# New coyote hat



## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

thats awesome, the first pic cracked me up.


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## gunslinger (Sep 17, 2011)

Yep, now you need a road runner hat to match....just saying:lol:


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## COWCHICK77 (Jun 21, 2010)

I love it!


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## Phly (Nov 14, 2012)

That is a nice lookin hide. Well done.
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## SorrelHorse (Apr 9, 2009)

Loving this!


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Thank you all for your kind comments. Glad you enjoyed seeing it.


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

Very nice! 

Do you have any photos of the bellies? Is there a bounty where you are? What is the fur bringing? Can you get bobcat there? Does anyone trap or snare, or only shoot? What kind of gun can you shoot. I ask the last because I have family in MI and they tell me they have to use deer slugs in shotguns for deer. We use rifles here.

I used to snare and dreamed of having a car length coat made from ones I caught. But, life happens. I still dream though.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Thanks boots.. This particular coyote only had a couple of smaller holes. I always stitch them up.. I have had them with holes the size of ones fist! Just takes time to stitch them but yes having them with very minimal damage is ideal. Yes it has always been a desire of mine to have a full length coyote fur coat too. It's been a real off year here for coyote skins.. not a lot of snow.. until recently! and well the hunt this year was way down. I hear the skins are getting 20. each this year.. in the past it was as low as 5. the skins here are very very nice and full when they can be had. Yes there are bobcats around here. Bet those are going for a pretty penny too.. not sure what they get on those lately. 

I collect deer skins too and am trying to tan a bunch into brain tanned leather.. I dream of a coat of deerskins too! someday! Life always seems to get in the way.


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## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

Not something I'd wear, but it's beautiful workmanship.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Can the shooter come to MY house? I'll put him up, feed him, let him watch my DISH, and ride my horses, and eat some of my chickens--I REALLY NEED A COYOTE KILLER!!!!


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

Very cool hat! My cousin made one from a coyote he shot last deer season. He and I do all our hunting with flintlocks and usually in historical type clothes. 










This is him with a deer he shot the day after Christmas.
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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

Fort fireman said:


> Very cool hat! My cousin made one from a coyote he shot last deer season. He and I do all our hunting with flintlocks and usually in historical type clothes.
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Wrong picture. I hate my iPhone sometimes.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

Ok, here is the right picture.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> Ok, here is the right picture.


Ah! So you guys are familiar with brain tan leather too? Love your cuz's coat AND hat. And flintlock nice!
And by the way, nice deer, lol!


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

Yes we are familiar with brain tanned buckskin. I did one deer hide and will probably not do one again.  that is alot of work. :lol: when I was done I didn't want to cut it up to make anything. I kinda cheat when I make stuff. I buy the German tanned hides from crazy crow. It is the closest to brain tanned I have ever found. I get the seconds and it has alittle rougher look. Smoke them up really good and off I go. I've made several pairs of Moccasins and some leggings with the stuff.


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

This is the best picture I have of my leggings I made. Not very good and they haven't been smoked really good yet in this picture. Also my coat I'm wearing is now much darker from being dyed. I was going to used black walnuts but couldn't find any so I cheated and used RIT dye. This Is pretty much my turkey hunting set up. For deer I add a few more layers or a wool blanket coat and an orange hat.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

lol yup.. that is kinda cheating! But quite an intelligent tradeoff perhaps! I've been collecting deerskins out at the end of my driveway for like 10 years now and it is tough to get any of them DONE.. I haven't given up though perhaps I wonder if I should have LONG ago.. I bought a powerwasher that fleshes these skins licketysplit 3500 psi with turbo nozzle.. doesn't help much for graining! although I can actually grain them with it.. I can flesh anything from a domestic rabbit to a buffalo. Does make a heck of a mess but saves a great deal of physical exertion.. 
I have never seen the German Buckskin.. have heard of it. might be the difference in doing beadwork on the skins? like to see your moccs and leggins. any pics?


