For 60 years, I've been cleaning and collecting skulls. Most now reside in various museums around the world, and I've sold a few or given them away to friends. To me, each one is a unique piece of art. They also have value as scientific items. Every year, I still clean up several hundred. I no longer have a dermestid colony (beetles), but use crock-pots extensively.

A black bear, whitetail doe, and young whitetail buck.



A variety from a week's trapline.



Some marten skulls I cleaned up for research.



A stippled marten skull print.



An Idaho wolf skull print, framed and matted.




I know a lot of you out there are also into cleaning skuils. Let's see 'em.

How many marten skulls are in that picture?

Since you cleaned them for research, did you have to keep track of where each one came from? I know that collecting scientific specimens requires a certain amount of data to make it useful.

Kanaga Island AK. I didn't clean these.

Well this took a dark turn fast...

Skulls are lovely art in design, aren't they, Jack ? They are for me too.

I believe I prefer Euro mounts more than any other.

This is Magnusson, and I got the light bulb idea in making him a night light too. I was so pleasantly surprised, how the light gives varied bone density such a magnificent soft glow.

I had a taxi man, in North Idaho, who does mounts from all over the world, fix up Magnusson for me. He said he has a friend with beetles that does all his skull work, but he won't have a beetle in his place. An accident waiting to happen, he said .

Really like your meticulous organizing and presentation of all your skulls.

Your stippling art is exquisite. What an artist you are, as well.

Jack..I made some pop corn for this thread..#14 Lodge

That's a bus load of marten skulls !

Lots of work and dedication there Jack ! Beautiful stuff.
In that one picture it appears that you are growing taller.
Your sagittal crest is coming up through your hair.

I have been having trouble with the beaver teeth getting brittle and falling apart. I used V40 for the first set and did not degrease. I saw on Taxidermy.net that to use ammonia to degrease and Boquacil to whiten and things have gone down hill from there. My problem is that I am way too impatient and doing them by the bucket (15 or 20 at a time). They look fantastic but who wants a bever skull without the front teeth?
Suggestions?

Fantastic work!!! I’ve gone to using a crockpot as well,,, although I’m nowhere close as good as what you have produced.

Although I’m nowhere near as good as the original poster is,,, I get great results from crockpot as well. I use dawn dish soap ALOT. When I first begin to soak and slow simmer the skull… then after I remove the flesh, I clean the water out,, add fresh water and more dawn let it slowly simmer for about 5 hours…I take the skull out, rinse it off in warm water ,, then put the skull into a 5 gallon bucket with water enough to completely submerge the skull,, I add more dawn dish soap,,, then let it sit for about a week… then I throughly rinse…. Then I put the skull in peroxide,, same stuff you get off the shelf at Walmart,, I usually leave it soaking about a week…. Then I set it in the sun for about 2 days…. Then I use a couple coats of clear coat to shine it up and make it look nice.

I have cleaned a few skills over the years but nowhere near the quantity of the OP.

A few more........

I’ve had good results with a crockpot too. The wolf isn’t degreased enough. I brushed on 40v and wrapped in a plastic bag for a few days. Don’t listen to the guys that say to boil it in bleach….lol. The coon I did turned white as eff but they’re brittle and will apparently slowly turn to dust over time.

A bunch that I worked on this year. I wish I did more predators!

Awesome pictures Gulo!! I’m glad someone took that pic of you with all those Marten skulls! Not sure if something like that has been done before, ever!

What I do is to fill the hollow teeth with Elmer's Glue. Run some glue into the tooth, roll it around to coat the inside, let it dry and repeat at least once. The glue stabilizes the tooth and keeps it from breaking. Don't let them sit in Baquacil for too long. Just enough to whiten the skulls and then rinse them off with hot water to break down the peroxide.

I don't use peroxide on mine. I like the looks of the natural bone tone.

That is super cool Sharon

Interesting find. Inuit or Japanese? Looks like something collapsed around them?