# Rabbit hide pouches



## HopefulHunter (Oct 15, 2011)

Just something that occured to me, Anyone considered using the hides from their downed rabbits/squrls etc for making pouches? If i remember correctly their hides aren't too hard to treat and are meant to be fairly hard wearing, not to mention soft and cuddly









Was just a thought really, would be interested to know what y'all thought/did with regards to it.

Cheers, 
Eddie.


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## Ry-shot (Jul 22, 2011)

wow i never thought of that , good idea , i dont hunt but id love to get ahold of some and try it !


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## Howard (Aug 9, 2010)

I haven't tried something like that. I don't even know what needs to be done to make useable leather out of it.


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## HopefulHunter (Oct 15, 2011)

I'll look into it. I know there's not much treatment required to use the fur pelts, don't know how much further you have to go to make it into leather. Perhaps a fur pouch might be nice? (No innuendo intended!)

Eddie


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## AJW (Apr 24, 2011)

What a great idea. Made me laugh that with all the SS hunters, this is the first time I've heard it mentioned. Maybe the pelts are too small to warrant the work. None the less, good one Eddie.


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

I have only ever skinned a few rabbits, but I imagine it to be way too thin and not very strong at all.

I may be wrong.

Would love to hear from some of the hunters on this one, whats it like ?


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## Rapier (May 28, 2011)

Hrawk said:


> I have only ever skinned a few rabbits, but I imagine it to be way too thin and not very strong at all.
> 
> I may be wrong.
> 
> Would love to hear from some of the hunters on this one, whats it like ?


Hmmm very interesting. Skin is pretty tough stuff Hrawk even the thin stuff but you know what would be a world beater??? Well do ya?...
Kangas nut sacks! Hey? Hey? Hey? After all the Chinese dudes buy em up big time and sell em as coin purses... and apparently their stretchy which I recon must be a good thing....
Woddaya think?


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

Funny you should mention that.

I'm off out bush on the 23rd till the 30th.

One of the places I'm going...... drum roll . . . . Is where those nutsack purses are made.

Going to try and secure some roo leather for the minions here. From everything I have heard, its top notch.

Also the nutsack purses, rub them, they turn into a suitcase !!!

http://www.australiagift.com/scrotum_shop/


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## HopefulHunter (Oct 15, 2011)

Hahaha I love the idea of a scrotum shop.

I will endeavour to find out what the hide is like when i get my hands on some. I know you can make some pretty tough gloves out of the stuff though.


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## BIG-B (Sep 16, 2011)

Hrawk said:


> I have only ever skinned a few rabbits, but I imagine it to be way too thin and not very strong at all.
> 
> I may be wrong.
> 
> Would love to hear from some of the hunters on this one, whats it like ?


You can make pike Flies from bunny hide. It is very tough!!! I know this because a double figure pike doesn't hold back when it hits a bunnie wobbler. These guys have serous piece of dental work







lol!


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## bootneck (Feb 20, 2011)

rabbit skin is very weak but squirrel skin is very tough i've made extremely strong string and other objects out of it when you're stretching and twisting the skin 'thongs' it puts alot of strain on the skin, rabbit skin seemed to rip half the time, deer skin was pretty tough but squirrel skin was comparable to the thick neck skin on a deer on toughness only alot thinner.


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## -SRS-45- (Jul 7, 2011)

Hrawk said:


> Funny you should mention that.
> 
> I'm off out bush on the 23rd till the 30th.
> 
> ...


Haha love it, you may have to grab me one while your out there!


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## homemade hunter (Sep 24, 2011)

yea from the bg community ive heard squirrel skin is tough but rabbit skin is meant to be really weak.


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## AZshooter (May 1, 2011)

Just about everything on a rabbit ( domestic or wild ) is useful...The old painters mixed a homemade concoction of rabbit skin glue and pigment to make a gesso for the wood panels they painted...also the fur used and dubbed on thread for tying a wide variety of fishing flies...and lets not forget all those lucky ( unlucky ? ) rabbits foot charms that are so popular!


