vampire Posted February 3, 2011 Report Share Posted February 3, 2011 A few weeks back after seeing about 100 deer through out 2010,i found a skull with antlers,the only one i have ever seen,its a small skull with 9" antlers. Today the tree surgeons turned up at the house i am working on and when i went and had a look at what they had cut down i saw a lovelly bit of cherry wood,so i got one of them to cut me a slab. Now as i started out as a cabinet maker and have always worked with wood the cherry is no problem,but not sure what to do with the skull,do i just cut it below the antlers and then scrub with a mix of bleach and water to get it clean and spray with a laquer when dry. Would appreciate any advise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtaylor Posted February 5, 2011 Report Share Posted February 5, 2011 (edited) First of I am not a master at this, but this is the way I have done it and its worked fine. Here's one I did earlier! The picture shows you roughly where the traditional cut is, just brushing the bottom of the eye sockets. Some do it closer to the antlers, above the eyes but I like to see more of the skull, some don't cut them at all and just take the bottom jaw off. You can buy a jig to get a perfect cut but they are quite expensive, if you are quite handy with a saw you can do it by eye. Use Hydrogen Peroxide, form a chemist not bleach, which will wreck the bone structure. (Has it still got the flesh on? If so you will need to boil it first, the pressure wash it) Brush the Hydrogen Peroxide on to the skull, not the antlers and let it sit for a good few hours, possibly a day or so depending how dark it is. Then rinse and brush it off. Then you should be done, hopefully this will help. P.s. I didn't do the head in the picture, its just off google. Although I would be quite proud of it Edited February 5, 2011 by rtaylor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traztaz Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 I clamp carefully one antler in my vice and then use a japanes saw to cut the skull, they have no backing to the blade and therefor you can cut all the way through the skull if you follow me. the saw is also a very fine saw.To whiten the skull you will need to use peroxide, 30 precent is best. Ensure once cut you have removed all flesh and meat before whitening by boiling in water with one or two dishwasher tabs in.Be carefull not to over boil or the skull will fall apart, you need to keep an eye on things here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thanks,have planed the cherry and left it to dry/season before i can do anything with it,i have now cut the skull just below the eye socket and it was found with no skin on it so i just need to clean it up and will use the peroxide as suggested but how should i clean the antlers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtaylor Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thanks,have planed the cherry and left it to dry/season before i can do anything with it,i have now cut the skull just below the eye socket and it was found with no skin on it so i just need to clean it up and will use the peroxide as suggested but how should i clean the antlers Are your antlers like the one in the picture? In most cases you don't need to do anything to the antlers, just leave them. Could you post a picture so we can get a better idea? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Ok just took a pic of what i have got so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtaylor Posted February 6, 2011 Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thats a nice head. I would just use a toothbrush or a soft brush and some warm soapy water, don't scrub too hard. Is that just my computer making the cherry look really red? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted February 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thanks,the cherry started out white when it was cut,but before the end of the day it turned the red you can see on the screen :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traztaz Posted February 7, 2011 Report Share Posted February 7, 2011 Somthing not quite right here. You say you have cut just below the eye socket......that cut is way above the eye socket. You said you found the skull with no meat on and yet the antler appears to have an ammount of velvet on it, quite fresh looking velvet, which should not yet be shed. Wierd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vampire Posted February 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 7, 2011 (edited) Perhaps i should have said 'just below where the eye socket begins',the skull is exactly as i found it laying next to another which i left out there as it had stumps not antlers,to which i was not alone when WE found them,so i have nothing to hide or misguide,the meat as you put it is more prominant in the photo than real life and is probaly quite old as the base of the skull was well decayed bone,but the teeth where still intact. So go back to your keyboard detective agency school to study for the next level, before you infer any wrong doing as a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Edited February 7, 2011 by vampire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.