Boiling Skulls

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I have a nice Boar head and a nine point I would like to European mount.I have heard it was pretty easy do-it-yourself kind of job. I was just needing the particulars of it.
Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Justin

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You want info on the mount work or the boiling,jbrad?
Assuming the boiling. I've posted this several times on other forums but anyway...boiling works fine, does a good job, makes a mess and smells horrible.
I've posted about leaving the skulls in a 5 gallon bucket of water for a month or so and just ignoring it. Put a lid on it to contain the smell. The meat will rot off and leave a nice clean job.
Boiling it would be faster if your in a hurry, just be sure to boil it long enough to cause the meat to literaly fall off. If it doesn't... anything left on the skull will draw bugs and produce an ungodly odor in time.
Whichever method you choose to use, the skull needs to be soaked in 40% or 50% peroxide, available in most drug stores, to whiten it, and kill off any bacteria. Normal hydrogen peroxide is only 3 or 4% and will not work. DO NOT use bleach in place of the peroxide. Too many people make this mistake and then wonder why the skulls flake. Bleach also eats the bone of the skull and gives it a porous appearance like a sponge.
The skulls we do for customers are all soaked in water.. and then peroxide...and sprayed wih a sealer to finish them off.

~River Runner~
 
Everybody was new at something, at one time or another, jbrad. Don't worry about. I didn't learn my trade over night either.
No, you can't really boil it too long.
The few times I do use the boiling technique, I like to tie a wire to the skull and pull it out by the wire once in a while to check it. What your checking for is to see how the meat is seperating from the bone. The jaw lines seem to be the toughest, they will leave a thin trace or stain where the meat was if not boiled long enough. Leave them in long enough and this will disappear also.
Yes, boiling will take care of the brain also, but it is a good idea to pull the skull out once in a while and pour the brain from the skull. If you boil it long enough you will be able to pour everything out that's inside the brain cavity. Pouring it out once in a while gets the loosened stuff out of the way, exposing more, and it shortens the boiling time a bit.
It's a good idea also to try and remove as much meat as possible before boiling. It just does a whole lot better job the less meat there is to remove. Removing the eyes ahead of time helps quite a bit also. You can skin it and throw it right in if you want, but removing some of this stuff sure helps out a lot.
Also...keep an eye on the teeth. As the gum line is boiled away the teeth will become loose and want to fall out. They will need to be glued in later, so try not to throw any out with the water. And watch them as you pull the skull from time to time to pour out the brain cavity. If there loose, take them out and set them aside, making a mental note of where they will go back.
As far as sealing them, we use the same spray on clear sealer that we spray fish mounts with as we finish them to seal them.
Plasti-Cote makes a crystal clear spray sealer that would work fine also. I've had people ask me if they can spray it with Polyurethane. I've never done it and I DO know that some poly's will turn yellow in time, and some will come right out of the can with a yellow tinge to it. All I can say as far as that goes is, if your going to try a Poly spray, test it on something white first.

~River Runner~

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[This message has been edited by River Runner (edited 04-18-2001).]
 
You should be able to find the Plasti-Cote in any hobby shop. I'd even try a good hardware store. I've even seen it at Walmart in the spray paint section.
Once you get to looking around you'll find there's quite a few brands of clear sealers on the market that you can choose from.

Let us know how it goes.

~River Runner~
 
O ok, I see just any clear sealer will do but Plasti-cote is you personal pick.Thanks for all the info,I really appericiate it.I'll let you know how it turns out.Might not be this weekend though.I have a wallpaper emergency my girlfriend says I have to get taken care of.And a yard to mow and......................Don't you just hate spring?

Later,
Justin

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Also ,assuming the boiling turns out right, how do you attach the head to the mount board,you want to hang it on.
I also have a turkey fan I was thinking of doing are the kits like you can get at Bass Pro any good or should I just take it in to have done?
I figure while your answering I'll ask.

Thanks,
Justin

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You can either use a clear epoxy, the two part stuff works best. Your going to want something good and strong.
Or...I drill tiny holes on the under side of the skull and screw in small eye screws. Then drill a couple small holes in the plaque . Run a wire through the eye screws in the skull and then through the plaque, center the skull on the plaque and tie the wires tight on the back of the plaque. You never see them because thier under the skull and thier tied behind the plaque.

~River Runner~
 
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