sous vide euro failure

[MinnesotaHunter]

Well Round 2 of a sous vide soak just started. I guess worst case scenario it doesn't work and it sits in a buddy's shed until spring. I think I'm going to repurpose an old 18 pack cooler for my mule deer as my tote wrapped with fiberglass insulation requires too much water for a deer skull. Also it's 15 degrees now so no pressure washer so I'm getting some more picks and scoops on Amazon delivered for brain removal

Once it gets cold, I have cleaned a skull or two in a pay and spray carwash....

 

[Davetats51]

Is this a new way of doing a euro? I boil once until the membrane on the nose splits then pressure wash until all meat is gone inside and out. Bring to a simmer in 40 volume peroxide then done. Comes out clean and white.

 

[npaden]

I did my sons whitetail and elk the last week. They actually turned out really well. The only negative is the pedicles. I didn't wrap the antlers and submerge them, I wrapped paper towels around the pedicle and it didn't quite get there to come off with the pressure washer. There is now a dried up layer of something just on the pedicle. Everything else worked really well.

Is there a way to get that layer off the pedicle? Will a peroxide bath get that? I didn't want to have to jack around with recoloring the antler.

 

[CMF]

I did my sons whitetail and elk the last week. They actually turned out really well. The only negative is the pedicles. I didn't wrap the antlers and submerge them, I wrapped paper towels around the pedicle and it didn't quite get there to come off with the pressure washer. There is now a dried up layer of something just on the pedicle. Everything else worked really well.

Is there a way to get that layer off the pedicle? Will a peroxide bath get that? I didn't want to have to jack around with recoloring the antler.

I'm not clear on what your talking about, are you trying to remove material left from boiling or trying to whiten the pedicle? I submerge the entire pedicle while boiling, but I don't put any peroxide in the boil. I haven't had the antler fade in boiling water. After its boiled good, anything on the pedicle falls off. After boiling I soak in peroxide bath, I use rag or papertowel to wick the peroxide up onto the pedicle

 

[npaden]

I probably just need to submerge it for a while in warm water to get the last bit off the pedicle. I didn't have it submerged so that part had a whitish almost skin like layer that didn't come off with the pressure washer that hardened back up when it dried. I thought using the paper towel would work while simmering but it didn't break it down enough.

I did 24 hours at 150 and 24 hours at 140 for both the elk and deer and the elk actually came cleaner than the deer. I still had a little nose cartilidge on the deer that I pulled out with a needlenose pliers. I kept the nasal sinus bones intact on both. Had a little scare when I got done pressure washing the elk and noticed it was missing both ivories. I sorted through the bits and pieces in the grass and was able to find them both though.

 

[MITCHMO]

Wow you guys are making me more excited about a project I’ve been working on. How about a clean skull in 4 hours for $5? You can even do it while at camp on the mountain? Deer only so far. But I’ve successfully done a couple now and getting it dialed in before I let the cat out of the bag.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

Well, last week I began my first sous vide euro on my raghorn. The process seemed to work great...140 degrees with some OxyClean for 14hrs. Pressure wash skull. Dunk again at 140 for another 12hrs pressure wash and pick off bits. Dunk again at 140 for another 12hrs to get the last resistant bits.

Bleach with the 40% peroxide and wrap with plastic wrap.

Due to time constraints and a family thing I had to attend. I left everything wrapped and put in a plastic tote out of the way. Fast forward to midnight last night and I walk into the house to a mild smell of funk. Lift skull to see bloodly liquid pool in the bottom of the tote and obvious smell of rotting meat. Looking around I see a faint pink staining inside the skull...no meat, no tissue, no cartilage but pink bone. Also bleaching process was patchy at best. My guess is 140 isn't hot enough and as @MinnesotaHunter mentioned in a reply in a different thread 180ish may be the magic number.

You guys think if I wash off the peroxide and dunk again at 180 for 6-8hrs to cook it that I could give it another go?

