when drying yotes well any fur is their a advantage to drying fur nose up or down? I ask because I hang mine nose down and it seam to take awhile for the head area to dry enough to sell

On really greasy critters like coon, I prefer nose down to help keep grease off the skirt. Heat rises but if you have good air circulation like you should have, head up or down should not make much if any difference in drying time.

Here's how I do yotes.

Once they are on the board fur out I let them hang nose up for no more then 2 days. Or until the hide will hold It's shape with the board removed.

With the board removed you will get better air flow and get a better drying job through out the whole hide. With the head being the most important. With a board In the hide you will never get any air flow In the head area.

The other thing I do Is replace the belly boards. One goes In from the nose end and one In from the tail end. You will have to pin the one that goes In from the tail. It's very Important to place a wedge In from the nose end so you can open up that area. Never understood why trappers place a wedge In from the tail end It just doesn't accomplish anything. I even place my wedges In from the nose end on my rats. And us e a decent sized belly wedge on those yotes. The big end should be at least 2" to 3" In width.

No need to hang the coyotes from the tail end. I only hang coon and rats from the tail end. I don't want to have grease running down the skin and collecting on the fur In the skirt area.

IMO it makes no difference how you hang them. When the bodies dry take them off the board even if the head area lips and ear area may be damp. It will generally dry with little if any serious warping as long as you have reasonable drying conditions of low humidity and temperature of 50-60 degrees F.

When I put wolves and cats on the board fur out,besides the key in the belly, I use two dowels in the back(3\4 inch for wolves and 1\2 inch for cats),one on each side of the tail,and shove them up to each eye hole.This will give you a good airspace all around inside the skin between the board and the hide and they dry overnight if you have them well scraped and good drying conditions.The head will dry at the same rate as the rest of the skin.This also makes them easy to remove from the boards without sticking if they were turned a bit early.

I doubt that your getting any actual air flow with that method as long as the hide Is still on the board. That Is unless your forcing air between the board and the hide.

Yep it works.

thanks guys I see the era of my ways now! I've been leaving them on the board till the ears get hard.2-3 weeks for that to happen with two fans running constantly! it really ties up a lot of boards that way! I figured I was doing something wrong! I can have half a dozen beavers complete before a yote! Does the hide curling up in the lower back area hurt the grade? By removing the board so quick?

What about a good dusting of borax from ear butts to nose before putting on the board, plus
the extra wedge or dowels to open things up for extra circulation? I live in the humid part of
Texas where we have a good many 70+" days in between wet fronts. Been using borax for a good
many years on more than just the heads. Never had any complaints from buyers, but maybe
there's a reason not to use it?

Tony.F, how are you preping the ears? If you leave the ear butts and cartilage in, they will take a long time to dry and you risk taint. Both auction houses recommend removing the cartilage of fox and coyotes for selling to the fur market. Like most things trapping, there are various ways to accomplish this. These links show a couple of them

https://www.furharvesters.com/pdf/earcart.pdf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqwYzh9UZzM

I don't remove the cartledge they don't seam to dock if the ears aren't turned but they do if you rip one off! I would imagine they do dry considerable faster if turned. My country buyer prefers the ears not turned. im just getting accustomed to nafa I've tried borax it didn't seam to speed up the time any

I always remove cartilage. I send all furnto nafa and have never been downgraded for a torn ear.

If you are getting downgraded for a torn ear, I would find another buyer. What did your buyer tell you they were using the ears for?

There are a few fur processors that just cut off the ears from the get go. And I'm told It will not down grade your fur. But so far I haven't done It.

Get the board out as soon as possible It just speeds up the drying process.

No need to remove cartilage or cut off the ears.Run your thumb between the back of the ear and cartilage to separate them,then cut off the meaty part of the butt.Leave it inside out when the skin is fur in,and turn it back fur out when you turn the skin.They dry overnight as long as they have been fleshed properly and the humidity is low for drying.Turn skin next day,use the dowels in the back,and your boards are freed up the next day,and the pelt will be perfectly dry,head and all,the next day to take off the board without shrinking or wrinkling.If your humidity is high use a de humidifier and a couple of fans to keep the air moving in the fur shed,especially if drying a large amount of fur at the same time.

lol yes I know the ears are useless in the fur industry! I'm basing my knowledge from hear say its dang tough to know what to and what not to believe when it comes to trapping rules! I'll start turning my ears this season and see for myself I guess. The real truth will be in the check. My country buyer told me the effort on turning ears isn't worth any $$ only self satisfaction. Again do I call B.S or take it as truth? He gives fur handling demos at conventions so I like to believe hes telling the truth but what if its a ploy to buy them cheaper. Myth busters need to become trappers! In all aspects. Being the best is not my intention but I know I don't want to be the worst either. Proficient and consistent are my goals! Im at consistent the other is what needs tweeking. This forum has helped me a lot everyones points and views keeps a humble guy thinking

Thanks boco that's pretty much in a nut shell how I do mine!

