanned and dry. TruBond does make a product specifically formulated for taxidermy tanning, but I do not know how well it dries or if produces a supple pelt like the 1000B formula does.
Fleshing a hide is difficult, but VERY important to producing a good tan with 1000B. One of the first hides I worked with was not fleshed very well, and while the hide is now fully-preserved, it is not usable for anything other than display because it’s hard as cardboard.
Other tanning methods:
A different and more time-consuming means of tanning with TruBond is to pickle the hide prior to applying the tanning formula. This method creates a hide very similar to those produced by commercial tanneries, and is preferable if you plan to use your hides for more than simple crafts and display.
1) Flesh and salt the hide, soak it after salting and de-grease it, and then soak it in water for an hour or two to get all the de-greasing agents out.
2) In the meantime, you can prepare your pickle solution by adding a ½ pound of salt per gallon of water, and about 3 ounces of citric acid per gallon of water.
3) All of this can be poured into a plastic storage tub or plastic bucket (depending the size of the hides being tanned). Warm water is best, as it dissolves all the ingredients in the solution better. Plastic MUST be used, as metal and other materials can effect the Ph of the pickle.
4) Mix the solution well, and test the Ph of the pickle with a Ph test trip capable of reading at least 1 through 3. You’ll want your pickle solution to test below 2. A reading of 1 is ideal. If it’s too high, add a bit more citric acid and try it again.
5) Add the skins and let them sit in the solution for about 12 hours. After that 12-hour period, it’s a good idea to test the Ph once more. At around 24 hours, test it yet again. If the Ph has gone up, add more citric acid to lower it back down. Check the Ph once every 5 hours for the next several (2 - 3) days.
6) After this time, the hide can be neutralized. Do so by soaking the pickled hides in warm water and baking soda for about 15 minutes. Afterward, squeeze excess water out of the skin.
From here, treat the hide with Trubond as you would in step 5 of the non-pickle method above. Stretching is still required until skin is completely dry.
sociology teacher: please explain your religion to us
me: yeah sure lemme just
me: *inhales*
me: •starts screaming*
Powders r not better than plants. There’s nothing on this god forsaken earth that can’t be used to HEAL us. Doctors will charge u till ur dead. And a lot of the times they know as much as u…. they will never deal w it on a spiritual level and the embalence u have won’t leave bc of the medication, therefore you will never actually get BETTER and HEAL. Do you remember all the witches killed who were doctors?? Who didn’t fail to save lives or charge like these “doctors” today? This medicine crap wouldn’t be what it is if you didn’t kill the real doctors….. witches! And ladies, Educate yourselves on how the powder works before u put it in ur blood stream. WOW SOME LEGACY LEFT BEHIND. Well met! I’ll be praying.
What the actual fuck are you talking about
I believe it’s a medical translation of “hurr durr technology is bad fire is scary and thomas edison was a witch”.
I just choked on my water omg
