Two weeks ago, I attended the NJ Snaring, DP and Cage Trapping program put on by Ron Jones, Newt Sterling and Morgan Bennett. These guys are absolutely top notch and if you want a real education, this is the place to get it!

While out there, I saw a fleshing beam with the under side of commercial carpet attached to it. Morgan explained the significance and said it was common practice in the East. He’d been fleshing with carpet on the beam for at least 30 years, he said.

Would someone please walk us through attachment, the advantages of it and some of the pit falls, if there are any? Pictures would be helpful too.

Was there explanation of why they used this system.
It seems to me you would have a stinking mess after a few weeks.

Seen people use rubber but carpet seems like something youd be replacing often?

NO matter what you use It should be a hard slick surface so your skin lays flat to that surface.

I’ve always assumed a hard surface was necessary like Beav says. But Morgan said he’s been doing it this way for years. It was on Newt’s beam so I’ll assume he does it too. These guys know something we might learn from. Is ANYONE who uses this method willing to tell us more about it?

There are fur handlers that place the hide On top of the beam when they flesh. Would the carpet thing be the same as that system? It sounds like what they are trying to do Is cushion the hide from a hard wood or plastic surface.
I can see doing that with some hides where a knife against a hard surface will get you into the hair follicles. But for most critters that's not an issue.

Mine is wrapped with the heavy rubber liner used for shower areas before tiling. Buy it off a roll at Home Depot and other places. Softens just a bit so unseen things in the fur don’t cause small holes. Easy to clean.

I can’t imagine carpet.

Osky

Didn’t Groeny have a bunch of burlap on his muskrat video?

What exactly do you mean? was it jute or foam and was it just the backing used or was the carpet attached upside down?

And it was?


I did use carpet on a beam once in the '80s, don't recall why I did it nor why I quit it.

I've put up fur for 50 years and I can't see any reason for adding anything to my beam. But I guess It must work for some. If It's on there to keep the hide from slipping around your doing something wrong to begin with.

It was the jute side of the carpet as I recall. And As I recall, Morgan said it gave enough so you didn’t get to the depth of the hair follicals. If it got damaged he said to change it out immediately because the fur would get damaged immediately if you didn’t. If NEWT sees this, maybe he’ll chime in. I saw it on a beam in his shop

Lincoln Barbour, a good size fur buyer here in the day, had four or five fleshing beams set up and they all had carpet on them. He bought a lot of fur in the round. From what I heard, he'd have all the fleshing beams in use all day long. I never asked about the carpet on the beams.

I can't think of any reason to wrap a beam with anything?
Seems like a recipe for making holes in the hide.

I am from out east and the fur buyer I had sold to and taught me some of trapping .He had his beam set up like everyone else and he been dealing with trapping and furs for all his life and this was as far as the 1920's. when he was a kid. He had died in 2002. This is the first I hear of use of a carpet.

Real experience.

About 15 years ago I taught a beginner to coon trap.
We stacked a lot of them.
He had a percentage of beam damage.
I did not own a dull knife at the time.
I wrapped the beam and all his sharp knife boo boos went away.
All of em.
I saw no problems doing so in those two seasons.
I learned from him, he from me, it was fun.

The end lol.

I use carpet on my beam to minimize window paning on some of our thinner skinned southern fur like coons and possums. Also reduces cutting. Our coons tend to have more gristle than fat plus thinner leather than northern coons particularly late in the season when the boars are breeding a lot. No fat, just red meat and gristle. Epler talks a bit about using carpet in his fur handling book.

Wadtrap, could you post some pictures of your beam with carpet so that people can see what you’re talking about?

Running traps this morning will try and post pics later today. Basically just a piece of commercial carpet laid over top 1/3 of beam. Attach the two edges underneath with short screws and washers for easy replacement. Done thousands of coon with it and has saved many pelts from damage.

I just fleshed one over my knee with a beaver knife using a piece of burlap to protect my leg. Worked great except for the edges. I've got to go tune those up. Tiny little beaver...could use a muskrat oval to board it.