Speaking of bad taxidermy...

[4000fps]

Lots of topics lately on price, taxidermy quality etc...

Just thought I would show something else most of you don't think about. Cheap mounts don't always show the true depth of their problems.

Here is a mount I recently tore apart, mounted by another taxidermist. The mount looked OK from the outside, it had symmetry issues etc, but nothing too major. That is until I tore it apart. This cape was at least tanned, but some of the cheaper taxidermists don't even tan their capes.

This is what I found, no hide paste was used (glue).

The skull cap was not cleaned off, notice all the meat, and the membrane in the brain cavity.

And finally, the nice infestation of dermestid beetles that were living underneath the skull. (yellow debris in the middle of photo)

PS...I really wish you guys would handle that velvet more gently in all your photos! The heat and pressure from your hands, will damage and mat down the velvet, and live velvet looks fluffy.

 

[kilowatt]

Thanks for the "heads up" about mounts etc for a better mount.

Brian

 

[bucktaxi]

Amazing the guy didn't even rough up the form and use hide paste. Could drumming be posible...He He

 

[rifle666]

wow. thats nasty

was that a PRO job or backyard?

live life one mule deer at a time.

 

[4000fps]

This came out of a professional, fulltime shop.

 

[wheatja114]

This is something that used to upset me but, I stopped letting it get the best of me! I've been hunting now for over 35 yrs. and anytime a group of hunters get together and start talking about "mounts" & who does them and what price. It ALWAYS comes to a " well I've got a guy who will do it for $350.00 a head, well my guy will do them for $300.00 & I've heard of a guy who will do them for $200.00. Who cares what the price is for a trusted taxidermist that has been around a while. This what you get when you use someone who is "cheaper" than the next guy! I have deer heads that were mounted 25 yrs. ago that look as good now as they did the day I brought them home! YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR PEOPLE! It's a trophy, something you'll look @ everyday for years to come, why try & save $100.00?

 

[Gator]

NOT all Taxi works cost a arm and a leg, there are some good guys out there that are in that 250-300 hundred range And they do the same type of work your 500-600 guys do. So it best to see the work your guy is doing vs what is cheap or what cost a ton, SEE HE'S/HER WORK THEN DECIDE.

 

[ramtagless]

I am not a taxidermist and have never actually sat down and crunched the numbers. Serious question. How could any taxi charge $250-$300 (for a shoulder mount) and make any money? Based on what I know...they couldn't. Correct me if I am wrong.

 

[bucktaxi]

Ramtagless, you're correct. You can figure a good job on a buck mount takes about 12 hours and that's after the deer is skinned, everything turned, salted and tanned. Tanning is $50 for a deer give or take $5 or $10. The forms now are around $45-$50 if you don't have to ship them. Eyes $10 for the cheap ones if they're not shipped. Hide paste, clay, epoxie, etc. what about travel time and gas to get supplies or shipping which we all know has gone way up. Add another hour or two sewing up scars or holes if the buck is shot up. At $300 the taxidermist will make $5-$10 an hour. We didn't even talk about shop overhead. Should we add that in??

Now, on the other hand, some guys can mount a deer in less than 8 hours. Those are the ones I like to see. Man do those make my work look good.

 

[hntbambi]

What I find amazing is how good taxis on the east coast can do deer heads for $300-$400 and how its $500-$700 for deer heer in the west. I have seen some prices for a elk shoulder mount at a grand. I guess I will only have Euro mounts. I can do them myself. There is no "trophy animal" that I would pay a grand for to stick on the wall. I have one whitetail mounted only because the landowner said "If you don't mount it, don't bother to come back."

 

[rifle666]

a white tail should normally be cheaper in the east.
1. almost all are whitetails
2. double the taxidermists

just a guess though

as for an elk shoulder mount.

a grand is mid range, 850.00 to 1200 is about the "normal" range right now.

yes that is expensive, but when you look at a wall hanger elk that is OIL here in utah.
but when you break down the cost of mounting an elk, the taxidermist makes about 10 bucks an hour, if he is fast.
and it is all backbreaking work.

knowing what i know 1000 bucks is MORE than fair.



live life one mule deer at a time.

 

[oddhntr]

really something I had never thought about.

thanks for the input

 

[on_target]

thanks for the pictures and advise, and for those who whine about the price you hunt for fun, you hunt for the sport, you hunt for a trophy, but when you get one your not willing to pay to honor your trophy, shame on you pay the price taxis have to make a living to. stop whining. on_target

 

[rmanwill]

Thanks for the information!!!