Got a fleshing beam t'day. Tried it out on a coon, and I messed him up pretty good. I am decent at fleshing on a round horizontal beam, but I'm terrible with this one. I'm using a necker-600. Any tips or anything is appreciated!

There is a learning curve to it. Take your time at first. Most of a coon should be done with the dull side with the exception of the back of the neck. Also make sure that the fur is clean because if there are any burrs they will end up as holes.

The bright side is the coon was only worth a few bucks anyway. I had a board I just could never get used to. I switched to a pvc beam made from 10" pipe and I love it. I wish you luck adjusting. Walk away and come back later. It works for me.

Cant see how much difference the beam would make unless it had imperfections

Thank you very much!

Myside , take a step back , clear your head and pick out what went wrong (holes in the hide , not fleshing clean etc) then try to figure what caused the problem . You're used to a round beam , was this one flat ? You're used to a horizontal beam , was this one at an angle . If so did the angle cause the problems ? can you adjust the angle of the beam to make fleshing more inline with how you're fleshing ?Were there holes on the outside edges of the beam caused by the curved fleshing knife ? Maybe its just a learning curve to adjust to the new beam . Take the problems apart step by step and figure out what caused them . Find some roadkill or crappy hides to wail away on until you find the right combination that works for you . It really does help to flesh stuff that you're not worried about damaging . I had a great curved wooden beam that became cracked / damaged . I bought a new hardwood beam from a well known trapping supply place . The new beam was a beautiful piece of wood but it had a flat top . I wrecked several hides on it before moved on to a PVC beam (made from a 10 inch PVC pipe).

Take your knife and make sure the beam has a similar curve to it I made a beam once and until I matched the beam to the knife it was hard to get it right.

MySide you might have raised the pelt value judging by the current fur market

Definitely make sure your beam has no imperfections and is matched well to your knife. Then make sure the pelt has no burrs or sticks or anything like that. Other than that it just takes practice. Be careful around the nipples, it’s very easy to tear a pelt by running the knife too hard over a nipple. If there are any holes from bullets or mistakes while skinning sew them up before you flesh. The stitches will keep the hole from getting torn bigger by the knife and pressure. Start at the ears and work toward the tail.

Thanks for all the input guys, I really appreciate it!
The new beam is on an angle, and is not nearly as round as the other one.
I spent some more time on the coon, and got a little more practice.

Keep at it MySide.
You will get the hang of it when you do a few more.Every one will be better.
If you dont make a few holes in a pelt once in a while how are you ever going to learn how to sew?

First yote I put up I never dried it skin side out any so it slipped man I was heartbroken but you learn and carry on.