Snake skin.....

Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
Not sure if this is correct forum for this or not.

I came across a perfect candidate for a roadkill copperhead skin yesterday evening late just before dark. The blood was still wet on the road. Only a small portion of its head was crushed, so cut it off and was going to skin it, but dark was coming on pretty quick and snake was still moving. Put it on ice in a ziplock in chest and will skin today.

Do I need to do anything else after skinning, or can I go directly to freezer until I figure out exactly what I want to do with it?

Thanks for any advice.
 

Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
Got her skinned, but look what else I found. I knew she was fat, but wasn't expecting this.
 

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NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
That's pretty cool. Copperheads give live birth, looks like she was close to it.

No special treatment needed. You can also staple or tack it to a board, skin-side down, remove any fat, meat, or blood, and let it dry.
 

Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
That's pretty cool. Copperheads give live birth, looks like she was close to it.

No special treatment needed. You can also staple or tack it to a board, skin-side down, remove any fat, meat, or blood, and let it dry.

Appreciate it, Steve. It came off pretty clean, but I will scrape it.

Just curious, how often does one come across a pregnant roadkill copperhead with a dozen babies?
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
Tanning: depends on what you want to do with it. Tanning is good if you're making a hatband or something, but tanning will ruin a snakeskin for some purposes, such as bow backings and some other applications.
 

Philbow

Senior Member
How you treat it depends on what you have planned for it. If you're going to use it to back a bow then it should just be dried and then frozen. If you're going to use it for a hat band or belt tanning would probably be appropriate. If you don't know its final purpose I would dry and freeze it, you could always tan it later.

I am such a slow typist, What Hillbilly said.
 
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Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
Tanning: depends on what you want to do with it. Tanning is good if you're making a hatband or something, but tanning will ruin a snakeskin for some purposes, such as bow backings and some other applications.

Steve, I'm considering uses such as attached to custom knife sheath or similar applications.
 

Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
How you treat it depends on what you have planned for it. If you're going to use it to back a bow then it should just be dried and then frozen. If you're going to use it for a hat band or belt tanning would probably be appropriate. If you don't know its final purpose I would dry and freeze it, you could always tan it later.

Copy that, thanks.

When freezing, should I roll it?
 

Jeff C.

Chief Grass Master
Might use it for a custom belt. I've been wanting one for a while now.
 
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