Sitka Gear
What do you have to do with elk skull to
Elk
Contributors to this thread:
ElkWhisperer 18-Mar-24
StickFlicker 18-Mar-24
HDE 18-Mar-24
TJS 18-Mar-24
Nyati 18-Mar-24
DonVathome 19-Mar-24
Mule Power 19-Mar-24
HDE 19-Mar-24
Nyati 19-Mar-24
Nyati 19-Mar-24
Nyati 19-Mar-24
HiMtnHnter 19-Mar-24
Nyati 19-Mar-24
Griz 20-Mar-24
Darrell 20-Mar-24
HDE 20-Mar-24
18-Mar-24
What do you have to do with elk skull to bring back to your state from Arizona ?

From: StickFlicker
18-Mar-24
It depends more on which state you're bringing it back to than the one you're taking it from.

From: HDE
18-Mar-24
Check your state regs as mentioned.

Pay attention to AZ as well.

From: TJS
18-Mar-24
Skin, boil with dawn soap for several hours, and thoroughly power wash. Two times may be all you need to do to get brains out and all tissue off bone. That should be good for a finished product to make it "clean" for state to state transport. When home, apply a paste made with high % hydrogen peroxide and Basic White powder.

From: Nyati
18-Mar-24
Must be clean , should be dry With no tissue, brain or spinal column content.

Think of an European mount.

Not only do you have to worry about state you’re leaving and going to but also about each state line u cross while traveling

From: DonVathome
19-Mar-24
Hide it really well? Sorry I could not resist:)

From: Mule Power
19-Mar-24
Anything but strap it on the roof of your vehicle. Out of sight out of mind. Use common sense. You’re going to clean it when you get home anyway. Clean every single piece of hide meat and cartilage off of it. Get rid of the eyeballs. Remove the lower jaw and tongue. Peel the skin off of the roof of the mouth. After that, take a coathanger and put it in the hole at the orbital joint in the back of the skull and get the brains out of there. Finally, dump a cup of bleach in that little hole. Why? Because anyone who stopped you will look at it and smell it and know that you at least took the time to do your duty. in reality that’s the most important part. If somebody gets a citation because there’s skull was checked, it was most likely because they were completely negligent.

From: HDE
19-Mar-24
"Not only do you have to worry about state you’re leaving and going to but also about each state line u cross while traveling"

Not really as ling as it never leaves your possession. A person can't be expected to tag their animal the way every state does just because you're traveling through. Be like callingninto a check station in OK to tell them you shot an elk in CO...

From: Nyati
19-Mar-24
Has nothing to do with tag. It’s that most if not all states have laws prohibiting cervid brain and spinal material transported across their state line because of CWD

From: Nyati
19-Mar-24

Nyati 's Link

From: Nyati
19-Mar-24

Nyati 's Link

From: HiMtnHnter
19-Mar-24
What elk skull?

From: Nyati
19-Mar-24
The one attached to those antlers LOL

From: Griz
20-Mar-24
A cordless drill and a spade bit work really well in "milkshaking" the brain so it pours right out. I shot a bull in Wyoming and spent half a day cleaning it, car wash power washing, cleaning again, and soaking in a bleach water mix and rinsing. Basically looked like a euro mount and clean as a whistle (or so I thought). Wrapped the skull tightly in trash bags, duct taped it into a sealed package and locked it with chain into the bed of my truck for the ride back to PA. The locals told me the drug addicts in Douglas or on Rt 80 would steal it in a heart beat. When I got home, I unwrapped it to give it a good boil and it had some maggots in the package. I could not have done a better job but I guess wrapping it in plastic was a mistake.

From: Darrell
20-Mar-24
Griz, That or unwrapping it from the package may have been your mistake. Maggots do a great job of cleaning a skull. I cleaned one many, many years ago by leaving it in a shed in a plastic bag and the maggots did the work. Of course it was almost done when my beagle got in and chewed it all up. :(

Ended up working out well for me as I sent a buddy who was just getting into taxidermy to the spot I killed my elk and he killed and even larger one so in appreciation he did my bull for cost and it came out well. I still wanted to shoot that dog, however! Not sure I ever forgave her.

From: HDE
20-Mar-24
"Has nothing to do with tag"

You missed the point to my post, but that's okay...

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