# DIY Euro mount question...



## nycredneck (Nov 9, 2007)

I don't have access to a power washer or beetles, I made a heating bucket with a 1800W element and the water gets very hot without it boiling. So I cooked it for a couple hours this past weekend but still hard to get meat off and ran out of time. It's been soaking cold all week in bucket with dawn soap, my question is what can I use to clean the whitetail skull instead of power washer? I may wind up just burying it like usual but this is my biggest buck and a 10pt to boot, I wanted to try and do it right.
Bill


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## jthomp (Aug 12, 2008)

i wouldn't use a power washer unless you want the nasal area to get all broken up. you want to be careful with the bones in the nose. They can be very fragile, especially on younger deer. I would recommend boiling it. You could put a big pot right on the stove top if you don't mind the smell in your house. It really isn't that bad if you get all the hair/skin caped off. You are going to have to keep watching it and just periodically take it out of the boiling water and pick at the meat. Make sure you get all of the brains out. After you get that done I would soak it for several hours in a bleach/water mixture. I would also consider adding soda ash to the boiling water to help with the preservation. good luck.


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## Hower08 (Sep 20, 2007)

Just leave it in that water for about a day or 2 it will come clean if its as hot as your talking


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## kande6563 (Jul 26, 2010)

Boiling the skull too long will weaken it. Purchase a bag of Sal Soda from Mc Kenzies Taxidermy and follow directions, The meat and any cartilage will come off easy. The brains should have been removed before boiling.


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## dstets (May 5, 2015)

After boiling a few and swearing I would never do it again, I am gladly paying a taxidermist $100 to do one for me. Best $100 I've spent!!


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## dbowhunter (Jul 16, 2006)

dstets said:


> After boiling a few and swearing I would never do it again, I am gladly paying a taxidermist $100 to do one for me. Best $100 I've spent!!


The $100 is fine if you are only going to do one skull a year, but if you have several, it will add up!!!lol Here's a picture of my basement


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## billk63 (Oct 13, 2010)

Had mine done by Authentic Taxidermy in Parma, OH.

He said to never used bleach. It basically soaks in and destroys bone, even after rinsing.

Check out his website if you want to see some cool stuff done amazingly well.


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## Outlaw-8765 (May 7, 2008)

Thanks for the tip!


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## jrandres (Mar 5, 2010)

I paid a taxidermist to do mine, best $125 I ever spent. I was beyond happy with the final product.


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## BowHuntMA (Jan 4, 2016)

Peroxide Paste is the way to go as far as whitening!


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## jmdelipper (Jun 19, 2015)

Keep the skull in water that is +20C (that's about 70F) for a couple weeks or so. If you can use ditch water or something that has bacteria built up in it already this is even better. The bacteria rots the flesh off of the skull without damaging the bone like boiling will. You will have to spray or rinse off the flesh turned goo with a hose/pressure washer. 

The instructions below are some that my brother gave me and it gets great results!


Once the flesh/tissue is all removed and the skull is otherwise clean, it's time to whiten it:

Clean the water bin: scrub off any black goo, and sanitize it with bleach to kill the germs

Fill it with warm water and bleach (enough to sanitize)
Submerge the skull for 2-3 minutes, just enough to kill any germs; rinse the bleach water off the skull with clean water

Fill the bin again with warm water
Add a good amount of dish soap to the water
Submerge the skull for a day or two; the soap will help draw out any fat/oils in the bone. Otherwise they will cause the bone to yellow. You may want to give the skull a quick scrub with a dish scrubber just to help loosen any surface grease
Dump the dirty water out

Repeat steps 3-7 for a second round

Once the skull seems to be mostly fat/grease/oil free, you can proceed to the next steps:
Whitening the skull:

Buy a couple boxes of baking powder and some hydrogen peroxide
Wrap the antlers with plastic wrap, especially around the base of the antlers close to the skull (elastic bands may help keep it tight)

Mix some baking powder and peroxide together to form a moist, almost runny paste
Brush the paste mixture all over the skull - on top, underneath, up the nasal canal - anywhere you'll be able to see. But DO NOT get any on the antlers; the peroxide will turn them white.
Take a few pieces of plastic wrap and wrap it all around the skull. You're basically wanting to prevent the peroxide paste from drying out. The peroxide will whiten the skull without damaging it like bleach does.

Leave this moist paste on the skull for a day or two
Remove the plastic wrap, wash off the paste, and you should be done!
If it looks yellow or something like that, you may need to submerge the skull in soapy water again and try another coat of peroxide paste


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## nycredneck (Nov 9, 2007)

I got some 40 volume peroxide creme and will put that on to see results.


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## FearNot (Dec 22, 2003)

The 40% peroxide works very well


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## Baltimorebowman (Jan 29, 2016)

just like the satisfaction of doing them myself


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## Baltimorebowman (Jan 29, 2016)

. Borax or soda ash makes Ted difference, but the pressure washer is the key


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