In my experience you can alter the color of the antlers. Last year or maybe the year before I had one I basically ruined because the heater didn't get the water hot enough and thus it took way longer to clean and the bases of my antlers turned almost black.
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Euro mount maceration thread
- Thread starter cville_bowhunter
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cville_bowhunter
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I sure hope you don't use that sous vide for anything else!
If you do it fresh, meat is meat...
Iron_llama
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No personal experience but a friend of mine did an antelope skull like that. Trash can full of water, set out in the Arizona sun, slosh it around every day and fresh water every week. De-flesh it as much as possible with a knife before putting it in the water. IIRC his biggest problem was keeping his dog away from the trash can.
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I’ve boiled many that stink, it can be done, it’s obviously more pleasant when they are fresh lmao!
cville_bowhunter
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3 week update: Not much change from a few days ago, which confirmed my decision to get another heating element. I set one at 80 and the other at 90, so I am hoping the 2nd one will help keep the water temp more constant and not make the single heater work so hard.
I can't tell if the smell has died down quite a bit or I'm just getting used to it...
I can't tell if the smell has died down quite a bit or I'm just getting used to it...
Couple years ago I found two bucks that died locked together fighting. One buck still had all the hide and hind quarters were ate. Other buck died first and was picked clean. I twisted heads off and cleaned rest of hide off skulls. Upon doing so I found a brow tine actually wore a hole or pierced a hole in top of skull. Wondered if that is how first buck died(instantly) or if other buck had worked so hard to get free when that buck was being eaten that he wore a hole in skull. Wasn’t like there was a a big bald area on head, I didn’t notice until after I cut his off...
Long story short I wanted to try and use maceration for a euro mount on those skulls. Bought a big tote to do it in and everything. Currently still hung on a branch in a pine tree....chalk... .
Cool thread.
Long story short I wanted to try and use maceration for a euro mount on those skulls. Bought a big tote to do it in and everything. Currently still hung on a branch in a pine tree....chalk... .
Cool thread.
Debating trying this with my next Euro. Is the smell like uber pungent death decay, or more ammonia-ey? I'm picturing more the latter based on a few accidental science experiments over the years. I live in the suburbs and prefer to be on fewer FBI watch lists if possible.
More death than ammonia but the more often you change the water, the less it smells apparently. But changing the water is the smelliest part of the process in my opinion, so it's somewhat of a robbing peter to pay Paul kinda situation.
cville_bowhunter
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I'm also lacking privacy, and as long as you have a closed container, it isn't overwhelming. I have been changing the water at night or early in the AM to be more discreet, and that seems to be working...no FBI surveillance vans yet, anyway
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I’m wanting to try this. Any updates?
I’ve noticed dramatic difference in what I’ll call “bone density” in fresh skulls that I cape within 24 hours of killing and boil, and those that I wait several days or weeks. I’m not convinced bacteria don’t work on the bone to some extent. Everything seems to stay together better despite extended simmering time. And the bone appears smoother and healthier looking. This is anecdotal and I have a tough time quantifying it.
I’ve also noticed a big difference in symmetrical, higher mass rack bucks, and wonky thin rack bucks. Which makes sense to me I guess. But something to consider before boiling time, burying time, temperatures, etc. the healthy ones turn out great no matter what, skull bone looks really “healthy”. Others look translucent and like they’re falling apart to an extent. Nasal bones always end up in bottom of bucket too.
I’ve also noticed a big difference in symmetrical, higher mass rack bucks, and wonky thin rack bucks. Which makes sense to me I guess. But something to consider before boiling time, burying time, temperatures, etc. the healthy ones turn out great no matter what, skull bone looks really “healthy”. Others look translucent and like they’re falling apart to an extent. Nasal bones always end up in bottom of bucket too.
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Are you talking about boiling or setting in a warm bucket and letting bacteria do its thing? I’m talking about trying the bucket method.
What I’m saying is I’ve noticed a difference in fresh deer and weeks old deer after boiling. Which leads me to suspect that bacteria are working on the skull itself too.
Don’t really know how to prove it or if it matters. Just something I noticed.
I am confused by the desire to have rotting animals in or near one’s house when the whole process can be done in a few hours by simmering the thing on the stove or an outside burner.
I made my own boiler out of a replacement water heater element and bucket. Cost 20.00 and is zero Maintenace or smell
I never let mine dry at all before simmering. I like to skin and put in the pot to simmer right away. Letting any part of it dry can cause stains. I use a turkey fryer w/an oblong pot I welded up. Like @kyler I dont want them rotting on their own. Mine are all done in one day & in the sun the next.
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I’m sure you’ve shared how you do it before on here, so if you have a link I’ll check it out. Otherwise, I don’t want to detract from this thread any more.
