Do I need to degrease my deer skull?

[K. Mogensen]

Hopefully this is on topic enough.

So I buried my deer skull that I shot a season ago, and dug it up a year later. All of the flesh was gone, and it looked to be in good shape. I soaked it in straight peroxide for about a week and a half, then covered in a peroxide/borax paste. It's whitened a bit, but still has almost a gray look.

I figured by burying it a year, I wouldn't have to degrease, but should I?

Unfortunately I think it's probably just mineral stained from the ground, but wondered if anyone would know.

Thanks.

[Pat B]

Sounds like stains from being buried. You should be able to feel any grease on it. You can spray paint it white.

[calgarychef]

Skulls cleaned like this har a natural look and probably won't ever get gleaming white like other methods.  A little krylon paint will fix that if you want.  If you're painting it you can also metalise it.  Paint it black first, then use brass or copper paint over the black and use it lightly so the black showed  through in the higher areas.  THen clear coat it..  That's what the "pros" do and charge big bucks for.

[K. Mogensen]

Cool. I'm off for some spray paint...

[Brad Arnett]

I've never left one out to sit and just boil and pick them, but I do degrease all mine by boiling in dawn dish soap a few times.

I'm not sure what peroxide you are using but get some 40% peroxide for whitening. My wife gets that from one of her friends who is a hair dresser. I cover with the peroxide, its like a paste, then wrap in saran wrap and let it sit.

[don kauss]

Brad is right; Dawn dish soap in the water when you boil...no whitening necessary, unless you need the skull PURE white...I personally think that the whitened skulls look too white...they almost look like plastic when they're whitened so much...

[nineworlds9]

Like Brad said,

Go to the beauty supply, get some Volume 30 creme developer, brush it on like others have said, within a few hours your skull should be white as snow.  I have a friend who does it for folks all the time.

[KAZ]

Stain is from burying, yellowing and greasy feel over time is deep grease weeping out. If you want to degrease & aren't boiling etc... Is to use 50/50 clear ammonia from the cleaning section at the store & distilled water. Warm like with an aquarium heater is even better. Takes a few weeks, refill or replace when real cloudy, and when it stays clear you're done. Disinfects, degreases, and cleans well... Then if you want to whiten, the developers from beauty supply stores works well. 20,30,40.... 40 is the higher strength. They use it to highlight hair. Heat  applied with that product increases its effectiveness as well. I'm not sure you'll get the ground stain out but this degrease process works out well after boiling, maceration, or beetles. Then you whiten if desired. If you're okay with paint, that is another route. Typically if there's grease in the skull it will eventually weep through.

[hickstick]

AFA painting them....check out this stuff:

 http://bonecalligraphy.tumblr.com/

Andrew is the son of a friend and does some amazing work....but I post this more for some ideas that us DIY-ers can try that they might not think to do.

[J-dog]

Agree with KAZ - if there is grease it is gonna bloom out eventually.

Cant give no better advice about degreasing than what has been given. I don't like boiling though -- never have. Was told once that it "sets" the grease into the bone making degreasing more difficult??? truth or not, no clue just shyd away from boiling ever since. 6 to one half dozen the other. I like to rot em in water, then degrease -- best yet is beetles if your lucky enough to know someone who has the beetles. Lost my contact for that route!


Best of luck -

[hickstick]

there are several videos on youtube of folks cleaning them with a pressure washer.   think thats the method I'm going to try next time.

[damascusdave]

As much as people like skulls that are squeaky clean looking or painted I like the idea of a skull that is more on the naturally aged side...that is what I have done with my bear skull and it is now ready for some clear coat to seal it a bit...in an age where we spend a lot of time and money trying to make things look like something they are not there is something to be said for naturally aged

DDave

[damascusdave]

I am not sure where they came from or exactly what they were but when I simply left my skull in my shed some rather large beetles managed to find it and do a rather good job of cleaning it...for some final cleaning I simply left it in an ant hill in my yard for a couple of months...amazing the solutions mother nature can come up with if we let her

DDave

[shedhunta]

Worth the money in my opinion to have it professionally cleaned by dermestid beetles.  This also keeps the antler color in great shape which is hard to maintain by burying.  Degreasing after that is a must for a long lasting white skull.  Ammonia and lantern fuel are 2 of the methods I have read about for degreasing.  One bug guy I know definetly uses ammonia.  I know because I smelled it the entire ride home!!!

[hunt it]

Paint with white shellac

[KAZ]

I'm with J-Dog. Maceration (controlled rot in water) , then degrease thoroughly... Whiten if you like but I've gone to natural which is pretty nice with this method. I'd do beetles if I could but I don't want to mess with the up keep. Rather deal with the short term smell of maceration. Trust me, it stinks and so does the 50/50 clear ammonia & distilled water degrease..........

[Stone Knife]

I took mine to the car wash , used soap and then rinse it came out perfect.

[Cootling]

I clean my skulls by soaking them in a bucket of water for an extended period.  When the tissue decays, it washes away, leaving a clean, white skull that is not unnaturally white.  The process is also easy on teeth and nasal turbinals.  The only disadvantage is that you have to be able to put up with the smell during the process.

[Stone Knife]

This is how I did mine

  Skull cleaning