Boiling alternatives for euro mount

[tarheel]

I use a 50 cal ammo can to simmer whitetail and antelope skulls positioned over a Coleman burner unit with two stacks of brick to elevate the can. The can is wide enough to allow the skull down far enough and will catch on the horns/antlers. Position it level and stabilize with masking tape running from the headgear to narrow side of the can, then bring the water level up as high as needed. Following that you can use the same technique for soaking in the peroxide solution. All that's left is cleaning out the braincase and removing the nasal cartilage.

 

[300 short mag]

I clean head of as much I can , put in wash tub with water and borax bring to slow boil for about 2-3 hrs take out and power wash. Go to local beauty parlor and purchase peroxide they use for bleaching hair don't use peroxide from drug store it is not strong enough also buy the women's hair bleach (usually is a powder) don't use bleach from shore it is not strong enough. Mix peroxide and bleach into a paste, paint on with cheap 1-2 inch paint brush let set for about 2-3 hrs wash off and you are done don't get bleach on antlers. This method has worked really well for me. 4-5 hours and you are done

 

[buckbull]

The local taxi I use does a skull mount for $100. Plaques that the skull is mounted too come from the shop class at the local high school. Its well worth it to me to pay the money.

schmalts mentioned mountain mikes skull kits. I've done 3 with the kits and I think they turned out pretty good. Two that I did with the kits are in the picture below.

 

[nuevo_eph]

Another tip that really worked well for me last year is to use an air compressor and blow out the nasal cavity and other gummy places WHILE THE NOZZLE IS UNDERWATER. It takes a few tries to learn not to do it too close to the water surface, but hey, that's the fun of learning. Here is a picture of it straight from simmering and blowing.

 

[PA deer hunter]

Here's my method, for what it's worth. 1 cup Oxy Clean in simmering water for half hour. Change water, another cup Oxy Clean, @ quarter cup Dawn dish soap for another half hour. After that, break out thin nasal bones, hose it out with garden hose @ your done. No need to whiten. Buddy 's daughter is a taxidermist with beetles, and I get as good a result for 4 bucks. Would post pics but technology not my friend ! Oh, make sure you wrap antler burrs, will slightly discolor them if left uncovered.

 

[Jamen]

Beetles are a lot of work. The older gentleman who worked for me has them. His colony will do a skull in a day. But in the off season he has to feed them around 4lbs of flesh a day. I would not venture down that road unless you want to start a side hobby.

 

[375H&H]

Someone needs to post a pic of inside the nose so we can see if the thin paper curls of bone are still there...that is how you tell a great skull from a good one. My dad has a recipe similar to ones on here and the nasal cavity is perfectly intact, but not sure what all he does, maybe I should ask him. I do know that he does not boil for very long or some skulls will fall apart and if you look hard enough you can get high strength peroxide which will whiten a skull in hours instead of days.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

soak in 35% hydrogen peroxide......

Where do you get 35% peroxide? Pool supply stores?

I've been using 40 volume developer creme and paper towels, which works great, but I would like to speed up the process a bit and my wife won't let me order through her work... something about integrity my stupid hobbies and getting fired... bla bla bla...lol

 

[VAspeedgoat]

The peroxide I useto disinfect water lines in the poultry houses is called proxy clean. It is a high percentage peroxide if you live near any poultey production areas.

 

[JLS]

https://shop.matuskataxidermy.com/products/hydrogenperoxide-40volume

Get something like this. It's kind of a gel. Use paper towels and make a paper mache layer on the skull, then wrap with Saran Wrap. After a few hours, unwrap it, rinse well, and it will be nice and white.

 

[sierrahunter]

I have teeth on a bear skull that are chipping and sloughing off years after boiling. Don't boil.

 

[RobG]

Someone needs to post a pic of inside the nose so we can see if the thin paper curls of bone are still there...that is how you tell a great skull from a good one. My dad has a recipe similar to ones on here and the nasal cavity is perfectly intact, but not sure what all he does, maybe I should ask him. I do know that he does not boil for very long or some skulls will fall apart and if you look hard enough you can get high strength peroxide which will whiten a skull in hours instead of days.

here is looking at the nasal bones. I just simmer the skull with about 1/2 cup of washing soda mixed in. When it is done the junk in the nose will wash out with a garden hose. I haven’t found a good way to get that center piece of cartilage out, but if you simmer long enough the cartilage will loosen and you can cut it so it it mostly invisible.

