How to clean this.. Anyone??

[galadriel]

Yesterday while out hunting morels I found this dandy 8pt deer skull. Something on my bucket list of trail gifts that I have been hoping to discover on my woods ventures.  It still has the cleaning bugs on it.  I brought it home, placed it in a Rubbermaid container and covered it w dirt. The lid is on though It's not airtight as I don't want the bugs to die, just want them to continue what they're doing until I figure out how to expedite the cleaning process. I would like to hang this on my wall. I don't want to cut the antlers off, just clean it up and sterilize it. Does anyone have any experience with this? I'm attempting to post a pic so you can see what I'm working with..

Ps this was found while on public land just sitting under a tree -which is very rare.   I will post the pic in a second message titled galadriels deer skull. Tried attaching the jpg image with the text last night and lost everything. -- gah!

[galadriel]

[hunterjrg]

Nice find. I generally just boil the skull. Keep the antlers out of the water though.

[Doug_K]

Nice find. If you have access to a propane turkey fryer and a large pot, boil the head for a hour or two and you can clean it right up. Add some peroxide  if you want it white, just be careful as it will also bleach the base of the antlers if they're in the water.

After it's boiled I usually use a pressure washer to speed up the cleaning process, but i'm sure with a needle nose pliers and a knife you could do it.

[ScottV_7]

^ Good advice. I've done several. The only things I would add is that you should simmer rather than boil, and get creme developer 40 (strongest peroxide you can get without a license) from a beauty supply store. Brush it on with an acid brush or other small flat paint brush and leave in the sun. Might take 2 or 3 applications. Ones that have been sitting like that take a bit more peroxide.

Good luck and can't wait to see the results!

[ScottV_7]

Also, teeth may fall out, so don't dump them out with the water. It's pretty easy to find where they went and glue them back in.

[MR BILL SHORTY]

What Scott said  

[beyondmyken]

As above.  Remember, do not use REALl BLEACH.  It will dissolve the skull and make it come apart.   Gently simmer the skull in hot water, light boil only.   It will stink badly so do this somewhere where no one will be upset with the smell.   You will have to pick off some tissue.  Paint the peroxide carefully when dry.   use painters tape on the antlers.

[galadriel]

So there are a few Q's I have about the boiling process.  
1. Will boiling the skull remove the remaining hair? I'm hoping so.
2. I read on a taxidermist site that adding 1 Tbsp of bleach will aid in sterilizing the skull. Is this true or does boiling water pretty much take care of that? I know that bleach is very hard on bones and will make them fragile.
3 biggest concern is making sure there is no fat in the bones.. or interior of the skull.. There was what looked like 'grey matter goo' oozing from the back of the skull before I wrapped it in plastic bags last night... Hope no one is eating while reading this..  Mmmmm chip dip.. Ew.

Creme peroxide from a beauty supply store sounds like a great idea thanks for that advice.
 
I don't have a turkey fryer or any pot large enough.  But maybe the skull can be inserted into a pot and the antlers can rest on the rim while the skull is in the water.. Would that work? Or do I need to find a pot to place the whole thing in?. That might be tricky and expensive
Not sure there is an inexpensive stock pot wide enough to be found at local thrift stores but I do know of an Asian grocery mart that sells large 30gal steel pots.. However they are likely to be expensive

I don't have a pressure washer..but a hose with a pressure nozzle may work?

[galadriel]

Just read your part about the bleach.. Ok, no bleach. And yes I will absolutely be doing this outside.. My hunting friend has a campstove I can borrow.

[Doug_K]

Yeah, you just need a pot big enough to cover the skull with water. To help degrease you can also add a little dish soap to the water, but it will foam up.

The boiling will make it so the remaining skin/hair either falls right off the skull, or you can pull it off.

You will have to pull some of the meat/tissue/brains out/off of the skull, this is what I use the pressure washer for mainly. The pressure nozzle should work, but it might chip away the bone if it's boiled too hard.

Again, the boiling is something best done outdoors. It stinks.

I do know of some folks that don't want to bother with all that, and just find a big anthill to bury it in for a year, but you will likely get damage from mice & such.

[ScottV_7]

I got a cheap pot from Walmart and it was big enough. Since the nasal bones on your skull are gone, finding the right sized pot should not be a problem. Mine is just your average "spaghetti pot". I do add some Dawn to help degrease the skull, but I've never worried about sterilizing. After you use the peroxide and rinse it off, and are happy with the results, let the skull dry thoroughly and spray it with a few light coats of matte finish clear polyurethane like Deft.

Nature has done most of the work for you. After simmering an hour or two, the material that is left should come off easily. I don't have a pressure washer so I take mine to the car wash after the vast majority of the tissue is gone. There are always little bits that are hard to get to, but the car wash will take care of that. I recommend going when it isn't busy.   :D

[galadriel]

Hah! I thought of using the DIY car wash..

[V I Archer]

If you are going to use your wife's stock pot, make sure you are finished before she gets home!  

Getting to the inside goodies may require manual manipulation.  I use a short length of coat hanger wire to scramble the brain cavity and clear it out.  After I feel i have gotten all I can from boiling, I coat/dust and pack any small crevices with borax, dry any unseen bits out.

As for whitening, I tear strips from plain white cotton tees. Wrap the skull egypitian mummy style.  I have only ever used regular 3%  peroxide and had great results.  Keep the cotton wrapping soaked and set in the sun.  I set the skull in a disposable foil tray and re-hydrate the skull twice a day.  A week or so later, unwrap and see if your happy or keep soaking.

[ChuckC]

when you boil it, keep the flames low so they do not go up the side of the pot and scorch the antlers.  Don't ask me how I know this...
ChuckC

[calgarychef]

You can add "soda ash" to the boiling water, it breakes down the flesh and it comes off a lot easier.  Get rid of the brains first or all that fat will make the bones greasy.  The fat is what eventually cause the bone to break down, ive seen some fantastic African heads that didn't last because of this.

[LC]

If you don't have a pot designated strictly for boiling skulls you can buy a cheap aluminum foil turkey roasting pan that will work with some aluminum foil placed over the top to help keep in the heat and steam.

However several years ago I bought one of those blue old fashioned looking cooking pots with a lid. It has boiled tons of skulls and was relatively cheap even bought new.

As noted above never no bleach at anytime. You can speed up the process by soaking the skull nose down in a bucket of water with a dose of salt in it. When remaining flesh is soft carefully skin cut away without gouging the skull. Also can snip open the underside of the brain cavity and remove brains out that hole. Then as posts above simmer in boiling water clean, repeat. When you have it cleaned up and while still damp apply liberal amount of crème 40% Hydrogen Peroxide bought from Sallies Beauty supplies. 24 hrs later rinse off and let dry in sunshine. DO NOT GET HP on antlers.

[V I Archer]

a little (2 or 3 drops)liquid dish soap in the water will help with the grease factor.

[galadriel]

I've thought about that.. Keeping flame low so as not to  scorch the antlers (not a nice smell to add to something that already is going to smell bad).

So far the cheapest stock pot I saw was at Walmart for $59.99. Nope.
No way am I paying that much for something that will be banned from cooking food after its intended use. As for using my wife's stock pot, if I had a wife and I used her pot, that would guarantee divorce papers and or a psych exam.

Stock pot has to be cheaper than $20.  I did take measurements on the antlers and the gross width is 14". I don't need to place the whole skull in the pot so the width I need is 11".

[galadriel]

Hah! Looked harder at Walmart and found a granite-ware 22qt pot for $22. Awesome.