Lenny,

one method that has worked for me is to find a pot that you (or your wife) don't mind sacrificing that is large enough to submerge the entire skull in (up to the base of the antlers). If possible keep the antlers high and dry especially around the bases as boiling may affect their color.

Skin the the skull and remove the eyes,lower jaw and as much meat as possible without damaging the skull. Boil the skull (outdoors on a camp stove if possible) until the remaining meat is loose enough to remove by hand, this may take several rounds of boiling and cleaning. to clean the bone add a drop or two of dish soap to the water, it will help avoid "greasy" patches on the finished skull. once the skull is clean and all loose flesh, cartiladge and other fun stuff is removed take it to the car wash and use the pressure washer to clean any stubborn bits from the nooks and crannies. Three things to note with this whole boilingprocess are:

1. if the teeth are becoming loose or fall out, STOP BOILING, she's as good as it will get and the skull may fall apart if left any longer.

2. the nose is a b#tch,the nasal passages arefull of all sorts of delicate bones and smalll bits of flesh. be careful

3. Removing the brain will require a stategically bent coat hanger or similar implement. If you've ever seen videos of chimps using grass to get at termites you'll understand the similarities.

Once the skull is 100% clean prepare a peroxide bath for it. Some use 35% stuff available at hairdressers. In the past i have gotten away with the 5% stuff available at any drug store (it'll take several bottles). Pour enough peroxide into a container to immerse the skull but NOT the Antler bases. to cover the top of the skull around and between the antler burrs use paper towel to wick the peroxide up around the bases. DO NOT let the bases soak or they will bleach and you'll have a racing stripe on your antlers. once immersed let the skull soak overnight or until the desired colour is reached.

this has worked for me. I am not a professional so if you want a professional job take it to the taxidermist. With that said, here is my most recent attempts:







The bottom skull didn't have enough dish soap so it doesn't appear as clean as the other. Hope this helps. Good luck. I have better pictures if you'd like to see the results, just not available right now.