I took my first buck a few years ago, paid HUNDREDS of dollars to a local taxidermist. After a year-and-a-half he had barely cleaned the skull and never even mounted it to the plaque I had picked out and paid for, a total waste of money that I'll never get back from that crook. I have searched for a while for a good video so that I could mount the skull to a plaque myself, and yours by far was the best. Finally my trophy is on the wall and looking good, thank you so much!
Thanks for the video - it was very helpful. I bagged a nice white tail two years ago, and before we left camp I found a secluded spot and wired the skull - completely uncleaned in any way - to a log. Fast forward one year and the local critters and bugs have done all the hard work for me, cleaning out everything including the brain pan and the nasal cavities. This works like a charm if you're lazy but patient (like me!) and can find a spot that's unlikely to be located by other people. HINT: take a photo of the location so that you can find the skull and antlers a year later.
The best video I have seen on this! Well thought out and very well explained. One tip I would add that seems helpful is before you simmer your skull go outside and using a faucet or hose hold skull nose down with the spinal hole to the brain exposed and using a screw driver stir the brain material under a stream of water till it turns to mush and rinses away. This greatly reduces cleanup after the simmer. Great video!
Thanks for the video, very helpfulfor a first timer! I did not skin the head first, just removed the ears and the easy stuff, also ran my inside knife along each side of the nose to loosen it up. Then I boiled it in dawn and borax. All the meat and skin slid right off after 3-4 hours of simmering. There was still plenty of small things to clean up, but the first step of cleaning the skull is pretty much not needed.
Looks great! If you don't want to hang them on nails or have to drill into the skull check out the brackets from Heads of State Panels. There's no drilling involved and they look real clean and tight! Much smaller and diverse than other mounting brackets.
I usually electrical tape off the base of the antlers exposing the peroxide to direct sunlight will magnify the whitening a great deal. I also usually run a thin bead of superglue along the teeth line as they get loose (usually(
Fun watch while eating haha. Thanks for all the tips though, I'm a taxidermy newbie and desperately grasping every piece of information I can get on how to work without a special tool kit and cleaning beetles and all that stuff.
Frollein Kram I thought about doing that instead of boiling, but I heard the beetles make the skull stink anyway. Plus, I have no idea how to even try to get permission from the missus for that one. haha
looks great. i've been doing mounst for a couple years ,but always bleached with hydrogen peroxide. i have to wrap the horns with foil to protect them. you could do this at the base to make sure no paste splashes onto the horns.
nice video man :D i just mounted my very first roebuck trophy and it looks really nice :) one more thing atleast in sweden where i live we saw the jaw off right under the eye lobes we do that after we removed the hide becuse you get a nice flat surface and you can just scrape the brain out with a knife :) thanks again and goodluck with the hunt
Congratulations on your Mule deer and thanks, I have only done whitetail mounts so I can only recommend the 16.5inx10in( Lg) plaque for whitetails. I would imagine the people at WilsonTree would be able to tell you if that size would work for a Mule Deer and may be able to make you something larger if needed for your Mule deer or elk. Sounds like you are doing some fun hunting. Best of luck and hope the video was helpful.
one thing I did was put the skull partially in the oven as low as it would go with the the salon product. Just keep the door cracked if you do that. The heat helps activate or make the bleaching stronger. You can use a portable heater too and direct it directly on the skull. Try and wrap aluminum foil around the skull to keep the product from drying out. Something to try if you have never done anything like that.
www.jesseshunting.com/forums/showthread.php/252566-Got-my-European-mount-on-the-wall-today Here it is on the wall, all from your video (as a bonus the wife is a Cosmetologist!) you rock dude.
Go to a local salon store (if your uncertain where to locate one ask a beautician) and ask for powder lightener and volume 40 crème. Once you have those just follow the video and let me know how everything works for you. Best of luck!
I've been watching a few videos to try and figure out how to do this myself before I break my euro-mounting virginity, and yours was one of the more informative ones so thanks a lot! If any other viewers are wondering how to find a beautician then I would recommend a few tinder dates; the first crazy one should be able to hook you up with a bro deal on salon products. Cheers!
Thanks, Jim. I found a skull while trout fishing this spring and wanted to honor the poor deer that obviously was killed and suffered a painful death. I needed to find out how to clean up the skull and remove all of the meat and skin. I especially appreciate the info on bleaching the skull that will make it look great. And I really like the plaque that you mounted the skull on and will order one from the company you recommended. Appreciate your effort.
