massage up stiff cow skin head with feets like Hwaians do?

[MangoMonkey]

Helo. Im David. Im new her. I have a bougarabou. I loved it when it yet had a sound. Later it got flat sounded of adventure and the hairs from the top were gone. Little like me

I bought a cow skin (or was it from a 2 year old bull) from a slaughterer that i salted after i cut out a piece from "about" the border between the side of the cow and under the stomach.

It was a patch there that had a real nice pattern in the sides brown and the stomachs white. Later i understood that this was not so smart and that the skin tend to be quite dull and thick there and don't move very much.
Later i have also tried to take the head of and cut the skin down to a suitable thickness whit good good sharp knife. But its to thick. Or at least to stiff. Nothing happens. It doesn't sing like it use to.

So.. now the questions.. Lets start from beginning.

From where on the cow or rather maby calf shall i take the skin patch?
Some have said the patch in the back, on the side over the back bone sholder bone, should be good ? Also i heard that the arm pit skin would be nice. Maby from some one older?
Realy hope you know something here!
Does salting matter for that matter?

As you can se the Questions come rolling now when i have found you out and got started.
so here comes a few more..

To top a 12 inch bougarabou .. how big diameter skin do i need if i buy?
And how thick is recomendable?


Could it be a good idea for me to try to kneed the drum with my feet and heals and work away stiffnes out of the skin like the Hawaians do with there cowskin clad Taiko`s ?

Here is the standford compleate manual to build a Taiko
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordtaiko/manual/process.html
And here Piktures of people standing on drums.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordtaiko/manual/fun/on_drum.html
and a link to the final stretch where they say it.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordtaiko/manual/process/second_stretch.html

They say one to jump up on and dans the drum under the final stretch and jogg it soft. They have the drum in a jigg but it cant be any difference if drum is strong like bougarabou. Have anyone here heard about something like this before.. ?

After seeing the link do you think it could be a safe treat for my old tired friend with a foot massage and a new stretch?

Sorry for so many question at the same time. I will be more sensible next time. But i so miss my old friend. And is also on the road with wery limited IT access.