# Bird #2 and a question about tail fan mount



## kernal83 (Mar 25, 2005)

Bird #2 this morning!!! One of the most exciting turkey hunts I've had. Birds gobbling hard all morning and the whole way in. Couldn't have asked for a better season. 

I'm going to do a fan mount with this bird. My question is after cleaning all meat and fat, and drying with borax do you guys put any type of protective coating on the base section just for protection? Looked at the NWTF instructions, have you guys ever used the camp fuel for preserving the skin and feathers? I have never done that. 

those wooden plaques or maybe the new metal one my MAD that cabelas has. Any advice on things I need to do for a successful outcome?


Now I really need to start studying!


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## firstflight111 (May 22, 2008)

i leave the meat on and salt it every 4 or 5 days for about 3 to 4 weeks till dry..

any type of protective coating on the base section just for protection. Was thinking of hitting it with clear coat of some type. 

i dont but you can i just salt the heck out of them till dry real dry


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## fish4wall (Apr 14, 2004)

salt and borax the hell out of it. thats what i did on the mount i did for my sons bird last spring. i loved how it turned out.


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## The Ojibwa (May 30, 2010)

If you clean ALL of the fat/meat away then there will be no need to spray it. Coleman fuel acts as a degreaser...some use mineral spirits; dawn dish soap works well too. I like to wash the fans...it produces a nicer end result. 

1. I personally separate the tail feathers from the primary tail coverts. 

2. I then separate each individual feather making sure to keep them in order (this is a very important step). 

3. Simply clean the meat and fat from each feather, maybe rub a little borax to soak up any residual grease 

4. and arrange them back into place. Hot glue or bondo the quills back together and mount on your plaque. 

It sounds much more complicated than it actually is...takes all of 20 minutes to do and you are left with a perfect fan that will never rot, attract bugs, bleed grease, etc.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Don&#8217;t use salt unless you want bugs in the future. Whether you see them or not, they will show up. Use borax after removing every bit of fat and meat that you can. White gas isn&#8217;t used to preserve anything, it&#8217;s a solvent used to dissolve fat in the skin when mounting a bird. There&#8217;s no real use for it just doing a fan mount. Not sure what purpose clear coat would serve, maybe I don&#8217;t understand that part? After the tail is dry, I coat the quill section in bondo to prevent any chance of bugs in the future. 
I know people are going to tell you how all they ever use is salt, or nothing, and they don&#8217;t have bugs. Believe me, they DO have bugs, they just don&#8217;t know it.
Edit: The Ojibwa was typing the same time as me. His method, in my opinion, is the best. Zero chance of bugs, but it intimidates a lot of people.


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## kernal83 (Mar 25, 2005)

Fish4Wall that mount is freaking awesome. Little out of my league for now I think. 

Magis, I was thinking of using the clear coat as a way to seal it to protect it from bugs like you suggest with the bondo. NWTF and others also recomend bondo to help hold the feathers in place so I'm going to go that route as well.

Pretty much followed the NWTF recommendations on how to do it. HAd to go back and really reclean it after looking at their pictures. Did the camp fuel and the whole bit. Drying with borax now. 

MAgis and The Ojibwa. When you guys pull the feathers out, what do you glue them onto to act as the base. I'm assuming a small board of some type? Or do you just use the bondo for that. Do you use the second row of feathers as well or just the main fan? May try that method next year.

So far so good and thanks all for the suggestions.


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

I build a small mound of clay and set the quills on that. The clay is shaped like the fan base, and I shape it so the fan has the natural &#8220;bow&#8221; to it, not flat. I lay the feathers out on that base one by one until I get them like I want them. Then I pour bondo over the quills. When that hardens I flip it over, remove the clay, and pour bondo on that side. For the secondary and back feathers, I cut that flap of skin off before hand and dry with borax. When I have the tail feathers all done, I glue that flap of feathers on to the bondo. I hope all that made sense. It&#8217;s a lot easier than it sounds.


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## fish4wall (Apr 14, 2004)

kernal83 thanks...its was my frist time ever doing something like that...and dude its easy!!!
it just took time...i wanted to make sure it was all dry before i put it all together. but if i can do it ANYONE can...  the next bird you get let me know i'd be more than happy to help out....


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## The Ojibwa (May 30, 2010)

kernal83, arrange your feathers on a table or cardboard (some just do the tail feathers...some also do the primary and secondary coverts) and cut a piece of milk jug to act as a base and spread bondo or hot glue on the top...once it dries, flip the fan over and cut another piece of milk jug and glue the bottom; THEN attach to your board with screws.

like magis says, the tail has a natural bow to it...I don't put the bow in to it unless I'm mounting one...for a fan mount, I just lay it flat...having that natural bow will help allign the feathers a little bit better...all personal preference here


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