Taxidermy Base Ideas

[Warbird782]

My lioness is getting tanned right now and so I am looking at poses and bases. My question is how hard is it to build a base? I do not want or care for a bunch of fancy wood on the base just some Kalahari sand and a little vegetation. I am looking at a tall proud pose. Have any of you built your own habitat base? If so how hard is it? Any tips would be appreciated. I have attached a rough idea on the pose for my lioness.

 

[Jody]

I build custom bases for taxidermy in PA. Mostly deer and bear, but I see a fare Share of african critters also. Looking forward to making my own gemsbok pedestool soon. My advice would be to keep it simple. Far to often guys want some extravagant base that ends up taking your eye away from the animal. I hate to think about all the hours I put into some pieces, only to hope no one ever notices my work first. It should be about the animal. Looks like for the pose you're having done, I'd go with a simple 5-6 inch high hexagon (more of a rectangle, corners at a 45) base. African sand is red, make the base to match the dirt in the habitat . Just my opinion I guess.
Recently most guys are asking for a distressed finish I've been developing for a while. As far as building one? Well that depends on your abilities and tools and time. Like I say to a lot of people with carpentry ideas. Sure your husband can build it, but when. Best of luck. Let me know if you need any plans or advice on building one. And congrats on the lion. Maybe one day for me too.

 

[Warbird782]

I am not really looking at the wood but how to build the sand base. Youtube is kind of worthless for this. Later if I want to add a nice wood border I will. I like your idea of keeping it simple. Too often there is too much on these bases. I am wondering how to make the habitat base with a reddish sand look to it.

 

[Warbird782]

Also I have a hard time paying a taxidermist who might sub that part out anyway then mark it up to me. I am just wondering if this is something I could accomplish on my own.

 

[ActionBob]

Some discussion on this thread regarding bases... Long thread so might want to do a search.

http://www.africahunting.com/threads/the-start-of-dakotas-lioness-mount.22064/page-6#post-191252

 

[ActionBob]

Also
http://www.mckenziesp.com/Habitat-Supplies-C1797.aspx

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/Habitat-Supplies-C58.aspx

@Warbird782 you may have to mix some clay or coloring in with local sand to get the right color up there in ND. The cheapest and simplest would be to just carry in and dump sand on the floor of the basement where you want to set the mount.... Now that will be heavy but your basement floor should handle that no problem... Bigger issue might be getting your wife on board!

Might consider just going to a lumber yard and getting some nice oak 1"x6" boards and then if you have the tools and skills, great.. otherwise it should be easy enough to find a carpenter or wood working shop or guy to roto out a knotch on the inside bottom edge and fit in a piece of plywood for a floor of sorts. Then 45 or better yet 22.5 degree the ends of the boards to make 45 degree corners as @Jody suggested. I would also bevel the tops.

Once you have the frame done, you could fill it with foam, I think the old school way to do it is with chicken wire as reinforcement. Get it into the shape you want and then sprinkle sand on it to get the sand without the weight... On the other hand, if you just filled your frame/box with sand, you can pile it the way you want, find some rocks to put in if you wish, stick plants in it anywhere.. Etc.

I may never get it, but my dream Trophy Room has a big door and is large enough that I can drive a skid loader right in there with buckets of "habitat" ... Just don't tell my wife because she will think....

 

[Warbird782]

Forget the wood in this base. What is the red part made of and how do I make it?

 

[Billcollector]

Do not just put sand in the base! You will be dealing with loose sand on your floors for the rest of your life. I make all my own bases to save some expense and also because it is fun. First, cut 3/4 plywood to your dimensions, and reinforce underneath so it does not warp. Make sure you put 4-6 casters on the bottom so you can move the base around. Put whatever moulding you want around the base 4-8 inches high.

Cut out styrofoam and place it anywhere you want in whatever shape you want. Use chicken wire to cover the base and styrofoam, etc as close to the styrofoam and base as possible securing with a staple gun. Cover the base with quality paper mâché and texture it any way you want. Let dry for a week and seal it with kilz latex primer. Spray paint the base some sort of brown(you do not want the white primer bleeding through) Let cure a day.
Brush the entire base and ALL crevices with regular inexpensive white glue. I am lucky that I live in Georgia. I screen dried red clay and mix it with clean fine play sand. I cover the entire glued base and all crevices with the sand mixture for about a half an inch. Let dry, turn upside down so all loose sand comes off. Spray a Matte clear sealer to keep everything in tact. Try your hardest to get some Georgia red clay to dry and crumble into sand. It is the closest thing to the Kalahari that you will find. If you can't, then you will need to airbrush paint the sand to get the color you are looking for.

This is the absolute simplest way to do this. You can get more elaborate with the habitat as it suits your tastes.

Hope this helps.

 

[Diamondhitch]

... African sand is red...

Correction, some African sand is red. Despite the common notion that it all is, the fact is it varies greatly from region to region, just as it does here. I have seen more non-red sand areas than ones that contain red sand. Still, despite seeing plenty of evidence to the contrary, red sand does scream Africa for some reason to me too.

 

[Diamondhitch]

I am not really looking at the wood but how to build the sand base. Youtube is kind of worthless for this. Later if I want to add a nice wood border I will. I like your idea of keeping it simple. Too often there is too much on these bases. I am wondering how to make the habitat base with a reddish sand look to it.

http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/board,27.0.html
http://www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/board,13.0.html

Just a little treasure chest for you to open
Enjoy

 

[ActionBob]

Do not just put sand in the base! You will be dealing with loose sand on your floors for the rest of your life.

I stand corrected, and thanks for saving me from the potential rath that could have come down upon me...