Mounting Deer Head - Roe Buck
Here is a basic step by step how I would dress out a head, it is the same for fallow ,red ,sika & roe deer but I would say the bigger species are easier. This particular head is still in velvet ,you can take the velvet of using a wire brush then you will have to stain it but this one will look ok mounted with the vevet intact.
Remove all the skin & the bottom jaw from the head.
Boil it for an hour if you can get one of the urns they are ideal for this.
Once it has boiled let it cool down then remove all the meat, I use one of the mini wire brushes, remember to remove the bit at the base in the middle of the antlers.
Cut the skull roughly at this angle you can buy a jig for this & they do a very neat job like I said the bigger deer species are easier than roe ,once you've cut it remove the brain & give it another clean with the wire brush under a hot running tap.
Put it in a tub ,mix some tore up tissue paper & peroxide & cover the skull make sure not to get any on the antlers & leave it over night this will bleach the skull.
If the skull is not perfectly straight take the excess of with a grinder.
Cut a bit of wood to fit in the skull & stick it in using no more nails ,take your plaque ( you can get theses at www.attacc.com at a reasonable price) & mark where the hole is & drill a hole on the bit of wood then screw the head to the plaque.
THE FINISHED ARTICLE..
Then hang it on the wall with the rest of them.
