There is one other wedge tip I have for all your belly wedges. Drill a 3/8" hole in the end (you can see it on the wedge I posted. Then if you have a stuck wedge you can put a spike through the hole and use it as a handle to grab with a hand on each side and pull it free. Seems stuck belly wedges are hard to get a hold of to pull them out and this works very well.

I like the burlap apron idea. I will have to try it out on coyotes next year to help reduce the sliding.

Thanks trapper Ron. Very nice pics and info. I use 1/2" PVC for the belly wedge. Next one will have a piece of lath between the PVC and the board.

On belly wedges ... use a narrower wedge for mink and otter or the pelts come out in the shape of a triangle being leather out. A wider wedge works well for the long haired furs that get turned to fur out. Seems also the long haired furs have more slack towards the skirt.

Nice pics.

lot of good info....put up my last three today, now the dreaded beaver, rather put up cats and canines...LOL

Here's some otter I put up today.

Incidentally, the only tools I use for fleshing otter are a knife for the head (and part of the tail), and a pull type paint scraper for the rest. Takes me 20-25 minutes to flesh and board.

I trapped six otter this season, could have trapped a lot more but I have always dreaded putting them up. I froze the skins in order to do them at the end of the season. Well, I've found the ultimate fleshing system for otter. I've owned a fleshing machine (the kind tanneries or taxidermists use) for a few years. It works great on skins that have been salted or pickled, the salting proccess really firms up the flesh making it very easy to slice away with the fleshing machine. I always thought that it wouldn't work on fresh skins because they are too pliable and soft. But this year I decided to try it anyway. I was to some degree correct in my assumtion, but I found that with a little care, especially around areas with loose skin (like the front leg holes) the fleshing machine works great. I put a couple of small nicks near the front arm pits on a couple of skins, but not a big deal. The soft skin of a fresh pelt wants to get sucked in a little by the fleshing wheel so you have to be a little carefull and keep a sharp wheel. I can now flesh an XL otter in about 10 minutes, and these are huge SE Alaska otters with a lot of fat/flesh/gristle. I think I'll even be able to get faster at it. I think one huge advantage to using the flehing machine is that you are not putting any pressure on the fur as you would on a beam. This greeatly reduces the chance of trapper induced singe. Not one of my otter show any sign of singe. Of course you still want to keep the fur a little damp. Any of you other guys ever try this method?
Mark

I watched a guy from Manitoba do a beaver with a fleshing machine(the wheel type mounted on a table).It didnt take him very long.

I just put-up my first otter ever. Sorry no pics, but I think he turned out mighty fine comparing to what I see here. I must say that it was not difficult at all. Just a hardwood beam and a regular old 12" two handle fleshing tool. I was expecting a much tougher battle based on what I have been reading. Maybe the fact that I have been battling the beaver that made it seem so easy. I would actually say that it was easier than fleshing a coon, the otter are just longer so it takes a little more time to work all the way down. Thanks for all the great advice on this post.

Another (putting up otter) tutorial from Wilderness Trapping Archive.

http://www.trapperman.com/forum/ubbthrea...tml#Post2440132

Sold the otters in the above pic at Prineville for a $108 avg. Not NAFA prices, but decent for an association sale.

ttt