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Ave cost for WT shoulder mount #5970827 10/10/15 08:23 PM
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okiehuntr Offline OP
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Just checking to see what the cost might be for a whitetail shoulder mount...I've heard any where from 425 to 650...Is more, more better?
okiehuntr

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5970958 10/10/15 10:27 PM
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I charge $455 10% discount before tax. Total is something around $443

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5970975 10/10/15 10:41 PM
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LuckyHunter Offline
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cyclo eeks333 eeks333 Look at their work.... Look at their work.... Look at their work....

Ask if they are the one who will personally mount your whitetail.

Then check their schedule on completing work, by talking with clients bang

Get it in writing argue

If your decision is based on price then you get what you pay for. If your decision is based on the quality and service you receive from the taxidermist then the cost will be of less concern. Remember you are preserving memories.


Lucky 7 Exotic Ranch located in Eden, Tx. Well managed self sustaining herds roaming our 3,000 acre ranch. First Class Lodging, Ranch style meals and qualified guides. 30+ species.
Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971019 10/10/15 11:20 PM
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Agreed with the above statement!

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971143 10/11/15 01:16 AM
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Price isn't an accurate indicator of quality. There are too many thieves out there that are also very proud of below standard workmanship. First thing I ask is where do you tan your hides. If they tell me they do it themselves, I'm done and out of there. I want to hear that they are using a commercial tannery. NOTHING ELSE WILL DO. Then I ask who they get their forms and eyes from. Some make their own forms. Again, if I hear that, I'm done and out of there. If they have a stack of catalogs showing different companies, that's a very good sign. When looking at their work, look at the nostrils. Are they open as far as you can see? How do the eyes look? Natural or weird? Too many can't set the eyes right. The difference between a mount that looks like it's alive and dead is the skill in mounting the eyes. I don't worry too much about how long it takes. If he is busy, that's a good sign. I would be more worried about the guy who has nothing to do and can start on your mount right away unless he is just getting started.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971237 10/11/15 02:23 AM
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I would agree with Eddie. I've been in the business full time for the last 15 years and have started here in Texas the past 1 1/2 since relocating from Vermont. I get $550 for a standard whitetail shoulder mount. Here are a few closeup pics of what Eddie is talking about.



Look up Gods Creation Taxidermy Studio on facebook in Granbury. Right now i have a 8 month or less turn around time, but that will change by the end of the seasons. 817-757-9192

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971277 10/11/15 02:53 AM
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Okie hunter, price range you have is about right depending on where you are. I know Oklahoma taxidermist are cheaper than here in TX, it just the market.
As for what is said above, a lot of taxis send out the hides to be tanned, this takes longer on the turn around and hopefully your hide doesn't get lost or destroyed at the tannery. With the advances in tanning products I don't really understand why Eddie would leave if a taxi said they tan there own hides confused2
Some taxis add details like muscles and all to give the deer on steroid look, most deer in TX don't naturally look like that. The pic of the nose above look at the nostril, needs some color to it IMO, never seen a deer like that in the wild with a white/cream color nostril.
But to each his own. If you want a show quality piece you will pay more than $700. Other than that you re in the right price range for a commercial piece. Good luck cheers

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971559 10/11/15 02:16 PM
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A commercial tannery has access and is able to dispose of the harsh chemical needed to properly tan a hide. They can do dry tanning, or wet tanning. My taxidermist prefers wet hides for mounts and dry hides for rugs.

The cost to be able to use these chemicals makes it impossible for a taxidermist to use the same quality of chemicals at his home or his shop. If they tan the hides themselves, they are using over the shelf chemicals that are legal to dispose of and not harmful to the environment. In my opinion, the difference is night and day. Same as going to Walmart to buy medicine, or getting a prescription from your doctor. The hides tanned at the taxidermist will never come close to lasting anywhere close to what you get from a commercial tannery.

Yes it might take a little longer to have it commercially tanned, but that's just a week to a month depending on the time of the year and who you use. To me, that's nothing for something that I want to see for the next fifty years. Cost is going to be a little more. Usually it's about $40 to $50 to have a deer sized cape tanned commercially, where the guy doing it himself can buy the chemicals and use them over and over again. Hopefully your cape isn't the one that's used after a hundred others have already been through it.

With my mounts, I'm very anal and I'm a big snob. I've been in too many trophy rooms only to be disappointed by poor work. Most of the time it's from a taxidermist in Africa, other times it's the outfitter who does the mount after the season ends, and sometimes it's just the local guy who has been doing it that way for fifty years and just doesn't have a clue. Sadly, too many hunters accept mediocre quality work.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5971656 10/11/15 03:46 PM
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The flash of the camera in the above photo whitewashed the interior of the nose. The color is actually a flesh tone with brown feathered in. It's hard to see that because of my camera. I didn't post it to get a critique . I posted it tosh ow what Eddie was talking about.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5974554 10/13/15 02:40 AM
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There are two sides to every story ?


