Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Skull maceration

Just how they are....

I didn't whiten the tusks but yours look good like that Greg. I guess I could always hit them with peroxide later.

I mean....holes to get the gunk out?

No holes are drilled. Soaked in 90 degree water, meat falls off. Then a series of dawn dish soap soaks at 90 and the grease comes out of the bones. Then whitening. Easy yet raunchy lol.

Got the porcupine skull done. Interesting one to skin out lol. Pretty cool looking teeth on these guys. Thanks to my buddy for providing the dead head.

Looks great. Thanks for sharing.

a 'before' pic.....

I have one in the freezer. Hope it turns out that well.

Wonder if a busted freezer will keep the smell low enough the neighbors don't burn me out...?

It wasn’t as bad as I expected. Did a deer that took about 6-7 weeks.

Pointer, You've got a javelina head in freezer? At this point, I'd wait for June and warm weather. Take a 5 gallon depot bucket, paint it black to absorb heat, fill it up with water and put the lid on it. Unless you have a really big yard, I'd find someplace that you could put it with a big rock on it and leave it for 9 days or so. Buy the cheapest window screen you can find at Home Depot($12 one I found recently there), a good pair of gloves and get upwind of bucket when you pour it out. You'll want to look closely to locate all the teeth.

The javelina have a very bitter ammonia like smell when rotting. Took the barn about 8 weeks to recover from that one. They are really cool and worth the effort though. I'd vote wait for warm weather though and get it outside someplace. Good luck! Don't pour out the liquidified meat anywhere your dog can get to it.

Yep, a javelina and a couple of pronghorn heads in the freezer that I'd like to get cleaned up. Thanks for the info on the window screen. Thinking I'll just wait for warmer weather, which for around here isn't too far away. The smell should help with social distancing...

Finished my son's public land pronghorn. Rot took 6 days. New degreasing method took 2 days. Then whitened and glued on the sheaths. Had really good prongs.

Very nice. I love the color contrast. What is your new degreasing method?

Got a tank heater that goes on outside of a 5 gallon bucket. Put half a cup of dawn in there and turn heat to 150. Goes way faster than the old method with 85 degree water. Been testing it on a few things and seems to be yielding very good results.

Nice Kurt, I was just thinking about this thread the other day, got a couple soaking now

Which tank heater you guys recommend??

Got 3 small buck skulls the kids have killed I need to do before Christmas? Youth deer coming up fast so I better get on it before they put more heads in freezer that need done

I had always boiled them but am tired of the time involved with that. Nobody local does it anymore. So guess I’m gonna give this a go

I'd buy this one and turn it to 100 degrees to macerate, any above 100 and you kill bacteria. Then when cleaned of all rotten flesh, I'd wash bucket out good, pour in dawn soap, turn heat to 150 and degrease for a couple of days.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OYEABGQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'd put this heater on the very bottom of a home depot bucket which is what I do. If you read through the thread, its going to smell like hell for 3 days. I am now swapping water at 3 days to cut odor down. Don't pour it out anywhere a dog could get it or you'll be doing a lot of baths.

Elk just clean up so nice. This one sat in a rot cooler for 4 days, using rubber gloves pulled the large chunks of eyes etc off. Then back in clean water for 4 days. Took it out today, hit it with hose and it is completely spotless. Going in degreaser soak here with 2 tank heaters. Degrease and then out in sun with peroxide. All bones completely intact.

I gave up and pressure washed the moose (the one in front). It came out ok, obviously lost a lot of the fine bones.

Still need to degrease and bleach and then find somewhere to put it, but at least it isn't sitting out in the weather anymore.

Moose antler configuration is a big problem. For moose I'd recommend beetles as the tank size would be like a small swimming pool. I tried as you know with the cooler and just couldn't get the water to hold around my inletting. Those 2 look great though!