Bark tanning leather

[kybackwoodsman]

Can you bark tan using walnut hulls?

[Red Badger]

Ya'know I'm not sure, but will do some research for ya.... Anyone else know the answer?

[david32cal]

you would think you could but i have been told no,apparently there is not enough tannin in it.

[kybackwoodsman]

I think someond had told me u could just wait til it was colored all the way thru but not sure

[old salt]

You will need the bark from hemlock or oak. theses are the only trees that will produce enough tannic [spelling]acid. This from a frreind of mine who dose bark tanning.

[taosdjango]

you can do it with sumac, chestnut , certain oaks, and quebracho , hemlock works as said, and there are others that were used traditionally, walnut will work but it will take a large amount of it and you'll end up with black leather. It works best for a beginner to use quebracho , you can buy a small 5 pound bag of concentrated powder at Van Dykes taxidermy supply online. There are tannins in most every plant or tree, the trick is how much it takes. If you want a light colored tan on deer skin, you can use chestnut , if you want it real dark rich brown use the quebracho. If you want solid black you can use walnut hulls, it will take a bunch. I'd suggest looking on braintan.com for instructions on how to barktan , you'll get the right idea of how bark tanning works and how much bark it takes.