Thread: Boiling bone

Yesterday I bought a big bone at the butchers because I didn't have any left to make knife bolsters.
I like using bone for bolsters because it looks good, is maintenance free, and is easy to work.
The bone was a piece of cow's leg. Ideal for my purposes because the actual bone is very thick.

My wife was out and I used the opportunity to do some more forging while the bone was cooking in boiling water to remove fat, gristle, meat scraps and marrow. After an hour or so I got back into the house to get more coffee, and my first thought was: 'my wife is going to kill me'. The entire lower floor of the house stank. As it turns out, boiling bones with stuff attached to them can stink really bad.

I opened the door and windows, turned the exhaust to full power and hoped that my wife would stay out for a couple of hours more. I got lucky, because by the time she came home, the stench had gotten down to a very faint lingering smell.

So if you are thinking of doing the same in order to clean bones, take care to do it smartly. Either do it when your wife is out, or do it outside. Don't risk the mrs getting home in the smell of boiling bones because she will be mightily unpleased.

LMAO,,, been there dealt with that

I bought a Box-o-Bison bones to do the same so far had time to work ONE thats right one hehehe

I got the "Glare" big time..

Did you put in some Hydrogen Peroxide in with the water ?????

LOL - you are a lucky man Bruno! I did the same thing... Kind of. I place a nice sized mostly de-boned shank in my oven and thought if I turned it on low and went out to the pub, when I got back all would be golden.

Who knew meat had so much oil in them . My little 800 square foot batch pad reeked!! I washed the walls, but even that didn't work. Eventually I repainted the whole pad.

What a nightmare lol .

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Did you put in some Hydrogen Peroxide in with the water ?????

No just salt.

After the first time, I cooked it 2 more times. Only the first time did it really stink.
After, I cleaned the bone, scooped out marrow, and tore off everything I could.
The second time it only smelled a bit. Third time it was odorless.

I assumed you use peroxide to bleach the bone?

Boiling is a good, but messy way to clean the bones as the only method.
An alternative and more traditional way to clean bones from fat etc is to bury it into the ants nest for few days. Still used by traditional artesan knife makers. Take it away after few days and boil it. This time it wont be that messy or smelly.
If you have raccoons, wolves or fox living near, you can't leave the bone on top of the nest, if you want to see it again. You have to bury it deep.
Peroxide is ok to bleach the bone, but you have to be careful with it. There are several safier products available.

Originally Posted by Bruno

I assumed you use peroxide to bleach the bone?

Yes and to stop all Biologic processes, honestly I just followed the directions I read about doing European Skull mounts years ago figured it should work for scales too so far so good

And do you actually boil it in the stuff, or just leave it soaking for a while?

Originally Posted by Bruno

And do you actually boil it in the stuff, or just leave it soaking for a while?

here http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...s-scratch.html

That thread has a good link to cleaning bone in there I don't use pure Hydrogen Peroxide I mix it about 50/50 I have found leg bones etc: are way easier than a full skull

This is interesting. Actually i have few dried reindeer leg bones *somewhere* in my garage i've planned to make work knife handles, but sweetly forgotten.
So i just checked from one of those good old Scandinavian traditional hand skills forums and those who work with these things as a profession, wont boil the bones these days.
There's always small amounts of grease inside bones that you can't get rid of with just boiling them. Within years the grease will show up and the bones turn yellow. Also heavy treatment with peroxide might couse some cracking that will show up within years.
Instead they remove all the visible fat/remains mechanically and then souk the bones into warm water/washing powder liquid for several weeks, changing new liquids once every day. To bleach the bones they use chemicals like chlorite 50-100%. Surely available in Belgium too.

Have done full musk ox skulls,came to me frozen.When i had some land I would set them back from the house and let the beetles,ants and flys work on them,maggots are great for doing all the internal work) when all is done they move along,not a scrap of tissue left.