How long does it take for a hide to set? I like to pull the stretcher out as soon as possible to allow for better drying. I don't know if it matters but coyotes are my main target.

TONY.F,I'm new to trapping but I have ran into the same issue as you have with your county fur buyer. Here's my 2 cents worth, I think some times they get locked in on an old idea and just don't change I don't think there always trying to get more. I had a veteran trapper tell me last year I was wasting my time with removing cartilage and using borax was a big no-no. I got five dollars more per pelt than he did. This doesn't mean I don't listen to him I just try and weigh the old with the new and what little experience I have.

I like to leave coyote and cat pelts on the board 3-4 days after turning pelt fur out.

After i`ve flipped the coyote fur out, i leave it on the forming board for a good 5-7 days, just to make sure its good and done.
i do remove the cartilage from the ears, little effort but that way i know it wont taint, i`ve used a little borax against the head when the ears are pinned on the innital drying as well under the arm pits, not a lot, but seemed to work well.
Just my 2 cents.

If you want a good fur handling video that goes over every furbearer, look for the Wisconsin Trapper’s fur handling video. The cover is all blue. I’m not sure if they sell it anymore, but you might be able to find somebody that will sell you one.

thanks dfabs I will check into that. I've watched a few good fur handling videos. I think I have the basics down pat! The few helpful pointers are what I seek now. I realize theres no better teacher than getting your hands dirty! lol and lord knows im not scared of that!I have learned heat is not your friend before a hide is fur out!Un fortunately ive ruined a few nice yotes from that mistake

TONY.F, I don't put up a lot of fur and I don't trap for the check, I do it for the enjoyment and memories. My fur handling is done for the respect for the animal, personal satisfaction and pride. I tried turning the ears and was surprised how easy it is to accomplish. I personally think the ears turned make a much better presentation...

Not sure if you have seen this video, it is very helpful and simplifies the whole process. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kac3DxKcr_Q

same here I didn't get back into trapping for the money if was only about the money id of got a job! I love every thing outdoors related, and trapping was my recovery exercise. But it is the one outdoors activety that gives a little back. I respect the animals enough to try my best. I like the look of natural pointy ears. I was fishing to see if it was something im doing wrong, or if its just the nature of the beast im battling

I've put up a lot of coyotes mine and others. And I have never had any slippage In the head area. And I don't do anything with the ears. Other then pin them back when there drying.
If I were going to sell to the taxidermy market I'd remove the cartilage.

The first coyote I caught I sent it In to have It tanned. I didn't say I wanted It taxidermy tanned. It came back minus the nose and ears. I asked them and they said they did that with all coyotes and fox when they went Into the tanning process.

Get them off the boards as soon as possible and open them up and you won't have any problems.

that's my new plan for this season! A week on the board after its fur out then just hang on fur hangers till shipping date. Beav have you ever tried Tom Krauses way? with the part board part wire adjustable boards ? He use them on cats, but I believe they would do wonders on any fur out fur!

Never tried that method.

When I do coyotes I flesh them down like I do coon. And If you do that you should be able to take the hide off In 2 days. When you first board that coyote after you turn It fur out make sure you place a wedge In from the mouth and one In from the tail end. And use a decent sized wedge.
Sticking In a wedge from the tail end makes no sense at all. What good does the skinny end do up In the head area. In fact It's a waste of time doing It like that on any animal. But 2 wedges will get you some air flow.

I do the two wedge boards on skunks and coons well every thing that gets a solid board gets two wedges. my yotes all go on adjustable boards. the two wedges makes them a sinch to remove from the board and you get a better presentation in the head area .It does seam to pull out the slack that accumulates in the neck & throat area. After I learned that trick ive never lost another fox hide trying to remove it from a board

My first season trapping coyotes I got concerned about the head area not drying fast enough so I drilled holes in the board where the mouth opening ends up and it worked. The head dried much faster. I don’t do that anymore because, like the beav, I don’t leave them on so long and if the head isn’t quite dry it will be shortly.

I always had problems with my coyotes also. I have been drilling holes through the board in the mouth area to try and get more air to the area between the ears and eyes. It helps a bit, but still need to slide the fur up a little when the hide is mostly dry to get a better dry on the head area.

thanks guys every ones experties help out tons of guys

A parting shot.
I see no reason for leaving hides on boards or wire for weeks at a time. Do a good job on the fleshing beam and In 2 or 3 days you can remove fur out critters from the forms.

