Getting hide off a skull????

MadDog

MadDog

Bang Flop <br>Super Moderator
Moderating Team
Rating - 100%
209   0   0
Location
St. Joe's Island, Ont
Anybody ever had this problem and do you have any tricks for getting it off?

I left my racks with the hide still on the skull in the garage all year and now when I go to put em on the plaques I realised I can't get it off, it's like rawhide cemented on the skulls.

I've had them soaking in a big bucket of water for the last week and even that doesn't seem to be loosening it up. Thought of burning it off but it would stink to high heaven and I don't wanna take the chance of cracking or splitting the skull or rack.

If anybody has a surefire method I'd love to hear it, thanks.
 
Get a pair of plyers and start to pull and rip it off. it is a lot of work to do when this happens but it will come off. also a flatblade screw driver to help pri it up.
 
My aunt paints buffalo skulls - the best way she has found to clean them COMPLETELY is to bury them in the dirt for about a year.

Given you don't have that much time - I'd say some kind of leather softener - oil based something.
 
I don't know what bugs could do to the raw-hide, but staking the skull over an ant hill was a perfect way to clean a skinned out bear skull.
 
All good idea's but don't have time for the burying idea. The pliers idea might be the way I'm gonna have to go although leather softener added to it might loosen it up a bit. Just tried to power wash it off but it didn't work either.

Might have to light the bon fire next time I'm at the deer camp and put dads old cornroast pot on top and boil them overnight.
 
Boil, bury, or bleach. Undiluted bleach will take the skin off after a good long soak.
I use the bury method 'cause I'm never in a rush.
 
I boil them, but not for too long or the skull can actually fall apart.
You just want to cook the tissue and nothing more. You could also try making a sludge of 1/3 washing powder and 2/3 water and leaving it in that for a couple of days as the bleach in it is surprisingly strong. I hate to see skulls stained by being left outside or buried. Idealy they should be cleaned off when fresh, boiled,stripped clean and then bleached.
 
Just wanna get the hide off, I'm not worried about whitening the skull cause I cover them with crushed velvet.

So only an hour on the boiling idea huh? Alright, I can do that, it sounds alot easier than overnight.

The bleach thing might work good to if it removes hide. I don't wanna stain the rack though.

I changed the water in the barrel after I tried power washing them and I added a bunch of road salt to the water, not sure if it'll do anything but what the hay, if it works it works.
 
Suspend the skull so the rack is out of the bleach. (if you're going to try the bleach that is)

I don't suppose you can get any kind of acid eh? hydochloric or glacial acetic would do the trick. You'd have to keep an eye on though, 'cause it might soften up or dissolve the bone given too much time.
 
Ha, Martin, I've got a tagger torch here and it would take me seconds with it but it would crisp it in seconds and probably bust everything up, a hand torch just makes a mess. By the average opinion here it looks like the boiling tech is the called for idea.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom