Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Discussions about learning taxidermy & picking taxidermist.
  • Advertisement

HB Store


mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Sun May 29, 2016 8:47 am

Lets put up some mounts and tell me what you like about them...what you don't like about them. Its tough. I am super picky ...probably a bit too much. My degree is in commercial illustration and I was in the top of my art classes in college. Done a lot of drawing and painting. So angles, proportions, eyes, ears...neck size, if there is anything wrong, they stick out like a sore thumb to me. Probably that stuff sticks out to me more than poor craftsmanship skills.

It seems to be a complaint of a lot of people that the mount comes back much smaller than the original deer. Is that the fault of the taxidermist? Or is it just the nature of the beast? Do guys just remember the animal in a photo so much bigger than it really is? Another thing I notice, somethings like neck muscles are really emphasized by some taxidermist...even though in a trail cam pic or on the hoof, deer don't necessarily look like that.

I know some of you guys do taxidermy work...so feel free to chime in. Really be good to hear some different perspectives.


User avatar
DaveT1963
500 Club
Posts: 5196
Joined: Fri Dec 19, 2014 1:27 am
Location: South
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Sun May 29, 2016 9:12 am

Show me your skin mount fish and I can usually tell......

[ Post made via Android ] Image
mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Sun May 29, 2016 9:23 am

DaveT1963 wrote:Show me your skin mount fish and I can usually tell......

[ Post made via Android ] Image



LOL...I don't do taxidermy!
User avatar
purebowhunting
500 Club
Posts: 1376
Joined: Sun Apr 07, 2013 6:37 am
Location: Wisconsin
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby purebowhunting » Sun May 29, 2016 9:47 am

I'm not real picky about my mounts, I had 3 done professionally and I did my own this year. The guy I had do the first three does good work and I can't pick out anything odd.

The mount you got back today has something weird going on with its lower lip/mouth looking at the pics, is that what brought this on?
mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Sun May 29, 2016 9:58 am

That is the biggest complaint about the one I just got back. I am wondering if it's because of the way it dried. Noticed it when I got home. Something is odd.

[ Post made via Android ] Image
mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Sun May 29, 2016 10:24 am

I would guess it's also tough for a taxidermist when certain things move when drying. But maybe stuff shouldn't move?

Than I notice stuff like bobcats and coyotes that just don't look quite right. I don't see many that look right with the eyes. Not just with my taxidermist but in general.

Or necks on the deer that are much smaller than whenough live.

[ Post made via Android ] Image
User avatar
DaveT1963
500 Club
Posts: 5196
Joined: Fri Dec 19, 2014 1:27 am
Location: South
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby DaveT1963 » Sun May 29, 2016 11:05 am

mainebowhunter wrote:
DaveT1963 wrote:Show me your skin mount fish and I can usually tell......

[ Post made via Android ] Image



LOL...I don't do taxidermy!


That's a phrase we used when judging.... with fish you can't hide much

[ Post made via Android ] Image
User avatar
buckeye
Posts: 331
Joined: Wed May 07, 2014 7:31 am
Location: NE Ohio
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby buckeye » Sun May 29, 2016 11:19 am

I to noticed the lip / jaw on your mount. I think the black hair in the coat along the lip accentuates the slightly off lip / jaw line.

I have a mount that was done in 2003 that has a crazy eye like Stan Potts. I will take a pic of it and post it later. It is fitting for this buck though in a way because he has weird shaped antler on one side from a leg injury.

[ Post made via Android ] Image
.
Instagram.com/buckeye_archer
mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Sun May 29, 2016 11:29 am

buckeye wrote:I to noticed the lip / jaw on your mount. I think the black hair in the coat along the lip accentuates the slightly off lip / jaw line.

I have a mount that was done in 2003 that has a crazy eye like Stan Potts. I will take a pic of it and post it later. It is fitting for this buck though in a way because he has weird shaped antler on one side from a leg injury.

