The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting Problems with Euro mounts?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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I'm making my first trip to SA this summer. I was talking to someone about Euro mounts (he owns a 'beetle business') and he indicated that the skulls he's seen come back from Africa have been over-boiled at the D&S, making them hard to get white. Any opinions/suggestions? Many thanks! | ||
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Over boiling them can damage the bone, but I don't know about it making them harder to whiten. One problem I have run into is the skull being boiled before all the internal tissue has a chance to rot out. If the skulls are not allowed to go through a full maggot cleaning or are not allowed to sit in "pond water" for a week or two, it seems the skulls come out of the boil soaked in yellow grease in some areas. A good soaking in while gas(coleman fuel) gets the grease out. Then a quick dip in peroxide whitens them up. Pool supply stores have concentrated peroxide. Jason "You're not hard-core, unless you live hard-core." _______________________ Hunting in Africa is an adventure. The number of variables involved preclude the possibility of a perfect hunt. Some problems will arise. How you decide to handle them will determine how much you enjoy your hunt. Just tell yourself, "it's all part of the adventure." Remember, if Robert Ruark had gotten upset every time problems with Harry Selby's flat bed truck delayed the safari, Horn of the Hunter would have read like an indictment of Selby. But Ruark rolled with the punches, poured some gin, and enjoyed the adventure. -Jason Brown | |||
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before boiling you should use the knife as much as possible, then the time boiling will not need to be as long and the risk for over boiling is less. it is also risky to use too much peroxide for too long periods of time. if you are lazy, one method is to put the skull in an ant hill for a week they will work on the meat and fat but make sure you don't have it stolen by foxes or the likes. fat chicks inc. | |||
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I would be talking to references from where you plan to have the work done. I am sure there is good and bad there as well as here. If you are just looking at dip and pack I would be looking at one of the services that specialize in that, such as Dip - Pack, instead of a taxidermist that does that as a sideline. DSC Life Member NRA Life Member | |||
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My taxidermist sends his skulls for skull mounts to Skulls Unlimited in Oklahoma City, OK. They aren't cheap but they do a great job, and I noticed they put a protective coating on the skulls that has a nice medium sheen. Their website is www.skullsunlimited.com | |||
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Skulls unlimited is know to be the best around and their owner is a real nice guy, FWIW. Jason "You're not hard-core, unless you live hard-core." _______________________ Hunting in Africa is an adventure. The number of variables involved preclude the possibility of a perfect hunt. Some problems will arise. How you decide to handle them will determine how much you enjoy your hunt. Just tell yourself, "it's all part of the adventure." Remember, if Robert Ruark had gotten upset every time problems with Harry Selby's flat bed truck delayed the safari, Horn of the Hunter would have read like an indictment of Selby. But Ruark rolled with the punches, poured some gin, and enjoyed the adventure. -Jason Brown | |||
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I've done some boiling of my own, and I never used any peroxide at all. The color after boiling was a nice, natural off-white. Maybe you can just ask the dip and ship company to boil and ship, and you can find a nice piece of display wood to stick it on yourself? Andy | |||
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JB, in your OP, you didn't say for sure whether you were having them done over there, or here at home. I had my Euros done by Highveld Taxidermy in RSA, and thought they did a bang up job at a reasonable price. Here is a link to the tread, with pics. http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/9891051031 Mad Dog | |||
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Some of the problems I have had with overboiling skulls is the degradation of the horn material... loss of structure and color in some cases. Would seem to shorten the life of the mount. I always take a look-see around the skinning shed to check on the progress on my trophies. If I see an issue, a brief conversation with the PH usually brings satisfaction. If you see it and keep your mouth shut, you have no one to blame but yourself! On the plains of hesitation lie the bleached bones of ten thousand, who on the dawn of victory lay down their weary heads resting, and there resting, died. If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch... Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son! - Rudyard Kipling Life grows grim without senseless indulgence. | |||
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Bob, you will be at the mercy of your PH's camp staff. They will do the initial cleaning and possibly boiling. This is where any problems will start if they're going to. It doesn't matter what anyone does in the US, your skulls won't be coming here until they go through dip and pack. The best companies will steam off the horns before boiling the skull. They can also be "rotted off" (common term) in water before boiling. If Sal Soda were added to the water during the boiling process, you'd remove most of the fatty acids and tissue within the skull, but don't count on 99% of African camps practicing this. If you want more control over the end result, have your skulls disenfected and sent home as is. A good Taxidermist here can use Carbon Tech to remove any remaining grease then seal the skull with a fungalcidal sealer. We've been using a bone white paint to do the final seal on my skulls for years and they come out perfect. Uniform color that looks natural, no powder or bone dust coming off, no flaking and cracking. Know what your wanting to do before you ever land on African soil. Good hunting, David Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
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The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting Problems with Euro mounts?
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