Brought my 2017 crossbow buck home!

[wolc123]

1 hour ago, WNYBuckHunter said:

Thanks. I think he turned out great. I mount all of my “firsts”. He was my first crossbow buck. The one in the middle was my first bow buck and the one on the other side was my first muzzleloader buck. My first shotgun buck is downstairs. After the first, the rest get euro mounts until I shoot one over 140 or if it’s something odd or has some specific significance. I will mount the first buck I take On my property for example. 

That is very similar to what I do with regarding shoulder mounts.  I only mount the ones that are "extra special" in some way, but not all of them are "firsts".   The first one that I had mounted is still my largest-racked buck.  That 3-1/2 year old 9-pointer was a couple pounds lighter than the buck I killed last year.   Last year's rack would have probably out-scored him, were it not for the two busted off tines.  The rack is narrower, but heavier and higher, and would have been almost perfectly symmetric.

I also had my first bow kill mounted (a 7-pointer), and a 10-point gun kill that I took that same year.   The taxidermist cut me good deal on the two.  I had to have my first Adirondack buck (a decent 8-point ) mounted, still my largest up there, under pressure from my father in law.  He is always looking for nice wall decorations for their place up there.  Back before the wife and kids, when I had a bit more money to burn, I even had a road-kill mounted.   That heavy-bodied, non-typical 12-pointer had antlers that look like heavy pieces of driftwood.   It seemed a shame not to get it mounted.  I tried, but could not find the broken off 12th point at the scene of the violent crash (totaled a car). The taxidermist did almost as good of job as your guy on the "restoration".    

The first antlered buck that I killed (my first deer was a button buck), was a 6-pointer. I mounted that rack myself, in another cape that a buddy gave me.   He had an old shoulder mount, that was his grandfather's, redone on a larger cape.  He gave me the old one.  It fit my little 6-pointer a lot better than his grandfather's big 10.  For me to have another mounted, it would have to be an 11-pointer (I already have one each, of the numbers 6-12, purely by coincidence), or my largest rack ever.   One exception might be my first ML season antlered buck, if it ever happens.  I have taken quite a few bucks with my ML, but all during the regular gun season.  A big 11-pointer with it this year would be sweet.                

      

Edited May 1, 2019 by wolc123