How Big to Mount?

[Low Baller]

Thanks hornet

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[DJ 17]

Just like a skin mount it depends on the artist and their abilities.

You get what you pay for!

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so its so much per inch of fish?

[greenhornet73]

Yeah it's by the inch. For skin mounts, trout and salmon are usually about $2 more per inch so you are looking at anywhere from $9- $12 per inch but I have never priced out a replica but again it depends on who you go to.  The guy that did my mounts in Camillus I think got out of the business but he was awesome and reasonable.

[pjernigan]

Sometimes it more about the memories than the size. This is a 25 pound fish that was my 6 year old nephews first salmon. I'm having it done for him.

[Paul Czarnecki]

Yeah it's by the inch. For skin mounts, trout and salmon are usually about $2 more per inch so you are looking at anywhere from $9- $12 per inch but I have never priced out a replica but again it depends on who you go to. The guy that did my mounts in Camillus I think got out of the business but he was awesome and reasonable.

"$9-$12 per inch"?????

In 1978 maybe. [emoji14]

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[greenhornet73]

Haha really?  Like I said it has been a long time since I had a mount done and that was back in 2003 and the rate was about the same as the one in 97 so I didn't think the rate would have changed all that much.  I paid around $325 I think for my 31" walleye and around $450 for my 33 1/2" coho. 

Edited September 21, 2016 by greenhornet73

[greenhornet73]

This was dated back in 2009 from an experienced taxidermist in Denver.

 

Prices vary, but here is one taxidermists prices.
He is a Grand Master Taxidermist.

Bass 3-6 pounds---$285

Bass over 7 pounds---$300

Crappie any size---$235

Blue Gill any size---$225

Walleye, Pike, Musky---$12 an inch $200 minimum

Striped Bass---$13 an inch

Trout, Salmon---$14 an inch

Reproductions---$16 an inch

Epoxie Finish---$35-$50

[Paul Czarnecki]

What's a "grand master taxidermist"?

I've competed at the state, national, regional and world level and have judged all those shows and most state shows across the country. I've never heard the term.

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[Fishmounter]

I think it's like a grand Pooh Bah from the Flintstones only better

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[BSmaster]

Is that kind of like Certified Organic?

 

When you say Grand Master I think of Karate and that would be cool to watch.  "Paint scale left hand up.  Paint scale right hand down.  Breathe in noise out mouth - very important."

 

I too thought that reps were more like 15-18/in depending on whether the artist was hand painting or air brushing.  But with that said I do know that there are some guys doing stuff cheaper or less expensive and quality is in the eye of the beholder.  The ones I know of,  do it more as a hobby than a business.  I am somewhat cheap and I can honestly say that I want top quality for something like this or I would rather remember it from photos and my memory and if I can't afford it so be it.

 

I am amazed by Paul's work so I am inclined to take him at his word.  Anyways, no gaurantees in life that you pay more and get better either...

[Sk8man]

I think if the those prices above were nearly doubled they might be a bit closer to reality

[Fishmounter]

Skin or replicas $22 plus per inch if you want it done right.

[greenhornet73]

It may be a self- proclaimed term like my uncle who makes wine with a group of friends and calls himself the head "wine master".

[greenhornet73]

I can say that the mounts that I paid those prices for still look just as new as the day I got them back.  He used a rubberized material for the fins that doesn't dry out like you see on some older mounts.   I don't care what anyone says, replicas are quite a bit more expensive than skin mounts and that is why I didn't have a 48" muskie mounted a few years ago because I insisted on releasing it.  The pictures and newspaper article will have to be enough to keep that memory alive.

[greenhornet73]

Ok I stand corrected. Wow prices have changed since then.  Bass Pro Wildlife Creations charges $4 more per inch than replicas which are $12/inch for freshwater fish.

[rdebadts]

You can still find guys for 12/inch... probably not gonna look as good as Paul (or fishmounter) can do it though.

There is a very big difference between making your fish look like a representation of the species, and making it look like YOUR fish, which is what a really good guy can do. I am consistently amazed with the detail of the really good guys work- that's what you pay for. I wish I had more money...

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