About a week ago I finished a deer mount that I did for my brother. This is my 3rd deer mount I've done, so I am still a beginner. I haven't had any training or watch any videos, and have obtained almost all of my information on taxidermy from this site. Taxidermy is just a hobby for me, and I would appreciate if you take the time to look at the pictures I took, and explain some major flaws or introduce some new techniques that would help me with my next mount which I will be starting here pretty soon. I have a fun time doing taxidermy and am always trying to improve.
The biggest problem I ran into during the mounting process was that that face of the form was too small. It seemed I had excess skin everywhere. Also after looking at different reference photos and other mounts, I'm not real please on how the nose turned out. Something just doesn't look right. Another problem I saw was that I should have built up around the back-side of the antlers with more clay before I put the hide on.
Thanks for your time, it's much appreciated.
The direct link to the pictures is here, by clicking on where it says "Taxidermy".
http://community.webshots.com/user/kansashunter
Or here is a direct link:
http://community.webshots.com/album/261390222VwxrfX
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Now that I got your ego built up Joey, here's a few things I noticed off the bat and some helpful tips. Your antlers were leaning forward a little to much, looking at the picture DVC00098-1, they should sweep with the forehead more. In picture DVC00098-1 you might want to use the big 2" paper clips to hold your carding instead of clothespins, the lower weight would eliminate the need for strings to hold the ears up. I use one 10ga metal wire stuck into each ear/form to hold the ears up. Next, some good reference pictures would help with some finer details in ear positioning, nose/mouth and hair patterns. The eye detail was good but when you look down on top of the head in picture DVC00123-1, you can see where the the left eye is sticking out a little more than the right eye. The nose in picture DVC00121-1 is built up too much, and is off center, which throws the nostril hair patterns off. To much of the lower lip is exposed, needs to be tucked in more. Also looking at that same picture, your left eye looks good, your right eyes front corner needs to be in more. You are the master of pins, joking here! I used to use that many too when I started. But as your weak areas get better you'll find yourself using fewer pins. But overall the work is good, I applaud you. Your carry-over from the actual specimen in the pictures is pretty good. Get some good reference pictures and study the finer points of them.... good luck...
Seeeee, even I need to read more. I see where you said you used reference pictures, but even sometimes your mount doesn't come out as well as the reference pictures, practice will correct that. As to the form being to small, maybe it needed a change-out head (bigger), sometimes you get those unproportioned deer, or maybe you ordered to small of form. But just keep at it, you'll enjoy your later work even more...
The thing that jumps out at me immediately is all the pins, carding, clothes pins, strings,,,,) All these items are really not needed if the cape is tanned, shaved and thinned properly and you have a great hide paste. Believe it or not, I have no pinning, carding, strings, or any other type of extras keeping my drying deer mounts in place. If everything is done properly, all these extras are not needed. This will cut hours off of your mounting process and make your mounting process more efficient. Good Luck and keep up the learning process. Just constructive criticism, nothing more.
especially if you truly haven't seen any videos or had any instruction. I know starting out, that the "course" I took at the local community college was good, but videos and reference were invaluable. $100 worth of good videos taught me a great deal. You mentioned that it seemed as though you had extra skin. I think some of that is helpful. I try to work the extra toward areas that tend to pull- nose,lips,eyes,burrs. I've also found that oversized earbutts look better than undersized ones. All of the World Show videos that I have seen from WASCO, are some of the best quality. Good luck.
Thanks for taking the time and giving me some helping techniques and ideas.
Just one quick question. When I was sewing up the cape in the back, I had problems with the hair falling into the glue. The Glue basically matted the hair in the back, and you can see it in one of the pictures, and that was after I did what I could to clean it up. Do you have any tips on how to prevent this?
When putting the cape on, I eye on the cape rested about 1/2-3/4" past the eye. Is this normal? The whole deer was a unique buck. It was in a very dark phase, and besides the odd looking antlers, the neck was only 17", but the face was about 7 1/2-7 3/4. I think next time I would use a change out head.
Putting the heavy gauge wire and using paper clips are great ideas I will deffinately try next time. Holding the ears up with string seemed to leave indentations in the ear, the deer's left ear has a noticable notch from it, on the bottom.
On the next taxidermy catalog order I will get a video. This way I know I'll be doing the steps correct. The achives on this site have been crucial in my learning of taxidermy. Thanks again
Glue the chin, neck and the upper brisket area, put the cape on, sew all the way to the end (short or long incision), then roll the cape up to the neck then glue the whole form, then roll it back down and finish it up. This way you don't miss any areas and it doesn't get into your stitching..
