I have a few questions for you. when you guys do mounts what do you build up the eyelids and brows with? if clay , do you then put the cape on with the clay still wet?
My dad used to use lots of pins to set the hide around the eyes, that was old school. I heard some guys use super glue? will that stick to the clay or form foam?
If you use clay do you try and tuck the inner lid under or cut it off?
Eyes are the biggest part of poor mounts. what is your secret?
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Pat, I use Modeling Clay to rebuild the eyes (Use Reference Pictures for Shape & Expressions). I leave about a 1/4" of eye skin and tuck it into the clay. I insert 1 Hide Nail at the front corner of the eye, 1 in the top of the tear duct , and 1 in the bottom of the tear duct. When applying Hide Paste around the face, I make sure I get around the eyes. I also check the eyes every day for 3 or 4 days after mounting to make sure they keep there shape. Hope this helps & Good Luck !
Potter's clay will crack easily while Critter Clay has no natural ingredients and will not. The ONLY pin that I ever use around the eye is one in the front corner of the eye to hold it in position.
I use the short "Y" incision and therefore, do my eyework after I pull the cape over the neck. I work through the "Y" for all the clay work and then paint around the eye and antler burrs with my glue. I fill my ear butts and then I gently pull the hide up and stitch the "Y" shut. Then I roll the neck cape forward, glue underneath it and then staple it down. THEN and only then to I return to the face. I glue the face and under the chin through the mouth opening. I intall my mouth, locking anatomical markers in place with japan pins in the corners of the mouth. I use a small bit of clay under the bottom lip and then tuck. I then set my ear butts and sculp them through the skin. The LAST thing I do is my eyes. I tuck the lids and then just rough in the shape of the eye. I let the hide set overnight and then go back the next day to do my final shaping. You MUST watch this work for up to a week until it dries. The day that you don't check it and taxi it in place is the day the hide will drum out and you lose your detail.
Now that's just the way I do it. There are some great taxidermists on here who probably do it differently.
I use apoxie sculpt on the eyes of my mounts. I have used Critter Clay in the past and don't like it all that much outside of setting ear butts, nose pads, and using it for fish work. I've tried it for eye sets and found that if it gets too wet from the hide paste or skin it gets runny, and it does have a tendency to crack if it gets too dry while working.
When I do a mount, after everything is ready to go, I mix up a batch of apoxie sculpt. I set my eyes, pull the cape over the form, get it all aligned, etc. etc. and by the time I get around to doing the eyes, the apoxie has set up enough to be firm, yet not set as to be hard as a rock. Once you tuck the eyelid skin under that apoxie, its not going ANYWHERE. The apoxie won't shrink like clays do and its also an adhesive. I put a pin or two in the tear duct to hold it until it sets up. I also use the apoxie under the antler burrs and tuck the skin up under them. I have yet to have the hide pull away using this technique.
I do it exactly like George and i believe it has advantages over epoxie. If for some reason you had a bad night or you just don't like how it looks 2 weeks later, you can rehydrate and do it again if you want. The next day after it hardens up a little you can really make it look good.
Yeah, pretty much what Geo said. The only difference I saw was I put the clay on and rough shape them B4 I pull the hide over, yes this messes them up a little if your not careful, but nothing that can't be fixed while your detailing them. Mount as usual and tuck eyelid skin between Critter Clay and glass eye, and detail using plenty of good reference, both physical or mental(the later will come from experience, but still recommend the physical to go with it). Then second day it, third day it, etc.,etc. until the clay has dried. I don't use pins, never have and have also never seen Critter Clay crack. Marc R.
So it sounds like you all do the eye set and all when the clay is wet. Sounds good. But if some of you do the setting of the actual eyes wet wont the eye pop out when you try to tuck a lid sometimes? or are you setting the glass first and letting it harden up before the actual mount?