Thanks for the response. I'e been following your tutorial and have a question. I'm preparing an atypical blacktail that had been thrown up into a hayloft for about 20 years before I got it, and was mummified. I now have it pretty clean but the skull is very tannish-colored. I don;t know if it's grease or resins from the dried skin over so many years. Do you think I should I try to de-grease it with laundry soap or just go ahead with whitening? Thanks for all the help.
Good tutorial. You can make it yourself a little easier if you take a saw and cut off the back plate of the skull where the spine enters it. You don´t see that part anyway and you get the brain out very quick and clean.
You can get the brain out before you boil it. If you get a piece of small hose and stick it in the hole a couple inches where the spinal cord was and turn the water on, the brain will come right out. You don't have to use a lot of water pressure and if you do it right, it'll come out whole in one piece. hold the hose to the side of the hole and it'll squeeze right by it. Try aquarium hose or maybe something a little bit bigger. It doesn't seem like the whole brain will come out of that little hole but it will. Try it.
Thanks for putting this video up. Great job of walking the viewer through the process step by step. Just a question or two: I simmered my skull for hours since I just left the hide on. Everything came off really easy afterwards, but while rinsing off the skull I noticed the two long pieces of cartilage above the nose are starting to loosen up, and the top teeth fell out. Probably because the gums are gone. I collected them all and have them sorted in left and right zip lock baggies. Can I glue those with a cyanoacrylate glue from the underside to keep it all in place?
Yep, I have heard of people using glue to piece back anything that fell out during the process event teeth. Best of luck to you and thanks for the comment Johnny.
3% worked fine for me.....i use a paint brush ...did it 3 times and let it dry in between then i covered the skull with paper towel wet it with the 3% peroxide for an hour or two...mine looks good i think......i do not now if i will glue the bottom jaw back on or not....might be easier to mount it with out it....
Try an electric pressure washer, spray every hole and get all that meat out. I use 40 volume peroxide the clear not the cream. Mix it half and half with water and boil 10 min it will whiten it right up and spray off.
Great video. I just finished a european mount on my 2012 mule deer. I checked out WilsonTree on eBay. Question - what size plaque do you purchase for deer skulls? Elk skulls?
Save some time clean it with a pressure washer and boil you're peroxide mix and let the skull sit in it for about ten minutes helps pull oil out and let sundry for and hour or two to really magnify the the bleaching power
Your pilot hole is 3/32 in the skull and the pilot hole in the plaque is 7/64. Do you drill these pilot holes all the way through the skull and wood plaque? Also the screw you say is 3 inches long what size is the screws width your using? Too small it won't hold the skull too big it will crack the skull?
Drill through the skull only until you enter the hollow area where the brain was located. Not the whole way out through the forehead of the skull. The wood plaque the whole way through. That is a general all purpose screw size 6-3in. Anymore questions feel free to ask and best of luck!
I'd recommend instead of the chemicals he used, try using standard hydrogen peroxide instead. Works like a champ, and you just need to rinse in water. No big deal.
living4theoutdoors I saw where someone used "Mop and Glow" on the skull and antlers for shine and presevation. This was an old floor wax product. Trouble is I can't find this product here in Ontario Canada!
I just worked on a mount for 3 months, finished it and was happy with it, hung it on the wall, then what happens? The screw pulls out of the wall and the skull falls and shatters lol.
I killed a buck that looks exactly like that same antler color same curves in the antlers and everything the only thing is that on the right side its not broken off
What exactly are the chemicals you use? Im going to use your tactic on my last buck. I saw your comment so i figured I would check out your channel! and where do i purchase it?
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Not a hunter, but I recently acquired a deer skull and wanted to mount it. I'm so happy that I found this video. Thank you!
The last part really helped. Thank you
You’re welcome and all the best in the outdoors.
My friends and I have used this process on several of our bucks since you posted this vid and they turn out great every time! Thanks.
Great to hear and you are very welcome! Best of luck and I hope you have several more to do this season.
This is a great tutorial. Speeding through the laborious parts really helps. Great mounting instructions too.
Jim Clark Thanks Jim, hope all is well and you get a chance to use the information if you haven't already.
I took my first buck a few years ago, paid HUNDREDS of dollars to a local taxidermist. After a year-and-a-half he had barely cleaned the skull and never even mounted it to the plaque I had picked out and paid for, a total waste of money that I'll never get back from that crook. I have searched for a while for a good video so that I could mount the skull to a plaque myself, and yours by far was the best. Finally my trophy is on the wall and looking good, thank you so much!
