cleaning deer skull?
 

i found a dead buck a while back and i was wondering how i could remove the flesh aroung the skull easily?
thanks
mossbergman11

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

That one from you pics?

I think you can just boil it real good. I know there are places that do it with beatles. You could leave it out but that takes forever. I'd try boiling it.

It will probably stink so try to do it outside.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Oh I forgot. I also saw where you can use a wire wheel on a drill to clean the meat off after boiling.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Id say boil it really good, but be aware..ITS GONNA STINK!!!:D

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

boil it a while, then submerge it on a bucket of water for a couple of weeks.........when all the meat falls off make a paste with boric acid and peroxide and cover the bone......let site for a day or so and rinse it off......

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

boil itwith 4 cups of borax for twenty minutes and that will preserve it

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Boil it for a few hours...knock off what meat you can and then take a pressure washer and it will remove everything.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

yeah its the buck from the pictures. i will boil it outside on a fire because weve been having some real stupid weather here recently like 60 degrees. i dont make sense

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Like some others said, boil it for at least two hours with borax, scrape the meat off but dont stop there!!!, you need to go in through the neck area with a wire hook to dig out everything on the inside, if you dont youll find out what STINK is. After you get everything out you need to soak it in peroxide, this will kill the bacteria and also white'n the bone, let it sit a few days in an area that wont matter if it gets a bad odor incase you didnt get it all!!!.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

wat is borax?

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Boiling is probally the cheapest way to do it but be careful, boil it too long and the bone/cartiledge down by the nose area will become soft and break. Trust me, I have seen and had it happen.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Skin it, then boil it about four hours, wash the meat off with a hose. Drill another hole into the brain cavity below the spinal cord hole. This makes it so brains will not blow back all over you when you wash them out. If bone parts come loose save them and glue them back on later with plain old Elmer's.

When it is clean it soak a bit in a borax solution, boric acid or just borax soap. You can bleach it a bit too if it is not white enough for you but do not get bleach on the antlers. You want the color there. Borax is deadly to plants, insects, arachnids, and fungus, but is harmless to other animals. You use borax soap to wash your hands after all.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Borax is a laundry booster
You can usually find it by the laundry detergents at Wal Mart
Be Care-full not to get Boraxo powdered hand soap I don't think that will work.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

I would not boil the antlers...I have seen many discolored this way. Submerge just enough to cover the skull cap. I have also seen tin foil wrapped around the base of the antlers for additional protection from the "cleaning process".

Might want to check out the the Huntingnet.com taxidermy forum too.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

No kidding man. I'm not far from you and have been out in a t shirt. It just feels weird for January.

Good luck with the skull and get us some pics when your done.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

I know a guy here locally that uses the beetles and they turn out great. Charges $55....beats putting up with the smell and the mess.

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

where is the taxidermy forum?

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

you can probably find some of it at a walmart show me your pictures of the deer

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

ok ill try

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

here it is

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Skin the entire skull first it will make it easier then boil them but do it on a very low boil for about an hour. Do not let the antlers get submerged, just fill to the top of the skull. after. I put a small amount of dawn liquid soap and a cup of baking soda in the water. The soap will help break down the fat and oils and the baking soda will keep the smell down to a minimum. But I do advise doing it in the bar, garage or outside because of the smell. After an hour take it out and begin picking the meat and fat . It is very tedious and time consuming but do a good job. You will have to keep putting it back in the water to loosen up every thing. Use small screwdrivers and picks and a semi sharp knife to scrape and cut away the meat and fat. Keep putting it in the water for 5 or so minutes to keep the skull warm and the meat moistwhile picking the meat. It will take a few rounds of picking and reheating to get all meat off the skull. The hardest part will be removing the brain... get all of it out or it will stink!!!! After all meat is picked of let it dry overnight then apply 30 or 40 volume peroxideand developer( you can getthesein a beauty supply store ) with a small paint brush. apply evenly and let dry overnight. Next day rinse well. It should look very white. It can be bleached again if the desired color was not reached. Good luck With it, if you take your time and be meticulous it will come out beautiful. But the key to a good job is boil slow on low rolling boil do not over cook or teeth will loosen and fall out. add soap and baking soda and pick until it is TOTALY CLEAN. I have done many skulls this way and they all look great!

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

Soak it in a bucket wth peroxide or bleach for a few days then boil it nad bleach it should turn out great, be careful to not submerge the antlers or they will bleach too

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

I would not use bleach as it is to harsh and will actually break down the calcium in the skull and the skull will become very brittle. I know from experience!

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

there are so many ways to do this..............................lol i dont know which one to use

RE: cleaning deer skull?
 

A good source for borax that you may already have is roach powder. Just read the label and make sure the active ingredient is borax, or boric acid. As already said, borax is about as close to harmless to birds and animals as you cans get. It is deadly to insects, fungus and plants.

Like I said, just read the label to make sure the roach powder is borax based (most is) and does not have other active ingredients. It will keep the skull good after it is cleaned. Add it to the last water and soap if you are boiling or a solution of it and water can be sptized on to the damp skull when you are done.

Bob