HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR HIDE TOOL
There's three lenses through which I think about this.
First: what tool fits our hands and body.
Second: what tool makes sense for the momentary task in hide tanning.
Third: what tool is best for what hide.
I was a tree planter for 14 years. I carried 50-70 pounds of weight in seedlings around mountainsides all day. In this industry, our tree bags, shovels, gloves, and shoes were all ‘tools’ to make the work flow. And they never fit. Then I went into carpentry. With the expense of power tools another mishap came into play. You'd buy one tool for one task…and use it for all the others tasks, regardless of its specificity. A framing hammer when you need a claw. A stapler when you need a hammer-tack. It works, but it doesn't flow.
Hide tanning can feel like this. Most hide tanning tools are made with trappers' and taxidermists' hidework in mind. Many are made with the assumption that the tool-wielder is a heavy-set, super strong, probably male person with huge hands for some reason.
But hide tanning is an ancient craft. Tools have been created by practical hide tanners for generations, by people who do the exact kind of hidework we do as natural tanners today, and whose bodies needed the same fit as ours do. Hide tools worldwide have an uncanny similarity to each other because of this exact reason: eventually, everyone seems to have come up with right tool for the hide job. So let's explore this.
(PS: The below tools are all in the “Scraper” category. We use a lot of of little allies in hidework, like awls, needles, pumices, etc. The scraper is your primary tool however, we let's start there.)
(1) Tools that Fit us
This is the hard part. To find a tool that fits us, we need to try different tools. But there's a couple things to think about to narrow down the choice:
Hand-strength versus arm/shoulder strength. If you have a lot of hand strength or a chronic shoulder injury, you might want a small tool you can use with both or either hand, and let your shoulder rest. If the opposite, you likely want a longer-handled tool to bring your shoulder on board. A handle over 12" would being your core and hips on board even more.
Hand size. If your hands are big, get a bigger tool. If your hands are small, get a smaller tool!
Tool weight: This can be counter-intuitive. A heavier tool will do more of the work for you, thus easier on the body. But it requires endurance to hold for hours. And it means you need to be attentive and precise with your movements, as it can cut through a hide easier than a light tool. Consider the pros/cons of a tool's weight and how this relates to your working style.
(2) Tools for the Momentary Task at Hand
Wet-scraping: a “wet-scraper" has a flat, dull edge. Flat because when we wet-scrape, the hide is hanging on a round beam. Dull because it's easy to slice a wet hide and what we want to do instead is, push away material (meat, grain, membrane).
Opening up a hide: if hand-softening, use a chair, a tree stump, a fence beam, or make your own vertical post to “open up” a hide, i.e. get the hide to stretch wide in all directions before softening begins, when a hide is still wet enough to be very pliable. If frame-softening, we use dull tools for this: a stick, a shovel, or a dulled dry-scraper (see below).
Dry-scraping: a “dry-scraper” has a round, sharp edge. Round because the hide will be flat (in a frame or in our lap) and sharp because now we are getting tissue off the hide. Use a dry-scraper when a hide is 75%+ dry. If your dry-scraper has only one bevel (blade), then always move the tool with the non-bevel side facing forwards, i.e. “bevel up, scrape down.” to both keep its edge and effectively remove tissue.
Softening: the same tools we use to open up a hide and to dry-scrape, we use for softening. I keep a few dulled dry-scrapers around intentionally. If you want to invest in as few tools as possible, you can sharpen and dull one tool as needed.
(3) Tools to Match Hides
This one is straightforward: the more delicate the hide, the more delicate the tool. The heftier the hide, the heftier the tool. For ex: on Rabbits, Raccoons, and Sheep, I use “the Handheld" or a Head Knife. With a small handle that can be held in one hand, I can be precise with movement, hold the hide in my lap to scrape/soften, and not tire out.
on Deer, Elk, and the bigger hides, I use an S Scraper and a Long-Handled Dry Scraper. These tools are held with both hands, which keeps me symmetrical in my movements for a long day of hidework, and takes off a lot of material due to their weight.