Sorry to hear about the crook, but it's nice to know this video was helpful to you and best of luck this season as well.
This just saved my life on the plaque mounting part omg
Thanks for the video - it was very helpful.
I bagged a nice white tail two years ago, and before we left camp I found a secluded spot and wired the skull - completely uncleaned in any way - to a log. Fast forward one year and the local critters and bugs have done all the hard work for me, cleaning out everything including the brain pan and the nasal cavities.
This works like a charm if you're lazy but patient (like me!) and can find a spot that's unlikely to be located by other people. HINT: take a photo of the location so that you can find the skull and antlers a year later.
Bill Kossmann I'd be worried the mice would nibble away on the rack.
True that. The next time I tried that, wolves got the whole works on me. 8^(
Bill Kossmann i bury mine
The best video I have seen on this! Well thought out and very well explained. One tip I would add that seems helpful is before you simmer your skull go outside and using a faucet or hose hold skull nose down with the spinal hole to the brain exposed and using a screw driver stir the brain material under a stream of water till it turns to mush and rinses away. This greatly reduces cleanup after the simmer. Great video!
Great video. Thanks for sharing it.
Just mounted a mule deer head using your technique! Thanks for the help!
Great video!! Thank you for sharing!
Got my first Ohio big buck yesterday and I'm digging this look for it #Ohio archery session ROCKS!!!!
Thanks for the video, very helpfulfor a first timer! I did not skin the head first, just removed the ears and the easy stuff, also ran my inside knife along each side of the nose to loosen it up. Then I boiled it in dawn and borax. All the meat and skin slid right off after 3-4 hours of simmering. There was still plenty of small things to clean up, but the first step of cleaning the skull is pretty much not needed.
Excellent, and very detailed video! Will be doing to my buck next season!
Glad to see it's helping others in the outdoor community. Best of luck to you.
Good video. Thanks a million. Got my first archery deer to mount and I'm pretty pumped and more confident because of your video. Thanks again.
-Joe
Looks great! If you don't want to hang them on nails or have to drill into the skull check out the brackets from Heads of State Panels. There's no drilling involved and they look real clean and tight! Much smaller and diverse than other mounting brackets.
Excellent tutorial. I did exactly as you demonstrated and it works great! Many Thanks!
TysterS Glad to hear TysterS, you are welcome!
I usually electrical tape off the base of the antlers exposing the peroxide to direct sunlight will magnify the whitening a great deal. I also usually run a thin bead of superglue along the teeth line as they get loose (usually(
I hung my mount on the wall and took some measurements -- the LG will be fine. In fact, I just ordered one (walnut) from WilsonTree! Thanks again.
Fun watch while eating haha. Thanks for all the tips though, I'm a taxidermy newbie and desperately grasping every piece of information I can get on how to work without a special tool kit and cleaning beetles and all that stuff.
Frollein Kram I thought about doing that instead of boiling, but I heard the beetles make the skull stink anyway. Plus, I have no idea how to even try to get permission from the missus for that one. haha
Thanks for taking the time to demonstrate. Very helpful!
Best video to date, thanks man!
very helpful video. Im planning on doing the european mount to my first deer too
Great video! Very helpful and I'm excited to do my own mount. Thanks so much!
Glad you enjoyed, best of luck making your own.
NICE video, very well discripted Im a youth hunter (13) and im looking forward to this for my first buck!
Nice job Benny P!!!! I think anybody could do a Euro mount after watching that tutorial.
looks great. i've been doing mounst for a couple years ,but always bleached with hydrogen peroxide. i have to wrap the horns with foil to protect them. you could do this at the base to make sure no paste splashes onto the horns.
Best video ive seen on how to do this correctly! good job
nice video man :D i just mounted my very first roebuck trophy and it looks really nice :) one more thing atleast in sweden where i live we saw the jaw off right under the eye lobes we do that after we removed the hide becuse you get a nice flat surface and you can just scrape the brain out with a knife :) thanks again and goodluck with the hunt
great video..looks great you're a hell of a friend to do that for a buddy!
Hey Bryan thanks, if you got your yote back send me a pic. I haven't seen the mount.
Great instructions. Thanks for posting!
