Can someone please help me out with getting my whitetail forehead hair pattern to lay properly. No matter how much I groom it, it does not want to lay right. It seems at if it has curl to it - if that makes any sense. The mount has been drying now for about two weeks, can I rehydrate that area and force the hair to lay properly? Or are there deer that just have bad hair patterns and all I can do is make it look decent?
Thanks Andy!
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I'm not sure what you mean to get the hair to lay properly.Are you trying to lay it down smooth. The skin has to be taxied correctly on the form to get the hair pattern correct. Then groomed the mount when the tanned hide is still wet. You will need to check more than one reference photo on foreheads and the skin alignment. A deers forehead hair is not all the same. Some have a straighter hair others have curly look some times real curly. The time of year and geographical location will give you a different look to the hair. Rubbing on trees can break off hair and change the apperance. There is also the hair color or multiple colors on the fore head. Referenece, reference, reference is the best answer I can give. It seems like you should be fine with what you did. Good luck
Andy, I think the best way when first working with the wet cape is to be certain NOT to lay this area down. Taxi the skin to a somewhat loose fit and let the hair stand a little. Even backbrush the hair. Once dry there should not be the stress in the skin which pulls the hair into unnatural position. Rewetting the area now is probably not going to completely fix your deer but might make it some better. Next time you mount try this just for education purpose: Position the cape as usual, then use a taxi tool such as a Stout Rougher to slid the skin around some. In the face area and forehead use the tool to "twist" the skin in circular ways. Notice how this changes the way the hair looks. Many of the problems around the eyes are easily corrected by this "twisting" motion which allows the hair patterns to lay properly. Experiment a little with this and you may be surprised how it starts to make sense. Each time you mount there is an opportunity to learn something. Enjoy, Aaron H.