My son caught a 36in norther pike that is in my freezer. I can't afford to have it mounted but i would like to mount the head on a piece of wood. Can someone tell me how to preserve it. thanks
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First of all...HOW did he catch a 36-inch Northern in your freezer? What kind of bait did he use?...Ice cubes?
Cut off the head a couple inches in back of the gills for the neck. Skin out all the flesh from inside the head and through the eyes and mouth...wash in Dawn detergent water...degrease in denatured alchohol and blow dry.
Then soak it for half an hour in Borax Pickle Solution. !-quart of water...1-Teaspoon of 37% Formaldehyde...OR...1-Tablespoon of Balmex (from Van Dyke-$4.96 quart). Use rubber gl;oves if using Formaldehyde. This moth and bug proofs the head.
Dry it completely.
Fill in mouth area with papier mache and smooth it out...then Insert a piece of 1"x3" through back of skull before mache sets hard...to attach to a panel with screws from behind (first add super glue for extra holding power where board meets panel)...and fill in with mache for the neck area.
As the mache is almost dry...smooth it with with a knife or spatula.
Before attaching head to panel...give it a base coat of Pearl Paint...followed by clear glossy lacyuer spray to give it the wet look...to seal it completely.
Then fill the eye sockets with clay or Papier Mache (correct spelling...not'paper')...and set eyes in place...mount on panel.
Then send us the URL so we can see the photo of your priz gamefish.
Add one handfull of 20-Mule Team Borax (Wal-Mart of Grocery stores) to the water...stir until disolved...use at room temperature.
! ETCC