Submitted by David S. on 3/13/1999. ( dvshelton@worldnet.att.net )
I have an 11 point White tail deer head mount that is at least 40 years old. My grandmother killed it way before I was born.
It has been exposed to about 40 years of cigarrette smoke and there is considerable damage to the nose and is in need of restoration.
I was wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction of what portion of the mount it is important to keep original and what parts I should have replaced.
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This response submitted by Janie on 3/13/1999. ( )
Dave You could just keep the horns and get another cape for it and
remount it over just make sure u get a cape with a neck size that
would go with the antlers not to small u know.Unless you want to keep
the original work.Then I guess just give it a good dusting and cleaning
and a littel sculp all and some paint would help.I would go with the
complete remounting of it.
This response submitted by Bruce Rittel on 3/18/99. ( rittel@ici.net )
I like Janie's suggestion - use a new cape for it! However, if you're willing to accept the fact that its probably brittle with aging, and want to preserve it as it is, then I would suggest cleaning it. The problem however, is that because its so old, you can clean away the accumulated debris and smoke, but you may be left with a much lighter coloration to the hair. This is typical cleaning up older mounts. For a cleaner I suggest using our Trophy Kleener product. It is mixed with cool water to make a foam, worked into the hair and then left to dry, then vacuumed or brushed out. It's EXTREMELY MILD on older mounts that will usually tend to flake. It works well on smoke and grease. You can buy it from us or Van Dyke's Supply. I highly recommend it for this type of work.
This response submitted by Bernie Boulanger on 3/30/99. ( HUNT331020 )
I just started doing taxidermy myself and just finished remounting an old deer using a new cape and recomend it strongly! It gave new life to an old mount.
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