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## bootneck (Feb 20, 2011)

Reminds me when i gave my brother a rabbits foot because he was getting bullied at school of course it didnt make it any better when the other kids saw him with a rabbit's foot hanging from his school bag.


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## shot in the foot (Jan 3, 2010)

You can easy rip bunny skins, i never bother with a pouch, i just put 20 lead balls in my pocket for hunting, i find that plenty, jeff


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## Ry-shot (Jul 22, 2011)

bootneck said:


> Reminds me when i gave my brother a rabbits foot because he was getting bullied at school of course it didnt make it any better when the other kids saw him with a rabbit's foot hanging from his school bag.


give him a slingshot . lol


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

bootneck said:


> rabbit skin is very weak but squirrel skin is very tough i've made extremely strong string and other objects out of it when you're stretching and twisting the skin 'thongs' it puts alot of strain on the skin, rabbit skin seemed to rip half the time, deer skin was pretty tough but squirrel skin was comparable to the thick neck skin on a deer on toughness only alot thinner.


Yep, I agree totally with bootneck. Rabbit skin is pretty weak stuff. That is one reason why you almost never see a coat made from rabbit ... just too fragile. You see rabbit trim, but the skin is generally too fragile to stand up as a coat. I have skinned a lot of rabbits, both wild and domestic. You just grab the hide almost anywhere with your two hands and pull them apart, and the skin just tears. I would never fool with trying to tan a rabbit skin. And I agree that squirrel skin is very tough stuff. When I was a kid, my grandfather made shoe strings from squirrel skin.

No matter what sort of skin you want to use, you are going to have to tan it. That is a messy, lengthy process. In my opinion, you would be much better off just buying some nice leather or some fur if you want that look. Or you could always buy a leather coat from a second hand shop and use that.

Cheers ........ Charles


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

I saw a you tube video once where a kid used squirrel hide for his pouch. He said it was real strong.


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## HopefulHunter (Oct 15, 2011)

Charles said:


> rabbit skin is very weak but squirrel skin is very tough i've made extremely strong string and other objects out of it when you're stretching and twisting the skin 'thongs' it puts alot of strain on the skin, rabbit skin seemed to rip half the time, deer skin was pretty tough but squirrel skin was comparable to the thick neck skin on a deer on toughness only alot thinner.


Yep, I agree totally with bootneck. Rabbit skin is pretty weak stuff. That is one reason why you almost never see a coat made from rabbit ... just too fragile. You see rabbit trim, but the skin is generally too fragile to stand up as a coat. I have skinned a lot of rabbits, both wild and domestic. You just grab the hide almost anywhere with your two hands and pull them apart, and the skin just tears. I would never fool with trying to tan a rabbit skin. And I agree that squirrel skin is very tough stuff. When I was a kid, my grandfather made shoe strings from squirrel skin.

No matter what sort of skin you want to use, you are going to have to tan it. That is a messy, lengthy process. In my opinion, you would be much better off just buying some nice leather or some fur if you want that look. Or you could always buy a leather coat from a second hand shop and use that.

Cheers ........ Charles
[/quote]

Cool. Thanks everybody for the answers. It was just a pondering of mine, wondering why you never saw more of the animals killed going back into the hobby, but i guess if they're no good there's little point ^^ Better just to have a lovely dinner









Charles, I did just that the same day I asked this question. Went to the RSPCA charity shop, got a leather bag, a 'leather' bag and belt, and a leather wallet for 50p, (and a big thick wool blanket to be used as a target backstop for 50p! Cut them up and they're ready to be used as pouches, just need to find the knife I lost now









Cheers, Eddie!


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## slingshotwizard (Jul 23, 2011)

Great idea, but how would you go about tanning the hide.


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

slingshotwizard said:


> Great idea, but how would you go about tanning the hide.


Just Google it ... you will get lots of information. For example:

http://www.motherearthnews.com/modern-homesteading/how-to-tan-a-hide.aspx

Cheers ....... Charles


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## HopefulHunter (Oct 15, 2011)

Mother Earth News is probably the no.1 place for questions like that.

