Artificial Fish Mounts

turkey

turkey

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Well, to be up front, I didn't search this topic here or anywhere, but here goes...

Does anyone here have experience with artificial fish mounts? Good, bad? Experience with an artificial fish taxidermist? I've been fortunate enough to have caught a fish or 2 that I'd consider having "mounted" for display. Curious if anyone has any insight on this.

Thanks.
 
I used King Sailfish Mounts for a 20 inch Brownie I caught in Freeman Run a few years ago (my first 20 inch trout in Potter County), and a 49 inch Cobia I caught in the lower Chesapeake Bay two years ago. Great company. Send them a photo and fish dimensions and that's it.

Oh, and you have to pay. But worth it if you're looking to mount a trophy fish.

Turnaround was a couple of months. But the fish look awesome.
 
I have zero experience with artificial mounts, but I have gotten two trout mounted by my taxidermist, who does great work. They were both wild browns that were exceptional (17"/19") for the very small streams they were caught on. I chose a real mount because I wanted the "skin on", which obviously shows the scales, and equally as important, the lateral line. It's the most realistic route to travel, as these details can't really be reproduced by an artificial mount.
I waited almost a year for each one, and they were a bit pricey at $350 each. A longer wait time "usually" indicates a quality/busy taxidermist.
 
I was a taxidermy assistant for about 6 years in my younger days. Even skinned and helped mount a horse on a zebra form once. There is a wide range of skills out there and a fairly limited source of blanks. So it really comes down to their ability to paint. Some guys focus on certain species while others are generalists. Usually the specialists are the way to go. A smallmouth guy will make the nicest smallmouth repo's and the saltwater guys will make the best saltwater repo's.

Something to understand about this is most general taxidermists (who do deer and moose and bear etc.) don't do their own fish. They'll take your order and get you a reproduction, but they're most likely (not always) outsourcing the work to a fish specialist.

One of the best in the state is Bruch's fish taxidermy. He's just north of Harrisburg and he's a fish taxidermist specialist. However, he has a waiting list, and I think it's about a year before he'll even take your order and then another year for the mount. He limits the number of orders he takes in and I think he opens up ordering in December. He has some examples on his facebook page. He mostly makes the blanks that other taxidermists use, but he will do complete repos. I think he also does a lot of wholesale fish taxidermy for other taxidermists. He has a musky and a brook trout for me right now. Top notch guy.
 
Thanks everyone.
 
I have a mixture of skin mounts (2) and replica mounts (3). My thoughts on each.

Skin - it’s the fish you caught but the skin will shrink. A northern pike I have mounted is 2” smaller than the actual fish I caught. Skin mounts require you to kill the fish, which I try to avoid.

Replica - it’s not the fish you caught. Instead you have to pick from a list of molded fish that a particular company offers. There are several companies that your taxidermist can order from.

Let’s say you you caught an 18 1/2” brook trout but the company might have an 18”and a 19”. Do you pick the smaller or larger form. I usually upsize unless the fish’s profile just isn’t that close to what you caught. For instance I caught a 29 1/2” male brown trout that weighed about 10-11lbs, big hooked jaw. The form company that my taxidermist uses had something like a 30” 17lb, 29” 14lb, 28” 10lb. I thought the browns that fit inch-wise were not an appropriate representation of what I caught. So I settled for a 28” fish that has just an enormous head compared to the one I caught. So it’s not always ideal.

Regardless of which option you choose, you need to pick someone who is a great painter because that is the skill that matters. Take several pictures of your trophy as quickly as you can maybe facing different ways since the sun will sometimes distort the colors. Give your taxidermist the photo you want it painted like.

I also agree with Silverfox….great advice.
 