[ Post made via Android ] Image


Lol...I have a bear like that. It kind of looks like an overbite. Crazy part is the former would have come like that. Can't imagine adding stuff or shaving the form.

Funny when I was in college...I used to ask people to tell me what was wrong with a piece. Not what was right with it. Used to use a mirror to look at my pieces to see if they were right. My taxi is kind of sensitive and he is a friend of mine. So I tread lightly.

[ Post made via Android ] Image
User avatar
Wlog
500 Club
Posts: 3641
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:28 am
Location: Eastern Shore MD
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby Wlog » Sun May 29, 2016 1:44 pm

I'm very picky about the quality of my mounts. If I have to look at it on my wall forever I want it to look alive. I know the taxidermist I use strives to make my mounts look like they came back to life. They study animals and their mannerisms and posture and do the best they can to duplicate it. A friend of mine couldn't believe that I would pay over $500 to get a shoulder mount when he can get one for $350. Believe me, when I seen his mounts there was no comparison.

My two most recent mounts.

Image


Image

Image

[ Post made via iPhone ] Image
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
mainebowhunter
500 Club
Posts: 3448
Joined: Fri Jan 15, 2016 10:45 am
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby mainebowhunter » Mon May 30, 2016 2:20 am

Image

You can see something is off with the nose. In the end, not a huge deal. Just stuff that bugs me. And constructive criticism is never a bad thing.

[ Post made via Android ] Image
User avatar
purebowhunting
500 Club
Posts: 1376
Joined: Sun Apr 07, 2013 6:37 am
Location: Wisconsin
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby purebowhunting » Mon May 30, 2016 3:05 am

Wlog wrote:I'm very picky about the quality of my mounts. If I have to look at it on my wall forever I want it to look alive. I know the taxidermist I use strives to make my mounts look like they came back to life. They study animals and their mannerisms and posture and do the best they can to duplicate it. A friend of mine couldn't believe that I would pay over $500 to get a shoulder mount when he can get one for $350. Believe me, when I seen his mounts there was no comparison.

My two most recent mounts.

Image


Image

Image

[ Post made via iPhone ] Image


Those mounts do look great, on the shoulder mount the passed off I'm the baddest buck of the woods look is really captured!
User avatar
justdirtyfun
500 Club
Posts: 2973
Joined: Sun Sep 22, 2013 4:10 pm
Location: Misery, previously Hellinois
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby justdirtyfun » Mon May 30, 2016 3:28 am

Regarding time, what amount of time is acceptable to wait for your mount? Would you switch/not choose a specific taxidermist if he has a long backlog?



Also will choosing a form be limited to a preferred brand ?
You don't have to be the best, just do your best.
User avatar
Wlog
500 Club
Posts: 3641
Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:28 am
Location: Eastern Shore MD
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby Wlog » Mon May 30, 2016 9:22 am

I'd rather wait a year for a great job than get one back in 6 months that I'm not satisfied with. I think 10-15 months is reasonable. The better taxidermist are always going to have a big backlog.

[ Post made via iPhone ] Image
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
User avatar
Dewey
Moderator
Posts: 36722
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2010 7:57 pm
Location: Wisconsin
Status: Offline

Re: Lets talk about taxidermy. The good and bad.

Unread postby Dewey » Mon May 30, 2016 11:27 am

My taxidermist does it full time and averages about 150 shoulder mounts per year. He does all of his cape tanning in house so turnaround is very quick. I have never had to wait over 3 months for my mount even when dropped off during peak rut. My oldest mount from him is 15 years old and still looks as good as the day I picked it up. He has done 5 mounts for me and I am extremely pleased with his work.

I must say it's sure nice getting them back while the hunt is still fresh in my mind. Don't think I would like waiting way over a year to get a buck back. Guesd I am now spoiled that way.

[ Post made via iPhone ] Image


  • Advertisement

Return to “Taxidermy”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 13 guests