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mounts damaged!

2K views 12 replies 7 participants last post by  labman63 
#1 ·
Had painters in my house last week to touch up some nail pops and a few flaws(new house) I left them and went out to train the dogs. I came back in and looked up at my double eider mounts and the drakes wing was split over the hens head. They hit it with a ladder I guess and neither spoke english(how convient) and just looked at me when I said very loudly what the F*&k! I was so pissed. I figured just the wire was bent so I got up ona chair and bent the drake back up off then hen and thought I'd take it down when the wife got home so she could help me get them back in the right position. When she got home I took it down and noticed the necks were broke on both birds!!!! Heads are not in the same position they were in. I called the builder and told him what happend and of course he said they would do whatever to fix them. I told him I went from NC all the way to Maine to shoot those ducks not to mention the cost to mount them. Anyway I called my taxi and he said he'd look at them but wasn't alot he could do but could might make them look ok. I'll take them to him later this month when I pick up the 3 he has almost ready for me now. The good news is I am going back to Maine this yr!
Thanks for letting me vent!
 
#6 ·
They "should" have insurance to cover this. I get a few calls every every year from movers and contractors looking to get either estimates or actual fixes on damages mounts. If I were you I would just get your taxidermist to write you an itemized bill for full replacement stating they can not be repaired to original condition. Then go kill two more nice ones and put them on the wall.

Post some pics because unless they are just totally trashed they should be fixible for the most part. Eiders are heavily feathered so seams "should" be repairable and hidable.

That being said, I would try to get the full value for them just for the principle of them not being more careful with your property.
 
#7 ·
Like Brian said, they should be bonded and bear responsibility for the damage. Have you paid them for the work yet? Be a thorn in their side with them and the BBB till your loss is covered to your liking.
 
#8 ·
Last year the military moved me from CA to WA. In the process, they broke 2 of 3 quail on one of my mounts. Since the mount was $900, they gave me $600 cash since the third quail wasn't damaged. I was able "bend" the quail back together and hit it with a couple spots of super glue. The feathers straightened back out and it's no longer a big deal. Do I know the damage is there? Sure do! Do my friends who are seeing it for the first time? No...but quail are different than duck heads.

The bottom line is the company you contracted should have insurance to cover things like that. Hope you're able to get compensated for their dishonesty and negligence in your home.
 
#9 ·
The general contractor is a good guy and all I have to do is take them back to my Taxi and see what he can do. Contractor assured me that he will take care of any expenses. Here they are before. I had took the White Wing off of that wood and put it on it's own when we moved into the new house or it would have been damaged too. The Drake head is almost like he is now looking down at the Hen instead of the same position as her. If I took a close up you could see the cracked necks. I go to pick up my Old Squaw,Gadwall and Woody in a couple weeks and will take them in then.

Now
 
#10 ·
Personally, I wouldn't be too scared to try and slowly bend them back into place. As soon as I started hearing the skin cracking, I would stop or slow down. If the skin was cracked already because they moved to such a degree, they will sort of go right back to where they belong.

Funny story: My daughter comes up crying that while her and two buddies were playing ball tag in the basement (not allowed but oh well kids will be kids, and I'm an easy going dad) and apparently a ball hit one of my ruddy ducks. They tried fisxing it to see if I wouldn't notice it, and finally came to the conclusion that I would indeed see the difference. After all, they eye was missing, and the skin was cracked on the neck completely around the neck. I put a new eye in, and bent everything back and glued it in place, and it looks just as crappy as it did before the ball hit it! LOL

So long story short, it doesn't look too bad, and I think your taxi will be just fine fixing it, and I think you could certainly do the same. I have taken old mounts that looked off a bit, and bent legs, necks, and wings and they will indeed crack a bit, but they wind up looking better than the previous pose.
 
#11 ·
Thanks Pete, the neck on the hen is indeed cracked all the way around. I did bend it back to almost normal postion but could hear cracking so i got nervous and stopped. After that I didn't even mess with the drake I was so mad. I bent the wire back to get them apart and hung them back up. I too think my guy can make them look ok,they do have pretty long feathers on the neck. If not I'll shoot two more in December and let the contractor pay for it.
 
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