alum-ltanned belt bag

[George]

Seeing Jethro’s beautiful belt bag for his fire kit reminded me of a bag I made many years ago and have used a lot, and also a question I wanted to ask the leather craftsmen here. Has anyone ever used leather tanned with alum? A friend from another list a long time ago gave me a small piece of alum-tanned deerskin he had made. I put it aside, waiting for an appropriate project, finally made it up into a small belt bag to carry my wads and shot while hunting. The leather is whitish, with bits of hair remaining, and is sort of splotchy like a pinto. It is fairly stiff, holds its shape well. Easy to cut and sew, it’s fun stuff to work with.

The bag is 7” x 4.5” x .75”, a simple folded design, sewn with waxed flax thread using a whip stitch. The fasteners are roundballs pounded flat with eyes punched, and friction easily holds the flap closed when the thongs are wrapped half round them. I use it to carry my loose wads, and if after small game, a little buckskin bag of shot big enough for a day’s hunting. Handy, keeps all the clutter out of my shooting pouch and is easy to use with only one hand.

Spence

 

[rabjr]

Nice Spence. I remember a friend and I did a deer hide at home that way in the early 80's. I remember it being a lot of work. :haha: For the life of me I can't remember what was ever done with it. :idunno:

 

[tg]

I used to alum tan a lot of furs and hides, taxidermists like it as it allows stretch not found in chrome tan, in theory alum is actually a tawing method and not a true tan unless acid or other complete tanning method is used in conjunction, I liked alum to set the hair on furs before using chrome or acid, I know a guy who used alum then smoked it just like BT and he said it was very durable, in theory alum can wash out with repeated exposure to water thus the benifit of smoking, I mostly used the stuff I alum tanned for disply items and replica artifacts that would be indoor stuff.That's my story and I'm sticking to it :v

 

[George]

I used to alum tan a lot of furs and hides,....

Did you know you were being period correct, tg?

THE SOUTH CAROLINA GAZETTE
November 5, 1737
This is to give Notice, that Tho: Robinson living in one of Mr : Laurens new Houses, No. 3, dresses Buck Skins, prepares Alom Leather, washes and [ ] Buck skin Breeches of several Colours, and likewise buys Buck Skins, that are not merchantable.

Spence

 

[gmarc]

Way cool bag, Spence. This is "tawed" leather vs. truly tanned. I have used salt and alum treatments to keep hair from slipping.

Smoking will help stabilize this leather and make it more rot resistant.

Grant

 

[George]

This is "tawed" leather vs. truly tanned.

Yes. I guess this was the only chemical 'tanning' available in the 18th century.

Spence

 

[smo]

I have a deer hide i did a salt /alum tan on over 20 yrs ago. The hair is still set and it has held up well until the dog got it. He chewed the tail off. Then i made a knife scabbard for a old butcher knife out of a piece of it. The knife rusted inside of it. To much salt i guess. :idunno:

 

[tg]

"Did you know you were being period correct, tg?"

yeah Bob alum preservation goes back to the Egyptians, Old Dynesty if I recall. probably 2000+ BCE give or take, I have not read the source for 20 years but that time frame sticks in my mind.there is something in the smoking of hides that does create a chemical change so smoke is a "chemical" tan of sorts, I had the whole explaination years ago but it is stuffed under or in someting arouind here likely I have not seen it for quite a while, I spent quite a bit of time with the guy who made Tandys chrome tan kits in the 80's his shop was a couple of blocks from where I worked, he also used other methods for his own use or to sell, he had a huge fat liquoring tank probably 300 gallons or more, he was a Tannery Chemist at a couple of large tanneries earlier in his career.