The brain mush also washes out with a hose. I use a dental pick and forceps to get the hard to reach spots and if you can hook the brain membrane just right it can be pulled out the back of the skull.

You have to work a little to get the meat off, but the washing soda makes it much easier.

 

[375H&H]

I have teeth on a bear skull that are chipping and sloughing off years after boiling. Don't boil.

Bear teeth are kind of fragile. Often they will crack and slough just from drying out, especially the canines. One thing you can do is right after the skull is done you can spray it with a clear varathane for a couple coats and that seems to help "seal" skulls from drying out. We have some bear skulls over 20 years old like this and still going strong.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

Here is my muley from this year


And my bear from last year... I have been using my old sous vide machine with biz detergent for 18 hours or so, then 40 volume and paper towels for 10 days or so. Water temp is 140.

 

[sierrahunter]

Bear teeth are kind of fragile. Often they will crack and slough just from drying out, especially the canines. One thing you can do is right after the skull is done you can spray it with a clear varathane for a couple coats and that seems to help "seal" skulls from drying out. We have some bear skulls over 20 years old like this and still going strong.

Thx, 375. I did seal it initially. Didn't help.
It's not a big deal to me, as I have many skulls. Just a warning to others.
I now macerate, which is time consuming, but doesn't damage the skull.

 

[schmalts]

A little off topic but related... Am I the only one who has some skulls, mainly Lopes, grease out and turn a little flesh color after a few years?

 

[npaden]

Bears and pigs are the worst on this. I soak them in Dawn dish washing soap for a while to get the grease out of them. Soak for a week or so, change out the water for fresh, soak some more, rinse, repeat. I've had some pigs that take months to get the grease out of them. Occasionally I will get an old fat deer that needs soaked.

 

[archer wapiti]

Interesting thread. I use Dermestid beetles because they're available at my place of work. Otherwise, no way I'd use them. They're finicky - need proper heat and humidity. I rough out the skull (remove flesh, eyes, skin, brain) after I'm done butchering, and leave it in my back yard tied to a tree so scavengers don't take it away. The flies get into it a bit, and clean out the nasal cavities pretty well, but usually it dries out too much for them here in New Mexico. The dermestids (or at least the ones I'm using) eat dry protein and actually do best with fresh jerky pink to brown in color, not half-rotted stinky green goo. If you have that, I'd probably leave it in a situation where the flies can get into it and keep it moist enough that the maggots will do the cleaning. Back to dermestids, I bug the skull the following June when the weather gets hot and the bugs are most active. They also get EVERYWHERE. They easily chew through cardboard, and seem to do quite a number on wooden containers over time. I use a rubbermaid tote with some 2" holes drilled in the side with mosquito netting over them to try to keep them mostly corralled. Unless you have a shop detached from your house, or have a box large enough to entirely seal up an antlered skull, you're going to find them crawling around the garage floor for the rest of the year until it gets cold enough to kill them. Not good if you have taxidermic mounts in your house or other forms of dried protein hanging on the walls or in drawers.

My predicament this year is trying to clean a velvet buck without damaging the velvet. I'm thinking if I wrap the antlers and apply a pesticide inside the bag, they should be safe while the beetles work on the skull.

Cold water maceration will definitely work, but needs to be checked regularly (weekly?) depending on temperature so that you get it cleaned. To try to keep the smell down a bit, pour off most of the liquor weekly and replace with fresh water (leave a little as a 'seed' to keep the bacteria going; kind of like sourdough). Don't go beyond the time necessary to get it cleaned of the flesh and soft tissue. After that, the bacteria start weakening the sutures and yeah, it really falls apart. Keep it in the dark if possible. Black bacterial growth is bad, I understand (I have never seen that happen though). Should be a turbid tan to tan-pink color in my experience.

I've also heard of folks in Alaska hanging them off a pier in a secure cage and letting the isopods clean them (in a matter of days).

npaden, what about using white gas? more expensive and extremely flammable, but should degrease better. Not sure how it would affect teeth or if it would dry things out too much, causing them to crack.

 

[npaden]

Next time I mess with a pig I might try some white gas. Degreasing with Dawn takes long enough that all the teeth end up falling out and you have to glue them back in. If I do I will be careful lighting matches or starting vehicles in my barn though!

 

[sierrahunter]

White gas works great for the grease.