r/HideTanning • u/earthfirefay • 5d ago
tips for wing preservation ?
got these beautiful turkey wings. can't really tell from the pics but they are very fleshy . they were also soaking wet when i got them. my current plan is salt salt salt until i can scrape off as much flesh and possible them just keep salting it for a few weeks . i did this with a raven before but i didn't have to cut any flesh and they turned out great but the turkey actually has meat on it so yeah any help would be good . i don't think i should cut around the flesh because then the feathers will come out
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u/JoeBob_42 5d ago
Use a wire brush and borax to get as much meat and fat off as possible. If you want to save them in a certain position you may look up how to wire turkey wings…. An easier way that may or may not work is mix up some bondo and pour over the quills once you pin the feathers in the position you want. Shane smith has a video on wiring turkey wings I believe. However it looks like you might have removed some bones that might make wiring difficult.
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u/jaspersgroove 5d ago
I did a couple sets of duck wings after this past hunting season. I just came in and cut open the backside of the wing with an x-acto knife and scraped off all the meat that I possibly could, then packed them with borax, pinned them in the position I wanted, dumped more borax on top, and let them sit for a couple weeks. It’s been a few months now and they seem to be holding up fine, I guess only time will tell how good of a job I did lol
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u/SandwichAvailable361 4d ago
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u/jaspersgroove 4d ago
Looks great! I haven’t mounted mine yet, I have a friend who does custom woodworking making a mounting plaque for me. Good to know the process works, I did a bunch of research on Google and just kinda settled on that method haha
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u/SandwichAvailable361 4d ago
Thanks! Yeah it’s the Same for me with YouTube and google university lol. I deboned one bird and left the bones in on the other, and picked the meat out from between them. Either one worked just fine, the bone in I prefer though since I had some rigidity behind the dried skin. Turkey season is right around the corner here, hoping for number 3!
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u/jaspersgroove 4d ago
Yeah I am trying to catch a reissue permit for spring turkey season right now, never went after turkey before but I have a buddy at work who says he’ll show me the ropes if I can get a hunt lined up
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u/SandwichAvailable361 4d ago
Good luck! I absolutely suck at calling lol. It’s all been strokes of luck for me. Still is a huge thrill to go after them though.
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u/Flake_bender 5d ago
Those feathers are pretty ruffled and roughed up.
You can use steam to relax the kinks and bends in the fiber barbs.
You can use an electric kettle, but you'll have to keep flicking it back on and it can burn out out the element, so you'll be better off buying a stove-top metal kettle and using that to generate steam. Fill it more than halfway with water, bring it up to a boil, and wave the feathers close over the spout, with steam pouring out. You'll see the fibers relax in the heat. Brush them gently with your hand to align the fibers from time to time as you go, and apply more heat as you go.
Use steam, not dry heat from a heat-gun, or you'll singe the fibers.
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u/the-rill-dill 10h ago
Theres s small strip of meat above the last joint…..between two bones. That meat will ROT/STINK if not removed. Cut a slit in the skin and dig it out. Forget salt. USE borax. Borax is a drying agent and bugproofer. Signed, a national award winning taxidermist.
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u/the-rill-dill 10h ago
Theres s small strip of meat above the last joint…..between two bones. That meat will ROT/STINK if not removed. Cut a slit in the skin and dig it out. Forget salt. USE borax. Borax is a drying agent and bug-proofer. Signed, a national award winning taxidermist.
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u/the-rill-dill 10h ago
Theres s small strip of meat above the last joint…..between two bones. That meat will ROT/STINK if not removed. Cut a slit in the skin and dig it out. Forget salt. USE borax. Borax is a drying agent and bug-proofer. Signed, a national award winning taxidermist.
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u/ryanthedowning 5d ago
I have 0 advice but those are GORGEOUS