What are the major differences in skinning a bear for a rug vs. a lifesize mount? I am just thinking of the leg cuts, they are probably a little different.
Thanks,
Eric
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If a bear is erect, the rug cut can cause some serious problems with hiding the seam, but for all others, it's a toss up for me. Standing on all fours would seem to dictate a ventral cut as you can set the mannikin on the skin and lift it up where the seam will be hidden by the long hairs. As I get older, I'm not so sure anymore. The rug cut takes a little longer but like a Kodiak I did recently, how was the guide going to skin it with it lying on its back. He rug cut it. When I got the tanned hide back, I inverted it and sewed up all the seams from "inside" Then I drew a Magic Marker line from the back of the head to the tail butt and I made small hash marks across it about 6 inches apart. Then I took the scalpel and cut the center line open, reinverted the hide and then slipped it's "jammies" on for mounting.