Wash the cucumbers and use a fork to poke holes in the skin. My Granny said to do this about 9 times on each cucumber, so that's what I do.

Place the cucumbers in the bottom of a large enamel pan -- I used a Dutch oven.

In a separate large pot on the stovetop, combine the salt with a gallon of water and bring to a boil. Stir until the salt dissolves. Pour the salt water over the cucumbers and allow to sit for 24 hours.

TIP: Sometimes the cucumbers will float, so I use a pot lid weighted down with a rock to keep them fully submerged in the salt water.

Drain salt water from the pot of cucumbers.

Mix the powdered alum and one gallon of water in a large pot on the stovetop. Bring to a boil, then pour over the cucumbers and allow to stand for 24 hours.

Drain the alum water from the pot of cucumbers. Rinse and drain again.

Bring a gallon of plain water to boil, then pour over the cucumbers in the enamel pot. Soak for 24 hours.

Drain cucumbers.

Combine the vinegar and pickling spices in a large pot on the stovetop and bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes.

Pour the vinegar on top of the cucumbers and soak for 5 days.

Continue soaking cucumbers in vinegar.

Stir occasionally.

Drain cucumbers.

Slice cucumbers about 1/4-1/2" thick, depending on your preference, and place in a colander to continue draining.

Layer cucumbers in a large casserole dish, alternating layers of cucumbers and sugar.

Allow the cucumbers to soak in the sugar syrup for at least 24 hours before canning.

I usually soak my pickles in the sugar syrup for about 3 days, but it doesn't have to be exact. I just want to make sure to give the syrup time to develop before I divide up the pickles into jars for canning. I use a water bath canning method so I can keep the pickles in my pantry for a year or two, until I need them. They don't always last that long because they are requested by friends and family!

If any of the cans do not seal, or if you don't want to bother canning, you can keep these in the fridge for a couple months.