Do it your self European mount.

[PA BEN]

I drew a moose tag this year and can't at this time afford a head mount. I plane on tanning my cape for when I can afford it. But I would like to do my own European mount. Whats the best way to do the skull?

[coastalghost]

Youll probably get a variety of opinions on this one.  This is what works for me.

-Get as much of the meat, grisel, sinew as you can off the skull.
-Boil the skull.  Dont overboil as it will soften the bone.  My dad has an outdoor propane two burner stove with a large oversize pot for elk skulls.
-Use a pressure washer to remove all the excess meat, brain etc off the skull.  It really works good.
-Fill up a large pan of water. Take your skull and place it in a large enough bag that will come up a little ways past the base of the antlers. Using 3 parts hydrogen peroxide to 1 part isopropyl alcohol mixture fill the bag part way then place in the pan of water.  The water pressure on the bag will form the bag to the skull.  Make sure the antlers and skull are secure in the pan of water and top off the bag with the 3-1 mixture just to the base of the antlers.  This way you are not using a ton of mixture in a pan. You can reuse the mixture if you want.

You can almost see the skull getting whiter by the minute.  I will leave it in the mixture for several hours. Check on it from time to time. 

[rougheye]

Make sure the neighbors dog doesnt steal it while your boiling it        

[coastalghost]

Dood! Tell us the story!  Ever get it back?

[M_ray]

You might want to take a look at this, Good luck!

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,3776.0.html

[MuleySniper]

We take a 2 1/2" or a 3" hole saw and drill out the back behind the brain. It works great, the brain just pops out and it makes it WAY easier. You can also buy the taxidermy peroxide online. I just use a paintbrush and keep coating it with bleach until I get the look I want.
MS

[robb92]

I've also heard that blonde hair dye will work to whiten the skull. To clean the nasal passages use thin wire and shape a hook to the end of it.

I used my old turkey fryer pot and did it on the camp stove took 3 little green propane bottle to do my buck, I also added some Dawn dish soap with bleach, two cups of that helps break down all the grease, don't boil the water and just let it simmer and then every 15-20 minutes pull the head out and scrape the skull, if you loose any teeth thats fine you can strain the water when your done, to re-attach them use some super glue or epoxy to re-attach them. I used a fillet knife to get the brain out just stick in and wiggle it around to break it up and it pops out. 

[bucklucky]

When I used to "simmer" my skulls I didnt have too many fall out, usually only when I left them in too long. I would recomend to do the maceation (sp) method. Basiocaly rotting the meat off in water.Anyway you do it you should clean off as much meat as possible and stir the brains out, it make the job easier in the long run. I tried it and it stinks . Michelle must have a super strong gut. I will stick to beattles.

[bowsandhose]

  i just love the smell of rotting brains in the morning

[robb92]

The first time I did it I only lost 3 teeth, but before I tried to do it, I did a lot of research on it because I did not want to mess it up, for the first time it turned out really good, I did my uncles buck three weeks later and it turned out really really good. I used peroxide on both of them and put them in an old pan with enough peroxide in it to cover the whole skull and let it sit in the sun for 30 minutes and then pulled it out and let it air dry and then did it again, I did this three times until I thought it was white enough, then I let it sit inthe open air for 2 days and then I sprayed it with a clear coat to seal the pores in the skull.

[Michelle_Nelson]

When I used to "simmer" my skulls I didnt have too many fall out, usually only when I left them in too long. I would recomend to do the maceation (sp) method. Basiocaly rotting the meat off in water.Anyway you do it you should clean off as much meat as possible and stir the brains out, it make the job easier in the long run. I tried it and it stinks . Michelle must have a super strong gut. I will stick to beattles.

  Yeah, their isn't really a whole lot I've come accross that has turned my stomach. 

Just my  , but I think a Macerated skull comes out super nice and is one of the easiest cleaning methods on a skull.  I have done the Boiling, simmering, beetles, and Maceration. 

I say dunk that moose skull in a drum and let that sucker rot.  It will go alot quicker than you think.  Especially in the summer.  Believe it or not once you wash the skull with down the stink is gone.  Believe it or not this method doesn't stink as much as you think.