DEATHBY416
Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5998278 10/28/15 01:11 PM
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Eddiewalker.... You have absolutely no idea what your talking about in regards to tanning, taxidermist access to the exact same tanning supply's that commercial tanneries have (acids, tans & oils), I wouldn't use a taxidermist if he didn't know how to tan his own skins, maybe your taxidermist doesn't know as much as he's telling you he does, As far as making their own manikins why do you have a problem with that, you might be missing out, someone had to make those forms your taxidermist is using, all he's doing is using a form someone else made! I really appreciate that you only use great taxidermist, but to get on the internet and try to educate readers, without really knowing what your talkin about is very misleading. I'm sure you're just regurgitating what your taxidermist has told you. The only reason I posted this, so some of these readers don't turn around and walk out on taxidermist that are doing exactly what you're telling them not to do!


Deer Creek Taxidermy
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Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: Deer Creek Taxidermy] #5998319 10/28/15 01:33 PM
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I agree with Deer Creek, there is some bad information here.

Using a tannery is automatically a 6 month wait. (not a week or a month as indicated above) Tanning in house is the same as the tannery, but I have control of quality and turn around time. I do use commercial forms and modify them often to get the pose I want. It's not uncommon for me to change a standard wall mount form into a wall pedestal for example. You couldn't tell I modified it and you now have a one of a kind mount.

I get $450 a shoulder mount.

Dan

www.waterfowlwonders.net

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5998865 10/28/15 07:51 PM
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I didn't say you didn't have access to what commercial tanneries have access to. I am speaking in general terms and personal experiences covering decades of experience. I also do not claim to be an expert, just a very picky client who has seen way too many bad mounts, and common excuses.

As for tanning, I'm sure you can get the good stuff to tan your hides, and I'm also sure that if you did, you would also have to deal with all the federal regulations with disposing of those chemicals when you are done with them. But I have found that in the vast majority of taxidermist who do their own tanning, they use the easy to dispose of chemicals that are also available that cost a lot less money. I also have found that those are the mounts that look like antiques in just a couple of years.

Forms are cheap enough to pay for, but those who like to cut every little corner, tend to also cut corners on their forms. If you spend the time to make a form as good as you can buy, then you are either spending too much time carving, or you are ending up with a crappy looking mount. Same thing with eyes and brackets. A dollar here and a dollar there adds up to more profit, but the client ends up with crap.

Modifying forms is very common and expected from a quality taxidermist. Nobody wants to be limited to just a couple poses, and it's too easy to cut a quality form not to. That has nothing to do with the paper mache crap forms that are out there.

A quality mount will still be a quality mount after the hunter is dead and gone. Crap will look like it from day one, and sadly, just get worse every year. In my opinion, maybe ten percent of taxidermist out there actually have the artistic talent to bring a mount alive. A big part of that is using quality materials.

It's my money, and I'm spending it on the best taxidermist I can find. Not the cheapest, not the fastest, not the one who brags the most and definitely not the one who cuts corners.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5999723 10/29/15 04:26 AM
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EddieWalker up


Lucky 7 Exotic Ranch located in Eden, Tx. Well managed self sustaining herds roaming our 3,000 acre ranch. First Class Lodging, Ranch style meals and qualified guides. 30+ species.
Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #5999909 10/29/15 01:17 PM
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Eddie, you used the word impossible, not really a general term, as far as using cheap stuff & over the counter, federal permits, your very misinformed! You, I mean as in eddiewalker can buy the exact same tanning supply's (lutan-f, para tan, all the alums) as the largest tannery there is, out of most taxidermy supply Catalogs and always have been able too, no federal permit required. All acids have to be Neutralized before being disposed of, it actually turns into fertilizer after being neutralized. A lot of tanneries started out in someone's taxidermy shop and grew from there. You can use the best tan in the world and still turn out junk!


