Replica Smallmouth Reproductions

[Brian Jones]

Looking to have a replica made of a smallie done for my dad. Where would be a good place to have this done? Not looking for name droppers; but actual experiences with taxidermists.

Thanks

Brian

[Gavin]

Would love one as well. Would like to see a pic of your fish, and the replica if possible.

[Feathers and Fins]

http://www.kingsailfishmounts.com/freshwater-fish-mounts-bass-smallmouth-c-164_170.html?osCsid=b99413c99335ab93db92aa099dbccbd0

Hard to beat

[Clayton Will]

Here is the gentleman that did my Musky mount for me. Great job and nice fellow. It took several months but well worth it.

http://www.fittantereplicas.com/bass.shtml

[Al Agnew]

To tell the truth, I don't much like either of those choices in the links above. The Wisconsin guy's smallies are colored like muskies. The other guy is a little too air-brushy and oversimplified with the markings. With replica mounts, it's all about the paint job. Back when more taxidermists did real skin mounts, half the skill was in getting the shape of the fish right. With replicas, you're pretty much at the mercy of the molded fish that are available, and the only way to make one look like the fish you caught is if you take good photos of the fish and the taxidermist can duplicate the markings in the photos.

There was a time when I thought about doing a book on painting freshwater fish for artists and taxidermists. Even approached some people to see if they thought it was a good idea, but they said there wouldn't be enough of a market.

There are individual variations in smallmouth markings, not to mention that the markings can be completely obscured or very clear or anything in between as the live fish can change color very quickly. But they all follow a general pattern, and it never ceases to amaze me that so many artists and taxidermists never quite understand that pattern.

Give me a little time and I'll check out some other taxidermists on the internet and let you know if I find any that I think really do a great job.

[Al Agnew]

A quick Google search just didn't turn up anything any better than the links above...and a lot of taxidermists that are a whole lot worse!

[Feathers and Fins]

Hey Al, I have an idea, How about you take on Painting the Fiberglass mounts? I know what your saying about the taxidermist paintings but they are not a artist like you. But I have to ask, can you put the same beauty on a fiberglass mount you do a canvas as its two different materials? Im not painter so I don't know about materials to paint on.

[Micheal Kyle]

I have always used Great Fish Reproductions out of Bolivar Missouri, not sure if he is still in business but he does some amazing work. His name is Gary Fisher. If you can’t find him call Rick Lowery in Bolivar Missouri and ask for Ronnie Mcginnis 417-326-6556 he was the head guy for Great Fish. I personally have had him do 12 fish mounts for me. I have attached the photos of my 4 favorites IMO he is the best you can go see a lot of his work on display at Bass Pro in the Museum and displayed throughout the store here in Springfield. Good luck with getting the fish done with whoever you choose. Oh and you might ask Rick Ozborn about him as well he did his IGFA Line Class World Record Brown and State Record Brown for him. Which you can see that fish displayed in Plateau Fly Shop here in Springfield.

Michael

[Al Agnew]

Yeah, I could, but I doubt that anybody would want to pay the price I'd have to charge. To do it right, you can't use an airbrush and each scale has to be painted separately, with two or three colors in each scale. The fins have to be translucent, and the edges can't be perfect...they never are in the real fish. And maybe the toughest thing to get right is the parts of the fish that aren't covered by scales, like the inside of the mouth. Hardly any taxidermist gets that right. Some of the replica "blanks" being produced do have translucent fins, by the way, and I'd request that in any fish mount. But what I've not seen in the replica blanks is fins that are curved and not flat. The live fish's fins are always moving, twisting, rippling, and curving, and that's one of the biggest things that makes most mounted fish look stiff and plastic.

I've done skin mounts in the past (a long time ago), and painting them took about as long as I'd spend doing a painting that I'd charge several thousand dollars for. I've also done a couple of fish sculptures, which is closer to what painting a replica would entail. I thought they turned out well, but I couldn't sell them for what I could sell a painting that took the same amount of time.

[Smalliebigs]

cc