Hunting & Fishing Darkening Antlers

[gingerking5566]

So, I just boiled a skull which had velvet on the antlers. After stripping the velvet the antlers are so white. Any process recommendations for getting them to that normal brownish color?

 

[FatBoy]

you are lucky enough to have an early season, maybe preserve the look. I haven't used them, but we have no early season in TN.

https://www.replicaracks.com/artificial-velvet-replacement.html

 

[EXTREMEPREJUDICE]

Google potassium potassium permanganate , that's what taxidermists use. I imagine wood stain would probably work also.

 

[xdeano]

Lots of guys use coffee grounds.

Xdeano

 

[boudin]

I’ve heard brown shoe polish works well, but when I asked the guy who does my European mounts, he said the bone needs to be able to breathe and polish clogs the pores.

 

[wahootwo]

As mentioned above, coffe grounds. I've used this method a couple of times, and it does work.

 

[niteshooter]

I’ve heard brown shoe polish works well, but when I asked the guy who does my European mounts, he said the bone needs to be able to breathe and polish clogs the pores.

I would think no with the shoe polish.
Long ago as a kid I tried some on old dry sun bleached antlers. Can’t exactly recall “kiwi brown color”.
It turned them brown but might as well have paint brushed them or used brown crayola marker cuz that’s how they looked afterwards.
Granted I didn’t really know what the hell I was doing then; but messing up one real nice set of antlers was enough for this lifetime.
Maybe practice on some junky spike antlers first.

 

[BullGear]

Another vote for coffee grounds. Seen it done and it looks good.

Whatever you decide, good luck!

 

[300winemag]

Another vote for coffee grounds. Seen it done and it looks good.

Whatever you decide, good luck!

The taxidermy gal I asked said she uses linseed oil, it darkens and shines. Good for old horns too.

 

[hlee]

Just for the record, antlers are naturally that white. The yellow to brown staining you see on anteroom is a function of bucks rubbing their antlers on trees. As a result, plains deer tend to have substantially lighter antlers than deer that live in the woods. I would leave them as they came out of the velvet.