The way I clean all my skulls and customer skulls is by Maceration. Plain water with a fish tank heater and the meat basiclly just melts right off the bone. The nose cartlige will slide right out. Don't force it or it will break off and you have to get it out the hard way.

I degreese with either Dawn Dish soap or Acetone.

I whiten with 27% peroxide that I get from a Pool Supply Store. Don't let this stuff get on your skin it will burn you.

I seal all my skulls with Krylon Matte finnish. I will have to check the number but I think it is 1311. Don't quote me on the # though. I have not had a skull turn yellow on me yet using it.

Normally when I skull turns yellow it is due to the clear coat or grease left in the skull.

To me boiling and simmering is an absolute NO NO. It breaks down the delicate bone structures in the skull and can set grease into the bone. Making it harder and take longer to degrease.

Using Bleach to whiten a skull can be devistating. It will cause bone to break down over time.

I saw a few on here refer to 40% peroxide. I believe you are refering to the 40 Volume Hair Developer sold at beauty supply places. The 40 does not mean it is 40% peroxide. I believe it is actually only 12% - 12.5% peroxide.

Here is the buck I shot this year. I shot it on the 23 of october. It was an 8-point with a 11.5" inside spread. I shot it with my new hoyt trykon, and its the nicest buck Ive shot to date. At school, we have buckpool between my friends and I won with it.

I wanted to do a european mount since last year, but I never got a buck, so I was eager to mount this one. Im thrilled with the way it turned out. I still need to clear-coat the skull, but other then that its pretty much done, I may use a woodburner and write 2008 along the bottom of the base board. I made it in woodshop out of a neat piece of walnut. It'll be a great way to remmeber my senior year.

tell me what you think!
Carl

Weatherby,thats a fine mount.I haven't ever seen a european mount placed on an angled board like that.Very nice.I'll be keepin my eyes open for a nice piece of walnut or old barn board.

Welcome Michele to Predator Masters. Have not seen you much on Taxi.net lately.
Hope all is well!

RD Martin

And he lived retarded ever after! Bet that hurt,pretty neat find though!

I am a taxidermist as well, I use the whitening products from Mckenzie taxidermy, for thirty bucks you get enough to do a dozen skulls. The Brightner and 40% peroxide is mixed into a paste, and paint it on to the skull, let dry for a day or so and brush off with a tooth brush. Works great and sunlight is not needed but if you want. It worked over night!

I've done many skulls but I never can get them as creamy white as you guys do. What do you paint them with?

I agree with Michelle that boiling and bleaching is a great way to destroy a skull. I've been using dermestid beetles for a couple of years now and in my opinion it is the only way to ensure a totally clean and undamaged skull. If my beetles are hungry enough, I don't even have to skin the head!

I use 40 Volume Peroxide for whitening, and it's always worked well, but based on a friend's recommendation I think I'm gonna try some Baquicil Oxidizer on my next skull.

Here's a few of mine:

I've never done a skull before so is there a bad smell when boiling the skull???

IME there is a bad smell whenever you _______ a skull (fill in the method of choice)

Out of all the methods I've tried, I appreciate my bugs the most. Well really, finding a massive rack already clean and sun bleached would be my #1 choice, but as far as being able to have what I want when I want, it's the beetles.

So many skulls so little time...

If you want to know the lazy way to clean skulls, I can say I've done one or 5 hundred!!

Click for a slideshow...

I have a fox and coyote skull that I have just hung up out in the woods in the spring and got them when they were cleaned up. I still have to clean them up a little, but for the most part they are clean inside and out. The fox was better than the coyote. I'll have to get some peroxide to finish them up.

The only problem with doing them that way is the critters can get to them, and the birds. With small skulls holes can be poked in them and you risk losing the nasal bones.

Thought I saw someone on here that used beetles. I was looking to buy some and try that...anyone know who sell them..thanks

http://www.taxidermy.net/forum

Try there to buy some.