I think you need to go longer, 24 hours would be my minimum, 36-48 is typically what I shoot for...

I’ve found a difference between the various types of oxiclean, I go for the one that is dye/perfume free.

 

[Hem]

YouTube at its finest.
Whats the final goal? A skull with no meat or hair that looks white?
Jeez..stop overthinking the process.
Boil some water over a fire in a vessel large enough to submerge the skull to the horns. Boil it until the meat is cooked and comes off. DOESNT TAKE 48 HOURS. Clean the skull and plunk in to peroxide.
Disclaimer: it won't be chalky white...so what, close enough.

 

[nwihunter]

I’m far from an expert. I’ve maybe done 4 or 5 skulls so far and the last couple came out great. Before boiling I made a makeshift spoon out of some wire to get as much brain matter out as possible. I simmered in oxi for an hour and then power washed it. I did this 4 times, changing the water after the third round. After that I used Randy’s method of wrapping peroxide soaked paper towels around the skull and letting it sit for probably 18 hours or so. It worked great. Better than the ones that I boiled in peroxide. I’ve done it this way twice and it’s worked awesome. I did find my elk took a lot longer than the deer to do.

 

[nwihunter]

The deer skull did get a lot whiter the more it dried.

 

[MThuntr]

YouTube at its finest.
Whats the final goal? A skull with no meat or hair that looks white?
Jeez..stop overthinking the process.
Boil some water over a fire in a vessel large enough to submerge the skull to the horns. Boil it until the meat is cooked and comes off. DOESNT TAKE 48 HOURS. Clean the skull and plunk in to peroxide.
Disclaimer: it won't be chalky white...so what, close enough.

Good thing I asked you

also I don't have a vessel big enough nor do I want to buy some galvanized tub and fight with the constant wind

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

Good thing I asked you

also I don't have a vessel big enough nor do I want to buy some galvanized tub and fight with the constant wind

so tired of peoples euros that look like a dead head being like, it’s easy just take your thanksgiving bomb setup and then repurpose it for a different fire hazard. If your into a oily brown skull covered in desiccated flesh good for you but that’s not what I'm looking for in my finished product.

You can get a decent euro by boiling, but results tend to be inconsistent and a lot of them look like crap. Maceration creates a huge mess and a horrific smell, and makes degreasing a pain, beetles are great... but you gotta have beetles, using the Sous vide machine provides a more consistent result, without babysitting and is way less hazardous esp if you need to do it on doors.

 

[rwc101]

I don't give @wllm1313 credit for much, but the sous vide works. Like he said, longer and maybe a few degrees hotter.

 

[Hem]

Good thing I asked you

also I don't have a vessel big enough nor do I want to buy some galvanized tub and fight with the constant wind

Haha..I getcha. Not a constructive comment on my part. Guess the point is it can be done without a whole lot of fussing if one were so inclined.
Good luck with the curve.

 

[RobG]

I used to boil until someone showed me how it weakened the bones causing pieces to flake off. It's much better to do it with low heat and the sous vide really works well for me and you can do it in a plastic bin. The real serious people say you have to macerate but that is one nasty job.

The lining in the brain cavity always seems to be a pain to get out... I'm about ready to start sawing the bottom of the brain case off so I can access it better.

 

[trb]

I'd love to try sous vide... But I have had pretty good luck with my extremely jerry-rigged propane fire pit set up doing a double or triple simmer (NOT BOILING!) with dish soap, and coating in 40% peroxide. My last one started separating down the middle but was fairly easily fixed with gorilla glue. I'll give oxyclean a try next time too.

 

[KayakMacGyver]

By no means am I an expert, but I've done well over 100 skulls at this point and have done extensive research on the topic. So, I have strong opinions on this subject. There are sure multiple ways to skin the cat, but this is how I do it.

