Hi all,
I had my first whitetail 4 point buck mounted last year and the mount looks great. The one thing that I did notice is he used a cape that was slit down the back of the neck, so he had to sew it up. The hair doesn't lay totally flat on the stitch - sticks up a bit. Is this common? A buddy of mine says it is very hard to prevent when stitching a cape cut that way.
Any input is appretiated.
Jason
Return to Gamehead Taxidermy Category Menu
It's not the standard we desire, but it is certainly "common". It comes from the taxidermist who mounts the animal and then leaves it to dry without taxiing it every day and insuring the hair stays down. There's dozens of ways to remedy it, but the only real prevention is to watch and adjust the mount every day until it dries hard.
Thanks for the response.. The mount is great with the exception of the little bit of rise in hair along the stitch line in the back.. Can't see it when it's on the wall. Just need to make sure my next mount's cape isn't cut using the Y cut.. Most all of the deer I have seen mounted with the Y has some hair up.
If your taxidermist took wide stitches, sometimes that will cause the skin to pucker, and the hair will stand up. If it is just "unruly" hair, try laying a wet towel on it for a few hours, then card it down for a day or two. That usually works. You might also try a little hair styling gel to keep it in place. As for the Y cut, there's really no other way to skin the head out around the antlers.
Good experience. The correct thread and needle and Hide paste and you dont have that problem. but then you problem got what you paid for.
Taxidermist has 30+ years experience.. Paid 475 for the mount.
The rest of the mount is beautiful
Take a hammer and tap the stitches and it will go down somewhat,
John forgot about "malletizing" the cape on the mannikin. Regardless of the stitch length, that seam needs to be "turned under" and a mallet is the fastest way to get it done. I prefer a ball peen hammer myself. LOL
There is only one way to mount a deer, and that is cutting it all the way down the back, or using a Y incision. Either way you have to sew it and have a risk of hair standing up or the cape pulling apart. I personally like the full cut because it is easier to me to taxi the hide around. Keeping that seam together is touch because wet leather shrinks.
Jason, Just want to point out that some of these ideas you are getting are what should or could have been done at the time of mounting. I would not recomend taking a hammer to a mount that was mounted a year ago. When the mount has not yet dried hammering the seam is totaly acceptable but once dry could cause damage. If this is a big issue for you it could be fixed by a competent taxidermist but if it's not much noticable I would not worry about it. My thoughts, Aaron H.
John you are such a smart a$$. Why do you assume he didn't pay much for the mount?