Very nice work as usual, Jerry.

More great work Jerry!

And to think I'll be receiving quality work like this in the future makes me smile.

Nice work Jerry!

Very nice,clean,balanced and eye appeling.

Good looking mounts Jerry. It's refreshing to see a mounted Kudu with natural looking horns, congrats on a great job!

Outstanding work!!

Jerry, I agree with L. David Keith. I love the natural look and color of the horns on that kudu. When a taxidermist darkens the horns with stain, it makes the cape of the kudu look washed out or faded. Your kudu above really looks great - the color of the horns and cape is perfectly balanced, just like they are when they're alive.

My kudu had horns that were a medium chocolate brown in color when I shot it. My taxidermist left them natural, but the brown color seemed to go away. I'd like to restore them to that brown color again. Any suggestions would be welcome. Anyway, outstanding work on all three mounts, as usual!

Those look great Jerry.

Beautiful work!

So tell me isn't it the boiling in Africa that darkens the horns? Is there another way to have the horns removed in Africa that doesn't darken them? I love my kudu but not the color of the horns, can they be "restored" to natural color?

Love the mounts, and great work as usual.

the chef

quote:

Originally posted by calgarychef1:
So tell me isn't it the boiling in Africa that darkens the horns? Is there another way to have the horns removed in Africa that doesn't darken them? I love my kudu but not the color of the horns, can they be "restored" to natural color?

Love the mounts, and great work as usual.


the chef

Yes they can be restored, it requires a lot of effort, you can't just put them on the head. I have several different ways of getting the color back to as close to natural as I can, including, sanding, washing and scrubbing, wire brushing, and airbrush painting the colors back in.

quote:

Yes they can be restored, it requires a lot of effort, you can't just put them on the head. I have several different ways of getting the color back to as close to natural as I can, including, sanding, washing and scrubbing, wire brushing, and airbrush painting the colors back in.

1000% what Jerry said. Several African plains game species have rich color within their horns. In reality, I'd say 90% of all hunters fail to study their trophies intently. If you were to dissect a Kudu's horns (I'm speaking in averages) you would find multiple layers of "color." On the outermost layer, we find soil residue, common to that animals localized area. This tends to be ash gray to brick red, and very subtle, as it is only staining. Sometimes you will find mud or clay still embedded on the horns as well. Underneath this, you will find a natural earth tone "enamel" if you will (my choice of words). This enamel is the outer layer of color on the animal's horn. In the case of Kudu, it tends to be shades of browns to grays. This color will darken as it travels upwards toward the tips. This is due to rubbing and digging. Age and locality appear to play a role in the color. This living color as I refer to it, fades away when the horns are in the boiling process, leaving them dark shades of charcoal or black. If you study the rubbed areas (ridges, tips) you see the "ivory" or transparent blond color. This is the innermost layer of this animals horn. To leave this un-natural color in the final mounting process is to take away from the natural beauty of an animal so majestic, he is considered by many to be Africa's finest plains game trophy. For as long as I can remember, I've witnessed this process continue. Now we're beginning to see quality artwork within our Taxidermists ranks, and I for one am excited about the future of their art. Take good, clear pics of your trophies. This will help educate you and assist your Taxidermist in rendering a quality mount.
Cheers,
David

Thanks for the replies. Are there any ways to remove the horns from the cores that won't affect them as badly as the boiling? I heard someone once say something about an enzyme that can be injected under the horn? Is this a myth?

I know that we need to use good taxidermists and I agree with that as much as hiring good chefs Unfortunately in Africa we're at the mercy of the people in the field or taxidermists to remove the horns. Is there a product that we could bring with us to give the taxidermists (in Africa) to use rather than what they are doing now?

And on another note why don't they use dermestid beetles for skull cleaning. It seems that would be even cheaper than hiring African labour as the beetles do it for free. Dang I've seen some gorgeous skulls destroyed by boiling.

The chef

very impressive kudu.

beautiful as usual Jerry!

quote:

Originally posted by calgarychef1:
Thanks for the replies. Are there any ways to remove the horns from the cores that won't affect them as badly as the boiling? I heard someone once say something about an enzyme that can be injected under the horn? Is this a myth?

I know that we need to use good taxidermists and I agree with that as much as hiring good chefs Unfortunately in Africa we're at the mercy of the people in the field or taxidermists to remove the horns. Is there a product that we could bring with us to give the taxidermists (in Africa) to use rather than what they are doing now?

And on another note why don't they use dermestid beetles for skull cleaning. It seems that would be even cheaper than hiring African labour as the beetles do it for free. Dang I've seen some gorgeous skulls destroyed by boiling.

The chef

Yes its called maceration, basically its rotting them off. You keep them damp, I wrap the bottom of the cores in wet newspaper and then wrap them in a plastic bag. Wait a couple days/weeks, check them periodically. They will pop right off. Problem in africa is everything is over boiled. All the grease left from the heads boiled in the pot before yours liqiufies with the heat and soaks into your horns. It would be hard to get a ph to change his ways. But you could suggest it. Once the cores pop off then they can be boiled and the sheaths scrubbed with a wire brush.

Hugh

quote:

Originally posted by Hughiam:

quote:

Originally posted by calgarychef1:
Thanks for the replies. Are there any ways to remove the horns from the cores that won't affect them as badly as the boiling? I heard someone once say something about an enzyme that can be injected under the horn? Is this a myth?

I know that we need to use good taxidermists and I agree with that as much as hiring good chefs Unfortunately in Africa we're at the mercy of the people in the field or taxidermists to remove the horns. Is there a product that we could bring with us to give the taxidermists (in Africa) to use rather than what they are doing now?

And on another note why don't they use dermestid beetles for skull cleaning. It seems that would be even cheaper than hiring African labour as the beetles do it for free. Dang I've seen some gorgeous skulls destroyed by boiling.

The chef

Yes its called maceration, basically its rotting them off. You keep them damp, I wrap the bottom of the cores in wet newspaper and then wrap them in a plastic bag. Wait a couple days/weeks, check them periodically. They will pop right off. Problem in africa is everything is over boiled. All the grease left from the heads boiled in the pot before yours liqiufies with the heat and soaks into your horns. It would be hard to get a ph to change his ways. But you could suggest it. Once the cores pop off then they can be boiled and the sheaths scrubbed with a wire brush.

Hugh

If there is a large water tank available you can let the head soak for several days. This will allow the horns to slide off the cores and without damaging them. Also, this is easier on the skull itself as it dosen't damage skull and has the added benefit of keeping the fat from soaking into the bone.

If the meat is allowed to rot off and then the skull is boiled in clean water the horns will actually lighten somewhat.

Best bet is to keep them away from hot water as much as possible.

Awesome animals. Especially that kudu!

LOVE the kudu!! If I ever got one tips out like that I'd hope for maceration (instead of the burnt corkscrews you often have to work with.)

very nice Jerry not to bad do me a fav and show these guys the big deer as i cant put pics on and ur the man

Lovely work!

Well done, Jerry! Beautiful!