If your eyes rested past the form eyes (towards antlers) with your nose in rough position, then it sounds like the form was way to small. But it's hard to determine without being there...
to make sure your antlers are correct you need to measure from right antler tip to nose and the left antler tip to the nose. You also need to measure the antler burrs to the eye to make sure your skull call is not to far forward or too far back. Then when you are bondoing the skull cap to key it in place you check those measurements.
Make sure you are using a real good glue. But don't use too much, i know it is easy to think that more is better. But as you have noticed it just gets in the way. You should also rough up the foam with sandpaper too, it will give your glue a little more grabbing power, especially in the detail areas like armpits, chin, brisket, face, etc... I agree with kb, i only pin a very few places on most heads such as the crease in the nostril or the lacrimal gland sometimes.
If i had to guess you aren't shaving your hides thin enough, but thats okay cause most novices don't. It wouldn't hurt if you sent a cape off to the tannery some time, that way you would have a real high quality skin to work with, and you would know how they are "supposed" to look like. But that will cost you a little extra and you will have to wait for it. But it is so much more fun mounting a really nicely prepped hide, the lips are long and thin and so are the nostrils and eyes, even though you will have to do a little shaving or splitting it is more or less mountable when you get it back from the tannery.
It does appear that the form was a little small, it should be just a little snug as you are putting the cape on the form, if it slides on with no resistance the form is too small.
And what are you doing for your ears? I hope you at least used bondo but they take a little practice, so i am assuming you used earliners. If you didn't maybe that is why you had to use clothepins, if you ever have to "pin" something again, it may work better if you cut an outline of what you are pinning out of paper/cardboard or milk jugs, for instance- on you ears cut some strips of cardboard and place that on the front and back sides of your ears and then clothepin it- like a sandwich. You may want to get a hold of some doe ears and practice opening them up and taking out the cartlidge.
Your ear butts are pretty small which means you need to put a glob of clay between the ear and form before you sew it up.(unless you ear lines had butts on them, but it looks like they did not) You will get the hang of making ear butts, and it is best to do them before you mount it but you can scuplt them after it is sewed up and this is what you should be using to hold them in place and your wire is just what reinforces this- backbone so to speak, the clay is the muscle.
Also run a bead of REALLY good glue or epoxy along the lip line before you tuck the lips, until you get real good at thinning lips and making lip slots. Also notice your nose is just a little crooked, no biggie, but next time take a closer look at that while you are mounting it.
Otherwise keep up the good work, you can only get better :) It is also good to remember that deer with long hair(like yours) and prolly thick skin, can't get the detail that you see in some catalogs, they are thinner skinned and shorter hair, so the detail shows up more. I know i was alwasy comparing my deer to those deer when i first began, and you can't compare iowa winter capes to texas capes! But good taxidermists and good tanneries thin the hide down so if you did ever send a cape to a tannery you would have a little more detail and a little more stretch so you wouldn't have to worry as much about buying a form that is too big.
But like the rest and like you asked for this is just some constructive critique and some tips, you are well on your way and you have come to the right place for knowledge
Thanks for the info again.
I did send the hide to a commercial tannery in Montana, and that took about a year, but it seemed like a good tan though. Prior to mounting I did shave the eyes and tear ducts, to where I thought they were shaved, but without seeing somebody do it right, it's hard to know how thin is thin. I used the McKenzie form (9800 upright, i believe). I also used Epply ears and ear bases. I used killer-glue as the adhesive and pre-rotated eyes. I roughed up the form with 50 grit sandpaper prior to mounting. On the ears, I did card them with the close-pins using an old Keystone Box, which was mostly repellant to water, but pretty strong and thin too.
I think next time I would do without the pastic earbutts and just make my own with clay like was stated. Will the Killer glue be enough for the lips or should I use something else? Thanks for your time guys.
wish my 3rd deer (or 6th) looked that good
With dry preserve ? The issue with so much pinning that have being mentioned is true, the biggest issue I see is the Chest and shoulder might be too small for that deer.
The Eye work can be improved, and the grooming needs to be improved inside the ears, which you can still do.
Otherwise good try, keep on !
so i can't tell ya if it will do good or not, if you have been on the forums long though you will know that Epo-Grip epoxies are pretty good glues though.
So it pretty much sounds to me like you just need experience. You are well on your way and some things only experience can teach.
I wish my 20th looked that good. :D
Never seent hat many pins and clips on a deer mount before.
I use DP. I flesh my capes paper thin and use a good bonding agent and use NO pins on the entire mount and never have any shrinking or gaps.
Wet tanned skins are my second favorite but I dont like the waiting on them to return from the tannery. And when the finished product is on the wall I cant even tell the diffrence in a DP and Tanned cape.
Keep practicing..taxidermy is fun and can be profitable.