Sunday, April 28, 2013

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: First Adult Goat Skull processing progression photos & timeline.

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: First Adult Goat Skull processing progression photos & timeline.

1) As it started in early March, horn sheaths removed. Added to maceration tub. Some minor flesh and grease present.

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: See you in a few weeks my beautiful new goat friend. Bath time!

2) Removed from maceration and rinsed, mid April. Had been dumped and refilled once with water.

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: This goat skull & deer skull/mandible cleaned up nicely after a few weeks in maceration tubs. The deer unfortunately is a bit fragile & coming apart. I think it is because it is a juvenile or struck on the snout by a car

3) Started hydrogen peroxide bath mid April. No grease present or flesh. Only some bone staining.

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: Right now I have these skulls/bones in their final H2O2 bath. Deer skulls, goat skull & wild boar vertebrae. One deer skull is on the side to further lighten a stain. The goat skull was too big for the container so once

4) Done and horn sheaths replaced late April. Turned out gorgeous.

BONELUST BONE PROCESSING PROGRESS: First Adult Goat Skull is complete. This will be a keeper for my personal collection.

RELATED BLOG POSTS:

Bad Words: BOIL & BLEACH

The Mathematics Of Maceration - A HowTo Guide For The Impatient

Whitening Bone Using Hydrogen Peroxide NOT Chlorine Bleach

9 comments:

J.C. Schaumleffel said...

Great information...thank you! Just a quick question if I may...what "ingredients " are in your maceration tub?

Jana Miller said...

Literally just tap water, I don't use additives in my maceration process. More on that here:

Bad Words: BOIL & BLEACH - http://bone-lust.blogspot.com/2012/03/bad-words-boil-bleach.html

The Mathematics Of Maceration - A HowTo Guide For The Impatient - http://bone-lust.blogspot.com/2012/05/mathematics-of-maceration-howto-guide.html

J.C. Schaumleffel said...

Thank you for following up. If I'd been patient I would have found my answer in your vast array of highly informative blogs. I love your approach and will be using it on a first-time project. I was absolutely amazed at how cloudy the water became after just 4-6 hours (hog skull) on what I thought was pretty clean. Thanks again!

Purpleladyflutterby said...

Have you noticed that the chemicals in your tap water slow maceration down more than natural waters(lake,river,creek,etc)?

Jana Miller said...

That's a really good question! I'm fortunate to have my own well so I have 100% natural/pure water from the aquifer. But if there was enough pollutants, pesticides or chemicals in the water from a city's tap I imagine that yes, it could cause the maceration bacteria to grow slower or even not be able to live at all. Keeping in mind though that you also do not want some of the things that are in lake water in your maceration tub. I guess try your best to find out what is in YOUR local tap water - http://water.epa.gov/drink/local/

More info about what's can be in urban tap water -
http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/uscities.asp

Unknown said...

Hi Jana,

I recently acquired an old antelope skull with beautiful long horns, but the sheaths are looking pretty rough. They are incredibly dusty and flaking/cracking in some areas. I tried wiping off a small patch with plain water, and found a lot of brown on the cloth, and the sheath looking quite a bit lighter. (Possibly stained by a previous owner?)

I was wondering if you have any tips for the cleaning and care of horn sheaths.
Any suggestions for this particular situation? Any thoughts on oiling them?

I also wanted to thank you for the very quick response to a question I asked a few months ago. Your input was very useful and very much appreciated. I now have a lovely set of clean and whitened Fisher bones. Thank you!

Jana Miller said...

Alison Welsh, Sorry I really don't know much about polishing/care of horn sheaths at this time. i bet there's tons of info at taxidermy.net though! Good luck, jana

Unknown said...

hi, im currently using 3%hydrogen peroxide to whiten my elk skull. ive wrapped it in paper towel and poured the peroxide over it and ill repeat the process. my question is how long should i do this for? ive heard multiple people simply submerging the bones/skulls into the peroxide but this way is also popular. just wondering.

Jana Miller said...

Hi Anna, You're going to want to fully submerge the skull (not the antlers though!) in peroxide. Your current process seems like it may not fully soak into the bone and stay there and may also promote mold growth on the bone.Please not my other blog post - Whitening Bone Using Hydrogen Peroxide NOT Chlorine Bleach - http://bone-lust.blogspot.com/2013/06/whitening-bone-teeth-hydrogen-peroxide.html