Deer Creek Taxidermy
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Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6000221 10/29/15 03:37 PM
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Lucky 7 Exotic Ranch located in Eden, Tx. Well managed self sustaining herds roaming our 3,000 acre ranch. First Class Lodging, Ranch style meals and qualified guides. 30+ species.
Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6000362 10/29/15 05:05 PM
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It real amazes me how people that are not in the profession tell the professional or people whom make a living at it that they are wrong. Back seat driver, arm chair quarterback, etc come to mind.
One comment that was made earlier in the topic was that taxidermist that do there own tanning use the tan over and over and over again around a 100 times. There maybe some tans on the market that you can use over and over again and again but most of the ones I'm aware of are single time use.
I used to do taxi work for the public but after dealing with the general public I have closed and only do work for myself and my family for the simple fact that the general public now knows how to do the job better than me but will not or cannot do it themselves. I tanned my own hides and stood behind anything that went out my door and told my customers that. Believe it or not, not one customer has brought anything back to me! I have a few WT deer, mule deer, and lifesize bobcat mounts hanging in my old shop that is climate controlled that are tanned by myself that still look as good as the day I mounted them, minus a little dust.

The original poster ask about pricing not what to do or ask. I'm sure whomever he went too he could see the work and make a grown up decision on if it was to his standard/liking.

My question to y'all is how do you know that the mounts hanging on your wall right now are professionally tanned or tanned in house by the taxidermist????

That's right, you don't know
clap

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: crosshare] #6000430 10/29/15 05:53 PM
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Originally Posted By: crosshare
It real amazes me how people that are not in the profession tell the professional or people whom make a living at it that they are wrong. Back seat driver, arm chair quarterback, etc come to mind.
One comment that was made earlier in the topic was that taxidermist that do there own tanning use the tan over and over and over again around a 100 times. There maybe some tans on the market that you can use over and over again and again but most of the ones I'm aware of are single time use.
I used to do taxi work for the public but after dealing with the general public I have closed and only do work for myself and my family for the simple fact that the general public now knows how to do the job better than me but will not or cannot do it themselves. I tanned my own hides and stood behind anything that went out my door and told my customers that. Believe it or not, not one customer has brought anything back to me! I have a few WT deer, mule deer, and lifesize bobcat mounts hanging in my old shop that is climate controlled that are tanned by myself that still look as good as the day I mounted them, minus a little dust.

The original poster ask about pricing not what to do or ask. I'm sure whomever he went too he could see the work and make a grown up decision on if it was to his standard/liking.

My question to y'all is how do you know that the mounts hanging on your wall right now are professionally tanned or tanned in house by the taxidermist????

That's right, you don't know
clap


You see the hide when it's returned from the tannery eeks333 My taxidermist and I have a great relationship.

The proof is in results after results after results RESULTS of TANNING

I don't tell anyone how to mount or run their business. I just research.

Last edited by SheepHunter; 10/29/15 06:16 PM.

Lucky 7 Exotic Ranch located in Eden, Tx. Well managed self sustaining herds roaming our 3,000 acre ranch. First Class Lodging, Ranch style meals and qualified guides. 30+ species.
Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6000562 10/29/15 07:15 PM
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I know that all my mounts have been tanned by Golden Gate Tannery in CA. I know this for a fact because I've seen the invoice for them.

I know that like all self employed professionals out there that there are very few who are really good at what they do, and a lot who are just average, and some that are so horrible at it that they cannot make a living doing it.

I know that when I look through the pictures of the taxidermist who post pics of their work on here, most are just average.

I know that when I'm spending my money, it's important to know what I'm getting and while not an expert, I am free to offer my opinion and couldn't care less if it strikes home and hurts your feelings.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6000567 10/29/15 07:18 PM
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Oh yeah, if you spend any amount of time at a really good taxidermist shop, you will see dozens of mounts done by others who didn't have a clue. Nobody is going back to the guy who did a horrible job to have it done again. The guy who is busy with repeat clients who are also out telling others about his work is making a very good living doing what he loves. He is fixing others work and growing his clientele. The guy that is putting out crap is the guy who has all sorts of free time on his hands.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6003353 10/31/15 04:33 PM
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My taxidermist charges $650, which is higher than most in my area. He doesn't get as much work but it allows him to spend more time on each mount. His eyes, nose, and mouth look noticeably better than most. I don't think most hunters can tell a good mount from a very good mount. I hate to see when the deer of a lifetime gets a butcher job by a bad taxidermist.

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6006734 11/02/15 07:51 PM
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i would say for less than 500 you may not be happy with the results
just my 2 cents

Re: Ave cost for WT shoulder mount [Re: okiehuntr] #6007120 11/02/15 11:50 PM
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Gotta say I've enjoyed all the posts and have looked into the work of those who are taxi's and tried to also find a convenient (150 mile radius)
One word advice.... taxidermists, Do Not be cute in your profile with your location because if I cannot figure out where some idiotic & smart a## place you list, how would you expect a local or out of state client to first of all take you as a serious Professional" !
One taxi has posted great photos from a place I cannot figure out and has been crossed off my list.
appreciate the forums help,
okiehuntr

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