Seal skin

[P. McKinley]

I'm constructing a knife and sheath for a local man who's spent his life on the water. The color palette of the knife would be nicely complimented by inlay of tan and black hair-on seal skin. The hide is clean, but unprocessed and still in the "rawhide" state. I haven't done an inlay using this sort of material, especially with hair on it, and I'm a little stumped how to proceed. I would think this would be handled much like deer hide in the same condition, but.......??
-Hair and glue don't mix well. How would you deal with gluing the inlay edges... shave it?
-Does this material require any special treatment to protect it from moisture?

Tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Peter

By pjmknives at 2012-03-07

By pjmknives at 2012-03-07

 

[Rick Marchand]

I say forget the sheath and make me a pair of mitts!

I would think you need to seal(no pun intended) the hide prior to working with it. I think of the few rawhide sheaths I've done and how moisture affected them if they weren't sealed with laquer/epoxy. I have never worked with sealskin though, and know that it is one of the few hides that is naturally waterproof.

What is a seal's least favorite whiskey?





Canadian Club....... badum-bump.

 

[RyanW]

A baby seal walks into a Club.... Nevermind

Glue on bottom and stitch around the inlay? I know there have been inlays with hair/fur done in the past.

 

[stevomiller]

Is the hide fully cleaned of all fats and membrane? That's a must. I don't know if this is the right way, but as a kid we used borax and naptha soap on small hides to strip the last of the fats and oils. We then treated the skin with neatsfoot oil to make more pliable and help preserve it. We got the info from a boys book written in the 1800's.

 

[fast14riot]

Steevo I just looked in my copy of "The American Boys Handy Book" (ccopyright 1890) and didn't see that specific recipe, but one does say to lay it flat on a slab or smooth board, use a dull knife to scrape all loose flesh and film is removed; then wash in soft water. Take a gallon of rain or [fast flowing] river water and add an ounce of oil of vitriol; let the skin steep in this for about 30 minutes, remove and work with the hands until dry, when it will be pliable and soft. The more it is worked the softer it will be. Use no grease.

Oil of vitriol, btw, is sulfuric acid (H2SO4).

This sounds like it is easy enough to do, but I have not used it or worked with seal skin either.


-Xander

 

[12345678910]

Once I re read the OP i realized I missed something.

 

[P. McKinley]

Thanks folks.

Stevo - Yes, the hide has been completely cleaned of fats and membrane. The underside looks and feels very similar to the thin rawhide one might get at Tandy or W&C. It does tear quite easily though so I'll need to pay attention to that when stitching, and I'll back the skin with a piece of leather split before stitching into the sheath. The sheath will also be lined to add another layer to the underside.

Count - I'm just about to order one or more of John Cohea's videos. The guy is a master with rawhide and the rustic style that I've admired for quite a while.

Anyway, I'm diving into this one. here's the start:

 

[Brian.Evans]

Slightly off topic;
My 8 year old daughter named her stuffed animal seal "Club". Mom was not impressed. I think it's hilarious. Ok, thread back on topic!

 

[stevomiller]

Blue? Looks like your off to a good start. I'm watching with great interest.
Riot? My adled brain miss-rememberered I guess. Information might have come from one of my old natural history books I had as a child that had info on preserving "specimens".

 

[P. McKinley]

My adled brain miss-rememberered I guess.

No problem Stevo.... welcome to the "club"! Ahhhaaa, ahhhhaaaaaa......... ahhhhh....... my head hurts.

The sheath will be finished this afternoon. I'll try to get up some photos when its done.

Thank buddy.

Peter

 

[Rick Marchand]

Looking forward to the completion and seeing the knife.