Euro mounts DIY

[HyperMOA]

Has anybody tried doing their own euro mounts? Any advice for somebody who may try it themselves. Do you make a final boil in actual bleached water? Will the horns lose their colour in a euro mount? Or will the colour remain? Do they laquer them or spray them with some kind of clear-coat the prevent the skull from aging or yellowing? I'm not sure of the process and don't know if this is something I should take on or not. Also, how do they usually screw or fasten them to a placard? Any advice would be very much appreciated.

[buck-8835]

There is a dvd you can buy called "taxidermy made simple." they are very informative. I have one for how to do bear skulls and it was very helpful. my skull from last spring turned out really nice.

[Fishnafterwork]

just youtube it.....I did my first kill buck a few months back and it turned out great......boil in water.....peel and scape off flesh.....degrease....let dry for 2 weeks....and bleach with peroxide.....the peroxide is what whitens the skull so you just do the skull and not the antlers and antlers will remain the same:)....cheers good luck....after all that scraping and picking meat u are gonna wish u had gone the worms route...haha...jk its not that badas far as mounting it....i'm still trying to figure that part out haha



I thought about lacquering it as well and im sure someone else is more knowledgeable but from what I've seen the lacquer starts to chip and peel after time so i think i'm gonna leave mine bare and if it does start to dicolour in the future i can always re-peroxide it

[HyperMOA]

I thought about lacquering it as well and im sure someone else is more knowledgeable but from what I've seen the lacquer starts to chip and peel after time so i think i'm gonna leave mine bare and if it does start to dicolour in the future i can always re-peroxide it

I am more worried about the skull drying out and deteriorating actually.

[kiren]

I tried it once and it didnt turn out bad,, but really,,, for 200 bucks,, I wouldnt tolerate the crap I had to go through,, it wasnt worth it.
half cooked brain all over me, terrible smell, :scared0018:

[Fishnafterwork]

200$..... Uh ya forget it I would drop that to have spared myself.... Well even the death look from my wife about the stink in the house would b worth the 200...:)... I had a boiling hot eyeball pop on me.... Yuck

[rottie]

If you clean it up as best you can,get the brains and eyes out before you simmer it.The process isnt all that bad,and the results can be very nice,why pay someone to do what you can do yourself ?
Shoot me a pm if you would like to chat on the phone,I have done a few,it takes some care and time but its worth it. Keep the antlers out of the simmering water or they will bleach out their color. Use borax in the water to help remove unwanted material.

[ramriver]

do lots every year. one thing i will add here. when simmering, add dawn dish soap and a cup or two of WASHING SODA (sodium carbonate,not bicarbinate). works wonders on pulling flesh off. get the hide, bottom jaw and as much flesh off before you cook, wire brush will come in handy for scraping, as will forceps/hemo stabs and something to work the brain out. guys say to get 40 vol. peroxide, dont need it. get 5 or 6 drug stor bottles and put it in with clean water. LOW heat, will activate the peroxide. make sure not to get the antlers. if you do, dark brown shoe polish to recolor them. dont need to dry it out for weeks, let it air dry for a hour or two and then whiten away. make sure you get as much off as you can before this. dont use bleach it will flake the boneafter a few yrs, hope this helps.

[npauls]

What are you guys using to simmer/boil your euro mounts in?

and where can I get whatever is used to boil the skull.

I have a whitetail I would like to do up but can't find a pot big enough to use.

[SimonB]

I got a 60 qts tub at bass pro shop to simmer. Go to AAA taxidermy supply and buy Soda Ash to simmer and add lot of dish soap to degrease. Also, buy some 35% peroxide and magnesium carbonate powder to mix in to make it thicker. I use a gas burner outside and works well. Be prapared, it is a lot of work to do this. I did 5 last season(2 whitey, 2 mulies and 1 elk) and it is well worth the investment if you plan on making more than one. For the whitening, DO NOT USE BLEACH !! it deteriorates the bones... What i do is make the mixture of peroxide and magnesium carbonate, paint it all over the skull then wrap the skull in paper towel and continue painting the paper towel on till its really soaked. then carefully wrap the whole thing in a black garbage bag and tape it up. make sure you tape under the antler burrs and to wipe off anything that may have touched the antlers. Let it sit in the bag for 24 hours then take out and rinse well and let dry in the sun for 1 or 2 days. If not satisfied do it again...it hasnt happened to me yet

ALWAYS WEAR PROTECTIVE GLASSES AND GLOVES....that peroxide is really strong stuff.

PM me for more detailed info.

Simon

[SimonB]

There is one of the white tails i did. For mounting, its a company called Skull hooker and this is the little hooker model.

[mountainhunter]

I have done 3 WT skulls simmering them, they turned out not bad. Last year I purchased a buck boiler from Bass pro, it did a really good job. Way less time spent scrapping and picking at the skull.

[flyguyd]

What are you guys using to simmer/boil your euro mounts in?

and where can I get whatever is used to boil the skull.

I have a whitetail I would like to do up but can't find a pot big enough to use.

I just use an old canner

Like the other guys said take as much off the skull as u can.Including the brain. Put some washing soda in the water and simmer for a while, preferably in the garage or the missus wont be happy:thinking-006: Most everything will just gel off.

Dont worry about too much scraping . Take your waders and skull to the car wash .For a dollar you'll hav a spic and span skull. But you will get wet...lol

Enjoy

[maddog49]

I used the buck boiler worked awesome I skinned the head out then boiled it with in 24h of killing the deer. When I boiled the skull the garage smelled like roast beef cooking not an unpleasant smell at all I had a buddy wait a few months and boil his skull with the hair on and that smelled awful. Good luck hope your skull turns out for you.

[HyperMOA]

Lots of great info on here from you guys. I really appreciate your input. I'm just still not sure if I am actually going Euro-mount or not. I'll probably contact a few of you if I do decide to go this route though. Thanks again.

[Andrzej]

Half of the barrel, simmer, pressure washer and bleaching done.

http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r299/Andrzej77/Hunting%202012/photo3_zps208ff3c6.jpg
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r299/Andrzej77/Hunting%202012/photo_zps98854694.jpg
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r299/Andrzej77/Hunting%202012/795F2499-28AD-4D4B-805A-268EA20E79ED-1444-0000027D3929C6EC.jpg

Not on the wall yet but working on it.