This will be the first year I sell most of my beaver, I just want to make sure I'm doing the put up alright before I do the rest of them. Also, what does everyone do to prep their pelts for auction? Comb them out, blow dry ect?

Thanks

Appears perfectly stretched and tacked properly to me. Good put up although front leg holes could be closed more.

Cannot tell if it is overstretched because I cannot see the size lines clear enough.If it is pulled and does not make the line(in between the lines),you are overstretching since it will go into the next lower size.So better to drop it back to the next smaller line where it belongs.
The lines if drawn accurately according to the standard oval pattern take into account for shrinkage after removing from the board,so it is counterproductive to stretch in between the size lines.

According to Greg Schroeder Of NAFA and now FHA who has probably put up more fur then 10 other individuals combined.
He told me if you can't pull a beaver hide by hand to the next line get out the vice grips.

Looks like mine when they are done. I have problems getting the nose end of the hide to the lines also. A beaver is smaller up front than in the back end.?.?

Start by nailing the nose end first.

I would not do this. If you stretch them too tight, they will either pull your nails in ( which gets you back to the size you should have stretched to) or rip at the nails. I do not know what they would do to staples. Probably just pull them. Size matters more than grade sometimes. Overstretching can affect the grade. The more you stretch, the less the fur density( hairs per square inch) of the dried hide. Because a beaver is egg shaped the front tends to get more overstretched than the rear to make an oval. At Canadian Auctions, from what I have seen Dave Bosma of NAFA and FHA describe, the beaver is graded by feel right behind the head. The front part.

I believe that stretching the hide another 1/2 Inch or so Is not going to change the fur density. The whole hide Is not being stretched It's only the out side few inches that Is getting stretched.
To get a oval shape the sides need to be puled out farther then the front or back end. Any way that's how the patern Is drawn out.
You can stretch out that hide to the outside line and It may seem tight but when you go back to nail the leg holes shut there Is still all kinds of slop In that hide. So It seems to me you can't by hand over stretch a beaver hide.

Size counts.

You know when you are going to far when the nails tear through the hide.

greg said ya cant overstretch a bvr

You know when you have reached the max stretch when the hide near the fasteners turns white during the drying process.
I highly doubt anyone can see from the fur side if it's overstretched.

Beaver have a 100,000 hairs per square inch. Who has good enough eyes to see that one hide may only have 90,000?