Here's an idea for McKenzie and others: Why not let the taxidermist pick the shoulders...neck.. and face that they want? Think about it how many times have you loved the shoulders and briskets on one mannikin but could not stand the face or it just was to narrow etc...?
Just have molds for those certain things being seperate and let us choose. Sure it would cost more but hey...pass it down the line.I have to say I really like Hiltons forms but the shoulders are too narrow and I wish they where deeper. Some of McKenzie's faces are just too dam pointy and some from Van Dykes are to broad between the eyes. Another way to shave some time from the job at hand while keeping the quailty high on the finished mount. Just a thought
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I like them... The only problems I have seen with their forms is the necks tend to be a bit big. Most forms advertise "from midwestern deer" or "from soutern deer" or "perfect for south Texas whitetails". And of the two suppliers you mentioned, there are other forms that could suit your needs like thoes from Jody Green or Joe Coombs. Lots of options for even the pickiest taxidermist.
I think we've seen a sudden influx of taxidermists who only have one catalog to order from. I'd bet 99% of my supplies come from McKenzie, but when I need a "specialty" form they don't market, I go to another catalog. First we have "snap on taxidermy" and now we have advocates for "mix and match". I remember the "good old days" when a 2x4 allowed you to make any size manikin you wanted if you had enough excelsior and plaster.
I can't agree more. I am sick and tired of altering every McKenzie deer form. I'm not just talking about how anatomically wrong they are i'm talking about how old the molds are and how uneven the faces are. Time is money! So if I could mix and match to make my job look better and to profit more it would be a great thing. As far as the good "old" times that's a joke, it's not 1934 it's 2006 and technology should help us. McKenzie has the whole market and the industry is stagnant it just kind of hangs there. George is right, I think we all find ourselves going to one catalog and some times that's not good we need alittle help from some new companies. We have tried a few of the new Revolution forms and some Matuska forms with some good results.
...why would anyone "sick and tired of altering every McKenzie deer form" bother buying them in the first place? Personally, I find them as "anatomically correct" as any on the market. Dennis Behn, Joe Meder, the Eppleys, John Rinehart, amd Roger Martin probably know more about deer anatomy than all of us put together. Perception sounds like the bigger problem to me. That's what keeps other suppliers in business. Why is that so hard to comprehend?
When your several of your customers ask why the face is too thin you might want to listen. We do a lot of deer for people who raise them as well, and you better not try to put one of those skinny faces on one of their 6.5 year old mature bucks. Not listening to your customers is a good way to go out early. Why alter a form thats not correct when you can but one that is. Time is money.
I'm not a pro but the only adjustments I made
on a McKenzie semi upright was that the shoulders
were too puny. The 6-1/2" head on the Texas Hill Country
deer fit but the shoulders were way too small like a doe
with no real definition from the neck.
I "bulked" them up w/ clay and it turned out ok.
Found the opposite with McKenzie in their mulie forms. The chest is too big.
I think it is different for us western taxidermists. I order most of my stuff from Research and Van Dykes.
I should have explained myself alittle better. I buy forms from alot of different places like most I am sure. I was just dreaming how nice it would be to be able to buy "parts" every once and awhile. You know when you are doing a certain peice etc...that may demand it. Right know to get the shoulders and brisket that "I" may perfer and the face that "will" fit the best I have to buy two forms and spend an hour or two cutting it up. Let's face it all the suppliers are doing a great job...but having the cake...I would like to eat it too!
I live in the midwest,in Illinois,to be more specific.We have big whitetails here.I ,like George,buy 99% of my forms from McKenzie.I don't have the problems you fellows are having.The 1% of the forms I end up buying from other suppliers ,are whitetails with smaller size necks that McKenzie doesn't have.Could it be that the "taxi" part of taxidermy elludes some?!I don't have all the answers, but all I know is that McKenzie forms work for me.
You could get 3 different deer with identical measurements and 3 identical forms and each one of those deer is going to fit that same form differently. I would be kind of neat to be able to mix and match your own forms though. I don't think it will ever happen though. I have had problems with forms fitting to, and it's usually the faces, I did have one though that was a McKenzie form and it didn't have any defenition in the throat, just looked god awful to me. The faces can be to wide or to narrow to I've noticed. Some forms have great shoulders and briskets and nice muscle defenition but on some it's almost non-existant. On long haired deer I guess it really dosn't matter because you can't really see it but it would be nice if it was there, it still hints at it and makes the mount look alot better in the end. I buy forms from McKenzie and Van Dykes mostly but It's hard to find smaller forms for my "practice" deer. Each company does have a good selection of forms but it just comes down to personal preference I guess.
Guess I really don't get the point. Are you guys saying that you like the bodies of the form, but not the heads? Why not buy a head from brand A, and put it on the neck and shoulders of brand B?
I use both McKenzie and meder forms, but can't stand the faces on McKenzie forms. I feel the nose bridge is too narrow and the nose pad area is too square, giving the deer a dairy cow look. My customers notice it also. I find the meder change out heads very eye pleasing, and look more like the real deal. I like the McKenzie shoulder and brisket area, so whenever I use McKenzie, i add a meder head. Lots of times the two neck measure ments are fine, but the eye measurements can be off 1/4-1/2". Some guys just taxi the skin around, taking up the extra slack. Personally, If the eye is 7 1/2 on the actual specimen, I add a 7 1/2 head to the form. Just try it sometime. It's not that hard to swap out heads, and it's a real joy to mount if the form fits the cape very well. The head change takes alittle extra time so I add the extra time into the final cost. If I take a deer in that fits a standard size correctly, then great, I've just made alittle extra money on that deer by not having to alter it!
Just about every form I get, I have to do a little work. The mold seem is off on one side, so I sand down. Also sometimes both sides of the brisket are different, I sand and try to match up sides. I do alot of sanding on every form, I add my own character to every form. You get a molded form, but it is not work free. Sometimes I get some in preety rough shape, maybe they are training a new guy? I know how my first mounts looked. lol... But, all deer are different, nose length, eyes, one horn sets back farther than other. Some deer I mount are a breeze and some are a real pain in the butt. I think you all can agree. I order 99% of my stuff from McKenzie and overall I am very pleased. But nothing in this world is perfect, if you look hard enough you will find something wrong.