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Regardless of which option you choose, you need to pick someone who is a great painter because that is the skill that matters. Take several pictures of your trophy as quickly as you can maybe facing different ways since the sun will sometimes distort the colors. Give your taxidermist the photo you want it painted like.
This is a very important detail I neglected to mention. I supplied several pics of my trout that I took right after catching them to capture their actual colors. I wanted the mounts to be as accurate, color and spot pattern wise, as possible. Pics are the best way to achieve that.
 
My experience was similar. Had to pick a form slightly shorter to more accurately capture the body size. They nailed the paint job perfectly so I am happy. It’s all about the painting.
 
Fish taxidermy is something that has always interested me. Since I began fishing seriously as a very little kid over 30 years ago, I have always been attracted to mounts. I got my first fish mounted in 1996, and have done at least one most years since then. It’s something I really look forward to getting back. Much of the advice already given here is spot on. I will chime in with a few thoughts also.

There is no doubt, there is pros and cons to both types. Skin mounts are your fish, but they will shrink a little, usually. It can depend on how you measure though. If you measure fish on a flat board, they will usually be close. If you measure over the top with a soft tape, they will often be 1” or so short. There is a HUGE difference in the level of skin mounts. There is guys that are ok, and then there are guys that really do high quality work. And you need a good artist to paint it, regardless of type of mount.

Replica mounts can absolutely look great, but as said, it’s not your fish, and sometimes you will have to sacrifice some length/girth or both to get a reasonable look. You could always go bigger, but sometimes it just is too big with the available blanks.

Lastly, and not mentioned so far, is reproduction mounts, but of your actual kept fish, molded. I really like these, and the shrinkage is usually minimal, and it is a cast of your EXACT fish, only it’s a repro. These often come out great, and if the guy can paint, these, in my opinion, tend to be best. I’ve got several large local browns 28”-30” done this way, and they are all very good mounts. And every dimple in your fishes body is there!!

In closing, you can get a good one of any of the 3, if you find the right person. You will pay for quality, as would be expected. I have some really good, 100 percent skin mounts, and some really good cast repros of my fish. I have a few repros from other blanks, and I will say they are my least favorite, only because it’s hard to match a fishes body structure perfect. Especially trout.

If you have any other questions, feel free to pm me. I can point you in a good direction with taxidermists of both methods, or share pics with you of some of my 40 plus mounts lol. Good luck!!
 
As a kid growing up in PA, I was fascinated about taxidermy - until I found out what one has to go through to be a certified (qualified?) taxidermist in the state. I still have some DIY books, all of which were used to make one thing - a deer foot gunrack. A skin-on fish mount is among the most difficult and trout are the most difficult of the fish, due to the delicateness of the tiny scales. If you're only looking for a fish that is "almost like yours" (of a similar size) google fish replicas, or hand-painted fish replicas. I've seen them at Cabela's or Bass Pro for a few hundred dollars and you could add a brass plaque engraved with details. There are also kits that can be used to make a resin cast, but you'll need to count on your own painting abilities to make it realistic. Be sure to not display a natural mount at a camp, or anywhere else that isn't constantly occupied. Mice and bugs will tear up skin, hair, feathers, etc.
 
One thing to add that might be helpful for those new to the game is the cost. Both taxidermists I’ve used were PA residents and they both were National Champions on Fish in their day. One was definitely a judge later on and the second guy might have also judged. I mention that only to point out that they had similar skills but they had different audiences.

The one guy chose to be in the high end market. He was a master on ducks as well as fish and told me once “I want clients who shoot benelli shotguns and not Savage”. For fish he charged $35 per inch for a replica. Unfortunately he passed away last year.

The other taxidermist is semi retired and his pricing is double the material cost. Last fish mount he did for me came out at $19.89 per inch for a replica. So shop around, ask about competition awards and check their quality out very carefully.

So same quality but one guy charges $1050 for your trophy and the other guy charges $598.
 
Here's the 19" wild brown I mentiond in my post. If you're able to zoom, you can see the detail. I finally got my iCloud to cooperate.
 

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That looks great! Thanks.
 
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