Congratulations on your Mule deer and thanks, I have only done whitetail mounts so I can only recommend the 16.5inx10in( Lg) plaque for whitetails. I would imagine the people at WilsonTree would be able to tell you if that size would work for a Mule Deer and may be able to make you something larger if needed for your Mule deer or elk. Sounds like you are doing some fun hunting. Best of luck and hope the video was helpful.
one thing I did was put the skull partially in the oven as low as it would go with the the salon product. Just keep the door cracked if you do that. The heat helps activate or make the bleaching stronger. You can use a portable heater too and direct it directly on the skull. Try and wrap aluminum foil around the skull to keep the product from drying out. Something to try if you have never done anything like that.
watched a few before your video wish I would have watched yours first thank you for the help did an informing job
Your welcome Ryan, glad you enjoyed.
Very helpful video thank you so much
Thanks for watching Adam and best of luck to you in the woods.
Nice job!
Thanks for sharing.
Great Video... Thank you for all the helpful tips!!
Thank you, great video!
Thanks for making this video. Great job.
Awesome, I will be trying
Great video man I'm working on my pa archery kill right now!!
Congrats on your archery buck and I hope the video helps out!
well done, just what I needed for my whitetail!
Very informational, thank you.
+edwardsdeacon You are welcome Edward, hope it helped.
Excellent job thank you for the tips!
Glad to help!
www.jesseshunting.com/forums/showthread.php/252566-Got-my-European-mount-on-the-wall-today
Here it is on the wall, all from your video (as a bonus the wife is a Cosmetologist!) you rock dude.
Tiggitytye That looks great! Thanks for sharing
I'm super eager to try it
thank you so much your video help't me Mount my First deer skull keep up the good work and I will subscribe
+carissa handly Great to hear and thanks so much for your kind words. Best of luck in the outdoors Carissa!
Very helpful. Thank you.
You are welcome and have a great season!
that was a great video thank you for posting it
You are welcome and best of luck this season.
Awesome!!! Glad I watched before I started to make mine ;)) Thanks for posting this!
Great video
Another great idea, thanks for the tip!
great video!!
Best how to for Euro mount on YT
A pressure washer is a game-changer, be careful with the nose bones though
Go to a local salon store (if your uncertain where to locate one ask a beautician) and ask for powder lightener and volume 40 crème. Once you have those just follow the video and let me know how everything works for you. Best of luck!
I've been watching a few videos to try and figure out how to do this myself before I break my euro-mounting virginity, and yours was one of the more informative ones so thanks a lot! If any other viewers are wondering how to find a beautician then I would recommend a few tinder dates; the first crazy one should be able to hook you up with a bro deal on salon products. Cheers!
You're welcome, hope it helps and best of luck!
Thanks, Jim. I found a skull while trout fishing this spring and wanted to honor the poor deer that obviously was killed and suffered a painful death. I needed to find out how to clean up the skull and remove all of the meat and skin. I especially appreciate the info on bleaching the skull that will make it look great. And I really like the plaque that you mounted the skull on and will order one from the company you recommended. Appreciate your effort.
Nice job on that.
Very helpful
Thanks Andrew.
Where did you get the plaque to mount the skull to?
@flintridge102 Thanks, always trying to help out my fellow outdoor friends.
@MOSULTEEBOX Glad you found it useful, best of luck in the outdoors.
@yohhon O ya, gotta stay warm in the winter.
Good video!
Thanks and thanks for watching.
Thanks, another great tip!
Thanks for the response. I'e been following your tutorial and have a question. I'm preparing an atypical blacktail that had been thrown up into a hayloft for about 20 years before I got it, and was mummified. I now have it pretty clean but the skull is very tannish-colored. I don;t know if it's grease or resins from the dried skin over so many years. Do you think I should I try to de-grease it with laundry soap or just go ahead with whitening? Thanks for all the help.
Good tutorial. You can make it yourself a little easier if you take a saw and cut off the back plate of the skull where the spine enters it. You don´t see that part anyway and you get the brain out very quick and clean.
You can get the brain out before you boil it. If you get a piece of small hose and stick it in the hole a couple inches where the spinal cord was and turn the water on, the brain will come right out. You don't have to use a lot of water pressure and if you do it right, it'll come out whole in one piece. hold the hose to the side of the hole and it'll squeeze right by it. Try aquarium hose or maybe something a little bit bigger. It doesn't seem like the whole brain will come out of that little hole but it will. Try it.
Great video. What should be done with antlers that have velvet?