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

Here's my last pair of mocs I made. They are eastern center seams. These came out ok for me. You may know there's a thin line between to tight and to loose and slipping around in them. These are decent. Maybe a tad to tight after they got wet and hardened up when the dried. I need to make another pair bigger so I can put a few layers of wool socks for winter time. 










I can't find any pics of my leggings . Only ones that they are covered down to my knees by my shirts. Of course they don't come up much higher than mid thigh anyway. Basically just leather tubes that cover my legs and ties at top that tie to my belt to hold them up. Then ties around my leg just below my knee.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> This is the best picture I have of my leggings I made. Not very good and they haven't been smoked really good yet in this picture. Also my coat I'm wearing is now much darker from being dyed. I was going to used black walnuts but couldn't find any so I cheated and used RIT dye. This Is pretty much my turkey hunting set up. For deer I add a few more layers or a wool blanket coat and an orange hat.


Very nice picture.. thanks for adding it.. I really enjoyed seeing your ensemble. The color of the leggins reminds me of my friend Melvin Beattie's most recent braintan skin.. he used both cottonwood and Ponderosa pine to have the finished deerskin just that color that it already is. Course we don't have Ponderosa pine here in MI and everything comes out the color of your coat w/out the dyed color. I have never used walnuts to dye any of my skins yet.. my daughter has a couple of those trees however and it is something I will be learning. The skins will be much tighter feeling.. (I think) once dyed with them.

The leather to me is incredibly fascinating. Love your pouch. I haven't done much bark/veg tanning either, LOL.. just hung up on the dang brain tanning! I think that pouch of yours is out of this world perty .. beavertail flap design huh? I will have to post my most recent pouch.. I'll start a new thread! Definately not as nice as yours but this guy wanted me to make one of his little beaver's tail.. so ok.. I was just messin around! I also tanned a large beaver for another guy.. not super soft though, it could have been. I wouldn't resoften though without more $ to do so.. and this large beaver was just going over someones log cabin railing so just a wall hanger. I love this stuff.. not as much as horses but it is like artistry that is made to last. They might still be around long after I'm gone!
oh and one more question if you don't mind.. that is a great looking coat.. probably a name for it.. Frock or duster? I should probably get a pattern and work on making one to sell someday or something?? If I made a coat for myself I couldn't really go anywhere without smelling like a campfire.. and it's just not too acceptable and I'm not in any group that does reenacting or anything like that.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> Here's my last pair of mocs I made. They are eastern center seams. These came out ok for me. You may know there's a thin line between to tight and to loose and slipping around in them. These are decent. Maybe a tad to tight after they got wet and hardened up when the dried. I need to make another pair bigger so I can put a few layers of wool socks for winter time.
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Yes I do know a little bit about moccasin making. I've made a few! I'll have to post pics on those too! But yeah that's a great pic of your moccasins and they look just fine.. yes.. one can walk on very slippery slopes in those buckskin moccasins! Looks like a nice weight for those too. Did you use an awl or glovers needles when you stitched those. My last trip to Joanne's fabrics turned up dry on the glovers needles.. I was bummed.. I will have to order more of those online now I guess.

I've never made any leggings myself.. I've also never made a case for a gun like yours but I do have a big interest in making one of those sometime, too. I have one really huge thick deerskin and I'm sure I could screw that one up for moccasins by rinsing out way too much of the glues and having the skin end up 'mushy feeling'! in that case though a cover for a gun like yours with the really long dangling fringe would be sweet! 

So are you a part of american mountain guy or something like that? and are you close to Asheville NC? I have a friend there that goes to like lots of flint knapping things.. and bows and just all the primitive arts. 

Pleasure chatting! thx for posting the pics.