Absolutely brilliant website. They have a thing in there in which a dude makes gloves etc from rabbit fur, that's waht gave me the idea









Eddie.


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## ZDP-189 (Mar 14, 2010)

shot in the foot said:


> You can easy rip bunny skins, i never bother with a pouch, i just put 20 lead balls in my pocket for hunting, i find that plenty, jeff


I suppose you can quilt it to some fabric.


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## whipcrackdeadbunny (May 22, 2010)

You don't have to tan rabbit hides; learn the technique (that works with all small mammals) where you pull off the skin, and it's relatively whole (like a skin cup) turn it inside out and scrape it gently until you reach the last layer of skin. Let it dry, and you have a soft fur cup (you might wish to sew or clip the leg holes shut) My mum used to have gloves made like this, by her father. I use Rabbit fur for many things, just cut it into strips for grips, protection of equipment etc. Rabbit skin will be flexible once dried, wheras any thicker skins need treating.


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## Ry-shot (Jul 22, 2011)

whipcrackdeadbunny said:


> You don't have to tan rabbit hides; learn the technique (that works with all small mammals) where you pull off the skin, and it's relatively whole (like a skin cup) turn it inside out and scrape it gently until you reach the last layer of skin. Let it dry, and you have a soft fur cup (you might wish to sew or clip the leg holes shut) My mum used to have gloves made like this, by her father. I use Rabbit fur for many things, just cut it into strips for grips, protection of equipment etc. Rabbit skin will be flexible once dried, wheras any thicker skins need treating.
> 
> http://www.youtube.c...e&v=GeFr_HuAR1M


technical.......


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## Ry-shot (Jul 22, 2011)

lol


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

whipcrackdeadbunny said:


> You don't have to tan rabbit hides; learn the technique (that works with all small mammals) where you pull off the skin, and it's relatively whole (like a skin cup) turn it inside out and scrape it gently until you reach the last layer of skin. Let it dry, and you have a soft fur cup (you might wish to sew or clip the leg holes shut) My mum used to have gloves made like this, by her father. I use Rabbit fur for many things, just cut it into strips for grips, protection of equipment etc. Rabbit skin will be flexible once dried, wheras any thicker skins need treating.
> 
> http://www.youtube.c...e&v=GeFr_HuAR1M


I have seen a lot of small mammal hides scraped and dried ... used to do it myself as a lad. They all turn out stiff like heavy paper. Once dried, if you bend or fold the hide, it tends to crack and split. They do not dry flexible. If you do not tan the hide, the least little moisture will allow mold to grow. And untanned hide attracts insect vermin, rats, and mice.

By all means, try just scraping and drying a hide if you like ... but I am sure you will be disappointed. Just my personal experience.

Cheers ..... Charles


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## whipcrackdeadbunny (May 22, 2010)

Charles said:


> You don't have to tan rabbit hides; learn the technique (that works with all small mammals) where you pull off the skin, and it's relatively whole (like a skin cup) turn it inside out and scrape it gently until you reach the last layer of skin. Let it dry, and you have a soft fur cup (you might wish to sew or clip the leg holes shut) My mum used to have gloves made like this, by her father. I use Rabbit fur for many things, just cut it into strips for grips, protection of equipment etc. Rabbit skin will be flexible once dried, wheras any thicker skins need treating.
> 
> http://www.youtube.c...e&v=GeFr_HuAR1M


I have seen a lot of small mammal hides scraped and dried ... used to do it myself as a lad. They all turn out stiff like heavy paper. Once dried, if you bend or fold the hide, it tends to crack and split. They do not dry flexible. If you do not tan the hide, the least little moisture will allow mold to grow. And untanned hide attracts insect vermin, rats, and mice.

By all means, try just scraping and drying a hide if you like ... but I am sure you will be disappointed. Just my personal experience.

Cheers ..... Charles
[/quote]
I would agree with you about all the skins, save Rabbit; I've used hides in the past that have some stiffness, but are essentially flexible, I think it's because the skin was scraped to the last possible layer. Some Rabbits may be different though.


