If you plan to use the hide to wrap the skull plate, cut it larger than the skull plate. As the hide dries, it shrinks and you cannot wrap it.

Better off using tanned deer skin to cover the skull that raw hair on hide. The raw hide will draw bugs.

Yep. I pull the flesh off all of mine. Sharp knife around the base of each antler. Then a good pair of pliers will twist that skin right off. Then trim up any flesh with a knife. And can dry it by hanging it up or could cover it in 20 mule team borax if you wanted to.

-Jake