Thanks for putting this video up. Great job of walking the viewer through the process step by step.
Just a question or two:
I simmered my skull for hours since I just left the hide on. Everything came off really easy afterwards, but while rinsing off the skull I noticed the two long pieces of cartilage above the nose are starting to loosen up, and the top teeth fell out. Probably because the gums are gone. I collected them all and have them sorted in left and right zip lock baggies. Can I glue those with a cyanoacrylate glue from the underside to keep it all in place?
Yep, I have heard of people using glue to piece back anything that fell out during the process event teeth. Best of luck to you and thanks for the comment Johnny.
Thank you sir, and staining the skull is a as well
3% worked fine for me.....i use a paint brush ...did it 3 times and let it dry in between then i covered the skull with paper towel wet it with the 3% peroxide for an hour or two...mine looks good i think......i do not now if i will glue the bottom jaw back on or not....might be easier to mount it with out it....
Excellent will do. Your illiterate on is appreciated. thank you.
Question: Is the powder lightener also available at a beauty supply store?
Jeffrey Reynolds yes
Try an electric pressure washer, spray every hole and get all that meat out. I use 40 volume peroxide the clear not the cream. Mix it half and half with water and boil 10 min it will whiten it right up and spray off.
Great video. I just finished a european mount on my 2012 mule deer. I checked out WilsonTree on eBay. Question - what size plaque do you purchase for deer skulls? Elk skulls?
Hope it helps out.
Excellent video! I boiled my deer skull a bit too long. The bones are loose on the nose. Any ideas on how to keep them in place?
paint the skull with a thin coat or two of elmers white glue.
Your mounting part of the video was especially helpful, however have you tried peroxide 3% for whitening?
Save some time clean it with a pressure washer and boil you're peroxide mix and let the skull sit in it for about ten minutes helps pull oil out and let sundry for and hour or two to really magnify the the bleaching power
awsome
With that whitener salon stuff are you able to paint over it?
I would rinse it off good and go for it. I think it would hold paint well especially with good primer.
Great video but do I have to whiten the skull
Your pilot hole is 3/32 in the skull and the pilot hole in the plaque is 7/64. Do you drill these pilot holes all the way through the skull and wood plaque? Also the screw you say is 3 inches long what size is the screws width your using? Too small it won't hold the skull too big it will crack the skull?
Drill through the skull only until you enter the hollow area where the brain was located. Not the whole way out through the forehead of the skull. The wood plaque the whole way through. That is a general all purpose screw size 6-3in. Anymore questions feel free to ask and best of luck!
how can i keep the bottom jaw on there and how is 3% peroxide for whitening
I'd recommend instead of the chemicals he used, try using standard hydrogen peroxide instead. Works like a champ, and you just need to rinse in water. No big deal.
Do you have to bleach or whiten the skull? Can you leave it as is?
How many times should you whiten the deer is 2 or 3 times good?
Cody Dunnells Yes, three would be plenty. Let me know how it works for you and best of luck.
Can I just spray paint it white?
Can the boiling process and the bleaching process be done separate or do they have to be done back to back
I would imagine you could whiten the skull at anytime as long as you have it cleaned off very well. I hope you are having a great season.
Yas I did iv watched four of the is and this is the best one I found
do you know what to put on the antlers to keep them from getting sun/light damaged
No, I keep mine in the house and no sun hits it. If you find something out please share it with me. Thanks
k thanks
living4theoutdoors I saw where someone used "Mop and Glow" on the skull and antlers for shine and presevation. This was an old floor wax product. Trouble is I can't find this product here in Ontario Canada!
I just worked on a mount for 3 months, finished it and was happy with it, hung it on the wall, then what happens? The screw pulls out of the wall and the skull falls and shatters lol.
Sorry to hear this Rod. I hope next time your screw finds a stud and doesn't come out. Best of luck this season and getting another to hang up.
what brand is that hot plate called
also does it smell bad or would you be able to do it inside
bowhunting nj no don't do it in the house it does stink quite a bit...especially if you don't skin it within a week of shooting it
I killed a buck that looks exactly like that same antler color same curves in the antlers and everything the only thing is that on the right side its not broken off
Do you know what wattage it is?
What part of pa?
What exactly are the chemicals you use? Im going to use your tactic on my last buck. I saw your comment so i figured I would check out your channel! and where do i purchase it?
What burner did you use?
It's on of the single plug in burners. Just a small electric burner.