I’ve thought twice several times about cutting the beard and spurs off. I love to hunt them and watch them get shot, but I very seriously doubt I’ll ever mount one in any capacity. Fan, full body, or any other options. With that said, they do make cool mounts, I just don’t feel the need for one
Oh, and there are very very few things in life where the rule “you get what you pay for” applies more firmly than turkey taxidermy.
Them that don't know him won't like him, and them that do sometimes won't know how to take him
He ain't wrong, he's just different, and his pride won't let him do things to make you think he's right
They don't put Championship rings on smooth hands
I'd like to send one to Head one day. It'd have to be a combination of a hammer of a bird and hard earned with a good story to remember. It wouldn't be a 2 year old, fly down, 10 minute hunt.
Last edited by Quack07; 05-07-2021 at 05:44 AM.
Agree. I have quite a few mounted Gobblers. Going into the Turkey room transports me back in time. To places and friends who shared hunts and destinations. Someday, hopefully, long from now when I can't climb hills or even hunt , I will be able to sit in a chair and remember. Someday, memories will be all I have. And even those will fade with time.
Poetry time - I walk past a Grande' Goulds every morning and am transported in my mind to a Mountain high above Durango, MX and still see the bird as it was, right before I mashed his skull. Bittersweet indeed. To shake hands with a fine Mexican friend named Jose Calaco and relish the moment and the journey it took to get to that point.
I think the essence of turkey hunting is that it's an interactive hunt and not just an execution. For me, it's a reminder of time - that I have fewer hunts ahead than I have behind me... it's sobering and makes every bird I kill that much more important. I love to hunt turkeys and have been blessed in that I have seen a lot of wild, beautiful places in the process. To each his own, but I see much more than a pile of feathers, beards and spurs.
F**K Cancer
Just Damn.
I mounted two last year for the first time ever.
Jane and I doubled on a pair of true hammers....they take up a lot of space since they are fighting with one on top of the other.
I may never mount another or I may.
The likelihood of Jane and I doubling on equal birds on her birthday no less is pretty slim IMO.
No regrets......everyone has their reason.
\"I never saw a wild thing feel sorry for itself. A small bird will drop dead frozen from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself.\" <br />D.H. LAWRENCE
"They are who we thought they were"
You can dress a fat chick up, but you cant fix stupid
Don't turn off the feeders. That'll make them harder to kill...
I won't discount the memories of turkey hunting, but a turkey is one ugly bird. Ain't much about them that scream, "that would look good mounted in my living room".
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I'm too cheap but I would mount a flock of those sombitches piling in like ducks. Carry on.
I am rather fond of this one.
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F**K Cancer
Just Damn.
Big spurs or a double spur...beard over 12 or multiple over 4...or any color mutation. That being said I’m still super picky about what I do for myself because I’m going to spend a lot of time on it. Most birds this year I ended up cutting various “good” parts off to keep when a customer brings in a badly damaged bird.
That being said they do take up a bunch of room especially mounted on a pedestal. Anyone been in my shop knows I have limited space. So this mount is fixing to be taken apart and use as replacement feather bird to make room for the next personal turkey I work on.
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I don’t and prob never will have a turkey in my current house because of floor and wall space. With that being said if I wasn’t a taxidermist and I killed a 4 beard 1.5” spur bird that I killed at 75 yards with the .410 and he didn’t flop any would get mounted roosted looking around like this one I did yesterday.....btw that spur is 1 11/16”
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When in doubt, shoot him again!
Work like it's all up to me, but pray, like it's all up to him!
On a side note one one aspect of turkey taxidermy that 99% of customers dont even notice is the fact that almost all full strut turkeys are mounted with a smooth breast and that never happens in real life.
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Getting those breast feathers to open up and shingle while keeping that pan on the front flat is without a doubt the hardest task in taxidermy because no one has ever got it right.
So everyone just mounts a smooth breast strutter. It also takes half the time. After drying the skin it normally takes me 2-2.5 hrs to mount the bird. I tried a shingle bird Friday. Ate up all of 5 hrs and had me pulling my beard hairs out. I’ll get there one day
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When in doubt, shoot him again!
Work like it's all up to me, but pray, like it's all up to him!
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