Secret to painless skull boiling?

[Redbeard]

I have done quite a few skulls in my day and just finshed two more. Every time I do it I think, "How do they get all that clingy little cartilage stuff out of the nooks and crannies without spending forever picking at it." If my buddy Andy and his bugs were closer I know how it would get done but no such luck. Does anybody have a slick method to prepare european heads?

[bullwidgeon]

Clothes hanger, wire brush, 12 pack of Budweiser Heavy and about 5 hours in the afternoon with nothing else to do. The only good news about deer is that elk are about 100 times more trouble. I did two deer this weekend with my buddy and it was about a jillion times easier than the bull I still haven't all the way finished from Sept...

 

Bret M.

[Tines]

No doubt you'll poke, pull and prod little stuff. Are you using Borax?

[Redbeard]

That's pretty much my technique Bullw. Minus the Bud anyhow. I've been doing a couple hours each evening after work. I tried to do my wife's elk a couple of years ago but never finished. It is dried up now but still ugly.

 

Tines, I haven't tried borax tell me more.

 

Beetles are the best but they need care and it is kinda stinky for awhile. Plus you don't want them getting loose anywhere near your mounted heads!

[CouesWhitetail]

Redbeard,

 

I use something called SalSoda. It makes the cartilage practically melt off. You add it to the boiling/simmering water.

 

I got the cleaning method from Taxidermy.net forums. Check it out and you can get expert advice from professional taxidermists there.

 

I use a dental scraper to get stuff in nasal cavities that is loose but not out yet after boiling.

 

I do more simmering in SalSoda now and less picking and scraping than I used to. But it still takes a long time to get it done.

 

The other method is to just put the skull in a bucket of water and leave it for several months. You occassionally empty some of the water out and add clean water, but don't remove it all so you keep the bacteria to clean the skull. That method works very well. No picking or scraping or cracking of teeth. But it takes forever, so you have to be patient. I have a javelina I am still soaking that was killed back in Feb. It's clean now, but I have added a degreaser to get the grease off the bone. This is definitely an easy method, but not good if you are in a hurry.

 

Amanda

[Redman]

Here is a link for Javellina.

 

http://www.javelinahunter.com/how_to_clean...elina_skull.htm

 

Or you could order the bugs to eat the flesh for you.

 

Redman

[PSEHunter]

Every one that I have ever done has been buried for about 6 months. Pull it out of the ground and it looks great. Spary it with a hose and your done. If you have grass find a corner you do not mind diggin up and bury the head (not antlers). Cover the antlers to keep the sun damage away and you should be good.

[nmtaxi]

Before simmering skulls, I soak them in a bucket of water with Dawn detergent for about a week. It helps to take some of the grease out of the tissue before simmering, and also helps loosen up the tissue in the nasal cavity, too. I soak for a week, simmer in Salsoda for 30 to 45 min. (15 minute intervals, and pick off tissue in between) , and spend about a half hour cleaning it up a the end.

[Tines]

Borax is used as a Laudry Booster. It breaks down protiens, from what I understand. It's worked excellent for me. I put a cup or 2 in the pot when I boil the skull out. I don't really "boil" it either, it's more of a simmer. Everything just falls off. I'm waiting for a laundry commercial that states something like this, "..... if you think this skull is clean, check out this shirt!"

[Redbeard]

I've heard of using borax. Sounds like a winner. Where do you buy it?

[Tines]

It's hit or miss with grocery stores. Some don't carry it at all. I've found that Fry's always carries it on Ina and Thornydale in Tucson. I know I've seen it in other grocery stores also. Good luck and let us know how it turns out

[Rembrant]

Sal soda and/or borax.

AND THEN HIT IT WITH A POWER WASHER!!

No kidding.

Mike

[triton]

What everyone has said works good. Salsoda is a trade name for soda ash. Borax is carried at Fry's in the laudry detergent isle. It comes in a green box and is Mule train Borax. The other thing that you need to be careful of is simmering too long. If you take the skull and put in a sealed trash bag for a few days (to let it start to rot), before simmering it, it will clean off easier. The problem is you will have to simmer it outside on a campstove or other heat source and your neighbors won't be happy with you. But the meat and tissue starts to really break gown and you get a good head start. When cooking it, pull it out every 10-15 minutes and scrape as much meat and tissue off as possible each time. Get the bottom jaw off the skull as soon as possible. The more you "cook" it, the more you also damage the bone itself. If you cook it too long, the snout (where it is connected to the rest of the skull), will break off. Also like stated on another post, simmer it, boiling it hard damages it. I also use Salsoda or "soda ash". It helps alot. good luck

[DEERSLAM]

All very good advise.

I started on my mule deer skull last week and boiled it in plain water. I boiled it to long and some of the bone around the nose is getting loose. Right now the skull has been on the roof, I was in NM for a week huntin. Think I will try simmering it in borax for shorter periods till it is clean.

[Whitehntr]

Alright guys I will let you in on my secret. Go to your local grocery store, almost all stores have it. It comes ina yellow box and is about 10 inches tall. It is made by Arm and Hammer. It's called washing soda. It is a detergent booster as well. The box cost about 3.00. Use about a cup and let the water "roll" and not necessarily boil. If the water is too hot and boiling the meat cooks and tends to stick to the skull. Do this and the meat and brains will turn into a jelly like substance. There is a little ball of hollow like bone located near the ear canal. Take a flat screwdriver and pry it off. This allow the brains and other meat to come off a little easier. Spray it off with a hose and use a wire brush. Buy some Hydrogen Peroxide from the drug store or the same grocery store ( about .99 a bottle). Any meat that might be left in those little cracks will be eaten by the peroxide. Don't use bleach. It continues to eat at the skull causing it to flake for the years to come. The peroxide washes off with water and will leave the skull in great shape for the coming years. Hope this helps. I worked at a taxidermy shop for the last 5 years and this is how we do it and return it to the customer. We never have any complaints. We can roll through a couple deer heads and elk heads in a day. good luck