I am working on a 5X6 elk half European mount, but when the cut the antlers off there is only about 1/3 of the brain cavity left and about 1/10 of the skull plate. What I did was took my Dremel and enlarged the brain cavity by grinding out some of the bone and drilled holes up a little in towards the antlers, and Bondoed 3, 3/8" carage bolts in the cavity. I designed an oak plaque which is 1" thick, would this be strong enough for the weight of the antlers? Or do I need to do something different? Any and all help would be great, beings how the antlers are my father-in-laws!
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Bondo is not a glue...I just finished the same type of mount. What I did was I epoxied a piece of 2x4 that I cut to fit tight into the brain cavity, then I poured 5 minute epoxie into the cavity. be sure to plug all the little holes around the back of the eye sockets first or it's going to run out (first hand experience!) pour enough epoxie in to cover the wood... after it reaches full strength, pre-drill three holes through the plaque into the wood and use the appropriate length screw. Your bolts are more than strong enough, but I don't trust bondo for holding power. After I had to redo a mount similiar to this one I have always used 5 minute epoxie. just my $.02.