Deer tails are easy to get when huntin season is around. mny of the butchers that skin an cut them sell the hides. ask them for some tails. some will give them to you for free some with a swap.
Take a straight edge razor or 2 that you use in a utility knife.On the white side of the tail cut through the hide to the bone. do this from the base to the tip.any flat surface will keep the hide straight.To skin start at the thick end an just work the razor between the skin an the meet from fat end to tip.Take your time so as not to cut through the hide.i do them in batches of 12 to 16 at a time.
Take a 5 gal bucket an fill it half full with warm water an a good amount of Dawn dish soap. Put skinned tails in an was them by hand.Have a second bucket of just warm water to put washed tails in to rinse.I rinse them several times till there are no soap bubbles coming from the tails.You can bleach them at this point with hair salon hair bleach or just dry them as they are.
There are 2 ways that i dry them. 1st I place them skin side up on news paper an sprinkle piclin salt on them.I put layers of paper then tails 3 to 4 layers thick.
Second I do the same with Borax soap.both will work. If your gonna dye them don't dry them. Dye them ist. A.K Best has dying recipies in both his books.
I do a couple hundred a year like this. Works good. When done keep them in a covered tote with moth balls.Keeps them from smelling an keeps bugs out. hope this helps. Tight lines gotta get back to tyin tail hooks. Ron:fishin:

just like ya do any TAIL ..........But much quicker ><><><:devil2:

Good "How To" !

Thanks. I have some friends hunting in Vermont this weekend, hopefully they will get a deer I'll get the tail.

Does the bleach whiten the brown hair on the backside? I've always ended up using the white hair and tossing the rest. Thanks, good stuff.

I've found that the darker the hair the richer it will color. The light hair will lighten a bit but it's not consistant.You'll see it with tails for sale. if you'r gonna dye black you do need to bleach ist. The hair will take the black dye much better.Most of the black tails you buy are the ones they can't do in other colors or have been cut backwards so if you buy black ones look them over good.

I never bleach them. just the dawn soap wash.

If you want to dye them black you usually dye them red first , let dry thoroughly then dye them black. you'll get jet black that way. Think of the red like a color change primer coat of paint.

Very informative, thanks for sharing. I might give this a try in the winter.