I've done three bucks this year, all whitetails. I'm using a stainless steel 5 gallon pot on an electric hotplate out in the garage. I use tinfoil to cover the pot as best I can and hold them at a simmer juust below boiling all nite long. The meat just shakes off in the morning and there is little scraping to do. Then it's a trip outside to the pressure washer to knock everthing loose from all the nooks and crannies. A half hour back in the garage mixing up and applying the heavy peroxide and bleaching powder from the beauty shop and let it rest until the next day.
About 2 hours all told for actual work. I've been getting $50-75 a pop for them.
But then a guy just brought me an elk head he found dead in the woods. Must have died in late summer, most of it is rotted off. I can tell you right now that 5 gallon pot ain't cutting it!!!! Someone is bringing me the bottom half of a 55 gallon barrel. Pretty sure the ol' hotplate ain't up to this job either, so I'm planning on packing the skull, barrel tub, firewood, and my bowmaking stuff up to a public campground in the Hills and building a fire under it in one of the fire pits.
Maybe I should bring along my Rendezvous cooking gear and a nice venison roast to cook over the fire and make a small festival out of it. Head boilin', bow makin', meat roastin' festival.