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## ZDP-189 (Mar 14, 2010)

I had the same stiffness problem with lab rat skin. Waste not, want not....


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## whipcrackdeadbunny (May 22, 2010)

ZDP-189 said:


> I had the same stiffness problem with lab rat skin. Waste not, want not....


Rats are very tough; I have a few squirrel skins on my wall at home, they dry very hard, when not treated.


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## Catfish (Dec 26, 2011)

Well, I work with treated store bought rabbit skins and have made pouches, hand warmers, and am working on a large throw blanket out of rabbit skins. Depending on what the usage will be, I either glue in reinforcing strips or add in spacers where I attach rivets so as to spread out the wear and tear. I do have one pouch I made from a rabbit skin back in about '95 I think, it was stitched poorly and I added two buttons that just punched through the pelt for fasteners. The pouch never failed and is still sitting in one of my storage boxes. So, I would say that yes, rabbit pelts can be worked with, but it depends on the quality of the pelt.

Processing: wet buck skinning with a flat, but dull blade - like the edge of a long-wise split bone or a pvc pipe cut in half, or the back of a hard comb

As for tanning, you can use any tree/plant/or nut that carries tannin in it. An easy way to spot tannin is that the water turns brown. Soaking hydes in a 1:4 ratio, 1:2 ratio, then a 1:1 ratio (weak, medium, strong) tannin solution for a few weeks each after stage to let is soak in you will just need to oil it in to help with the stiffness once it dries and keep it supple. The tannin process will darken and stain both the fur and the leather to a brown color.

When you go to stitch a furred pelt choose to either pre punch your holes or be prepared to blow air on the fur to move it out of the way while sewing. Once the hair starts knotting into the thread it becomes a pain. If you are just using a straight leather hide, sew away.
-----

Edit: heh, ahem... well, as I was driving home I believe I just saw a very large error in this post, and that was if you mean the POUCH of a SS, I'm sorry and I'm obviously wrong.







To top it off I even read the beginner's guide lexicon, but obviously it'll take a tiny bit more for me to catch on.








Till then, at least enjoy the above information of what I know on naturally tanning hides.
-Chris


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## Rockape66 (Dec 18, 2011)

Use a brain tanning method, but use soap instead of brains. This gives better water resistance, and less odor if it gets wet.


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## Catfish (Dec 26, 2011)

Rockape66 said:


> Use a brain tanning method, but use soap instead of brains. This gives better water resistance, and less odor if it gets wet.


I am so hijacking this thread because of your comment. You can use soap for brain tanning? Is it because of glicerides or moisturizers? Please, please, please elaborate more!


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## Rockape66 (Dec 18, 2011)

I believe that the saponified fats coat the fibers in the hide in the same way that a brain solution does. With the fats already saponified there is less opportunity for bacterial infection which can make a brain solution a stinking mess. Think saddle soap for cleaning and softening leather. A homemade saddle soap recipe I have is kind of a mix of lye soap and hide glue.


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## whipcrackdeadbunny (May 22, 2010)

Rockape66 said:


> I believe that the saponified fats coat the fibers in the hide in the same way that a brain solution does. With the fats already saponified there is less opportunity for bacterial infection which can make a brain solution a stinking mess. Think saddle soap for cleaning and softening leather. A homemade saddle soap recipe I have is kind of a mix of lye soap and hide glue.


I think you're right; though I'm no expert, I've been trying and researching, if you scrape to the last layer (from inside out) most skins will be flexible enough to use. Then with extra processing, you get top quality stuff.


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## newconvert (Dec 12, 2011)

Hrawk said:


> Funny you should mention that.
> 
> I'm off out bush on the 23rd till the 30th.
> 
> ...


$250$ for a collectable nut sack? when will it end??? its been a long time since something just made me stare without words


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## WoodsRunner (Feb 26, 2012)

I have experience trapping rabbits and when you tan the skin you can almost see through it if it weren't for the hair. The pouches wouldn't last that long and would probably tear where the bands attach at full draw.


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