deer skinning made easy

[Mk42gunner]

I've always hung deer by the rear legs, never had a problem skinning them; coyotes on the other hand can be tough to get the hide off of.

On butchering: I may not make the cuts a butcher would, but I have always managed to get them into eating size chunks.


Robert

[Rockydog]

Not much to skinning a deer if you do it while they are still warm. Most of the time when I shoot a deer the hide is off within 2 hours. Sooner if possible. I hang them with a gambrel on the back legs, split the hide from the pelvic bone up too the hock by running a knife underneath the hide. Pull that hide down to the tail. Cut the tail bone off and pull the hide down to the front legs. Cut the legs off at the knee, slide a knife up underneath the back of the leg to meet the body hide where it's been split for field dressing. Skin the legs out and pull the hide down to the base of the skull. Decapitate and have a nice day. If the deer is warm it's a 10 minute project, 15 at the most. My venison tastes better too. IMO leaving them hang to age just adds to the gamey flavor and the warm meat just gives any bacterial contamination from wound channels etc. more time to grow. RD

[Adam10mm]

We use an air hose for rabbit and squirrel. Haven't tried it on deer. We just make a small cut, then stick the blower attachment thing from the compressor inside the hole and turn it on.

[Southern Son]

In Western New South Wales for a while the Roo shooters would skin the Roos before they took them to the chiller. Most of them had a small electric motor on the side of the tray on the back of their ute. This drove a chain (about 3/4 inch links) and the chain wet to the rear of the ute where it went around an old tyre rim before completing the circle by going back to the motor. To skin the Roos the shooter hoisted the head shot Roo on a small crane on the back of the ute where they would gut them and then make the first cuts on the skin (around the neck, down and then around each leg, etc.), then they would start pealing the skin at the neck before putting a hook through the folds of skin. The hook was then hooked on the chain and the motor did all the work.

During a good season (lots of rain), some of those Roos shooters would have to skin more Roos in a couple of weeks than most farmers would shoot deers in a year.

[Lloyd Smale]

if i had to do one or two deer a year i probably wouldnt worry about it buy when crop damage shooting is going on i sometimes have to do three in a day. Even when warm doing 3 is a job and in deer season up here your deer is half froze by the time you get it home. Ive done the 4wheeler and trruck thing to and yes that works too. Both are better then the conventional way if not for the ease just for the fact that you end up with alot less hair on the meat. I personaly id 42 deer this year and even at 60 bucks a crack figure it out. Plus theres the fact that i get the meat the way i want it. Alot of butchers wont bone meat out they use a saw and leave the bone in and that doesnt cut it. I also have control of what goes into my buger and sausage meat. We do send about 20 a year to a local butcher but those are deer we donate to food programs. By law they have to be done by a butcher and the butcher does these for a fee paid by the food pantry. We did a little checking this year and found the butcher we were using was scarfing all the back straps for himself and i know that when he did my buffalo some of the meat seemed missing and i would guess that its a common occurance with alot of butcher shops. Also when a deer processer does your venison you have no control as to what venison you get back. If he is doing 4 or 5 deer at a time you may be getting venison from someone elses deer. That is especially true when you have him make up sausage. Not a real big deal but you dont know how long that other deer was hanging or how it was taken care of. Ive done alot of deer and have it down pretty well. I can take a deer from hide on to the freezer in about an hour and a half. Now even at 60 bucks thats at least 30 bucks an hour paying to do it when i can do it myself. Thats a new mold for every deer i do. Do 10 and ive just bought a new gun. No thanks ill do it myself. I guess i relate it to handloading and casting. Sure its easier to buy ammo but its not the same as taking the time to do it yourself. I also work on my own cars trucks and bikes when im capable. I dont allways save money doing it but theres some satisfaction to doing something yourself.

[montana_charlie]

It is the thought of the skinning job that has always made me hold off on that elephant hunt...

for me it was the uphill drag

You need one of those 'carts' for moving game the easy way...

