[firebird]

The feathers on the wings will move-the wings themselves should stay in place. Here are some pix to illustrate “shape.” Wings maintain a “w” type shape and the neck am “s” shape. Notice the neck is not a tube, but a series of tubes that form ovals or a figure 8 or a snowman type shape. Also the wing hanging from a wire to assist skinning. I don’t use this for duck size birds but I like it for big, heavy birds.

 

[New guy 01]

would this work?

 

[New guy 01]

And thank you I will definitely work on those things as soon as the stuff comes in to mount this red head

 

[New guy 01]

And thank you I will definitely work on those things as soon as the stuff comes in to mount this red head

And also those ducks in the wall behind it looks awesome!

 

[firebird]

Thank you-someone once asked if I was left handed-I asked why and they pointed out that most of my birds are pointing to the left-something I had not noticed before then

 

[New guy 01]

I didn’t notice that either lol but will doing those clips like I put on help or does it need to be pinned? I cut cardboard but wasn’t sure how big of pieces to use and I was having a hard time seeing what the feathers looked like in between the two pieces

 

[New guy 01]

Can I see some of the birds you have mounted and is caulking important or can it be skipped?

 

[firebird]

Little or thinner strips for smaller feathers, bigger or thicker strips for larger-more or less pins as needed. I use a support wire under the wing while it dries. Caulk is nice for strength, smoothness and to fill in sunken spots-I like it in the cheeks. But it can also ruin a bird if it gets loose on the feathers!

 

[firebird]

Now I use a long pin or tweezers to move feathers-in the pic I see some black feathers above the speculum that need attention for example-don’t forget, there is a top AND a bottom of every wing and tail

 

[firebird]

cardboard from soda box cut to shape and size for my gadwall-I use paper clips so no holes in the skin that would need to be repaired later

 

[New guy 01]

So I finally got back from a trip in the outer banks and and have some other birds to work on, but where we were there was not a freezer only a fridge for us, I put them in bags on ice to keep them colder and they got wet is it alright to freeze them while they are wet or do I need to leave them outside to dry out or somthing?

 

[firebird]

Freezing when Wet is fine-redheads are a good bird to practice on

 

[New guy 01]

Freezing when Wet is fine-redheads are a good bird to practice on

Awesome thank you a lot! I was worried if it would mess them up or not

 

[New guy 01]

Before I continue much further I am skinning a red head from last year and the bottom half of the duck it’s skin is green and smells like ass is this from rot somehow? It’s been in the freezer the whole time and only took a few hours to unfreeze and is skill kinda cold can this still be skinned and use borax to dry after wire wheeling?

 

[New guy 01]

Before I continue much further I am skinning a red head from last year and the bottom half of the duck it’s skin is green and smells like ass is this from rot somehow? It’s been in the freezer the whole time and only took a few hours to unfreeze and is skill kinda cold can this still be skinned and use borax to dry after wire wheeling?

 

[New guy 01]

Never mind imma just throw it away and do a fresh one that I just got

 

[firebird]

Slimy and green means he has a festering pellet somewhere and is a guarantee the feathers will “slip” and come out during the degreasing/washing process.
redheads have fairly tough skins without any weak spots (such as the back of a mallard drake) and they have a large bill-so easy off during skinning and easy on when mounting. Small easy to skin wings that hold their form well and generally well feathered. I consider them a good beginners project.

 

[New guy 01]

Slimy and green means he has a festering pellet somewhere and is a guarantee the feathers will “slip” and come out during the degreasing/washing process.
redheads have fairly tough skins without any weak spots (such as the back of a mallard drake) and they have a large bill-so easy off during skinning and easy on when mounting. Small easy to skin wings that hold their form well and generally well feathered. I consider them a good beginners project.

Appreciate it I just didn’t know what that green was and it smelt terrible but I took 2 fresh ones out, and what is a weak spot? Is it just like where the skin is thin?

 

[New guy 01]

Is this how to set up the heads? I’ve read and watched many videos and all say different things such as drill a huge hole with a paddle bit in the back and some say to just drill one small hole for your wire and the eyes are the hardest thing to find useful info on

 

[New guy 01]

Additionally what two sizes of foam should I use for the neck in a mallard and widgon I lost my paper I wrote it on