Stone Sheep Mount????????

[archeryelk]

If you have pictures you could post I would really appreciate it.

I looked at my mount for the 1st time Saturday and was shocked. I am not an expert but would love to have something to compare with.

Archer

 

[hunterjmj]

http://www.animalartistry.com/pb/sheep/06_sheep.php

This should give you a good view of a nice stone.

 

[nmtaxi]

Is "shocked" good or bad? I take it that you don't like the mount?

 

[archeryelk]

Not really excited. I expected it to be WOW.

I am NOT an expect but just wanted some pictures to compare.

Archer

 

[nmtaxi]

A stone sheep is a beautiful animal. If the taxidermist consistently produces "wow" work, and yours didn't reach that mark, I'd talk to him about it. Sometimes we build up things in our minds that look one way, and when it looks different we just don't like it. Sometimes you have to look at it for awhile to appreciate it. Do you have any pics of it?

 

[archeryelk]

I am hoping you are right. I will post pictures later.

Bottom line is there is not much you can do after tanning and then it being on the form a month. Nothing major that is.

Archer

 

[DesertSheep]

I had a similar situation with my Rocky. When I dropped it off, I told the guy working there what I wanted - wall pedistal - and I specifically told him to not tip the head down like a pronghorn that was there.

And you can guess what it looked like when I picked it up. I took it home and put it on the wall. My ram is a 3/4 curl and when you tip the head down, it makes it look like a 5/8 curl ram.

After a couple of weeks, I couldn't take it anymore and took it back. I told the owner the flaws I saw in the mount and he said "What do you expect? It's not a competition piece".

They were able to soak the hide off, tip the head up (too far this time) and then put it back together. It came out ok, but it isn't exactly how I wanted it.

If you are going to take back, you probably should do it soon....

 

[archeryelk]

I have not picked it up YET. I have talked to him several times about it.

Looking for pictures to explain what looks wrong.

Archer

 

[DesertSheep]

Here's my desert. I really like the detail in the face. This mount is almost 12 years old and has aged well.

This is my rocky that was redone. It's hard to tell in this photo, but the eyes are still messed up, the mouth is open to far and they tipped the head up further than I wanted.

 

[Cozmo8]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-28-07 AT 05:50PM (MST)[p]

Can any of the taxidermists out there explain what "competition piece" means. How much more time is spent on a mount for competition than one for the average Joe?

Archeryelk-I had the same reaction last year when I got my Dall sheep back. It just did not seem right. After having some guys on MM look at it and comment I felt better about it. The thing that still bothers me is that I asked for black rocks and did not get it, not a big deal but it was important to me. I also expected the cape to be bleached the taxidermist was the one to mention it. When I picked it up the cape was not bleached and I was surprised. I went back and looked at the kill pictures and the cape was pretty stained. In the long run I like it better now natural than bleached. The bottom line is make sure the person doing it knows what you want and they are willing to do it. Here is my Dall.

 

[archeryelk]

Can you post a side picture of the Dall mount?

Archer

 

[Packout]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-28-07 AT 08:46PM (MST)[p]Interesting point, that of "Competition Quality". I'd say some taxidermists put in 2 to 20 times the amount of time into a "Competition Mount". Competition pieces also have detailed nose interiors, eyes, ear interiors, and extreme detail in places only seen by a judge's mini-flashlight. Many have extreme alterations in the pose, which requires time and money to change the form. Paying extra $$$ for "Competition" quality doesn't always mean the mount will look better, as many animals have flaws: drab color, scars, or other flaws on the hide. "Competition" winning doesn't always translate to high quality "Commercial" quality.

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www.sagebasin.com
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[roger]

Competition quality is not something that will be noticed by the average hunter who just wants a really good looking mount. I think using the "not competition quality" is an easy out for a taxidermist that may have performed some sloppy work or cut corners. The thing you should look for is very clean an smooth looking mount. The eyes and nose have it all. If a taxidermist goes to the trouble to make a great looking eye then you probably will have a good looking mount. You should not be able to see paint on the nose pad or around the eyes. The transition from horns to hair should be very smooth. I would guess that the cape was not bleached because the taxidermist tanned the cape himself and did not send it off for proper bleaching at a high quality tannery.

Understand that not all taxidermist are created equal. Cheap taxidery is seldom good and good taxidermy is seldom cheap.

 

[roger]

This is one of the eyes from the ram in the picture above. Notice there is no paint or any type of epoxy on the area around the eye. The eye should have a very clean, soft, and natural look. No part of this area area should have hard or shiny appearance. This is an area you should check on any mount wheather it be sheep, deer, or any type of gamehead.

 

[ColoradoOak]

Cozmo8 said:
"The thing that still bothers me is that I asked for black rocks and did not get it, not a big deal but it was important to me."

In my opinion, if it was important to you, it is a big deal. You're paying for the guy to do what you want. FWIW, I think your mount looks great.

 

[roger]

This is a picture of the rams nose pad. Once again this area should look very soft and textured and not look shiny and black. A nose can sometimes look shiny because animals keep their nose moist but this is up to the customer. This photo does not show the inner nostril work. Even if the piece is non-competition there should be some nostril work in order to create a smooth transition from hair to the inner nostril skin. You should also look for a smooth transition on the hair line as the hair tucks under the edge of the lips and nose pad.

Don't trust the mount of a lifetime to just any taxidermist. Just because he can mount deer doesn't mean he can pull off a quality sheep mount. Check references and do your home work. These rams are to hard to come by and don't trust them to just any taxidermist.

 

[Cozmo8]

LAST EDITED ON Aug-28-07 AT 09:42PM (MST)[p]Coloradooak-Thanks for the comments.

Roger-my taxidermist offered to bleach the cape after it was done if I wanted it. I do not think he tanned it himself or he would have had to tan another 300-400 more hides. He and his son do a lot of work for Bass Pro and he showed me a few of the capes that he had sent to a tannery. This was one of the selling points he had. He was stoked about the quality work the tannery was doing. I looked at a Stone sheep cape he had in the shop and to an untrained eye it looked very good. I guess I am from the school that likes the mount natural, the way it came off the mountain. A lot dall sheep capes are stained and dirty in the wild and by bleaching them it makes them look like they just came out of the car wash. Certainly that is not how they live their lives. I have a mule deer that I left a little piece of velvet on and another that I left some aspen shavings in the burrs. I guess personal preference.

archeryelk-If you really want a great side view let me know and I will take some photos. Otheriwse this is the best I have.

 

[HunterHarry]

Here are a few...