I have a 170nt class skull to bleach,problem is it was found last year before hunting season left in a barn with hide still on it,where the bone is exposed it is very dirty,.Can I soak it a couple of days to rehydrate hide then procide to boil it as I would a fresh skull or is there another method I am not aware of.your help would be greatly appreciated thanks.
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That works well for me just as you said. Even after a few days of rehydrating the hide is usually to hard to cut off. I just go ahead and simmer it with the hide on and keep cutting pieces of it off as it begins to soften up by simmering it (not boil). Sometimes i will not even soak it for a few days. You can start right away by hosing it off and begin simmering it as is.
Get some Arm & Hammer WASHING Soda at the grocery store and throw in a couple of cups, that will help a lot in speeding up the process. I get old skulls all the time and they're a bit harder than fresh ones, but usually come out just as well.
Wolfwoman
Thanks for the help will do.
I found a nice skull and rack last winter...it was stained beyond belief...I tried several of the standard ways to get it white, but I could not get the grease stains out of the skull/forehead....I decided since it wasn't working out for me, to go the other way and use a coat of early american wood stain. I paited it on heavy, let it sit for a minute and then used my compressor to blow off the extra stain. The effect is really nice and leaves a marbled type pattern. The area that was grease stained just comes out a little darker marbling. I now offer this as an alternative to the plain old white euro-mount and have had some very postive feedback. If you have an old skull around I suggest you try it and see for yourself.