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

The coat is a replica of a coat that would have been worn around the revolution. Some call it a hunting frock, riflemans frock, caped hunting shirt, you name it. I wish I could claim the hunting pouch. It was a gift. I was getting ready to make one of my own and that showed up for my birthday thanks to my wife. I love it. It carries my fire kit, compass replica of one from 1750, and all my shot, powder and tools. I can pretty much take my whole gun apart in the woods if need be. 
The leggings were brand new when that pic was taken. They are a considerably darker color now. Dirt, mud, smoke , soot all add a nice earthy tone. 
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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Okay, that gives me a little information to go on when looking for a pattern or something. Thx. Your wife has great taste.. wonderful gift a nice heavy duty hunting pouch like that. I think they're much nicer than brain tanned leather for the purpose.. even the brain tanned leathers.. one has to use just the right skin for the intended use or they just don't work! 

I really admire that you can use your belongings for actual hunting.. It's akin to having a tipi and never building a fire in it!


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

I should say, the coat is not leather. It is a heavy linen which historically was the most common. However there are some surviving examples of buckskin frocks like that. As far as patterns look at crazy crow or track of the wolf. Both have alot of historical patterns. 
I'm not really a part of a reenacting group per say. I have just always loved history and not just the meamorizing dates type stuff. I wanted to know more. Like how did Daniel Boone go out and live in the woods and hunt deer for a year or two at a time. How did they start a fire with flint and steel and stuff like that. Now most of my camping and hunting is done with stuff similar to what they would have used back in the 1760-80 time frame. There's alot of hunting days I don't get anything but if it gets cold ill just start alittle camp fire with flint and steel and make some grits to take the chill off. I've gotten pretty good at stuff like that. Believe it or not I absolutely love hunting squirrel. If I get one ill clean it right there and cook it up over a fire and that will be my lunch. Really brings thing home for me on the survival thing.
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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Cool stuff!!!
I think it would freak our dogs out though, pretty sure they'd see it as something to destroy
I had a rabbit skin coat once and it sort of moulted after a while - why was that?
The same always happened to the fox brushes (tails) I had.


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> I should say, the coat is not leather. It is a heavy linen which historically was the most common. However there are some surviving examples of buckskin frocks like that. As far as patterns look at crazy crow or track of the wolf. Both have alot of historical patterns.
> I'm not really a part of a reenacting group per say. I have just always loved history and not just the meamorizing dates type stuff. I wanted to know more. Like how did Daniel Boone go out and live in the woods and hunt deer for a year or two at a time. How did they start a fire with flint and steel and stuff like that. Now most of my camping and hunting is done with stuff similar to what they would have used back in the 1760-80 time frame. There's alot of hunting days I don't get anything but if it gets cold ill just start alittle camp fire with flint and steel and make some grits to take the chill off. I've gotten pretty good at stuff like that. Believe it or not I absolutely love hunting squirrel. If I get one ill clean it right there and cook it up over a fire and that will be my lunch. Really brings thing home for me on the survival thing.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


That sounds very practical. And logical. I wish I knew how to start a fire with a flint and striker or bow drill. So the desire is there.. I guess I just have to want it enough to learn to do it on my own. My husband is from the city and really he has absolutely NO interest in my textile hobby here! It's too bad because otherwise we could get a lot done together! oh well.. glad he tolerates the carnage.. 

Interesting about your coat.. yes it does appear to look like deerskin. My maiden name actually means 'flax'.. and I do spin wool and knit and all but have never learned to make any linen and I have not a lot of desire to learn to weave! But boy I would bet that that coat you have on there is very fascinating. I've ordered beads from Crazy Crow in the past but haven't heard of the other one.. I have a book too that has some coats in it.. Evard Gibby wrote it.. the name escapes me now but I think there is some kind of deerskin hunting coat in it. Being a six footer and old.. lol.. I got my start from grandma from the old country, sewing so I will have to get some suitable skins together.. currently I am graining all of my collected deer hides. I'm not sure how many I collected this year alone but they filled up a 55 gallon drum and that was shorn, fleshed and salted. I probably have more than a dozen left to grain.. getting weak thinking about it but I'll get there.


