If you've just bagged a trophy buck, learning how to skin a deer head for mounting is the next critical step to ensure your taxidermist has enough quality hide to work with. There is nothing worse than bringing a beautiful set of antlers to the shop only to find out you ruined the cape by cutting too short or nicking the face. It's a bit of a delicate process, but honestly, if you take your time and follow a few basic rules, you'll do just fine.
The most important thing to remember before you even touch a knife is that you can always cut off extra hide later, but you can't put it back on. Most taxidermists prefer that you leave them too much skin rather than too little.
Grab the right gear first
Before we dive into the cuts, let's talk tools. You don't need a whole laboratory setup, but a dull pocketknife isn't going to cut it—literally. You'll want a very sharp, replaceable-blade knife (like a Havalon) or a dedicated skinning knife that holds an edge well.
Keep some extra blades handy because deer hair is incredibly abrasive and will dull a blade faster than you'd think. You'll also want some rubber gloves to keep things clean and a flat surface or a gambrel to make the work easier on your back. If you're working on the floor, just make sure you aren't dragging the hide through dirt or pine needles, which can be a pain to clean out later.
Making the initial cape cuts
When you're learning how to skin a deer head for mounting, the "cape" is the term for the skin from the shoulders up to the head. The biggest mistake rookies make is cutting the throat. Never cut the throat of a deer you plan to mount. The taxidermist has to sew all those cuts back together, and a throat slit is nearly impossible to hide perfectly.
Start by making a circular cut all the way around the deer's midsection, well behind the front legs. A good rule of thumb is to go about six inches behind the shoulder. This ensures the taxidermist has plenty of skin for a "pedestal" or a deep-chest mount.
From that circular cut, make another cut up the back of the neck. Stay right on the spine, following the dark line of hair until you get to the base of the skull, right between the ears. At this point, you should have a flap of skin that can be peeled forward toward the head.
Working toward the ears and antlers
Once you've peeled the skin up to the base of the skull, you'll hit the ears and the antlers. This is where things get a little tighter. Use your fingers to pull the skin away from the muscle while using your knife to nick the connective tissue.
When you get to the ears, you want to cut the ear butt as close to the skull as possible. Don't worry about "turning" the ears (skinning the cartilage out) just yet if you're a beginner; most taxidermists are happy to handle that part as long as you leave the ear attached to the skin. Just find where the ear canal meets the bone and slice through the cartilage.
Next are the antlers. This part is a bit of a wrestling match. You need to work the skin away from the "burr" (the bumpy base of the antler). Use a screwdriver or a blunt tool to help pry the skin up if it's being stubborn. You want to get the skin completely free from the antler base without tearing it. It takes a little patience, but keep circling the antler with your blade, making tiny nicks until the skin pops free.
The face: where the magic happens
Now you're at the face, and this is the "make or break" part of how to skin a deer head for mounting. The skin around the eyes, nose, and lips is paper-thin. If you rush here, you're going to have a bad time.
When you reach the eye sockets, stick your finger into the eye from the outside. This helps you feel where the eyelid is so you don't accidentally slice through it. You want to cut deep into the socket so the entire eyelid stays attached to the hide. If you cut the eyelid, the deer is going to look "off" once it's mounted, and your taxidermist will have to spend hours trying to reconstruct it with clay.
After the eyes, work down toward the nose and mouth. For the tear ducts (those little pits in front of the eyes), be extremely careful. They are deep and the skin is tucked way in there. Take your time to "roll" the skin out of the duct while cutting close to the bone.
For the mouth, keep your knife against the teeth. You want to leave about an inch of the inner lip skin attached to the hide. This gives the taxidermist enough material to "tuck" the lips into the mouth of the form, which creates that realistic look. Finally, cut through the nose cartilage, leaving plenty of it attached to the skin.
Dealing with the skull
Once the skin is completely off, you'll have the "cape" (the hide) and the "skull" (with the antlers). If you're doing a shoulder mount, the taxidermist usually doesn't need the whole skull—they just need the "skull plate" where the antlers are attached.
Using a bone saw or a hacksaw, cut a V-shape or a straight line through the skull to remove the antlers with a piece of the bone holding them together. Be careful not to cut too close to the base of the antlers, or they might become loose or fall off the plate.
If you aren't comfortable doing this part, most guys just bring the whole head (skinned or unskinned) to the taxidermist. But if you've followed these steps on how to skin a deer head for mounting, you've already done the hardest part of the work.
Storage and handling
Now that you have your cape off, what do you do with it? Bacteria is your enemy. Heat and moisture will cause the hair to "slip," which is just a nice way of saying the hair will fall out in clumps.
If you can get it to a taxidermist within a few hours, just keep it cool. If it's going to be a day or two, you need to freeze it. Fold the skin flesh-to-flesh (don't let the hair touch the bloody meat side if you can help it), roll it up, put it in a heavy-duty trash bag, and squeeze all the air out.
Don't salt the hide unless you are 100% sure you know what you're doing and you've finished all the detailed skinning (like turning the ears and splitting the lips). Salting an improperly prepared hide can actually lock in moisture and make it impossible for the taxidermist to finish the job correctly. Most of the time, just keeping it frozen is the safest bet.
Common mistakes to avoid
Even if you're careful, mistakes happen. However, knowing the pitfalls helps. One of the biggest blunders is "short-capping." This happens when hunters cut the skin too close to the head in the field. Remember: always go further back on the ribs than you think you need to.
Another issue is leaving too much meat or fat on the skin. While the taxidermist will do a final "fleshing," leaving huge chunks of meat makes the cape heavy, messy, and prone to rotting faster. Try to keep it as clean as possible as you go.
Finally, watch out for the "whiskers." Deer have long tactile hairs around their muzzle and eyes. If you cut too close to the surface, you'll slice the roots of these hairs and they'll fall out. Keep your blade angled toward the bone, not the skin.
Wrapping it up
Learning how to skin a deer head for mounting is a skill that gets better with practice. The first one you do will probably take you an hour or more as you gingerly pick at the eye sockets. By the fifth one, you'll be much faster and more confident.
Just remember to breathe, keep your knife sharp, and don't be afraid to call your taxidermist if you get stuck. Most of those guys are happy to give advice because they want the hide to arrive in good shape just as much as you do. After all, it's a lot easier for them to mount a well-prepared cape than to try and solve a jigsaw puzzle of accidental cuts!