does look like a nice round... Never made pizza with high gluten flour before, might have to grab some from the shop and try it. the reciepe sounds as interesting in its way as IG's relish in around the grinder sounds tasty
makes me wish it was easier to get something like a relish from the states to here... but biosecurity would insist on diluting it with disinfectant first to kill any nasty bio-bugs
as far as sheaths go, I've a few home-tanned goat skins that would probably make a good sheath, it's dead easy to tan you own if you don't need them soft and supple like for a coat.
Just skin your dinner and put the skin to one side as you trim out the meat. later when the meats in the freezer strip the fat and meat and ligiments from the flesh side of the skin, rub 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup of salt per square foot of skin into the flesh side of the skin and fold the skin flesh to flesh and fold again lengthise so it's in quarters. then lay on a flat surface thats leaning at about a 5 to 10 degree slant, and drop a plank on top that covers the skin, and stick a number of cinder blocks on top of that. let it sit like that for a day or two, then remoe from the press, lay out and rub another half cup of salt per square foot into the skin, then fold and press again. continue until the skin seems quite dry to the touch.
once that stage has been reached, go out and strip fresh bark off pine and wattle trees, approximately eaual proportions, if needed subsitstute oak bark instead. about 2 pounds of mixed bark per pound of green skin. chop and crush this bark, I use the back of a hatchet head on a stump to bash it up a bit the cop it to 2 to 4 inch pieces with the balde, another way is to waterblast the underside of the lawnmower and the catcher bag, let it dry then lay the bark on a sheet of plyood and mow the bark, the blades both chop and bruise it. the easiest way yet would be to use a propper wood chipper
tip the bark into a vessel of some sort, cover with salty water (a cup per gallon or so) and bring to the boil, then simmer for an hour or two.
let it cool then strain out all the bark bits and drop the green skins in. set int a corner somewhere and each time you go past gie them a prod to move the skins in the solution to stop the skins sticking skin to skin where the solution can't then penetrate and to ensure the skins stay under the surface, not floating on top all the time. a week is enough for a young kid, lamb or fawn, Older animals with thicker skins (which would make a more durable leather) will take longer. If the skins off a spiker or yearling deer you downed for meat, ten days shoudl be plenty, if it's off a trophy animal that been around for long enough to grow a worthy rack, I'd give it 3 weeks.
once the skins are tanned, haul them out and string up between a frame made to the size to fit the skin, or as I do, between the poles of the carport, beware, dogs think a natural tanned skin is a nice snack, so tie the doggie up before you sting up a skin anywhere they can reach. Dont rub the fur side or you'll cause the hair to come out, once it's dry however it's safe to rub and stroke the fur.
once it's dried out, cut it down, cut to shape rub well with a pumice stone to roughen the surface and rub well with dubbin or goose grease and make whatever you wanted.
this fur/leather can be wetted or rained on and dried out again without problems. just don't keep it wet without drying or like any other natural product it will go moldy and rot.
if you wish to dye it matt black, just grind a cupfull of rust into a quart of vinegar, and then submerse the skin freshly dried skin into a fresh tanning solution until saturated, then submerse and swish around in the rust/vinger solution for a few minutes, this will come out black, as the tannic acid reacts with the iron oxide/acetic acid mixture of the other solution. then string up again to dry.
I'e used this method to make leather shields for the uni drama club before. once the leather is out of the tannign solution rub hard to make all the fur slip and wash that away in the solution, then nail over light frames to dry, and once dry spray paint silver with aerosol auto paint. or for the barbarians, leave the fur on but paint pattens with the rust solution.
