Boiling out heads

[Orka Akinse]

Fella's

 

Had a buddy offer to boil out my roe heads and being in a relationship where I have not introduced her to such delicacies I took him up on his offer.

 

Now heres the problem, he called today saying they are done but one is pink, blood heomaridged into the skull aparently and the other a decent head, he says still stinks.................

 

Now I dont have a sense of smell but never have I had one that honks after boiling out.

 

Shall I accept graciously and boil it out again myself, or what do you guys do? Have you ever suffered with this?

 

Help fella's

[devilishdave]

I boil out with some bicarb od soda to get all the grease out of the bone. Scrub with scrubbing brush as soon as it comes out water and that tends to get rid of the worst of any flesh left. Leave to dry then put high concentration hydrogen peroxide on to the skull with cotton wool whilst wearing rubber gloves. leave over night then rinse under cold water then leave to dry again.

 

Before

 

 

 

After

 

 

Dave

[Orka Akinse]

Thanks dave

 

I have boiled out loads of skulls and never had one still honking as he puts it.

 

I think I'll boil it out again and pressure wash it and re peroxide it.

 

Dave you wouldn't mind pm' ing me where you get your peroxide would ya?

 

Cheers OA

[Guest martin]

Hi Orka,I have just done one for a friend that I took out for a stalk,and,this time I boiled it for 1 1/2 hrs and then took it out of the water,and,went over it with a pressure washer,inside the brain cavity as well.And,I must say it actually worked fantastically,the best I've ever done,I am now going to peroxide it.I got my peroxide from a local hairdressers(posh ladies one)it's 12% oxidant cream.Here's the skull after the jet wash..................

[1967spud]

Hi Orka,I have just done one for a friend that I took out for a stalk,and,this time I boiled it for 1 1/2 hrs and then took it out of the water,and,went over it with a pressure washer,inside the brain cavity as well.And,I must say it actually worked fantastically,the best I've ever done,I am now going to peroxide it.I got my peroxide from a local hairdressers(posh ladies one)it's 12% oxidant cream.Here's the skull after the jet wash..................

 

any chance you could the explain the peroxide part of the operation pleasde

 

thanks mark

[JC275]

A few years ago I wrote an artical on trophy preparation but never bothered to tidy it up or add photos and get it published. I will try to paste it into this reply. JC.

 

Trophy preparation.

 

There is a big difference between leaving a deer head behind the barn for a few months then going and looking for it with a strimmer so that you can nail it to a wall (if the foxes haven’t beaten you to it!) and, preparing a trophy that you can be proud of, is hygienic and acceptable to bring into the house and shows the respect due to what was once a beautiful living creature. Here I will attempt to describe the methods and equipment that I use for the task.

 

1. First, shoot your deer…… From a meat hygiene point of view it best practice to leave the head (and feet) on the animal until you get back to the larder and only do a field gralloch. Once you have got the carcass back and completed the dressing and inspection, it is important to take care of the head. Having removed it from the neck at the joint of the Atlas vertebra and the base of the skull, you must either freeze it or place it in a container of clean water immediately. At this stage it is a good idea to scrub off any blood that may have got on the antlers during the field gralloch.

 

2. As soon as possible, remove the head from the water, or defrost, and, starting from the mouth, skin the head. This is best done outside and I have found that a Workmate, with the jaws placed a few inches apart, provides a good bench. (Photo) Great care must be taken to avoid accidentally cutting your hands and the use of latex gloves is recommended throughout the process. The lower jaw is removed by inserting the knife on either side of the vertical parts of the jaw bone, probing until you see the eye move then forcing the jaw backwards and free taking care not to cut yourself on the sharp incisor teeth. The lower jaw should be examined for age and tooth wear and possibly retained.

 

3. At this stage, unless a full skull is required, a decision must be made as to what type of cut is needed. A short nose cut, through the eye sockets, leaving only a small amount of bone below the antlers, is the simplest but only really looks good if the antlers are small, for example on a yearling. A long nose cut, which takes a line below the eyes, through the base of the brain cavity and just removes the upper teeth but leaves the hoop like bones which support the hard palate at the end of the nose, is probably the most attractive and displays the trophy at its best. If the head is to be measured at a later date it is best to prepare it as a full skull in order to maximise the CIC score. With the larger species of deer it is important to take into account any back tines that may prevent the antlers being mounted on the wall depending on the angle of the cut. Special jigs and saws are available, especially for roe bucks, which clamp into the eye sockets and help to achieve a consistent cut. I have found that, with practice, a panel saw is the best tool for cutting through the skull especially if the antlers are held firmly in the Workmate and the bone is fresh or wet. (Photo) Needless to say, measure twice - cut once, and it is a very good idea to practice on a few cull bucks before attempting your once in a lifetime gold medal or, worse still, someone else’s! At this stage, take a moment to examine the two cut halves of the skull, and the lower jaw, and you will see how little area the brain actually occupies within the deer’s head and therefore why it is a very bad idea to attempt head shots at wild deer however good a shot you may think you are. One option is to get the head to this stage then refreeze until a number are accumulated before boiling but, a word of warning, if they are not all your own, you must label them very well to avoid confusion later.

