No

 

I'd advise it, but technically....no.

I'd just bring it to Brad and get it done right!

 

I'd advise it, but technically....no.

I'd just bring it to Brad and get it done right!

I'm trying the bury method on one just to see how it works ..not important enough to take to Brad.. now my wife's is another story so Brad has it

 

Easiest way to do it is leave the hyde on and get some clunky water and get a big met and soak the head up to the antlers just don't let the antlers soak in water and give it a few months by keeping it in an area that doesn't freeze and the stuff basically scrapes right off and is stinky but looks good as boiling imo

 

That's called cold water maceration and is the absolute best way to preserve bone and what the museums use. The best way to go about it is to remove the hide and as much flesh as possible, especially the tongue and such. Eyeballs helpful to remove also. Then you need a source of bacterially active water. You can use tap water and just wait, but it will take longer. Using pond/swamp/ditch water works best. Buy a cheap fish tank heater from Petco or whatever. The cleaner way is to make kind of a double boiler system with a plastic Rubbermaid tub inside of a cooler or another Rubbermaid tub. The heater goes in the bottom water source, the head goes inside the inner tub of water. This keeps your heater and cooler cleaner. But you can just toss the heater in the cooler with the head and water and let it rip. Bacterial activity peaks around 85 degrees, and is exponentially faster than 70 degrees. You want to fix things so the actual antlers aren't in the water or they will discolor and turn dark where they are submerged. It's gonna stink, BAD. Animals will mess with it if you let em. After two weeks, drain off half the water into a bucket, pull the skull out and toss all the junk in the bottom. The lower jaw may have detached so save it if you want it. Teeth may be another concern, especially if you left it for a little too long. Usually the process is only about half way complete at this point. The water you saved is now your inoculate for round two. Rinse the skull and pull off and easy meat, put it back in the cooler, add the water you saved, and add fresh water(rain water, pond water, non chlorinated) to replace the half you poured off and bring the level back to the base of the antlers. Let it ride another two weeks. Take it out and spray it off. Use a brush to remove any remaining meat. If it needs more time, give it another week. Everything should come off easily. You may need a wire hook to clean the brain cavity out. You use a screwdriver to pop out the ear bones. Give it a good soak in regular peroxide for a day or two. Again not soaking the antler bases at all. You can use a paper towel over the top of the skull the keep it soaked with peroxide. Add a plaque and hang it up.

 

easier to just take it to Brad

 

It's only fair to compare how easy it was for you to make the money you gotta take him, along with the head. It was a long winded post, but it boils down to plugging in a heater, filling up some water, skinning the head out, and dropping it in. Basically hose it off and hang it on the wall.

 

Boil that thing! I ain't patient enough to bury one

 

Camo ninjer is right!! Cold water maceration is the best way. Ive done it with hog and deer skulls and they always turn out great!! It does smell horrible so keep it away from the house. But in the end it will look great and it’s pretty easy to do

 

Nope, but you do want to make sure the antlers aren't in the dirt as they can discolor, also cover the horns with a rubbermaid bucket with a weight on it (or similar) so critters don't get in and chew on the bone.
Springtime, pull it up out of the ground and rinse off the dirt/mud with a hose, only thing left should be skull, antlers, and maybe a little bit of hair in bits, that should just wipe right off. I've done 3 this way, good results each time (and I'd probably take a mega toad to a taxi as well, these are not worthy of a mount to me).

Edit: There's no smells with this method BTW

 

really Spring? I thought I read on here 6-8 months so I was thinking June (ish)

 

Yes

 

I waited till summer on one and put it in the pond hide and all. Checked on it about ten days later and it was picked clean and it sits out front in the flower bed.

 

#boilbuck

 

my guy uses the beetles....the skull is perfect with every paper thin nasal bone in place...he charges $115.00...it's as close to perfect when he finishes as i could wish.
i wouldn't walk to the garage to grab a shovel for what my guy charges...and i don't have a job.

 

Thats a good deal.

 

Brad does an excellent job. I have one if his hanging above my desk right now. Just too far of drive.

 

I was surprised how easy this was to do myself. Granted, skinning the head was not fun but it wasn't hard. Finally took the chance on the 10 point I got this year. I used my wife's canning pot to simmer the skull and hit it with a low power pressure washer every 30 minutes until all the organic bits were off. Needle nose pliers and a long screwdriver took care of the tough spots. Took about 3 hours after soaking overnight in water with dawn dish soap. I'd do it again.

 

I was surprised how easy this was to do myself. Granted, skinning the head was not fun but it wasn't hard. Finally took the chance on the 10 point I got this year. I used my wife's canning pot to simmer the skull and hit it with a low power pressure washer every 30 minutes until all the organic bits were off. Needle nose pliers and a long screwdriver took care of the tough spots. Took about 3 hours after soaking overnight in water with dawn dish soap. I'd do it again.

View attachment 187935

fancy shootn rig ya got there

 

Did this using the boil method for my father in law a couple years ago

 

Did this using the boil method for my father in law a couple years ago View attachment 187949

Very cool, Pastor.

 

put it in a pond and keep the antlers out of the water. In a month it will be picked clean. Done lots this way. It wont have a white skull but it will be clean with zero effort.

 

I would recommend getting potting or top soil. I’ve done it a few times, and if you have clay based soil like many of us do, it’s almost impossible to not break much of the nasal bones getting it out because the clay becomes quasi solid.

Better soil should stay more loose.

 

The pond, bucket, or dirt are all bacteria action. Maybe some small fish in the pond. Warming things up somehow helps a lot but isn’t necessary. You can zip tie the antlers to a stick to keep em out of the water, stick the head in a 5 gal bucket and be good in a few weeks if the temps are right. Just stinks. I’ve done it in my garage. Takes a little bit to get the funk out, but it goes away. If it was sealed somehow, it wouldn’t be nearly as bad. Any early season kills when it still gets warm in the daytime, it’s the way to go. Super easy for crits without horns. Doing my bear right now. Any predator skulls are super easy. Don’t have to skin it or anything, but it speeds and cleans things up a lot if you do. Beaver skulls are cool too

 

he is around kc....lawson actually....just north of lawson, mo

give him a shout...608-436-6397 Shane Mussey

great work.

 

If you have a power washer and a fish cooker, use those. It'll be done in a few hours. Otherwise I'd go with the emaciation in water technique. I've heard that keeping the water warm will speed up the process by quite a bit.

 

I just toss them in one of the ponds . Last one is green from algae. It was quite the dink . It was only in the water 11 months. Yeah that was a little long.