When you hang a deer to skin it do you hang head down or butt down? I have always hung deer head down but heard through a friend of a friend that butt down makes it easier, especially for caping a Buck to be mounted. Thoughts? I have never tried hanging the deer butt down but after skinning a doe a couple of weeks ago, I can see how it might be easier. I can see how this would make going over the front shoulders and neck easier. Also, it would to me that if the deer was hung for several hours or overnight before skinning, butt down would make it easier for blood to drain out. Does anyone do it this way?
I always skin my with the deer hung from the rear legs. I would think that caping a buck would actually be harder to do if hung the other way, since gravity would be working against you. Another advantage of hanging a deer from the rear legs is that the muscles of the legs will actually stretch out, and that makes them more tender. Generally, those muscles will be some of the tougher ones you process, so I like to stretch them out until the rigor process has run it's course (gets stiff, then loosens up again).
I have always hung them by the back legs, head down. I use a gambrel and hoist system. Like Slugger, I think it makes things easier, and it is what I am familiar/comfortable with.
If camping a buck, I always skin with the head down. If I'm just skinning a doe, I skin her with head up. They do drain better this way and I skin with a winch and very little knife work. With caping it's all knife. When skinning the doe, just cut down thru the ears, split up the neck and around to the ear cut. Next tie around ears and start winching .. Split and cut around legs. Takes about 3-5 minutes to skin one with almost zero hair when your done. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
