What size is an elk head?

[Brillo]

My son is a welder and he wants to make me a stainless steel pot for boiling out an elk head for transport.
I am thinking of a 16x24x16H pot. Does that sound right? Any better ideas that do not include a power washer? Thanks.

 

[Billy Goat]

Seems plenty big. Not that big of a concern other than heating that much water. You could trim a couple inches all the way around and not be heating as much. I think 21×14×14 would be fine.


Your first dimensions are 26.5 gallons of water, reducing it to the above dimensions takes it to 17.5.

 

[Laelkhunter]

Instead of making it round, maybe possibly an oval shape? The problem of submerging the head in the water in the pot depends on the spread of the antlers. If they are wide, they might limit the depth it will go into the pot. If it is oval shape the whole skull may be able to be submerged without the antlers hitting the side of the pot.

 

[Jimss]

Take a look at taxidermy supply catalogs online. They show head, neck, and body measures.

 

[Castle Oak]

I have a euro mount that measures 19" L X 8.5" W X 7" Deep (from bottom of skull to base of antler). Hope this helps.

 

[Smithb9841]

I remember seeing a video there’s a company that makes these specifically for that. Look up Bridger boiler and use the dimensions they use would probably be your best bet

 

[Tod osier]

My son is a welder and he wants to make me a stainless steel pot for boiling out an elk head for transport.
I am thinking of a 16x24x16H pot. Does that sound right? Any better ideas that do not include a power washer? Thanks.

If square or rectangular, going corner to corner will conserve space needed. 25 gallons is a lot of water and weight with heating extra being of little benefit.

 

[Wapiti1]

If you cover the head with foil while it's boiling, you don't need to submerge it completely. The steam will loosen the flesh. I use the 15 gallon boil pot my turkey fryer came with and foil the top over. Works fine for getting it clean enough to transport.

Jeremy

 

[Geewhiz]

I have a euro mount that measures 19" L X 8.5" W X 7" Deep (from bottom of skull to base of antler). Hope this helps.

Just measured one of mine and it’s just about the same.

 

[5MilesBack]

I have a full shoulder mount bull that's almost 11" wide, 10" high from bottom of jaw to top of the skull, and 24" from tip of nose to back of skull. Those measurements would drop some without the cape. But depends on the size of the bull, as they're all different.

 

[Erict]

Stability of the pot is going to be important, as the water, at 8.3 lb/gal, will be quite heavy and the antlers sticking out of the top of the pot will further make it a bit unstable. Maybe you are heating over a fire with a tripod. Might want to consider two handles at 9 and 3 oclock for carrying the pot, and two more at 1 and 5 oclock so that you could hang it off of 3 handles (9, 1, 5).

Hard boiling a skull is very likely to destroy all of the fine nasal cavity bones that in my opinion make a euro mount look better. Simmering at a lower temperature can save them, but it makes the process take longer. A big project, no doubt, but credit to you for planning ahead. Good luck!

PS - On another thread is this which you may find useful as he uses a custom pot:

When we have been lucky enough to bring a bull back to camp, we will clean it up like this.

First thing we do is get a HD black industrial trash bag and wrap the skull in this very tight and tie it up good. Then we take an air nozzle, the one in the shape of a pistol with a 6-8" needle for blowing air into tight spaces. Cram that down through the back of the skull and make sure you got a full tank of air, turn your head and squeeze quickly a couple times. First blast tends to blow the whole brain right out another hole, thus the heavy duty trash bag. Once that is done, I move to stage two.

I had a guy in a welding shop build me a oval pot with a skirt around the base. It's deep enough to drop the whole skull in, but not wide enough to allow the antlers to get into the water. The skirt goes over the turkey fryer base and keeps more heat in under the pot. I take a 20 pound propane tank anyways for the little Webber grill, so I have plenty of propane to boil out several skulls.

I add some Borax to the mix and monitor the water level from time to time and basically cook all the rest of the meat off until the skull is fairly clean. Then I pull it out and let it cool just a little, and take a fillet knife and scrape off all the loose pieces. When I'm done with this, the skull is very clean with no brains inside or flesh outside.

For the hide, we generally will clean as much flesh as we can off, then fold it up and put it into a trash bag and drop it in the deep freezer in the back of the camper. We have salted the hides before, but I have found most taxidermists don't like them salted but prefer them frozen.

 

[TheTone]

I have two homemade elk “pots”. One steel and one aluminum. I’ll get some pics and dimensions of the aluminum one on here later today. It’s awesome! Only issue is when other people know you have it

 

[TheTone]

So mine internally is 24 long, 10 wide and 7 deep. I think it’s close to perfect. Big bulls can be tricky depending on bases and width.
I really like the lid design on the Bridger boiler and the antler support rod it has

 

[cgasner1]

Make it triangular my buddy has a homemade for deer it’s slick same takes way less water would probably only need to be about 8-9” deep that way


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Stubborn_bowhunter]

I have two homemade elk “pots”. One steel and one aluminum. I’ll get some pics and dimensions of the aluminum one on here later today. It’s awesome! Only issue is when other people know you have it

Looking forward to seeing pictures.
I've been bouncing around the idea of fabricating one for a couple years now, but haven't been able to justify it yet.

Just got my new TIG a couple months ago, and can fab up aluminum at home now.

 

[TheTone]

Couple pics of my aluminum one. The drain is fairly handy although I don’t always use it. The “handles” on the end make dumping it quick. Most of my cooking is done on my campchef with one or two burners going. I use it with an aquarium heater for longer soaks and degreases also.

 

[Mmomn]

I've used the Behrens 7.5 gallon and 10 gallon tubs for around $20. The 7.5 is pretty tight and might be small on a big skull