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

That sounds like a ton of work. Do you use the pressure washer to take the hair off to? Where do you get the brains for the tanning?
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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

One more question.. Do you barbeque those squirrels WITH their hair? just curious. Was watching some survival show of these guys in some tropical place eating some kind of barbequed on a stick rodent. 
Here's a squirrel skin pic here.. I powerwashed it..








Not sure if this link will work.. it's for my photobucket album, you might be interested to see the 'stuff' I've been working on.
1braintanner's Library | Photobucket


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

NO!!! I always skin the squirrel. I saw that on one if those shows as well. It takes a minute to skin a squirrel. I couldnt figure out why they would do that. I think I would have to be pretty **** hungry to not take an extra minute to skin something. I think that was a for tv dirt of thing.
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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> That sounds like a ton of work. Do you use the pressure washer to take the hair off to? Where do you get the brains for the tanning?
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Yes, it is.. just a ton. Called glutton for punishment.. gotta be me. I have actually grained the fresh skins but I just can't do it reliably enough, so I just use a beam and wet scrape. I have a really good heavy fleshing bar that i use and I'm shearing the hides with a great hd oster animal shears and really I just soak my skins ONLY if they need to be rehydrated at all. any more than that and things can quickly out of hand and I just don't care to work on any skins that have gone afoul. Just goofing around, and just trying to see what exactly I could do with the freshest of deerskins I did pretty near grain this entire little button buck.. I attained it from a road kill right up the street from our home. I don't hunt. I started this tanning thing when I inadvertently caused the death of some young goats. I put them in the same pasture as some sheep and a larger wether goat and they got 'bashed' to death.. so I felt terribly guilty and vowed right then that I'd use their remains to make something with purpose.. so fed the dogs the meat and got online and started searching how to tan hides and skins.. lol.. and prayer.. I think the power of the prayer I said over it's remains were way more stronger than I could have ever imagined. Come a long way since then. maybe close to a dozen years ago now. Also started out with a smaller gas powerwasher direct drive.. and bought two more.. this last machine is a belt drive and commercial and should last me forever! This pic here is a creepy one for sure but just to give you an idea.., hahaha.. probably think.. man, that woman's clearly off her rocker.. lol.. 
Should post the moccasin picture first.. lol.. 








This is the grained deer skin right on the deer pic.. Kind of an awful picture but one that is helpful to those that MIGHT want to actually do some of the hard work involved in tanning their skins. Sorry if this is offensive to some but I assure you the meat and skin weren't discarded.. they were put to good use!


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> NO!!! I always skin the squirrel. I saw that on one if those shows as well. It takes a minute to skin a squirrel. I couldnt figure out why they would do that. I think I would have to be pretty **** hungry to not take an extra minute to skin something. I think that was a for tv dirt of thing.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Oh okay! the drama thing.. I get it!Another of my dear tanning friends is actually scheduled to appear on this next mountain man show.. His name is George Michaud and he'll be appearing on tv in May or June, I believe. He's teaching trapping and stuff at the Wintercount event.. it's one of the Rabbit stick's groups thing down in AZ each year. George taught me quite a bit about tanning.. and then I of course adulterate it and take a powerwasher to EVERYTHING.. I don't think I could tan anything anymore without one.. these animals are pretty gross and well it cleans a LOT of that stuff from the skins! The mess to pick up isn't too pleasant for sure but yes I can see why you might just want to skin the squirrels first! unless of course there IS some special reason to wanting to leave it on?? The guy I watched on the show had to put the rodent back over the fire as he didn't think the meat was quite cooked! Yep.. the thoughts of that hair burning just doesn't do much for ones appetite, that's for sure!


