How in the world do you folks who use short cut capes get the hide over the head and on the form. Especially if the cape has a small neck. say 14 or 15 in.
This is how I do it. I do all of my eye setting and clay work. Then begin by cutting the head off of the form in a wedge shape. That is two cuts at an angle as opposed to one straight cut. This helps in aligning the head and neck. Which makes it possible to slip the cape on the form, but only after applying a liberal amount of hide paste. It needs to slide and it's generally tight. Depending on the length of your cut you may have to lengthen it by an inch or two, but maybe not. Keep the paste away from the head neck juncture. I would say 2" or more. This just assures that you don't get paste on the hair or on the parts of the form you need to reattach. You need to dent all flat cut surfaces of your form. Both the head and the neck. This helps in making the Bondo adhere. Apply your paste to the head and slip it into the head portion of your cape. Spread the bondo on the head and neck "stub". keep it away from the edges so it won't squeeze out at the seam. Take a few 4" drywall screws and attach the head. Make sure it is lined up properly. Let the Bondo "kick". You can take the screws out if you want. If you are mounting a larger animal you will need to drill some all-thread from the head into the neck before the Bondo kicks" Hopefully the Bondo did'nt seep out. It's nearly impossible to file or sand your ridge of Bondo without getting shavings in the hide paste or down in between the cape and the form, and even more impossible to get them out. Finish mounting as usual. This may seem like a huge pain but after you do it a few times it's really quite simple. And it beats sewing! And there is less chance of the seam showing. This is probably more info than you wanted, but I hope it answers your question.
If your cape is tanned well and shaved thin enough it should go on and
fit like a glove. Just be careful not to mess up your claywork, use
enough hide paste and it taxis on very well. I also use a hide puller.
A hide puller is a hand tool that has about ten spikes or so sticking
out the end and you taxi the skin by holding it in your hand and using
the spikes jab the skin and move it where you want to. It reduces your
chance of pulling out hair. About not messing up claywork, I just bought
the new eye horn to try out. It looks like it will be a good investment
to save on the claywork.
Todd B
I cut the head off, like Dan said, for antelope. I havent had to do it for Whitetails or Muleys yet. To keep clay work intact, I just rough shape it before slipping the cape on. After the cape is just about in position (there is still plenty of room to get to the eye area...just fold the skin down and pin to hold), I complete the clay work. Then, simply pull the pins and place the eye opening in the proper position and proceed. Hope this helps!