Rack and Skull Mounting

[DropTine]

We found this beautiful rack and skull of a 10pt and are just wondering what the procedure is to mount it, I think you have to dip it in bleech or something lie that, not completly sure. BTW the rack scored roughly 132".

http://s219.photobucket.com/albums/cc19 ... ure117.jpg
http://s219.photobucket.com/albums/cc19 ... ure118.jpg

Thanks,

Matt

[mikej]

i would just paint the skull

[8up]

Go to a hair care supply store and get a gallon of "Volume 40" peroxide if you can its actually about 12% where the hydrogen peroxide from the drugstore is only about 3%. Find a container to put the skull in flat and then take a paper towel and repeatedly fold it so that you end up with a 3/4" wide strip. wrap this around under one antler then do the same for the other then fill up the container as much as you can without the liquid touch the antlers. Then spoon the liquid onto the paper towel letting it act as a wick to get the areas close to the antlers white. Check it once a day. How long it takes is different for each head condition and according to which peroxide you use.

I have one I put in peroxide today.

[LondonDave]

Riley did a couple of skulls last year by boiling them in bleach and water. It worked well but apparently the bleach weakens the bone. Doing the same in peroxide (the strong stuff) apparently works better.

Do it outside cause it's kinda stinky. If you can get one of those big galvanized steel wash tub and one of those propane burners it works really well.

That's a beauty skull btw.

Dave

[NativeHunter]

What you are looking to do is usually called a European mount where the skull is bleached and the antlers are natural. It looks like some sun/weather bleaching already occurred on the antlers so not sure how the finished product would look. I have done two in the past. I know you already have a bare skull but I am posting the instructions from scratch for your future reference. For this skull you can skip to the appropriate step.

A very fresh and warm head is best to work with because it skins easier. Cut the head off at the base of the skull and work at skinning the head. Cut the ears off and as much meat as possible. You can try cutting the eyes out or leave in for now. Wrap the antlers completely in tin foil. Place in roaster pan and fill with water just to the base of the antlers. Add some dishwasher soap or baking soda to the water to cut the grease. Simmer the pot over low heat - do not boil. I highly suggest doing this outdoors due to the odor. This may take 4-6 or more hours. Find something to do but keep checking to add water. Every hour or so, pull the skull out and cut away meat, gristle, eyes, whatever comes off easy. The lower jaw will eventually separate. At some point you can take a long metal rod (screwdriver) and start poking into the base of the skull to break up brain matter. Keep simmering and cutting until you just can't get any more off. Be careful of the very end of the nose bone which is flexible bone attached to the rest by cartilage. The cartilage may dissolve and the endpiece falls off into the pot. If you keep an eye on it you can probably pull it off when loose and set aside. At some point all meat will be off but there will be some cartilage and loose fragments up in the skull. A pair of hemostats or needle nose pliers helps to remove these last pieces. The next step is powerwashing. If you don't have one or can't borrow one, you may be able to take the skull to a self-carwash, but be careful as these sprayers are very powerful. A normal gardenhose is not really sufficient. Remove the tinfoil, put the skull on the ground, hold with your foot, and spray away, especially up inside the skull. If that nosepiece did not already come off, it will doing this so be careful. The next step is to whiten the skull. DO NOT USE BLEACH. It softens the bones. Stuff the inside of the skull and nose area with cotton balls. Wrap the entire skull in a soft cloth (T-shirt works good), Keep the cloth just under the antlers. Place the wrapped skull in the roaster pan and fill the pan with drugstore quality hydrogen peroxide. Do not fill over the antlers. Place the loose nosepiece in the pan. Let sit for 24 hours. Remove from roaster pan, remove cloth and cotton balls. Elmer's glue works fine to reattach the nose piece. There you go. Here is a pic of the second one I did using these procedures. The wood mount platform came from Van Dyke's Taxidermy, http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com. Search for "European Wall Mount". It cost about $30. Add the roaster pan and peroxide I bought just for this and total cost less than $40.

[Sandman]

Great looking find~!

[kmtpr]

Indeed a great find. Will make a great Euro mount.

[ninepointer]

Great post Native Hunter! Although I have't done a full European mount, I've done some antler mounts for my friends and I, using virtually the same procedure as you do. Thanks for the tip about the dish soap, always something new to learn!