Hello Everyone and Merry Christmas:
I would like to know when is the best time to tumble your deer capes before starting the mounting process. I have seen some tapes that tumble while the cape is still hard from the salting process, is this correct? Also, has anyone ever used the Van Dyke's eye capsules and what do you think of them?
Thanks Alot,
Merry X-mas and Happy New Year!
Allen
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Van Dykes Eye Capsules work great! They can be a little tricky to get on, but once you do, the mount looks so much better. It takes the guess work out of it.
Good Luck and Merry Christmas,
Brady
Allen, I liquitan my capes and let it soak in overnight then tumble them for about 10- min flesh side out then I shake out and invert cape to hair side out and tumble for another 10 min. Blow out sawdust, cape is stretched for width at neck then I take my measurements and order form. Cape is frozen till ready to mount...I usually order a form about an inch smaller than the neck measurement I got ......Merry Christmas Jim
Allen I have never seen or even heard of any one tumbling a rock hard hide for any reason especcially a salted one. Dang the hide will break apart. Most hides are tumbled piror to you mounting it.
As for the eye capsules, it's like this, you'll never learn on how to give any mount eye expresion. It's a way of getting people learning or those wanna bees to buy a product. I know I was a wanna bee and I still see myself as one for I have never stopped learning and I started out doing the same thing years ago using their other eye capsule method. Sorry but it's just a gimmick, sorry Grasshopper but that's my opinion on eye capsules.
Get some good reference, there a lot out there for eyes and learn on how to clay in the eye. This way you can change and get any expression you want. Trust me on this one, learn to do clay work.
Happy Holiday
I agree 100% with Frank on the eye capsules. Yes they are good for the one look that's it you get one expression and nothing else. The look will be ok, but if you truly want to bring out quality in you mounts you will need to do the clay work. It is not difficult once you start to learn how to use your reference photos and let them tell you what should go where. I believe a person is learning with every mount they do, whether it it Frank, George, Amy Ritchie, myself, or anybody that has mounted 1 to a billion animals. We all stress using good reference, but I used reference and my mounts weren't coming to life, until I learned how to interpret what I was seeing in the reference photos. My mounts were all the same, looking at the same reference photos and the fact that I used those eye capsules. Learn to intrpret the photos and use as many photos as you can get your hands on and use them.
As far as tumbling, it the last thing I do before I'm ready to mount the deer or whatever I'm working on.
Dan Moon -- Grasshopper