Hello all! I am so glad I finally found this message board. I just started mounting some of my husbands squirrels and the two I have finished look great except for the tails. I have not found a good way to remove the bone from the tail. Can you guys please offer some advice? Also do you guys recommend using the tail mannikin or just a wire? You can post suggestions here or email me. I really enjoy this but am getting real discouraged with this problem.
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I have luck just taking a shop rag and wrapping around the base of the tail on the flesh side, that will help you grip with one hand and pull with the other hand hold the body. This has worked for me. Good luck! And don't give up!
Jeremey told ya right, The only thing I do different and not sure
if it actually helps but i put the tail between the palms of my hands
and kinda roll it back and forth a few times to loosen it up a bit.
I don't know if it really helps but in my mind it does so I keep
doing it. LOL... I usually add a wire and a little caulk in the tail before I
start sewing.
Bob
John David Ellzey has reproduction tails for grey and fox squirrels. They are soft flexible foam around thin malleable wire that won't bunch up and grab the skin as it slides on. They even have the "bumps" of spine segment joints. These also work great on some of the smaller canids, raccoons and others. I've also wound masking tape around a wire that installed easier than cloth or string.
Go to the opening page and type "squirrel tails" in the field that says "What do you want to know". And no rolling between your hands. It heats the skin up and can lead to slippage very quickly. All you need is already in the archives.
Wire strippers work awsome.Just put it around the base of the tail and pull. I just use wire for the tail and it works just beautiful I think that buying the foam tails is just a waste of money.
Maybe so was buying a computer but I did that too. If spending a buck on a squirrel tail is wasting money, there's lots of other things in front of it.
Thank you all for your help. I'm looking forward to trying my next squirrel. Do all of you do this just for fun or do you have business'? Send email to let me know any other tips. I need all the help I can get. lol lol lol