For those of you that have beaver tails tanned regularly, any tips on skinning and just how much to flesh?

You should just jump on U-tube and look up fleshing beaver tails, there are a couple that are really done well and show much easier and quicker than most can explain here.

I slice all around the edge using a razor blade. Then, plunge a five or six inch fillet knife at the base and slice over to the opening cuts to the left and right. Then clamp the corner on the tail leather in a bench mounted vice grips. Grab the meaty part of the tail and pull down. Be careful when you get to the tip as the leather there is very thin. Clamp the leather from the other side in the vice grips and repeat. Then fillet the gristle off like you are skinning a fish. Then, salt or pin out to dry. Specialty Leather told me to skip that step and just fresh freeze and ship. I am going to try that next time. Hope this helps.

Go to FHA website and check out the pdf file on handling beaver tails.You have to leave both sides of the tail attached along one side for the leather market.Only 4 inch or bigger tails have value.

Sent a dozen tails to specialty in Boone Iowa a couple years ago. They did a great job tanning. Just skin the tail back till you can get the bone in a vice. Cut around the edge of the tail with a razor knife, then peel the hide off with vise grips.

This is not true. Treat each side as a separate piece. The standard plate for beaver tails is 4 in by 8 in. It takes a big tail to make this size. The tannery told me that they haven't figured out how to tan them so they turn out when both sides are attached. They charge per side, so clearly they don't have to be attached.

I've got some beaver tails bark tanning in a Western Hemlock liquor that are almost done. Nice dark color to them.

I sent hundreds of beaver tails to the leather market in the 90's thru FHA.They still ask for some once in a while and they have to be handled the way it says on their website or they wont take them.They need a nice big piece of beaver tail leather to make stuff that's why both sides have to be attached and the tails have to be at least 4 inches across on the beaver so when skinned and open you have 8 inch diameter with both sides attached along one edge.At one time they were taking small tails under 4 inches but only payed 75cents for those.
They payed 3 dollars per dried tail over 4 inches.Made some good coin off beaver tails.

Interesting, do you know where FHA gets them tanned.

Fha doesn't buy them they get orders from buyers and then put out word to the trappers to supply them.
I see one guy on the trapshed is looking for frozen beaver tails.

This is the closest I have seen posted to doing it right-quick,efficient and easy.I skinned over 30,000 in one winter -guess I should do a video for you tube and get it posted.I have watched a few videos on you tube and thought how much extra work people do for not.Slit down the sides as stated above with a very sharp thin knife while holding the tail flat against a flat even surface.Cut around the butt of the tail like you are peeling and orange while staying away from the leather. Pull the two sides away from the base of the tail and put the butt inner centre of the tail in a slip rope hanging from the ceiling and tear each side off-done-easy peezy!!the only thing you need to worry by doing it this way is if there are any scars on the tail those need to be cut around from the inside before you tear the 2 sides off the centre bone and cartilage.Finished

I can set you up with the guy who tanned literally thousands of them for me