I've got an elk skull mounted to a plaque but it needs to angle out to about 30-35 degrees from the wall. I'm worried that the smaller pieces from the Van Dykes european 3 pc. plaques won't support the weight of the elk. Any help out there? Thanks!
Troy
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I don't know about the other guys, but when that happens to me I use brass tubing over longer bolts and cut them to the length needed to support the skull at a proper angle. The tubing rests against a brass washer on the plaque. Nut tightens it down.
Back drill the plaque and counter-sink a screw fitted into a hole bored into the skull back from the snoot. Make sure hole is slightly smaller than the screw diameter to get bite. Place a small amount of putty like Magic Sculpt or Apoxie in the skull hole before driving the screw to lock it. Screw doesn't lend much support, but it will keep the skull from swiveling if only one bolt is used.
No one has ever complained about the standoff shim bushing(s) and I think it dresses the thang up purty. (Spray brass with sealer to keep it from tarnishing over time........or at least until the check clears.)
You can also use pvc pipe wrapped with wood grained vinyl tape or adhesive sheet material to match the plaque. Wrap around the pvc section and overlap then cut with a single edged razor blade and peel off laps to get a good butt seam. Some racks may require two parallel bushing/bolt assemblies. Some folks belt sand the under side of the snoot a bit to get a flush fit