Submitted by Kent on 6/7/99. ( kmillington@consortia-ltd.com )
I started out a short time ago just as a hobby. I found really quickly that I enjoyed doing this kind of work very much. My problem is that I am kind of a perfectionist. The only projects I have actually completed are antler mounts. Even those took forever because I wanted them to be perfect. I have started working on birds. I have tried a couple of blackbirds a pheasant, a couple of ducks and a couple of snow geese. I ordered a course from the Northwest School in Omaha and it strongly suggests that you start with birds. Every time I seem to mess something up in the skinning and get frustrated and throw out my specimen. Should I just grit my teeth and try to mount a skin I'm not happy with or should I keep working on getting a perfect skin? Maybe I need to see a shrink instead of a taxidermist!!! I should mention that since this is a hobby, I am not spending a ton of money on fancy equipment. Any advice?
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This response submitted by Bob @Jonas on 6/7/99. ( )
My only advise is try to have some fun, nothing wrong with being a perfectionist. Sounds like you're a few steps past the ordinary beginner. A perfect specimen is nice, but they are also not that common. Sometimes you need to just go through the motions to get better at something. It might not turn out to be the best, but what you learn along the way is the most important.
I know most other people will agree with me on this one. Besides, my first bird ended up in the trash right where it belonged, next to my first fish. They get better.
good luck.
Bob
This response submitted by Travis on 6/7/99. ( )
Go ahead and finish the mount for practice purposes---then stuff it in the closet and
pull it out a year later---you`ll get a kick out of it when compared to your
new work...I keep all my first mounts just for this purpose...it`s always good to see
your own improvements....good luck and ENJOY
This response submitted by Joey on 6/7/99. ( heather@inu.net )
I got into taxidermy about two years ago. I dabbled in when I was a kid. When I got serious I had a portable building built and my wife and I were going to share the space. I got a hold of some good instructional videos, did a few things, and now my hobby is a job. My wife now has her own building and I am about to outgrow mine. You sound as if you will be a fine taxidermist. I don't think there's anything wrong with being a perfectionist as long as you still enjoy yourself. Like Bob said, going through the motions will make you better. I have mounted numerous specimens and each time I do it I learn something new and find something I want to different the next time. My customers have all been pleased with my work, but I on the other hand, am never totally satisfied. I hope as time goes by and I get more experience this will change. I have a few critters in the closet I wouldn't want anyone to see, but at the time I mounted them I was so proud. Stay with it and have fun.
This response submitted by Mick on 6/8/99. ( MicD63@aol.com )
I took the same course back in 1974, and I'm betting your booklets are not much different now. Not that it was bad info then, or now, just not enough detail covered. From the standpoint of a 15 year old kid with a craving to learn taxidermy, it just left me guessing on too many occassions. If you are especially interested in bird taxidermy, I suggest you order WASCO's guide. It covers many popular bird subjects in great detail with plenty of photographs. I'm not a WASCO spokesman, just telling it like it is. The quality of the instruction material is directly related to how long it takes one to learn. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
luck to you
This response submitted by Donna on 6/8/99. ( ddz@pdq.net )
I tried the same course about 10 years back. I started with birds like they recommended and mine went in the trash too. I was so disappointed that I quit. Over the years, I still wanted to be a taxidermist so a few months ago I tried again. This time I bought videos and manuals from WASCO, got connected with the forum, and started with mammals. I'm proud to say, everything is going fine. I too am a perfectionist. Being that makes you improve that much faster. Good luck and don't give up!
This response submitted by Jim on 6/13/99. ( )
I've been in your shoes. I finally decided this year come hell or high water I was going to finish every project that I started. I finally finished my first bird after too many years of throwing half done projects away because they were no good. I've gotten really good at skinning but the rest stinks. The bird I did finish was a ptarmigan, I took it out and ran over it several times and it looks much better now. Just kidding about the car, but it looks like roadkill, it's pretty sad. But I learned more in that one mount than I have in my half done projects. This forum has also made a difference, it's filled in the holes between videos and books that I have. I cut and paste all of the topics into Microsoft word so I can find them later without a lot of searching.
This response submitted by Jean Lavallee on 6/13/99. ( wmlures@xtdl.com )
Kent...I started out the same way you are now. When I was fifteen(48 Yrs.) ago we had no television and a lot of time to do things. Back then the big Saturday event was the paper drive to make money for our boy scout troop. One day I found the complete NW Taxidermy course books thrown out with other books and kept them. That's where I started to learn....and I'm still learning. Back then you could mount anything legally from song birds to large hawks, and my first attempt was a bluejay. I didn't have glass eyes so I carved them from black Crayola crayons....but the point is that I did mount it even though not very well. I think you're making the mistake of trying to mount too small a bird. Move up to a pheasant. They have tougher skin and are easier to mount than a smaller bird...they're not that difficult to degrease and you can buy a commercial body for it. Good luck and keep trying...dont give up!
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