Try To Save Those Capes

I bring them out and give them to my taxidermist to get credit towards my next mount :)
He only wants them if they are from a big buck though, not like most of those fella's on that ebay page you listed :)
Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"


Let me guess, you drive a 1 ton with oak trees for smoke stacks, 12" lift kit and 40" tires to pull a single place lawn mower trailer?
 
I tell all my clients to save their capes and I give them credit towards their next mount or discount a euro or horn mount on that deer for them. Most of the prices on the e-bay were not good. I doubt they will sell. Also un-tanned capes cut up the back I usually don't give more than $30 for. Cutting deer up the back creates a lot more work for an inferior product. Most of my customers won't pay extra money for one anyway. Tanned capes under 17 inches You can't get more than $75 so you loose money already. To give you an idea of what a great cape can sell for a 22 inch Y incision muley tanned might fetch $200. Desert muley capes out of Mexico fetch more if they have been handled correctly.
 
Got any diagrams on how to cut a cape correctly? I have a way to do a cape with out a incision other then cutting around the body and around the knee of the deer or elk. It makes for a seamless cape, but takes maybe 20 minutes or 30 minutes of work where cutting the cape down the back for front takes 10 or 15 but hey if you want a quality cape my way works wonders. My aunt used a cape like this and her taxidermist asked where she learned how to do that, and to be honest I was just thinking ##### I don't want to mess this up so I cam up with the idea and it worked wonders. I would however still like to learn how to cut one correctly in the instance of a need to hurry a job for whatever reason. I would hate to ruin a beautiful cape not knowing how to do it right.
 
Deerslayer88, I do the same thing. Only cuts I make are around the knees and rib cage. I let the professional do everything else.
I did the same thing with my black bear in AK a couple years ago. Just made a cut along the belly (short and pulled the legs out without cutting down them. Basically "unwrapped" it from the hide. Makes more work but the taxi-made the perfect cuts to make it look great for the rug...

Mntman

"Hunting is where you prove yourself"


Let me guess, you drive a 1 ton with oak trees for smoke stacks, 12" lift kit and 40" tires to pull a single place lawn mower trailer?
 
That's a great plan deerslayer. I tell a lot of the clients to tube their cape. The most common mistake that clients make in skinning their deer is they cut through the armpits instead of behind the armpits. If they would have just tubed it like you do their mount, and my labor, would have been a lot better. The incision I was talking about is just a small incision shaped like a letter "Y" at the back of the horns and between the ears. I will see if I can locate a graphic for you and post it.
 
I would like to see the how to do it graphic. I have always cut them up the back and Y at the ears. I didn't know the taxidermist didn't like it that way.
 
I wanna see!

"The problem with quotes on Internet Forums is that it is often difficult to verify their authenticity." - Abraham Lincoln
 
2292imagesca6a29rn.jpg


This what your looking for Tristate?
 
LAST EDITED ON Nov-01-13 AT 03:17PM (MST)[p]I tube the legs, but cut the back.

I think Tristate is saying that he would prefer it tubed for most of the back as well and then as small of a Y as you can get away with to get the skin over the head.

You end up without having to sew up the back very much.
 
LAST EDITED ON Nov-01-13 AT 03:37PM (MST)[p]If you spend the time and do it right. You would just make cuts in yellow. (as mentioned above I usually make a full dorsal cut especially on an elk vs. trying to man handle it around tubing the neck. I have tubed the neck on deer before and it wasn't too bad.

taxidermy_cape.jpg


I think lots of people end up cutting too close up to the shoulder blades so always cut back a little farther than you think. You want to give the taxidermist plenty of cape to work with, ESPECIALLY if you end up wanting to do a pedestal mount.

I also make the cut right below the knee instead of above it. Some of these pedestal mounts now have a good portion of the leg showing so it doesn't hurt to have a little extra there as well.
 
Another slight variation to npaden's illustration: This is how my taxidermist wants mine. My last pronghorn was like this.

57572292imagesca6a29rn.jpg
 
I think Ill just continue to tube it as I now know its called. I know when I did mine I rolled it up to the back of the head and cut the head off. I gave my aunt my whole head and said just bring me back the skull with horns attached after your taxi does it. I ended up european mounting my buck that year as it is my fav mount. I think when I hit over 190 Ill do a full mount (that buck was 183 after drying).
 
Sorry guys I took my boy deer hunting this weekend and just got back in office. Npaden, your diagram alteration is quite accurate to how we cape deer now. Thank you for your assistance. This makes for a better fit and mount with less work for your deer. Hope everybody puts a monster on their wall this year.

Cheers.
 

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