Do it yourself antlers

[David LaPell]

I shot a really nice 10 point buck this past season, not really huge compared to others, but still a nice deer. I didn't want to mount the head but I wanted a decent looking mount for the wall. What I have noticed with the antler mounting kits is that they all look very cheesy and really cheap.
So I went to my local craft store and got a piece of wood myself for all of $3.00, a nice piece of green cloth and some wire ties. I drilled the holes in to mount the antlers and then tightened up the ties. I then trimmed the cloth to fit, and glued and tacked it to the wood. I then woodburned the date I got the deer and gave it a clear stain.
http://i561.photobucket.com/albums/ss57/Smith29-2/Picture1767.jpg

[leftiye]

'Snice!

[Dennis Eugene]

Well Done. Dennis

[Taylor]

Yes they are cheesy.I tried to fill the space with Great Stuff,helped some,but not all that great.You did good.

[leftiye]

I'm growing a set right now. Will mount them after they fall off!

[richhodg66]

Those look great! I do similarly, but usually cut and rout the edge on a piece of oak, usually in the shape of the state I shot the deer in.

You did a very nice job with the woodburning, I recently got a woodburner tool and have started playing with it to learn how to do stuff like that, I'm sure it'll be a long, long time before I'm as steady with it as you obviously are.

[izzyjoe]

your's looks real nice, my brother in law does Europeon mounts, and they look awsome. i killed an 8pt. last season and started mine, but have not finished yet.

[RP]

My son is doing those for guys we hunt with. Some of the things he has tried and worked for him is, Cuts a block of wood in oval shape to mount horns too it add girth and make entire mount easier, Then pads the skull and around horns with batten cloth or old shirts what ever works good and lays down well. Then wrap the cloth over the padding and hot glues it around the horns and back side of wood block he cut. Then he gets a piece from the craft store to mount it too. Now how in the heck did you burn the date in so good that looks like a pro did it. Oh another ideal he came up with if the deer was taken with a shot gun he drills a hole in the board and put the shell in it so the end is showing same with rifle. Oh he also uses leather strips around the horns to hide the seam and dresses it up nicely.
I think he has 10 bucks total in them and its a lot cheaper then a head mount which is not cheap at all.

[richhodg66]

The hot glue is a good idea, I have been sewing the edges together and it's a lot of work and doesn't always turn out well.

On the subject of European mounts, those are neat too. A few years ago in late November, I found a dead buck I think a bowhunter lost. Anyway, he was probably a 160 class buck, very symetrical, better than any I ever shot. It was pretty disgusting, but my boy and I boiled it over a campfire in water with Borax in it and cleaned and scraped for a good long time. Later I brushed peroxide on all the bone surfaces and mounted it up to a nice oak plaque. It looks good, I have it hanging over my loading bench.

[Jal5]

Nice work!
A friend started a service to mount antlers called antlersonly.com and the finished product is really nice: stained plaque with antlers mounted into a metal skull plate, spot for your picture and small plaque with date, etc.

Joe

[Jim]

Good job, David! I particularly like the date in script. I think that adds a nice touch.

[Hardcast416taylor]

Nice job! A friend did a European skull mount last fall on his grand sons first buck, turned out looking very nice also.Robert

[Just Duke]

I have done this since the early 70's. Run a carriage bolt through the skull and fasten to a oval-ish 1/4" board, plaster of paris in a desirable shape, cover with 3/8" spongy foam, cut wed suede to fit stretch and staple it to the board you bolted the antlers to.