Customer wants Euro mount off a deer he found in the woods

Submitted by Ryan on 3/27/06 at 12:49 PM. ( ) 67.1.100.24

The hair/skin is caked on around the antlers. I'm wondering if this is something I shouldn't soak for around a month? When I do Euro mounts I boil them fresh, and I'm guessing this dry skin isn't going to boil off very well. Anyone else done any deer like this with caked on skin?

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simmer it

This response submitted by michael p on 3/27/06 at 12:54 PM. ( ) 12.179.226.95

with baking soda and dawn in the water.


It takes a while

This response submitted by Crusty on 3/27/06 at 1:38 PM. ( ) 209.165.183.15

I did a mountain goat like that. What a pain...


No problem

This response submitted by Andy on 3/27/06 at 1:47 PM. ( pse141@yahoo.com ) 206.230.106.209

Simmer that skull in water adding a cup of sodium chloride to every gallon of water! It will turn that stuff into jelly! You can buy it fro alot of different taxidermy supply compaines!

Good luck


sodium chloride

This response submitted by Ryan on 3/27/06 at 1:56 PM. ( ) 67.1.100.107

is that the same as sal soda?


Try a pressure washer...

This response submitted by derek on 3/27/06 at 4:21 PM. ( ) 66.14.61.50

I recently did a deer skull I found with a pressure washer. I soaked it in a bucket of water for a couple of hours to soften the tissues and then blasted it with the pressure washer. Came out clean.


Yep and the pressurre washer can also

This response submitted by Ryan on 3/27/06 at 6:36 PM. ( ) 67.1.100.177

blow everything out of nostril area that you want to stay in. I wasn't very happy about taking your same advice from someone else one time.


Other ways

This response submitted by Aaron Honeycutt on 3/27/06 at 11:09 PM. ( mhoneyATmindspringDOTcom ) 207.69.0.61

Ryan, Everybody has their way but I never boil a skull-boiling can damage a skull quickly. Check in the archives under "cleaning skull", just click on the orange search button and you will find other less aggressive methods. Enjoy, Aaron H.


Ryan. you might try this...

This response submitted by joeym on 3/28/06 at 12:38 AM. ( joeym@ra.msstate.edu ) 72.147.207.88

Submerge that skull in water for at least a week. Then cut a short Y incision behind antlers so skin will come off in the simmer. Then simmer in water with sal soda & dawn. Everything will fall off it almost as soon as it warms up. I do several like this annually.


sodium chloride

This response submitted by cyclone on 3/28/06 at 8:47 AM. ( ) 129.43.43.200

is nothing more than good old table salt. Use salt and some baking soda aka sodium bicarbonate...


Be careful!

This response submitted by mrdux on 3/28/06 at 9:04 AM. ( mrdux@refugemail.com ) 68.217.188.119

I don't know what state your shop is in but here in KY a "found dead" deer must be checked by a CO and a disposal tag attached to it. I get several calls about euros for such situations and have to turn some of the work down because the customer dosn't want to get the CO involved. Not worth putting yourself at risk by having an untagged head around.


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