tried cleaning my first skullz today with the kit that WASCO sells.i followed the directions to a t. the bear skull i wasnt able to clean the nasal cavity fully and the brain is way worse.the stuff in those tiny holes im finding wont loosen up and alot of the cartilage at the back of skull and around the jaw.the coyote was much better.a little tuff stuff here and there i cant get but i did get 99 percent of the brain cavity though and the nasal.almost like i should have cooked the bear longer.maybe both.it said not to go over 30 minutes though.they were badly freezer burnt if it makes a difference?can i boil these again or is there another method i should try?i worked on them for 3 1/2 hours strait.if there all like this i mite not do it again.thanks
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I am sorry you had a hard time at it but don't feel bad. I always shake my head when I see those kits, they make it sound like it is a breeze. That it is not! I've been doing hundreds of skulls for a few years now and it always takes me more than the 3 and 1/2 hours yourspent on it. I always like it when one of my customers had tried doing it once before themselves, and say never again. Guess thats why they pay someone like me to do it for them. It takes alot of patience. The nasal area you are having trouble with. I take a needle nose pliers and break out all the nasal turbinates. Then I take a garden hose and blast all the stuff up out of the nose. If the nasal turbinates are not take out there will always be some stuff left up there that you will not even see and can become a problem later with bugs etc. Don't give up, give it another try. It's all part of the learning process. I had to go through all those leaning experiences but it has made me better today at what i do. See ya and enjoy....Skullmount....Jeff
more than an hours hands-on time on each skull I clean, and that includes putting the teeth back in. I use the maceration method or I use maggots (outside in a bucket or bin). Either way mother nature cleans everything up for me, I rinse it off then peroxide it. If you'd like more info, email me!
Wolfie
We recently made a rot pit out of a garbage can with the bottom cut out. We are fortunate enough to have plenty of room so it don't stink up the joint. If you have enough room for this do it. Like Wolfman said; Mother nature takes care of the skull quite well and in fairly short order. Boiling the skulls is kind of a pain in the neck, however we do cook them for about a half hour in sodium carbonate (Sal Soda = Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda)after the bugs have taken care of the rest. It may just be my imagination but the peroxide seems to penetrate the bone better after it has been cooked. (Cooked not Boiled)
Use a hooked coat hanger to scramble the brain and shoot it out with water before you cook it. Seperate the jaw from the skull and clean it better also. Also I use almost double the amount of Soda than they say to use, it tends to break the stubborn stuff in all the little holes. Like I said in the other post, cook it don't boil it or the skull will get all chalky. I also change the water once.
Dermestids are the best, but not easy to raise. Send those skulls out to the reputable bug skulls cleaning shops. The companies that do skull cleaning only and have bugs, well lets just say there is a reason for that. Like I said bugs are not as easy either. I found out the hard way! LOL Sounded easy looked easy. I have used all of the other methods listed above too but I still think bugs are the best. Good Luck and don't ever believe what you see or read is just that "easy" because it won;t be. Good Luck to you. Dan Hudzik
So we put the skulls in a crab trap tie it to the dock and let the Fiddler crabs and snails do it. it takes 24 hr's. no charge , no mess!
Bugs are best, but not the only way to go, so if your going to boil, try using a high pressure washer to take the "work" out of cleaning skulls. As far as the nasal cavity of a bear. Good luck without bugs! You may consider just removing this all together and substituting this with a painted sponge. If you use a pressure washer on the clean-up of the skull, don't even bother scraping anything including the brain. Insert the jet as close as possible in the widest swath in the brain stem hole. this will turn the brains into cream.
thank you guys for the info.it will be very helpful.i think i have some patience so i will try it again.maybe a couple methods.it will be good learning experience.thanks again