How to do a euro mount

[swampratt]

Power washer is a small electric ryobi that I use and it works well just keep off the teeth.
It does clean the sinus cavity and brain cavity very well

 

[AER244]

I originally buried my antelope head (hide on, horn sheaths off) on 9/2. I dug it up on 10/12 and it still had a considerable amount of hide and flesh still attached. I was doing my muzz buck skull anyway so I dug the antelope up again on 11/9. Much to my surprise, there was virtually no tissue/meat/hide left on it. But it was very stained, missing teeth and nose bones and most of the sutures are very loose. It feels somewhat fragile. I washed it, boiled it, washed it again and let it soak in a pretty stiff hydrogen peroxide solution overnight. It turned out better than I expected. I still think boiling while fresh produces better results though.

 

[Ready_fire_aim]

I originally buried my antelope head (hide on, horn sheaths off) on 9/2. I dug it up on 10/12 and it still had a considerable amount of hide and flesh still attached. I was doing my muzz buck skull anyway so I dug the antelope up again on 11/9. Much to my surprise, there was virtually no tissue/meat/hide left on it. But it was very stained, missing teeth and nose bones and most of the sutures are very loose. It feels somewhat fragile. I washed it, boiled it, washed it again and let it soak in a pretty stiff hydrogen peroxide solution overnight. It turned out better than I expected. I still think boiling while fresh produces better results though.View attachment 427529View attachment 427534View attachment 427535View attachment 427542View attachment 427545View attachment 427546

Great info! Your photos and report are much appreciated.

Does it stink much?

I’m curious… I’ve got skulls in the ground

 

[AER244]

Great info! Your photos and report are much appreciated.

Does it stink much?

I’m curious… I’ve got skulls in the ground

Thanks! The deer doesn’t stink at all, but he was fairly fresh. The very tips of the antelope horn cores (or whatever the bone beneath the horn is called) are a bit smelly, but it’s only about 1/2” of them that wouldn’t fit completely under the water/peroxide. To me, it’s not strong enough to be off-putting and I only notice it when the horns are off and it’s right in my face. In my experience, the beauty store 40 volume peroxide creme mixed at 1ish cup per gallon in water does a pretty good job of de-stinking/degreasing/whitening. I usually mix the peroxide and water, place the skull in the pot, bring the pot to boil and then turn off the heat and just let the head soak in the pot overnight- or longer if necessary. But be mindful of where that peroxide goes- it’ll bleach anything it touches, including your skin and the animals horns. I think I paid $14 for a gallon of the 40 volume creme at sally beauty supply a couple years ago. And like @swampratt, I use a power washer to clean the heads after my initial boil. It’s messy as hell, but it does get them real clean.

ETA: the antelope smelled pretty rough when it came out of the ground, but it wasn’t unbearable

 

[tynyphil]

My first attempt at this. Went well used strong peroxide and power washer

 

[AER244]

View attachment 428060View attachment 428061View attachment 428062View attachment 428063My first attempt at this. Went well used strong peroxide and power washer

That looks great! Really cool deer too!

 

[tynyphil]

That looks great! Really cool deer too!

mounted it to a board and it is hanging on my cabin's porch as a towel, hat, coat rack

 

[retrieverman]

I got my handgun buck done yesterday. I know I’m in the minority, but I prefer a more natural white than the bright white of the salon 40.

 

[retrieverman]

I finished this one yesterday for a friend of a friend.

 

[retrieverman]

Has anyone ever clean up a skull from a buck found dead?
I had been watching a buck a couple years ago that only had one eye, and he disappeared off my cameras during muzzleloader season. I ended up finding him dead while shed hunting the next spring. He’d obviously been dead a long time, because the skin was completely dry and cracked on his head. The stink was pretty much gone too.
I decided a couple days ago to try to clean up the skull, so I put it in a tub of water for a couple days for it to rehydrate. Skinning it out wasn’t horrible, but the some of the stink came back with the rehydration. I boiled and cleaned it a little while ago, and it hanging outside to dry now. I’ll take pictures tomorrow.
This buck scored 143, and after this experience, it would have to be considerably bigger buck before I would mess with another one.
Here’s one of the last pictures I have of him alive.