ok... my first rats ever done on wooden boards. I've handled mink forever on wood (with belly strips) and coon, fox, coyotes on adjustable wooden stretchers.

So I have commerically produced rat boards, skins dried three days, smalls and mediums for the most part slipped off without much effort. But the large and x-large sizes are dried on like glue. I'm wondering what advice the guys with wood stretched experience can suggest.

Do I freeze them on the board and hope something shrinks? Wrap with wet towels and partially rehydrate hide? Zip them down one side and sell as open = damaged? Sell on the boards and ask for a $3 premium package offer?

About all I can think of. Appreciate any experienced help anyone can offer

wrap in damp - NOT wet towels to loosen them up a bit, then slide them off and put back on a smaller stretcher to let them finish drying.

Another trick - tap the nose sharply on a concrete floor - sometimes that loosens them up a bit.

Do NOT cut them off the board - there are easier ways.

Do NOT sell them on the boards - that is like throwing money away.

I would start by trying to freeze them and see if you can get them off then.

Hit the nose of the pelt straight down on floor that should loosen the pelt if not hit harder. If that dont work use the damp towel.

What MissWIss said.

Was just about to ask this question... Wissmiss saves my hide yet again.

Tap on the floor, than place the base of the board in a vice and grab the nose with a pliers or vice grips. They should pull right off.

try what dave said, then wissmiss dave means tap the nose of the board on the floor

the best way to learn about belly wedges is to not use any...lol

matt

Ooooo, I don't like using pliers on rats, not a good outcome for me most of the time. I make my own belly wedges for rats and they are a bit bigger than most. I hate when that little bit of meat on the head gets stuck to the board. I usually try to slide something thin between the pelt and board to knock it loose, tap nose on floor a bit, hang from a hook in the ceiling and pull down with both hands about where the front legs are. I will also tell you that it helps to pull all the pins/staples prior to removing from the stretcher...

thank you for all the advice... and i apologize for the ultra-dry humor of cutting them or selling on boards. I wasn't serious about either... but might be if the towel trick fails to work <lol>

looks like rehydration with paper towels tomorrow. they are dried pretty tight the boards. next times I'll use belly wedges, not a big deal if I'd known it was needed to begin with. not the stretcher's fault i "stored" dried rats on them.

I do like the way rats appear from wood stretchers, but they are slower to process than wire. I'm not convinced either way what the best approach is overall... will finish this year with wood, will definitely keep the wood but might go with all new wire and clothespin setup again in the future if/when I get into some real numbers of rats.

again, thanks for the advice :>)

X2 I have got them off by taking a paint stirrer,you know the cheap ones you get at the hardware store and sliding it between the pelt and the board and working it around.Usually the tap to the floor does it though...

I like to have a few wood stretchers around for damaged rats. They just look better when you pin the holes shut, rather than watching them grow on wire. I put up 90% of my rats on wire, but I do board a few damaged rats and I use them if I run out of wire..

Does the same go for bobcats? I've had two this year that refused to come off the stretcher. The last one I had to break my stretcher.

I have a hole drilled in mine to hang, so if I have a difficult one I place the hole on a solid screw and pull down on each side. Vice grips on nose ends with a shorter rat. A #2 pencil works well for a belly wedge.

yup... got the holes drilled, excellent idea with the hanging leverage. Already pulled half of them by hand after frozen, should get the rest tomorrow. Pencil is an easy solution for belly wedges, not like anyone uses them to write with any more. Excellent idea!

sometimes if i leave a coon on wood to long even with a wedge they get really stuck. i put them in the freezer overnight an they come right off.