# Did my first duck today: Talk to me about the pin feathers...



## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

First we watch an you tube video, very helpful. Remembered when we tried chickens so this time we made sure the water was good and hot. *start water wayyyy before you start duck, water took forever* Everything went really well. I messed up cutting aroung the tail but now I know where so next time will be better.

I butchered in the barn and bought the duck up to the house to clean up. What is the deal with the pin feathers?? I would get an area clear, go to another area and the check to make sure... More pins... do these things just keep growing? What is the easiest/fastest way to remove them???


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Get some wax. Melt it and brush onto the feathers. Let it cool and zip them off with the wax. You can keep melting the wax and reusing it.


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## Ceres Hil (Aug 13, 2008)

pliers work; scald temp needs to be quite hot--add dish soap too.


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

I added dish soap, worked like a charm. The duck was very easy to pluck, am I calling those little tiny bits the right thing? pin feathers? I couldn't imagine trying to grab them with pliers.

I am assuming you mean Parafin wax? Would you "zip" the direction they grow in or against the grain so to speak?


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Yes, use the wax from the canning section at the grocery. Try zipping both ways and see what works best for you.


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## GrannyCarol (Mar 23, 2005)

BTW, as far as the tail goes, I've started just removing it (I used to cut out the oil gland) very carefully. I leave it attached to the intestines, so I don't have to cut it free, and cut around each side of it. That is a lot faster for me then trying to cut around the gland and the tail isn't worth much anyway for eating. 

I usually burn the hairs off with a candle. I think I'll try the paraffin next time though.


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

Oil gland????? What is that??? I cut the whole tail off as I didn't want to pluck it.....


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Oil glands are the 2 big yellow sacks that are located on the tail right on each side of the spine. Cutting the tail off works just fine, not much meat there.


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## Caprice Acres (Mar 6, 2005)

Cyngbaeld said:


> Yes, use the wax from the canning section at the grocery. Try zipping both ways and see what works best for you.


What do you mean, 'zipping'? How?


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## jil101ca (Jul 2, 2007)

My defination of "zipping" - to peel off quickly in any direction, as in zip it off...

What happens if you don't remove oil glands?? Are they anywhere else on the bird? Do geese have them too???

Off to look up oil glands......


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## Caprice Acres (Mar 6, 2005)

The oil glands are only on the tail. I hear the oil has a foul taste. If you cut off the tail, you removed them so it's not a problem.  

So it would be like waxing? I guess I don't get what you mean by 'zipping'.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

From what I understand, all birds have oil glands. Chickens have just one, IIRC. Been a long time since I cleaned a chicken.


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## fixer1958 (Dec 12, 2005)

Alot depends on the kind of duck IMO as far as a clean pluck.
Pekins and Swedes pluck fairly well.

I used regular plucking wax on some Muscovies and it was ok.
I just melted 2" of wax (floating wax) in a scalding pot full of water.
Scalded them first and got off all I could and then dipped them in the wax and couple of times and cooled the wax in colder water and yanked it off.

It's very effective. May take a couple of times of doing it. It's a pain to do but I guess it comes down to how bad you want it.

The wax can be reused. Just reheat it and sift out all the debris.

I just skin them now mostly and save the breast and grind the rest.
Makes good burger.


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## airotciv (Mar 6, 2005)

Laytex gloves, is my answer. Many years ago someone on this forum, said use laytes gloves. It works for me. Thanks to the person who gave me this tip. It has cut down the time by 3/4, that I can pluck a duck or chichen.


Sorry, about the double post can't seen to remove this one.


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## airotciv (Mar 6, 2005)

Laytex gloves, is my answer. Many years ago someone on this forum, said use laytes gloves. It works for me. Thanks to the person who gave me this tip. It has cut down the time by 3/4, that I can pluck a duck or chichen. That includes pin feathers.


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## Firefly (Dec 7, 2005)

I took some Cayugas to my butcher, who uses a big plucking machine, and was not happy with the result of birds covered with black pin feathers! So I am thinking of doing the rest, and some geese and black chickens, myself. How do latex gloves help, what do you do with them? I'm a little confused by all the ways to use wax and wonder which way is easiest. It will take me about an hour per bird, no one to help me, so I need to make it as fast and easy as possible. I know skinning is probably fastest, but the skin is too good to throw away.


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## Caprice Acres (Mar 6, 2005)

I don't understand the wax either - Or should I say, still. Does the wax just peel off of them and remove the feathers easily? Do you have to apply like a strip of cloth like you would for waxing a persons eyebrows? LOL.


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## LFRJ (Dec 1, 2006)

I tried the wax method, ONCE! It was a real mess. 
I don't know if this will help, but my goal is usually to get that bird cooled down ASAP, particularly given the temp of that water -so- I get as many of the pin feathers et al out of the bird as I can, rinse, and then get the carcass into icy salt water as soon as possible. I let it rest for 24 - 48 hours, (in icy cold saltwater) and then I bring the carcass inside. Under cold running water, and often using tweezers, I finish the bird to satisfaction. Sometimes they come much easier after the bird has rested. 

I prefer the lighter feathered birds for this reason. I assume I will never get them all out, I also assume there were probably lots of pin feathers in the chickens I once bought in the grocers. (Please correct me if I'm wrong here). All in all, the lighter feathered birds just make a prettier carcass IMO. Isn't there a preferred time to butcher the birds also? In between moults?


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## InvalidID (Feb 18, 2011)

I stopped plucking birds and instead just skin them. I do like a nice crispy skin, but not enough to deal with plucking. Just my .02.


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## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

I use duck wax for the pin feathers. Plucker for the big feathers, wax for the pins.

If you butcher at the right time when the duck is fully feathered, there are no pins. You can feel them if you feel the feathers on the bird's chest.

I left 11 Swedish ducks an extra month and they didn't have a single pin feather on them. They cleaned up really nice. The Pekins done at the same time had a lot of pin feathers, but the wax pulled them out really nice.


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## mduncn52 (Sep 8, 2007)

i processed 8 drakes about a month and a half ago. Are you sure you are talking about pin feathers. The small soft feathers under the outer ones are down and they are a bear to get off. Pin feathers are the new feathers starting to grow and look like large pins. I thought you had to use pliers to pull out pinfeathers ( my grandmother used to singe the pinfeathers on wild ducks that we had shot and cleaned) The trick there is to process your ducks between 8-9 weeks or wait till 12-13 weeks. first feathers and first molt. Wax did not work for me and is unbelievably messy. Check out this site and there are youtube videos on waxing, which i found after I was done. will try this next time 

www.shopblendedwaxes.com/Juniors-Duck-Wax.html


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