What you're describing is my preferred method for euro mounting a skull here in Florida. Fancy word for it is called maceration. In my opinion, the simplest way to go about it and least work required. I usually throw my skulls in a tub, hair and all, then just let it rot for a few weeks. When the bacteria is done doing its thing, I'm left with a relatively clean skull and just some grease to extract. All the meat just slides right off the bone after maceration is complete. Boiling skulls produces an inferior product over time, though I'm sure many will challenge me on that. However, I'm willing to take the Pepsi challenge any day and feel confident I'd win.

The degreasing step is where you separate good work from great work and where I see the most error occur. This is where you're warm water comes into play most critically. Avoid using any chemicals or additives in the skull, as like others have mentioned it can have adverse effects on the skull quality over time. The best thing you can do after you get the meat off is heat the water to 130 degrees and use good old Dawn dish soap (or any other heavy duty degreaser), changing the water frequently. Boiling skulls causes brittle bones and bakes grease into the skull. 130 degrees is the recommended de-greasing temp by any competent taxidermist who is dialed in on the euro mount game. Low and slow is the name of the game.

One other trick I've picked up that's really helped get ALL the grease out of the skulls is to use a 16oz/1gal ratio of regular old hydrogen peroxide to water. I'll run this combo at some point during the degreasing phase, when I think I've just about gotten all the grease out. Be sure not to add this to your dawn mixture, as the peroxide bubbles pretty good as it interacts with organic matter. There is always grease left, and this finishes it. This will give you a good kick start into the whitening process too. To finish I simply use beauty supply 40 volume stuff to really make em white. Kids Elmers glue works great for joining any bones back together that may have come disassembled in the maceration phase (typically the nasal bones), or hot glue for teeth.

 

[OntarioHunter]

Go to beautician or salon supply store and pick up a can of Clairol "Whitening Powder". Mix it wit the 40 volume peroxide to make a paste. Warm up the skull again in water that's simmering just below boiling. Don't leave it in too long (half hour at most) as you've already subjected it to a lot of heat treatment. Add a generous amount of Dawn to the pot first. SKIM OFF THE GREASE WHILE IT'S COOKING. Then after removing and while the skull is still warm, paint on the paste with a cheap synthetic bristle sash size paintbrush. Wrap in plastic wrap, leave overnight, wash thoroughly. Repeat as needed.

My skulls came back from African taxidermist thoroughly messed up. Boiled to pieces, flesh left on, stinking, and all of them were PAINTED white to cover it up. Took me weeks to clean them up. We certainly could not have that crap on the walls when we are in the taxidermy business ourselves. After stripping the paint, I followed the above process with good results. A few skulls required many repeat treatments and a couple needed only to be stripped of paint. Warthog and impala were the worst. Talk about stink!

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

I'd love to try sous vide... But I have had pretty good luck with my extremely jerry-rigged propane fire pit set up doing a double or triple boil with dish soap, and coating in 40% peroxide. My last one started separating down the middle but was fairly easily fixed with gorilla glue. I'll give oxyclean a try next time too.

The main problem IMHO with boiling is that it can go off the rails if you aren't careful.


These I "boiled"



The head on the far right has now turned a blueish color and is kinda flaky...


This one went off the rails...


Boiling inside... like a house not a garage isn't a good idea. I haven't had a garage for the last 10 years.

@KayakMacGyver maceration works well... but again not conducive to living in an apartment... also good look doing it in MT in November-December. Further IMHO it takes exactly the same amount of effort as using a sous vide machine.

I came up with using a Sous vide machine
1. So I could do it inside
2. So I leave it while I went to work without having to worry about it
3. I wanted consistent results
4. I was tired of picking

 

[EYJONAS!]

The local guy here charges $225 for an antelope. It’s absolutely insane.

Boy and I thought I got bent over to get my elk cut and wrapped for 400 bucks.

Makes me feel like that's a win now

That's why I do my own euros so I can't get screwed by the butcher