Submitted by Duran on 11/24/1998. ( kincaidj@tce.com )
I have two questions on this subject. But first I would like to thank WASCO for having this forum. It is very informative.
That said, here goes.
I am really just beginning in taxidermy even though I have been studying every bit of info I can get my hands on about the subject for about the last year.
I killed a small 6 point whitetail last Nov. and didn't want to waste the head nor did I want to pay 200+ to get him mounted. I have enough of those. So, I decided that since I have always been intrested in taxidermy that I would do it myself.
With the head in the freezer I purchased "COMPLETE HOME TAXIDERMY" (which WASCO carries) by Jim(?) Kelly. Studied it thouroughly and some other articles and whatever I could find. I then started, using a kit from Rhineharts.
Extensive overtime through the spring and summer and into Oct. kept me from it. This gave me time to study further (including this forum) and now I realize many of the mistakes I made. The largest is the damage I did during the fleshing. Could this be inpart due to the fact that the cape was not salted or cleaned before freezing?
My main questions are this though:
1)I already have the kit with the form so could I order an already tanned skin from one of the suppliers that would closely fit my form? Would I do this form the original measurements or measure my form? I believe this would be more benificial to me than trying to struggle with the damaged cape I have.
2)I ran into an old friend while deer hunting the other day and he has a couple sets of antlers only mounts. He said he would kill a doe or two and let me use the capes with his antlers to practice on (and is actually willing to pay me to do it). I have heard of this being done but would it be much more difficult than using the original cape.
Hope these are worthwhile questions and any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
DURAN
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This response submitted by Keith Daniels on 11/24/1998. ( arlcape@bright.net )
Duran, your best bet is to get a new cape, green or tanned, that will fit your form. I assume your kit was close to the right size for the deer. If you order a cape I would suggest asking them whether they measure on the hair or the meat, if you measure the form it will match the meat measurement, then order a cape 1 inch bigger than what you need, that way you're more sure of an easy fit. Don't even mess with trying to put a doe cape on a buck, the physical shape and hair patterns, especially around the top of the head and antlers, are worlds apart.
Keith
This response submitted by Bill on 11/28/1998. ( yoxtax@aol.com )
Duran, it will be much easier to get a new buck cape and then get a form to fit it. The other parts to the kit should work. The kits are often quite generic or general anyway, but a valid starting point for the beginner. It's usually easier to get a form to match the cape instead of vice versa. Like Keith said, the doe is VERY different. If you question his judgement, try to slip the doe cape onto the buck form and see what happens! Then theres the matter of ear placement, eyelid/lashes, etc. We all use capes for different antlers all the time for remounting outdated, or damaged, or crappy looking mounts, and for reproduction antlers and sheds, too. You didnt explain the type of damage your cape has absorbed but I can assume you wont be using it, so go ahead and start fresh!
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