hi guys have a few questions about mounting pheasents, i have done alot of ducks and turkeys just never have done a pheasent. on turkeys i take off the tail, then wash the skin and tumble it, would i do the same thing on a pheasant?do you guys even wash the skins on the pheasents or do you just skin , flesh , dry perservitive( or borax) and mount? what about the heads do you guys skin out the head like using a artificial one and use the real head or do you small incision on head and clean skull out still attached. thanks for the advise guys!
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and turkey's as far as the prep process. However I don't take the tail off. I use the skull leaving it attached to the skin. You don't need to make a incision to turn the head, like you do in ducks.Skin, wash, tumble, dp and mount. Good luck.
Vic is right on this. If you have a small tumbler it may tend to curl the tail feathers in the direction of the barrel rotation but not so much that it causes a problem. The head can some times get tough to turn inside out, but be gentle and keep trying. I have never seen one you couldnt turn out without making an incision.
What Vic said....like a duck except for the head incision.
One think to add, when your trying to pull the head back out after turning it be careful not to rip off the outer shell of the upper beak. If it does come off which it does some times, just slip some glue in it and slide it back on. Im adding this because I have had it happen and the first time it happenned to me I was shell shocked. Its like "Oh my god, what do I do now". Its really no big deal. Just glue it back on before it starts to shrink.
one of the pheasents i have is a ornimiental pheasent and it has 3 foot tail feathers, any hints on this?
I remove the tail (like turkeys) and also use artificial heads. We have wild birds w/26" plus tails...I find this is easier for me.
I do it the same as I said before. My tumbler is long enough to except the long feathers though. I should have told you before that when you are turning the head you might come to a point where the skin seems like it is doubled. Work that area carefully with your fingers. Like Mike said I also have never seen a pheasant that needs a incision, but you can tear it there if you are not careful.
and the head. On occasion I will save the head and reuse it after proper cleaning, but I find it is a lot easier and I have more flexibility if I remove the tail, take each feather feom the tail bobne area, clean all meat and fat from each quill ( you will be surprised how much is really there) and then, using hot glue or bondo, mixed very hot
and the head - it is a personal choice. For years I left the tail on as well as the head. I have changed my mind - removing the tail allows far better cleaning of the quills and it allows for easier setting of the tail in the position you choose. It is also far easier to replace damaged or broken tail feathers. Using hot glue or bondo, I glue the qillls back into position and attached a "u" shaped wire at the same time. Once dry, it is rock solid and I do not have to tape or card it. As for the skull, I still use the original on ornamentals, but never on a common ring neck. I can do a much better job of splitting the waddles with the skull out plus I do not have to bother with brain materisl and all the challenging sinew. It is a breeze to use an artificial one you get the hang of it. Good luck