[JIMinPHX]

There's some new skinning gizmo out on the market for skinning deer with compressed air???

I've been using compressed air for over 20 years. Some guys in Rhode Island that were off the boat from Portugal showed me that trick on a lamb back around 1984. I've been skinning just about everything that way ever since. You just put a little slit in the skin at an ankle, then stick in the nozzle of a compressed air gun, wrap your hand around the ankle real tight & open the valve. the animal blows up just like a balloon. After that, you slit the skin & the hide just falls right off.

[Southern Son]

You need one of those 'carts' for moving game the easy way...

Couldn't you just do what I have seen them do in movies, you know, where they just throw a deer over the bonnet and drive back into town (maybe they don't have four wheel drives in Africa????).

[Rockydog]

If I'm going to have the butcher make hot sticks, weiners etc. I bone out my own meat and put it in the freezer until April or so. Then after everybody elses deer is long gone I take it to him and when he has a slow day he makes my sausage. No temptation to throw mine in with everybody elses that way. RD

[Storydude]

I know weight coming in, weight coming back and weight discarded.

This is not some mass production line butcher I go to. the guy is like 70 and only does 20-30 a season.

And usually he does each deer one at a time. Old school service and quality...not some joe shmoe busting out deer by the truckload.

[fatnhappy]

Couldn't you just do what I have seen them do in movies, you know, where they just throw a deer over the bonnet and drive back into town (maybe they don't have four wheel drives in Africa????).

I'll pay you a dollar to see you throw a dead elephant on the hood of a toyota.

[toallmy]

Does anyone have a video of air skinning deer , or blowing the hide ?

[ascast]

we shoot lots of deer doing crop damage shooting. Some years over a 100 and i HATE skinning deer. I just bought an air skinner. Its a deal that uses an air compressor to inflate the hide and make it much easier to remove. I was skeptical but was willing to try it for the 30 bucks it cost. How be dammed if this thing doesnt actually work.

gotta picture?

[toallmy]

I just googled it - seams nice , but I think all the the people making the videos are using a little to much pressure . Am I the only one that hates skinning ?

[M-Tecs]

http://airskinner.com/

[mulespurs]

Just for grins look up on youtube "fastest deer skinner"
There are several of them but they can do it a minute and a half or so. Lots easier if the deer is still warm.

Then look up "boning out a deer". I saw one several years ago by a meats teacher who boned out 1/2 a deer in 8 minutes while he was explaining the whole thing. He could have easily done the whole deer in 8 minutes and be ready to wrap it up.

[Hogdaddy]

In my younger years, After the deer was hung by the ( hind legs )
I'd have it sinned in 7 1/2 mins. Now I'm older, double that, though the deer is hung in less than 1-2 hrs max ; )
H/D

[farmerjim]

I am spoiled. I shoot the deer in my back yard. Hoist into the bead of my truck. Drive 2 miles to my friends camp. Unload deer at sloped concrete floor 16 foot tall skinning shed.
Hoist deer by hind legs with electric hoist. Make cuts on legs and belly to get skinning started. Lower deer to floor and attach steel wire loop to hide. Raise deer with hoist hitting any spots that stick with knife.Gut deer into tub. Cut off front legs with cable cutter, cut off head with meat saw. Wash down with hose and move deer 6 feet into walk in cooler. Total time hoist to cooler is under 10 minutes. Go home and come back next morning and process and package deer. Life is good.

[Grmps]

Air Skinner in Action

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YEMt_nY21Y

I wonder if you could try sharpening a ball inflating needle or if that would be too small.

[waksupi]

I let the processor take care of that job LOL.

My guy charges under 100 bucks for dressing, butchering and packaging. I feel it's worth 2X that LOL

Problem is, most times you won't get back your own meat. They do them in big batches. While you may have taken perfect field care of your deer, you are just as likely to get back some of Bubba's gut shot hairy mess.