The passive nature of this method intrigued me. I don’t have a pressure washer or a boiler and haven’t killed enough deer to justify buying them. I do have garbage bags and 5 gallon bucks and a backyard big enough I’m not worried about the smell. An aquarium heater is $10-15 and the water only takes 5-10 mins to change out every 2-3 days for 2-3 weeks. That’s about 1-3 hours max after all said and done over the course of a couple weeks. That makes sense to me so I’m trying it out on a small deer I killed. I plan to share my results. I may hate it but I’m going to try it out first and then decide.
@kyler1945 one of the main benefits to maceration over boiling is that it is easy and relatively safe. I let a skull go for months/over winter in a bucket. It grew some green algae but the bone underneath is perfect. Loose joints and teeth because it's a yearling with a not fully formed skull but that's a deer selection issue not necessarily a maceration issue. Over boiling/boiling too strong/pressure washing can damage bone, or so I've read/watched YouTube videos about. I plan to boil one of these skulls I saved just for comparison purposes too though.
The other bigger benefit to maceration as far as I see is that the bone isn't cooked. Cooking bone makes it more brittle, whether it's boiling or baking or grilling, heat is the enemy, (why we are supposed to only give dogs raw bones for them to gnaw on but not cooked bones that can crack and splinter) and a more brittle skull has a better chance of breaking. I want to be able to take a euro down and handle it so I'd rather the bone be as least-brittle as possible.
In reality it's all likely so similar that it doesn't warrant this much online discussion, but what's the fun in that? Am I the only weirdo that keeps doe skulls for practice? I've shot 3 deer and kept all 3, I suppose that as that number gets a zero behind it I'll start tossing them. Maybe. Kept a doe hide as well, can always toss it back in the woods later, but I'm getting well off topic now...
I also do not believe the bone density difference is anything due to decomposition/bacteria, more anecdotal individual deer. Healthy deer having strong bone structure makes sense. There's a body farm in North Carolina that study's decomposition and without going into too much detail, at least in humans severely decomposed individuals still have intact skeletons etc, bacterial bone degradation takes significant time.
The other bigger benefit to maceration as far as I see is that the bone isn't cooked. Cooking bone makes it more brittle, whether it's boiling or baking or grilling, heat is the enemy, (why we are supposed to only give dogs raw bones for them to gnaw on but not cooked bones that can crack and splinter) and a more brittle skull has a better chance of breaking. I want to be able to take a euro down and handle it so I'd rather the bone be as least-brittle as possible.
In reality it's all likely so similar that it doesn't warrant this much online discussion, but what's the fun in that? Am I the only weirdo that keeps doe skulls for practice? I've shot 3 deer and kept all 3, I suppose that as that number gets a zero behind it I'll start tossing them. Maybe. Kept a doe hide as well, can always toss it back in the woods later, but I'm getting well off topic now...
I also do not believe the bone density difference is anything due to decomposition/bacteria, more anecdotal individual deer. Healthy deer having strong bone structure makes sense. There's a body farm in North Carolina that study's decomposition and without going into too much detail, at least in humans severely decomposed individuals still have intact skeletons etc, bacterial bone degradation takes significant time.
LIslockmaster
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The fresher the better, I just did one that had been sitting, in sub freezing temps for 2 weeks, and it came out a little darker then one I did a couple years ago I did a day after I shot it. I use aluminum foil around the base of the antlers to deflect the heat and try not to submerge then in the water when boiling, but that's not always the case. I usually boil them twice for 25 min (with a good amount of dawn dish soap), with a rolling boil, power washing them in between with hot water.
cville_bowhunter
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Week 5.5 update: it has been two weeks since I added the second heater, and I think it has made a difference. That said, I wish I had them from the start, as the amount of flesh on the skull is pretty low. Another thing that I wish I had done from the start is use warm water. I think that the water changes with cold water from the outside faucet really slowed everything down. I finally had a couple of hours last night and worked over the skull with a pair of needle nose pliers to try and tug what was loose.
This afternoon, when I changed the water, I threw a freezer burned chukar in with the skull to have more flesh to try and boost the bacteria growth. I'm hoping that speeds things back up.
Attached are some photos of the progress as of today.
This afternoon, when I changed the water, I threw a freezer burned chukar in with the skull to have more flesh to try and boost the bacteria growth. I'm hoping that speeds things back up.
Attached are some photos of the progress as of today.
Id suggest you put on a pair of nitrile gloves and pull the loose flesh off to expose what's closer to the skull, if you can get some removed it'll speed up, as the bacteria will have to move on to the parts of the buffet that are still present. Also looking at the back of the skull I can't see the hole- did you flush the brain out or is that still in the skull? Get rid of it and anything loose so the bacteria don't have it to eat and waste their time on.