How do you tell when all the grease is out of a bear skull?I take some out of the degreaser and they look great,Into the peroxide, then in three weeks they start getting a yellow tint to them again.Any ideas?Thanks RJD
Return to Beginners Category Menu
I degrease in white gas or lantern gas. I've tried super solvent and dawn, but by themselves, they just don't work on bear and pigs like gas does. When an animal is very greasy, I leave the skull in for a week, take it out and smear it with dawn and let it soak for a couple of days. Then I let it dry out for a few days and feel it. If it feels slippery or if water beads up on it, it is still greasy and I put it back in the gas again. Usually one round will work, but with bear and pigs I sometimes have to try it two or three times. If there are any spots that appear dark, there is probably still grease in it. When you soak it in the dawn/water, if white stuff floats on the top, it's grease. Hope this helps.
I've just been using the dawn.I'll try the white gas.I'm mainly having problems with a large bear,the small ones came out ok.I'll try the white gas.
Make sure you put it in an airtight container. I use a 5 gallon bucket with a screw on lid. I put a brick in the bottom to keep the skull off the bottom so that anything that sinks and collects will not rest against the skull. After a few skulls, the mixture starts to look cloudy. It's time to replace it.
Ammonia mixed with water seems to work good to.I had a large hog skull that I forgot to degrease and it had a big area turning yellow.I left it in the solution for about 3 weeks and it got rid of all of it.
I've been using a product called Super Solvent on my bear and marine mammal skulls. It takes several weeks and a couple changes of water but I haven't had any of my skulls leak grease, and the oldest is about 18 months old now.
A couple of other tricks I learned from other posts on this site: Drilling tiny holes in hidden spots on your skull really helps get the grease out of some of the thicker parts, such as where the upper and lower manibles articulate, or at the base of the skull near the bullae. These get covered up nicely when everything is put back together. Also, I've been sealing my skulls with a 4:1 mixture of water and Elmer's glue. Apply to a completely dry skull. The first several coats sink right in, and several more coats will start to build up a layer. Really seems to help lock any residual grease in as well as keep the skull from yellowing.