BAD TAXIDERMY

[PEEJAY]

Thought of a great business name for it too with tons of advertising options... The Boner!

Haha. I tried to make that my username on marylandwhitetails.net but they did not approve...o well

 

[HuntNorthEast]

Do you freeze your heads first or do them right away? I've done about a dozen heads and none of them came off that easy. I skin them, cut off the bottom jaw, eyeballs, tongue and cut as much meat off as possible before I simmer them. I have to simmer them for about 2 hours on the first round. At 30 minutes you couldn't scrape the stuff off with a knife, let alone wash it off with a hose. I usually simmer two more times for about 1 hour each to finish them up and each round involves substantial scraping and picking to get everything off. I simmer them with Dawn and some Borax and keep the water just below a boil.

Agreed! I have done fresh, frozen, and one that had been eaten by flies. None of them were half hour simmers. Usually I let em go for a couple hours with dawn, dig all the crap off, let em go again and scrape clean. After that, peroxide bath until white. All day process, we save em all and do them together at the end of the season. Usually shoot bows or something while they are cooking down.

 

[PEEJAY]

Ok i feel better. Seems like an all day process for me too haha

 

[Nutterbuster]

I know the first couple I did i simmered for a lot longer. Then I did one and kinda watched it a bit closer, and noticed signs of it breaking down earlier. Fat and foam floating around the top and the meat drawing up off the forehead. I pulled it, sprayed it, s d was surpriswd how much came off. Now I do mine for much less time. Seems easier on the teeth

 

[PEEJAY]

That gator skull came out awesome. I've caught a couple small ones but never had a chance to hunt one. What did u get him with

 

[Nutterbuster]

That gator skull came out awesome. I've caught a couple small ones but never had a chance to hunt one. What did u get him with

A weighted treble hook, a noose, a harpoon, and a load of #8 birdshot to the noggin. Alabama gator hunts have more steps than a Victorian courtship.

 

[will4554]

There's a place near me where they send them out to a guy that uses Beatles to clean the skulls then you can get them dipped in different camo patterns.

Beatles are the best. I've done a pile myself and had a few done with beatles at a place in OKC. Definitely worth the 100 or so they charge. They eat all kinds of stuff. That place is also a bone museum.. could explain the quality lol

 

[M. Wilson]

I kinda disagree. I can have a euro done in an hour or two tops. I wish I made $60 to $150 an hour. A euro isn't any harder or messier than any other part of processing a carcass. I actually do most of them inside on the stove top while the wife is present. If you have a pot and a garden hose, you're in business.

I've paid to have 2 done. Once because I had never done it before and couldn't be bothered, and a 2nd time because my dad "hooked me up" with a deal from a buddy and I couldn't look the guy in the eye and say no.

A good fire ant bed, 35 gallon trash can and some rebar will have that head cleaned up in a month and never have to touch it. Boil it a little, bleach and paint. Does away with the scraping and cleaning all the little pieces of tissue out of it

 

[PEEJAY]

No fire ant hills here and the squirrels would eat the rack pretty quick if you leave it on the ground or in a tree.

 

[Henryvd88]

For those who want a good look at just how bad taxidermy can actually get
https://books.google.ca/books/about...=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&redir_esc=y

 

[PEEJAY]

Oh yea...google images has some amazing examples. One day im gonna give it a go with a deer. The taxidermist i got my last buck from said she will sell me a mold. I might get on that search page if im lucky.!