 

4. If only one or two roe trophies are being prepared it is quite acceptable to boil them on the kitchen stove as long as they are fresh and care is taken not to allow them to boil over. (Yes, you’re all correct - I’m not married!) If several are to be prepared or the trophies are from the larger deer it is probably best to do boil them outside, or in an outbuilding, on a camping stove or portable electric ring. For the professional stalker, a ’Burco’ type boiler may be a good investment. Car boot sales are a good source of large pots and it is a good idea to have a few of different sizes. Ideally the water must come up to the pedicles but not cover the coronets, having said this, as long as the skull is not boiled for an excessive amount of time, 20 or 30 minutes is usually long enough for roe, I have never had a problem with any colour being removed from the antlers even if they are well immersed. Again, jigs are available which clamp the antlers to the side of the pot or a short piece of mild steel fencing wire can be used. (Photo) Washing up liquid or washing powder can be added to the water to aid the cleaning process. With the larger species, very good results can be got by using a steam cleaner instead of boiling but care must be taken not to damage the bone with the high pressure jet and the colour will be removed from the antler if you allow the jet to touch it. Cold water pressure washers can also be effective if used after boiling. The longer you boil the trophy for, the easier it will be to clean later but, if too long, the bone will become soft and may separate at the joints between the various plates of bone that form the skull.

 

5. Once the boiling is complete, it is important not to let the bone dry. When removing the trophy from the water, check that it is all complete, especially if a long nose or full skull is being prepared, before the water is thrown away. If any small parts have become detached it is easy to glue them back on later. Any flesh, skin or hair must now be removed by scraping with a knife or using forceps or long nosed pliers. Under the coronets, inside the brain cavity and in the nose are key areas that must be cleared. (Photo) A light scrub with a brush and some washing up liquid will show up any small bits that are still attached. Rinse in cold clean water.

 

6. After rinsing, let the bone dry off a little but not completely then carefully wrap it in white toilet tissue, loosely stuffing the tissue into the eye sockets and brain cavity. The pedicles must be well wrapped but it is important not to let the tissue touch the base of the coronets. Cotton wool can be used instead of tissue. Next, take a square of tin foil, place the skull on it and turn up the edges to form a dish. You can just place the wrapped skull onto a tray or in an old ice cream tub but by using tin foil you keep any peroxide that drains down closer to the bone. I use neat 6% or 9% (20 or 30 vols) Hydrogen Peroxide Solution from a normal high street chemist, it is possible to get much stronger solutions from hair dressing suppliers but I have found the 6% to be adequate and, in fact, I have had perfectly good results from 3% when that is all that has been available. A 200ml bottle costs about 70p and is enough to do two or three roe. Under no circumstances should you use domestic bleach as it tends to stain the bone yellow. A quantity of Peroxide should be poured into a small container then transferred evenly to the tissue, ideally using a syringe, stop once the tissue is saturated. (Photo) Rubber gloves should definitely be used for this operation as the solution will burn your skin and great care must be taken to avoid getting any in your eyes. The skull should now be placed out of the way of wives, children and animals and stay in this state for 24 hours with a little more Peroxide being added to the tissue half way through. The tissue is easily scraped off into the bin with a knife and a final rinse in clean water completes the process. The trophy should be allowed to dry and will hold a nice matt white finish for many years as long as it is not handled too much or allowed to get too dusty.

 

7. There are many ways to fix the trophy to a shield or plaque, you can purchase special brackets or fix a piece of wood into the brain cavity them screw this to the shield. Some people fill the cavity with plaster of Paris but my preferred method is to discretely use a small white cable tie through the shield and through holes carefully drilled in the inside of the eye sockets, a small recess has to be made into the back of the shield to accommodate the locking part of the cable tie. (Photo) As a last resort, you can simply screw through from the front of the skull but it seems a shame to make a good job of all the preparation then cut corners at the final stage.

 

The best results will only be achieved if care is taken at each stage and the preparation is done straight away on a fresh head or at least one that was frozen immediately and prepared as soon as it was defrosted. Good Luck.

[nell]

Using a paint brush to apply the peroxide works well, very little or no mess...

NELL

[Orka Akinse]

Thanks Fellas

 

I have boiled out loads of heads and never had a problem

 

The first time my mate does it......... he reckons he's done loads too.......... he says it bloody honks after boiling out what the F*#k did he do I wonder....or not do!!!

 

I have never had this before and wondered what I could do about it its a bloody good head.

 

I reckon I will boil it out again and do it myself

[eldon]

Maybe he didn't fully clean the brain area.

 

I find the jet wash is best but watch out for blowbacks yes been there done that. Even had to clean the kitchen windows but gained some brownie points because she didn't see the state they were in

[MarinePMI]

Just an aside note...

 

You may want to check with the local University's entimology (sp?) dept.. They should be able to tell you where to get scarab beatles. Let the bugs do the work of cleaning the skull, and avoid making the bone brittle or soft from boiling. In the US, this is the preferred method used by taxidermists. JMTCW...