Rigor has to set in and go out before you cut it up. About 36 hours. I've been butchering my own deer meat for 39 years. Hanging only makes the meat more tender, if it's a bad tasting deer it will be a bad tasting deer no matter how long you hang it. I use two knifes when I gut my deer, I remove the sent glands from the legs and the balls with one knife and gut with the other. My grand Dad passed this down to my Dad and down to me. Get the hide off as soon as possible and wash down the meat and let dry, bag to keep blow flies off the meat. I've hung deer for 4 days when it was dropping into the 40's at night and 70's by day. Don't hang in the sun but under shade. If it's not dropping down at night find a cooler. I put mine in a cooler this year, just too hot at night.