How To Get Brains Out Of Deer Skull

Skull Hooker — From the field to the wall; you'll love bleaching and mounting your own trophy.

By Jason D. Mills and Art Myers

During hunting season, there are iii nifty days for every successful hunter: the solar day you go your tag, the day you lot fill your tag, and the day y'all hang your new trophy. Withal, shoulder mounts are expensive, costing anywhere from $400-500, and aren't necessarily suited for every deer. This DIY should take betwixt 1-3 hours of labor throughout the course of 1-2 days.

If you tin't brainstorm the cleaning and whitening process immediately, you lot'll want to store the head in a freezer – this will stop whatever staining. Take the head out of the freezer about 24-hours before starting the cleaning and whitening process to give the meat plenty of time to thaw.

You'll demand

A sharp knife
A loftier-pressure garden hose with adjustable nozzle
Outdoor propane cooker (with a regulator)
A large pot
Needle-nose pliers
Turkey baster with a bulb
Large container to place to skull in
Rubber gloves
Eye protection
Apron to wearable while washing
Canteen of 40 volume peroxide
Oxiclean
Borax (used in removing smaller, more than stubborn pieces of meat that's stuck to the skull)
(You likewise have the option of using our Skull Bleaching Kit

Pro-Tip: Never use bleach when whitening a skull as it could crusade serious, irreversible harm to your trophy

Fill up a big pot of water; information technology should be large enough to completely submerge the deer's skull

Pro-Tip: Don't become to much water covering the antlers because it may discolor them

Add one scoop of Oxiclean into the water, this will human activity as a degreaser

De-flesh the skull; you lot desire to clean off the caput equally best every bit possible, removing all excess meat

Pro-Tip: In one case the water has started to boil turn the burner down merely enough then that information technology does not overflow

Once you've cleaned the skull as best as you can, identify it into your pot of boiling water. Ensure the water covers all the meat on the back of the skull. The water should be about 1/2″ above the base of operations of the antlers.

Pro-Tip: Continue an eye on the skull through the whole boiling process to make certain information technology stays submerged. If not any meat on meridian will exist very difficult to remove after on

Exit the skull in the boiling water for about 30 minutes

Pro-Tip: Do non go antlers to hot. Virtually antlers will remainder on the edge of the pot, which tin scorch them

Pro-Tip: You'll know information technology's the perfect time to pull the head out of your boiling h2o when the flesh on the skull cap just begins to split

Remove skull and begin spraying information technology with a high-pressure garden hose .If the tissue can be easily removed you tin can get-go pulling it off with pliers. Once the skull starts to absurd down the tissue and fat volition commencement Harding up. If this happens place information technology back in the h2o and await half an hour before removing more than.

Pro-Tip: Anytime you lot will be handling the skull after it has been in the pot wearable gloves. Os can be very hot and holds estrus well

Be certain non to get to close to the nasal cavity, every bit loftier pressure level water tin can accident right through it.

Once all tissue is easily coming off you lot can remove the lower jaw bone. The lower jaw is typically easily removed by spreading the mouth open up as long as the tissue and mussel have had plenty of fourth dimension to soak.

Pro-Tip: Although at that place is some debate on whether or not to remove the nasal cartilage, it's most impossible to completely clean the skull with information technology in tact. That said, earlier beginning the washing process you lot will desire to use a pair of needle-nose pliers or forceps to remove the nasal cartilage.

After you've removed seventy-80% of the meat from the skull re-submerge it into your boiling water and leave it for another xx-30 minutes

Pro-Tip: On deer at that place will exist two nasal covers that will demand to come up off while humid and then you can clean all membrane from the nasal crenel. If whatever teeth or any other basic fall off during the cleaning process do not get worried. All pieces will demand to exist cleaned and can be glued back on later. Likewise a lot of times the lower jaw will divide in two half's which can exist glued back together if information technology is to be used with the finished skull.

Pro-Tip: Practise no rush the removal of the lower jaw. If information technology does not want to dislocate soak information technology longer.

One the jaw has been removed now it is fourth dimension to remove the encephalon matter. I prefer to have a piece of copper wire about 10 to 12 inches long and make a J claw on the terminate I volition be inserting into the skull. The J hook volition help grab on to brain mater and pull information technology out.

Pro-Tip: The Borax will aid in slow tissue removal. Sometimes the tissue is greasy and neither pliers nor your bare fingers tin catch information technology. Add a little Borax and yous will be able to catch correct on to information technology.

Wash off the remaining meat (including any meat you lot might have missed in the nasal cavities and encephalon)

Echo all processes until you lot are sure that all tissue has been removed. If it has, you lot now can dry all pieces off and wait near a day to glue any teeth or bones back on. Make sure that you lot accept removed all tissue from the skull. The terminal affair you volition want is to find out that you missed some after it has been hanging in the house.

Allow the skull to dry completely

Pro-Tip: Although you lot don't accept to, it's non a bad thought to look a full 24-hours

Put on your gloves and eye protection, you're about to outset working with the twoscore book peroxide – yous do not want to get this stuff on your peel. It will burn down yous. In fact, it's a good idea to keep your apron on besides every bit a long sleeve shirt, just in instance.

Set the skull into your plastic container

Pro-Tip: Shrink wrap the base of the antlers to protect them during the bleaching process. Silicone tape works well too; just avoid whatever record with adhesive

Cascade about ane/2 a cup of the xl book peroxide into your plastic cup

Draw the peroxide into the baster

Pro-Tip: Practise non get any of the peroxide onto the antlers, as it will turn them white as well

Using the baster, completely glaze the skull in peroxide

You can use every bit many as four applications, but you volition probably just need two

Pro-Tip: Utilize the baster to draw up the peroxide that drips into your plastic container and reuse the peroxide – this will save you some money

Allow time for the skull to completely dry

Pro-Tip: Putting your skull in the sun volition not merely help it dry out, it will also assistance in the bleaching process

To hang your European skull mountain

Skull Hooker's Little Hooker — Skull Hooker'south Little Hooker

Accept your Little Hooker out of its box

Pro-Tip: When it comes to European skull mounts, Skull Hooker's Big and Little Hookers are actually some of the best products out there. They're cheap, require no drilling into the skull, hang securely, have full adjustability, and are exceedingly piece of cake to install.

Locate a stud in the wall where you want to hang your new mount

Hang the plate vertically on the stud

Assemble the arm with the prong zipper

Put the arm onto the wall plate

Slide the resting arm into the dorsum main, natural opening in the skull (the spinal cord cavity)

Straighten or bending your new European wall mount to your liking