And every time I hear someone say they are leaving their rats on the forms for weeks at time I just shudder same with mink skins. The longer a rat hide dries the thinner the leather gets. And you will get down graded for those dry crinkly sounding skins. 2 days at the most for rats. You want to pack those greasy hides away In boxes so they stay hydrated.

All irrelevant to humidity,temperature and air flow.

Ya but with the hide off the board your chances are better.

Taking a hide off the board too soon is worse than leaving it on too long.It will wrinkle and you get excessive shrinkage,thus losing money on size.
Take it off at the "right" time-when it is dry.Worst thing guys do is dry fur at too warm a temp.50f with low humidity is ideal.It takes a bit longer to dry but the skin will remain leathery and flexable,too warm and fast drying leaves a skin papery or boardy,stiff and prone to damage from cracking.
Fur dried with excessive heat like behind a wood stove etc will actually be what the trade calls grease burnt-basically untannable.

I agree with "Boco"'

My conditions allow me to take a fur out coyote hide off the board In 2 days. I get NO wrinkling and no loss of size.
And once I turn that hide fur out I only put In a few push pins just to keep It centered and keep the tail and the ears In place. So far I have never had the hide shrink and pull out the pins.
I think the idea of a hide shrinking to where your going to lose a grade Is a little far fetched. In fact I'm betting a 1" one way or the other on a coyote fox or cat Isn't even considered In the grading process. IT's all about color and fur quality.

The auction houses get pelts that look like wrinkled up socks,that were taken off the boards too soon,or not dried on a board at all.I bet the shipper wonders why his xxl mink graded xsm.

thanks boco now you got my mind bending the other direction! I fire up my wood stove to remove humidity not so much for the heat. my shed stays around 60 -40 I try to keep it above freezing cause I store my fmj and paint dip in there freezing will ruin them.

Boco how long do you let yours dry before taking them off your stretcher? I'm in New Mexico very low humidity,day time temp's average 50's, 60's with freezing temp's at night. It gets colder as you get into January. After turning fur side out I put my stretchers outside in the shade. It seems to work well but I did have a couple of pelts that "bent in" down the back in other words in did not lay completely flat down the back. Over drying? Or not on the stretcher?

Speaking of beaver,which are likely the thickest pelts,at low humidity and cool temps (50f) I leave 5 to 7 days before taking off the board.When cased pelts dish out like that when hanging it is likely from taking them off the board a bit too soon.This can also happen if dry pelts are subjected to changing humidity.

Tony,its OK to fire up the wood stove in your fur shed when you are working in there.Just keep drying pelts far away from the stove so they don't get hot.I have dried lots of pelts in the bush at trapping camp,hung in the far corner away from the stove,with the wood stove going at night.After they are dry though I store them in fur bags in the woodshed.
If you scrape your fur clean(grease free) a lot of the drying issues will go away.

I try to get them pretty clean. I keep fans blowing directly on the fur when the stove is burning to insure they don't get cooked. my sheds only 12 x18 so the option of staying far away is out. But I try to keep the heat towards the floor. I have a squirrel cage fan over the stove pointing towards the floors as the heat rises it pushs it back down.

I have a rack on wheels that I can place my beaver boards on. Then I have a large fan directed at the hides. I also turn the boards every day so one day the noses are up and the next day the noses are down. The nice thing about the wheeled rack Is I can push It out of the way when I'm putting up fur Then put It back Into position for drying when I'm done for the night. This would be a must for small shed operations.

BEAV CAN YOU POST A PIC OF THAT?

I'm so computer challenged that I have no Idea On where to even start.

The cart Is 6' long and 2' wide. Both ends have 5' standards. The bottom has a section of OSB for a floor. I then nail 1x2s with about 1" between them. That's where the 1/2" or 3/4" boards slid In. I like to have about 6" between these 1 x2s. That will give me room between the hides for good air circulation. And I like to place a hide on each side of the boards.

Do the same thing on top but here you only have to use a single 2x4 with the same slot configuration. This Is all you need to keep the boards In place.

You can build this out of anything. Take a 6' section of plywood and screw 4 castors to It Not beaver castors LOl. Then I would screw some stiffeners On the bottom side to keep It from bending In the middle. I made mine out of angle iron and square tubing.

ok I got a good visual from your description. I want to do something similar but im running out of floor space!lol and head space isn't much better! ive out grown my tiny shed.

Nice thing about the cart Is you can shove It outside while your working then move It back In when your done.

That's a good idea Beav.