Musk ox question

[mnydir]

Would any know an approximate weight on a musk ox shoulder cape, horns, and meat? Nwt so barren ground sub species.

 

[Steve O]

My horns/skull were almost 50#, the front 1/2 cape was almost 50#. My buddy had to trim a bit to get his lifesize cape to the 100# limit.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

When ya going?

 

[mnydir]

My horns/skull were almost 50#, the front 1/2 cape was almost 50#. My buddy had to trim a bit to get his lifesize cape to the 100# limit.

Was that a skull cap or euro?

 

[Steve O]

Skull cap. But I don’t think the rest of the skull you would keep for the euro would amount to 2#. A musk ox skull cap is pretty substantial. Don’t count on just a havalon if you are taking apart a musk ox.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

How many lbs on a decent bull? Thinking 200-225 max...comparable to an elk.

 

[Steve O]

I don’t have an exact number. I was expecting a caribou under all that hair but it was a cross between an elk and a bison. Everything about butchering it was a chore. Sand in the endless hair, 1/2” thick leather, 3-9” of fat to even get to the meat, no neck just a mass of the toughest muscle I’ve ever encountered, and all the bones were massive.

This is one of the backstraps. The barrel on the rifle is 27” plus another couple for the brake:

 

[Steve O]

Best meat ever btw. Better than Kobe beef I’ve had in Japan. If I ever were to win the lotto I would buy the Governor’s tag every year and fly that sucker out whole to cut it up properly like a beef.

Here is a shot of the skull cap for reference:




Coolest animal in North America.

 

[mnydir]

Was caping out the skull a pain? Looks like it would be near impossible to get the wool between the bosses out?

 

[Steve O]

Yes. Anything near the head is incredibly difficult. Just getting to the atlas joint to get the head off was nearly impossible. Once I got back to the village one of the local elders offed to cape it for me for $100 and I could not pull that bill from my wallet fast enough. The taxidermist deals with the hair between the horns. I’d spend a little time with your taxidermist to get any tips he can give. Mine has killed 6 himself so was a great resource. Top items were a solid fixed blade knife and a screwdriver for prying skin.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Sending most to the taxi for a rug or shoulder mount cuz these creatures have a very unique look. Not like a moose or elk, they are much more distinctive. Wondering if I can fit it all into two of these bags for air transport. https://www.simmsfishing.com/collections/dry-creek/products/dry-creek-duffel-l-200l

 

[Steve O]

This is everything coming home. 50# prime cuts in the Yeti Hopper and critical gear in the Flip 12. Two Nomads and the largest Sitka duffle carried horns, cape, rifle, camp and all the rest of my diy gear.

 

[Steve O]

This is my favorite mount. I cannot justify a lifesize, that is just less I have to put towards the next trip. I’m almost positive if I can ever get a brown bear I’ll get a rug. They are incredibly impressive to me.

If I can ever get another musk ox, I’ll have a rug made of the hide and a euro mount. The euro musk ox skull is an awesome looking piece.

 

[Racer00]

Just got home last night with two musk ox from Nunivak Island. My nephew killed what we were told was a 6-7 year old bull. Had about 200lbs of boned meat. Full hide and skull with nose removed was another 110 lbs. Mine was aged at 8-9. Close to 250 lbs boned meat and the hide itself was another 100. I brought back full skull for a euro. Didn't weigh it but I'm guessing 35-40 for the skull itself.
We took 2 40 gal Craftsman totes for the hides (my nephew got his hide in as well as the skull in one tote). Only managed to get the hide in mine. They are super bulky. 4 30 gallon totes got my skull and as much meat as we could fit. We did donate some meat to the locals as we just couldn't fit it all in. There was more meat than we anticipated, and they could definitely use any we left. And freezer are full from fall elk and deer. Expensive to ship it all home and then give it away. Better to donate up there.

 

[buzzy]

I just got back from Nunivak Island as well and got a real nice bull. I brought home 207 pounds of meat. Would’ve had a little bit more but one of my shoulders was bloodshot so I didn’t get all the meat off of that shoulder. I used 3 18 gallon Rubbermaid roughneck totes and 2 1/2 fit all the meat for me to bring home. The cape fit into a couple of large contractor bags and I then used a lot of twine to wrap it up tight. The head was wrapped in my tarp and put into a couple of contractors bags with twine as well. I flew Alaskan air and bags 3-7 are $100 bucks for 100lbs. A little more expensive than Alaska air cargo but I don’t need to take a 2nd trip to the airport to get the meat.

 

[Stalker69]

How are you guys keeping the meat and hides cold while shipping ?

 

[buzzy]

I flew Alaska and asked for my meat and cape to be put into the freezer they have. The meat was already really cold/frozen. We processed it and put it into totes to get cold quickly. The hide was just about frozen but no need to freeze it for the ride home. It was just kept cold.

 

[Racer00]

We put ours in game bags, then double bagged it in contractor bags. Then into 20 gallon totes until it was around 100 lbs. Set it out side (it's cold on Nunivak in Feb) to freeze until we flew out. When we put it on AA air cargo in Bethel, they told us it would go in a freezer in Anchorage and in Seattle on the ride home. In Chicago they only had a cooler but when we picked it up, it was still frozen. The ride back to Michigan in the back of the truck saw temps in the mid 50's, but it was still almost totally solid when we got home after a 7 hour ride.

When you ship air cargo, they can tell you what the conditions are at your destination airport. Some have freezers, some only coolers, and I would imagine some have nothing. If that's the case and it is in warmer climes, you obviously would wanna be there as soon as it arrives to pick it up.

And remember, it needs to be thawed to process when you get home, so we where fine with it being slacked out a little on the trip.