Restoring NM Muley Sheds

[mozey]

Some of you have seen these already, as I posted a pic of them last spring right after I found them. I'm guessing they were laying on the ground somewhere between five and ten years. The left G2 and G4 had each surrendered some inches to rodents.

Anyway, I finally bought one of Mountain Mike's skull mounting kits and attached 'em:

As currently mounted they gross about 203 typical, with a 24" inside spead credit, and a 32" outside spread.

As you can see, I've still got a lot more restoration work to do. I saw wyobowhunt's question regarding coloring, and thought I'd throw some of my questions out there too. This is my first attempt ever at restoring antlers, so if any you have some helpful hints on how to fill in cracks, sanding, or restoring broken points, I'd very much appreciate any advice you're willing to share. I hope to eventually do a full shoulder mount with these, but for now I'm just interested in how to make 'em look new again.

 

[mozey]

I'm also looking for feedback on whether this looks like its "natural" spread.

I can twist each horn backwards which will make the inside spread wider but the outside spread narrower, or vise versa if I twist them forward. I'm just going for what looks the most natural, though.

 

[dleonard3]

They look pretty good to me - as far as positioning goes.

You might want to try using Elmers wood glue to fill the cracks. You squeeze some glue into the crack and immediately sand the antler at the crack so the antler dust mixes with the glue. It fills the cracks pretty good and it will take color like the rest of the antler.

As far as coloring goes, the best I've found was Wild Anlter Magic. It looks like the kind of dirt you find under old pine trees, and you might want to experiment with that too. You mix it with water until it is wet and sloppy, then you smear it onto the antler and rub it in real good. Then you let it dry. After it is dried, you brush the excess off then take a damp cloth and clean the tips off. You can also wipe down the rest of the antler lightly to bring out the highlights. I use a damp Q-tip to clean up the bigger vein areas. Once you get it looking like you want, you go ahead and spray it with a matte clear paint to bring out the color and seal it.

Try this on some "junk" antlers first to see how it works for you. And don't forget to show us how it turns out.

 

[slamdunk]

Looks pretty natural to me, and i've done hundreds of these.
Great job!!

 

[mozey]

Much thanks for your comments.

I'm going to print dleonard's out and use it; much good stuff there that I'm anxious to try out.

And slam, knowing the business your in, that makes me feel better about the whole thing...

 

[slamdunk]

It really does look good Mozey, VERY natural.

I couldn't tell you how many sheds i receive that people want a certain width. 9 times out of ten, they are WAY too wide and don't look natural at all. I mount sheds to a "natural" look by the shape of the pedicle and the angle and shape of the beam.....regardless of what is "thought" it should be.

Great work....wanna part time job? ;-)

 

[thebuckstopshere518]

I just boiled and bleached my father-in-laws strip buck. Should I spray the antlers with something so they dont lose their color? i appreciate your help this is a first for me.

 

[dleonard3]

They should be fine, just don't let the sunlight get 'em.

 

[BreederBuck]

Looks good. You will have to post pics of it when complete..............

 

[slamdunk]

thebuckstopshere518-

You can spray them with a matte finish clear coat if you'd like.
I use that to seal all of my skull jobs.

 

[HiMtnHntr]

Unless you're storing the antlers outside in the sun, they should retain they're natural color for many years. If they're brown and purdy, leave em alone!