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ORIGINAL: Semisane

OK Hammer, here's how I go about making a skull mount. It takes a little time and is a little messy and smelly, but it's not hard. Others who have done a few may be able to addtheir own thoughtsorsuggest techniques that work for them.

Supplies and tools: Small knife,6" screwdriver, needle nose pliers,wire brush (optional, but handy), 1" wide sponge brush (also optional but handy), pot or can large enough to completely submerge skull, heat source (outdoor burner recommended), 1/2 cup laundry detergent, 8 oz. bottle hydrogen peroxide, water.

Process: First, let me suggest you NOT do this indoors unless you live alone in a single family dwelling, or your wife will be away for a week or so to allow enough time for the smell to diminish. :D

Use a small knife to cut off the ears right against the skulland remove as much skin as possible from the skull. Cut theeye balls out. This will turn out to be harder than you expect. Work the knife blade around the eyeball and cut theoptic nerve at the back of the ball. At this point you may wish to try a horror movie slasher technique and repeatedly stab the eyeball. At the back of the skull is the hole thespinal cord goes through.Stick a screwdriver in there and wiggle it around to break up the brain as much as possible.

Fill your pot with water and mix in the laundry detergent. Submerge the skull in thewater, leaving as much of the rack as possible out of the water, and bring it to a boil. If you have adeep wide mouth pot, or something like a five gallon can, you can tie a stick across the rack to hold it in position. When it comes to a boil, lower the heat so as to maintain a slow boil and let it cook for about 15 or 20 minutes. Notice the aroma? It's like a vomit stewgone bad.

After 15 or 20 minutes, pull it out and hit it with a hard spray from a garden hose. This will knock off a lot of little bits of flesh and gristle. Stick the screwdriver in the back and break up the brain a little more, then flush it out as much as possible with the hose. Use your knife and the wire brush to scrape off anything that will come off. Pay particular attention to the thick gristle around the base of the antlers, and the line along the top of the teeth. Then put it back in the pot and repeat the whole process another time or two until you've gotten all flesh, nerve ends and gristle off of the skull. After the second boil you should be able to use the needle nose pliers to pull the septum, the flat piece of gristle that divides the nostrils, out of the nose.

Be careful when working the area along each side of the face just in front of the eye sockets. The bone structure there is thin and fragile. After the first boil and scraping you will see the sutures and dividing lines of the skull structure. The segments at the front of the nose are also pretty thin and delicate, and if you over boil or get too vigorous when working that areathey can separate from the skull. Not to worry. Just glue them back on later with Elmers glue. Over boiling can also loosen the teeth. Just glue them back in if needed.

After you have it clean to your satisfaction, let it dry then use the sponge brush or a piece of cloth to wipe the whole thing (not horns) down with hydrogen peroxide. Wipe it on liberally and let it sit for ten minutes or so in the sun. Then hose it off. Repeat as much asyou like. It won't come out bright white, but will have more of a ivory color. If you know a taxidermist or search taxidermy web sites, there are chemical treatments that will whiten the bone. I don't use them though.

I've added a few pictures to show more of the bone structure and how it's mounted on the board. Be sure to pre-drill the hole in the bone for the mounting screw.

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