Deer season is in full swing, and if you’re trying to decide what to do with the buck you’ve wrapped your tag around, we’ve got several great options to consider if you’re leaning towards a skull mount. The European skull mount is more popular than ever these days, thanks to its classy look and savings on cost.
But how do you clean a deer skull in this process?
Read on for a couple ways to make it happen as you prepare your trophy buck for the wall.
Boil & Pressure Wash
The most common method of cleaning a deer skull is the boil and pressure wash tactic. It’s fairly easy, and you’ll likely already have all you need to get started somewhere in the house or garage. The process can be messy, but the end product is satisfying.
What You Need to Get Started
- A Large Pot and Burner
- Salon Grade Peroxide
- Knife / Tools for Scraping Meat
- Plastic Wrap
- Pressure Washer
Watch the video below from Whitebone Creations to see how it’s done.
Tips For DIY Skull Boiling Method
- Remove the hide as quickly as possible. The job becomes much more difficult after the head/hide as been sitting for several days/weeks.
- Remember the basic steps – boil, pressure wash, re-boil, soak in peroxide, then set in the sun to dry.
- Don’t boil too long. The skull will fall apart.
- Don’t boil your skull inside the house. The smell is awful, and your family will never forgive you.
- Don’t forget to remove the brain.
- Remove all hidden flesh and meat to prevent odor in the days ahead.
The Buck Boiler
The Buck Boiler from On Time Feeders is a great all-in-one tool for boiling your deer skulls. It’s essentially a bucket with a heating element inside that helps you safely and cleanly remove the flesh and meat from your skull.
You simply drop your skull into the bucket and plug it in to start the process. It’s super simple and does a great job of prepping your skull for the wall in 8 hours or less.
Price $129.99
Check out the Buck Boiler process in the video below…
Beetles
One of the easiest means of cleaning up a deer skull is to let beetles do the dirty work for you. Flesh eating beetles make this a hands-off method of getting your skull cleaned up. You simply drop your skull into the bin with the beetles, and let them go to work.
Now, obviously most people don’t have their own batch of beetles for cleaning skulls. But, if you have a buddy that has invested in beetles, or have someone that offers the beetle cleaning service through their taxidermy operation, this is a nice option. Prices are typically pretty comparable between paying a beetle cleaning service for your skull and having someone clean it by hand.
Watch the video below for a look at how quickly beetles can clean a skull.
Want to Buy Your Own Beetles?
If you’re thinking you’d like to have your own beetle colony to start a skull mount side hustle of your own, options ae available for that, too. The crew at Skull Taxidermy can get you set up with your own beetle starter kit.
The Dermestid Beetle, sometimes referred to as a carpet or skin beetle, belongs to the family Dermestidae. This beetle species feeds on dry-moist animal material, ensuring that decaying and dead flesh is recycled.
There are many species of Dermestid beetles that are native to North America. Domestic colonization of wild species has proven to be difficult at best. The species most easily colonized is Dermestes maculatus.
DERMESTID BEETLE STARTER KIT
- An assortment of 300+ live adult beetles, larvae, and pupae. We guarantee a minimum of 50 adults which are necessary to begin new colonies.
- Plenty of bedding material that beetles prefer to lay their eggs in.
- Two pages of instructions on how to construct and maintain your colony.
$55.00 + $12.50 shipping/handling
Ready for the Wall
When you get your skull cleaned up and ready for the wall, make the job quick and easy with the Skull Hooker skull hanger. The Skull Hooker is a sleek and streamlined approach to hanging small to mid-sized European trophies.
It’s completely customizable both up and down and left and right to provide the perfect upright and natural presentation of your trophy.
Price $32.99
Few trophy displays are as classy and timeless as a skull mount. They are often more welcomed in the home than a shoulder mount with eyes staring at your wife and kids on a daily basis. They are also much easier to clean than a shoulder mount. So be sure to give the options mentioned above a look as you prepare your deer skull mount for the wall this season.
