I just shot a turkey and wanted to know the best way to skin it out.
I want to do a strut mount with it, it will be my first one. I have
done many tails and such, but no full mounts. Should I go with a fake
head or is the real thing better? How do I freeze dry the real head?
How do I skin the head, or the best way to skin I guess? Any help will
be appreciated. I have done waterfowl, so I was going to skin like I do
ducks, is that right?
Thanks in Advance,
Eric
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tact and order the WASCO BIRD BOOK. All the details are explained in the book.
To remove the head cut with a scalpal along the featerh line, it will go a ways up the back of the head.
You can have a head freeze dried by severa; people with shipping and freeze drieing it wil cost you about $45.00 or go the cheaper route and order a urethane cast head from any of the suppliers.
Details on doing a turkey are just to long to post here.
First off if your going to mount a bird in a full strutt you will need a good book or vedio to help you along in feather placement and how it should be done. Plus you should have plenty of reference to aid you as you mount him.
First question, you skin them out the same way as you do any bird. Also you must cut the head off just below the wattles and a V cut in the back of the head were the feathers and skin meet. A book will help you out here to show you what I'm saying
Second one. I like to use the real head but you may have to do something different here. I skin and use a foam insert for my heads. It's a timely process because you need to inject every wattle, snood and all those bumps they have. If done wrong it will look like your head was attacked by a major swarm of bees. But it can be done and freezed dried by yourself in a regular freezer. Breakthrough magazine has quite a few aticles on how this is done. My advise would be pratice on a jake first or if some person wants to donate a head or two or three for you to pratice on. You may be better off and send it out and have it done by a pro. There are many out there. I can't say who to send it to cause I do my own. A real head is much better any day compared to the fake ones. But a good artist can make a artificial head look just as good as the real one. Again that takes time and pratice. If you want a fake one I would say use one from Buckeye Manikins.
Now for your first bird on doing a full strutt I would choose to use a manikin from Buckeye. They have a system for doing turkeys that will give you a (biginner)an easy way to mount one. Gary sends you the way on how to use his forms for a full strut. The thing is it's in black and white. To see a full color photo on how to use his form again Breakthough has the article on doing it.
Get this things first and read and view and redo it before you make a choice on whether or not you want to use the real or artifical head. Just cut it off and freeze it till you make that choice. Have fun you can do it. If you mounted birds and you're happy with the way they turn out you will be able to do a turkey.
I always split my strutting mounts from one knee joint across the vent to the other knee. This guarantees you that you won't see any seam and allows you to taxi the skin better on any of the mannikens. I do agree with JC on the freeze dried head. Especially if it's your first bird, you'll be eons ahead to have one done commercially. And you definitely need a book, a video, or both.