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## Fort fireman (Mar 5, 2011)

I've never seen it done still on the animal. Probably alittle easier that way. The one hide I did I skinned it salted and froze it for a later date.i also got the brain and froze it to tan the hide. Got the meat from the deer and went back to the hide I think a month later after deer season. Fleshed the inside out with a scraper. Then soaked the hide in a wood ash water mix for a day. That really helped slop the hair easier. Still a lot of work though. Like I said, probably won't be doing one again. . I may just buy my hides from now on.
As far as the squirrel, most of the time if I'm going to be out a couple days I have a small tin boiler. I will usually quarter the squirrel, rub some salt and pepper, then par boil it and make a kind of camp soup. Maybe some onion or a potato I bring along. I have cooked over an open camp fire but the get kind of chewy. 
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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

jaydee said:


> Cool stuff!!!
> I think it would freak our dogs out though, pretty sure they'd see it as something to destroy
> I had a rabbit skin coat once and it sort of moulted after a while - why was that?
> The same always happened to the fox brushes (tails) I had.


I think that it is just peculiar to rabbits. People seem to like to use sulphuric acid to backyard tan those but I sure wouldn't recommend it. I've been there and done that kind of tanning and well if a skin had been tanned with some types of chemicals itself.. the whole skin could just disintegrate.. I don't think that that has a thing to do with the rabbit's fur itself though.. many of those old popular style jackets would shed like that.. just individual hairs and all.. I have seen some really cool looking woven rabbit throws.. but even then.. I just don't know about the longevity of those so.. not for me! 

If I had access to hundreds of rabbit furs.. I think I might be crazy enough to fully explore their tannage.. I learned a lot on this taxidermy forum and I have fleshed a few rabbits.. tanned a couple.. that was it! 
Domestic rabbit








I used a 3500 psi powerwasher with a rotary nozzle to flesh this rabbit.. the gas throttle was turned right down to just over an idle but I find the machines to be extremely useful for precision work. 
the flesh side of the rabbit.








There's a tan called Trubond.. It's a synthetic tan and they're still work to soften these things.. but not a lot! and I think it does make for a garment tan.. it's the only thing I would use on a rabbit.. They might NOT shed hairs like that with that product?


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## PrimitivePaulette (Feb 10, 2013)

Fort fireman said:


> I've never seen it done still on the animal. Probably alittle easier that way. The one hide I did I skinned it salted and froze it for a later date.i also got the brain and froze it to tan the hide. Got the meat from the deer and went back to the hide I think a month later after deer season. Fleshed the inside out with a scraper. Then soaked the hide in a wood ash water mix for a day. That really helped slop the hair easier. Still a lot of work though. Like I said, probably won't be doing one again. . I may just buy my hides from now on.
> As far as the squirrel, most of the time if I'm going to be out a couple days I have a small tin boiler. I will usually quarter the squirrel, rub some salt and pepper, then par boil it and make a kind of camp soup. Maybe some onion or a potato I bring along. I have cooked over an open camp fire but the get kind of chewy.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Yep.. little odd seeing a deer grained that way.. no doubt about it.. lol. but no, I usually grain them by hand as it would use far less water and all.. I don't buck my hides at all and there is no need to really. Guy Richards has sold a lot of books on brain tanning and well sometimes the Indians did indeed do just that but there are many many ways to tan deerskins and so now I just do what's easiest for me and .. easiest.. ha, yep.. it isn't easy! You can get addicted to nice deerskins and so I'm sure I've some kind of weird fetish for a nice brain tanned deerskin.. It can smell really great actually.. the smoked skin.
Oh and I generally use the deers own brain's or buy the pork brains locally.. 1.00 per lb already packaged is very convenient.
this is my last softened skin.. Still need to smoke it and look at that green grass! 








This is skin that I'd only softened on the flesh side.. I might have used egg yolks for the softening oil.. not sure.. can't recall.. guess I should keep better records!
Figures I can't locate the exact picture.. photobucket has just changed to a new venue or something and I personally thought the old one was FINE.. 
sheesh.. anyway you can see the 'patina' on the leather of this bag I whipped up.. gotta keep making this leather! would make an excellent hunters frock coat! that and about 5 or six more skins just like it!


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## boots (Jan 16, 2012)

Interesting thread. Thanks for sharing the photos and information.


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