Elk Ivories How To

[KayakMacGyver]

I've not been fortunate enough to accumulate a large treasure chest of Elk ivories, so forgive my ignorance here. My first set came out of a dead head and were pretty much a finished product. My second set were "claimed" by a taxidermist who did a quick clean up of my skull so I could transport across state lines. That was my first elk kill and hurts me to think about. I was fortunate enough to kill another bull this year and made sure to pull the ivories. However, this set is different than what I pulled from the deadhead. Pics below show the difference.....

Elk ivories from my dead head and recent bull are shown below. The dead head ivories are on the bottom and recent bull are on top. Notice that the recent ivories have a hollow component to them, whereas the deadhead ivories are a solid piece of ivory.

Do I need to grind away the casing on my recent ivories? Wondering if perhaps that rotted on the deadhead I found? Would love to know what kind of prep work is necessary to make elk ivories look as good as the ones I pulled from the dead head, or even better.

Thanks in advance!

 

[diamond hitch]

Spike / heifer ivories are hollow. They don't get color and character until 4 or five. Not much you can do. Your dead ones are off an older elk and are worn. I have a couple that are barely polished roots. Tough chewing! Keep hunting! They become more impressive in buckets. Looks like you cleaned them well. I couldn't even do that when I started.

 

[325 WSM]

Put them in your pocket with loose change & then go about your business, almost like a tumbler for brass. Clean as a whistle in no time

 

[406LIFE]

Unless you're planning to do something with them, there's no reason to do much more than way them. I've toyed with the idea of a ring with my largest bull but I probably wouldn't wear it much. Mine just sit in a case in my office.

 

[KayakMacGyver]

Thank you for the insight and recommendations! I'm actually having some earrings made for my wife for Christmas this year. My cousin does some really neat stuff wrapping rocks with wire and she is going to make a set for me out of sterling silver. Planning to send her the dead head set but was hoping there would be something I could do to get my recent set ready for something else cool. Guess I'll just have to wait a while!

 

[ammo]

I commissioned a bolo for my dad for his 65th birthday (coincidently with the elk ivories from the elk I got last year on my birthday!) He ended up loving it so much that he used ivories that he had for cufflinks from the same jeweler!

 

[Seeleylakehunter]

Fresh Coffee grounds in a sandwich bag and get to rubbing. Little bit of old english spray when you are done . Grounds will add to the dark that is there and the old english will shine it up.