Use of magnesium carbonate

[mulebuck]

Has anyone ever used or heard of using a mixture of magnesium carbonate and glue to finish skulls (european mount)? Just curious if this practice is common among taxi's. Thanks

 

[hawkbill]

I use it mixed with hydrogen peroxide to coat the skull with a paste, it comes out supper clean and white

 

[mulebuck]

I use it mixed with hydrogen peroxide to coat the skull with a paste, it comes out supper clean and white

Gotcha. So, this a whitening method then. That said, do the guys that use this stuff bother with de-greasing?

 

[Uttaxi1]

Yes degrease, and when you think it's good enough. Do it again. I like to start the whitening process while the bone is still wet from degreasing.

 

[mulebuck]

I recently had a gentleman bring be a bear skull that was in need of having most of its teeth glued back in place and re-sealed. It was finished by another taxidermist. At first glance I noticed something off about the color/finish. It had a slight pink/yellow hue to it. I asked if he wanted the skull to be re-whitened and he obliged. Once I started working on it, I found areas (of whatever application was used) starting to rub off. It looked to me like it had been painted. It was very yellowed underneath. I ended up soaking the skull in acetone, then lacquer thinner. Nothing seemed to break down the stuff much so I ended up wire brushing most of it off. I re-whitened, glued teeth back in, and sealed it. Turned out great. Later I found out that a mixture of glue and magnesium carbonate has been used on the skull. Seems like this method is more of a cover-up application than a true whitening process. It was a first for me, so I was just curious as to how widely used the method is to this day.

 

[hawkbill]

You want to simmer the skull using sodium carbonate, this will degrease it’s and every thing will come off easy. Then I power wash and let dry. Then mix a paste of magnesium carbonate and hydrogen peroxide and brush on , let sit rinse off. Let sit in the sun for 2 days

 

[mulebuck]

So you're essentially using it as a thickener in order to apply the peroxide. That makes sense. I wanted to know if its common practice to use it as a polymer mixed with glue for a finishing coat.

 

[hawkbill]

I have not heard of it mixed with glue, this maybe old school. I have seen what you are talking about, it almost looks like a shellac that has yellowed.

 

[mulebuck]

I have not heard of it mixed with glue, this maybe old school. I have seen what you are talking about, it almost looks like a shellac that has yellowed.

Exactly

 

[Joe2Kool]

First, I'm no taxidermist, but I've done maybe 10 euros. When I'm simmering (10 hours at 180-200 deg), I change the water every couple hours, and pour about a cup of borax and several few big squirts of dawn dishwashing liquid each time. Afterwards I whiten with 40 Volume Creme that you can buy at beauty supply stores.

I bought a kit from Melby Outdoors that contains the mag carb. According to the instructions, the mag carb is just a whitening agent to mix with peroxide. Kinda disappointed cause I thought it was a quicker way to get the skull clean of meat. The 40 volume creme and dawn is much cheaper. I'll use it anyway.

Next time I think I'll try the maceration process (110 degrees for few weeks, changing the water every couple days) Takes a long time but it looks like it will be easier on the delicate nose bones than the higher temp simmering.

 

[Joe2Kool]

Here is another helpful link:

Euro Taxidermy Thread? | General Hunting | Monster Muleys Community

 

[hawkbill]

I would love to do the maceration process but I live on a small farm with a bunch of animals and I just don’t want to deal with the mess and stench to draw in more predators. The results look amazing.

 

[Joe2Kool]

You want to simmer the skull using sodium carbonate, this will degrease it’s and every thing will come off easy. Then I power wash and let dry. Then mix a paste of magnesium carbonate and hydrogen peroxide and brush on , let sit rinse off. Let sit in the sun for 2 daysView attachment 22078

About how long do you simmer? It seems to take me about 8+ hours to get it completely clean. That yellow stuff on the back of the skull and around the ear holes seems to take forever. I've tried pressure washing and cutting it off with a razor, but it still takes forever.

I have good success with the degreasing and whitening, just struggle keeping those fragile nose bones intact. Seems like they become more brittle the longer it simmers. That's why I want to try the maceration.

 

[hawkbill]

It does take most of the day to simmer the head correctly. I have tried Borax and dawn dish washing soap. The Sodium Carbonate woks better in my opion for degreasing. after about 4 hours simmer, I will pull the skull out and cut and clean it the best I can, then put it back in the pot to simmer. It is hard to get every little piece of meat out of nooks and cranny. I do a lot of heads and dead heads I pick up, they come out good enough for me. There was a guy on here that showed the results from the macreation process on his skulls, they come out museum quality. Give it a try, I would like to here and see your results.

 

[Joe2Kool]

Thanks HB! I'll probably stick with the simmering this time. A little too cold for the maceration outside.