Suggestions for bear rug taxi in Skagit/Whatcom

[sumpnz]

In hopes of getting a bear this year I'd like to see if I can get a recommendation for a taxi that is a good value in Skagit or Whatcom counties.  Ideal would be one in the Mt Vernon/S-W area, but really anywhere not too far away is OK.

I seem to recall talk of getting a "trapper tan" or something along those lines done on some bear hides as that is less costly than a full rug job, but could be converted to a felt lined rug later if I so chose.  A taxi willing to work with what I can afford to get done would desirable.

I don't get down to Seattle, let alone further south all that often and I'd prefer not to incur the expense of shipping.  If I can keep the hide out of my freezer too (by being able to drop it off as soon as I am home from the hunt) so much the better.

[ghosthunter]

In hopes of getting a bear this year I'd like to see if I can get a recommendation for a taxi that is a good value in Skagit or Whatcom counties.  Ideal would be one in the Mt Vernon/S-W area, but really anywhere not too far away is OK.

I seem to recall talk of getting a "trapper tan" or something along those lines done on some bear hides as that is less costly than a full rug job, but could be converted to a felt lined rug later if I so chose.  A taxi willing to work with what I can afford to get done would desirable.
I don't get down to Seattle, let alone further south all that often and I'd prefer not to incur the expense of shipping.  If I can keep the hide out of my freezer too (by being able to drop it off as soon as I am home from the hunt) so much the better.

I have a hide at Fildalgo now. Getting it tanned with hair on. No rug.
No experience with them, but thought I would give them a try.

[RB]

In hopes of getting a bear this year I'd like to see if I can get a recommendation for a taxi that is a good value in Skagit or Whatcom counties.  Ideal would be one in the Mt Vernon/S-W area, but really anywhere not too far away is OK.

I seem to recall talk of getting a "trapper tan" or something along those lines done on some bear hides as that is less costly than a full rug job, but could be converted to a felt lined rug later if I so chose.  A taxi willing to work with what I can afford to get done would desirable.
I don't get down to Seattle, let alone further south all that often and I'd prefer not to incur the expense of shipping.  If I can keep the hide out of my freezer too (by being able to drop it off as soon as I am home from the hunt) so much the better.

I have a hide at Fildalgo now. Getting it tanned with hair on. No rug.
No experience with them, but thought I would give them a try.

I have dropped over 10K in Taxidermy with Fidalgo over the years love their work! I just picked up my 2016 Entiat Mule deer a couple weeks ago and they are still working on my Goat. They are top notch, very friendly, and easy to work with. Any questions let me know.   

[BlackRiverTaxidermy]

Sumpnz,
I'm a little further south than what your wanting to go, but I was talking to several people on here months ago in regards to a 'trapper tan', which is where you might have heard that reference. Its simply a dry tanned hide. The ears, eyes, nose, and mouth has all been turned/prepped for mounting just like a standard mount then dry tanned. Its simply a hide with no rugshell or mount work done and looks great as a wall hanger. The cost is usually around half of a rug (USUALLY, as every taxi is different) and the beauty of it is if you decide to have it turned into a rug with 5-6 years you can always go back and do so with a taxidermist. About 1/3 of the bears that come into the shop are trapper tans. Anyway, if you find a taxi up there just inquire about how much it would be to have your bear 'dry tanned, no rug' as some of them may not refer to it as a 'trapper tan'. Best of luck to you!

Joel-BlackRiver Taxidermy

[Southpole]

I've had Fidalgo do 2 bear rugs finished on felt, one mouth open, the other closed. They look great, very happy with them. We have a bull elk up there now from last fall. I don't think you can go wrong going to them. As mentioned, they are very nice people to work with.

[3nails]

 If you want a rug or mount pick one of the great local taxis and let them do it start tp finish. If you just want it tanned flesh and salt it yourself. Then ship to the tannery and save big $!
 

[ElkHunterForLife]

Hey Ghosthunter,

How big was your bear and did they say how much it will cost just for hair on tanning?

[ghosthunter]

Hey Ghosthunter,

How big was your bear and did they say how much it will cost just for hair on tanning?

pm sent

[shmacker]

Ghosthunter,

would you mind shooting me a PM with details as well?

[Molon5labe]

I live in lake Stevens. I drove all my hides (4 at the time) to Joel at black river taxidermy. I wanted to support a forum sponsor. I had the 2 bear trapper tanned. Looking at picking them all up this weekend!

[sumpnz]

I live in lake Stevens. I drove all my hides (4 at the time) to Joel at black river taxidermy. I wanted to support a forum sponsor. I had the 2 bear trapper tanned. Looking at picking them all up this weekend!

I certainly would like to support a forum sponsor too, but I have only so much time on my hands, and going hunting at all taxes that these days what with work, and kids getting into teen years.  I suppose that if I was willing to freeze the hide (assuming I get one at all) I could drop it off on my way to the coast for elk hunting.  But then picking it back up when done would be a pain, or I'd have to pay for shipping.

When I had some elk hides tanned into leather the turn around time was around 8 months.  Is that also a typical time frame for a bear rug/trapper tan?

[Wapiti4570]

Fidalgo has performed mounts for me. Fidalgo is a little more expensive but I KNOW the quality they produce and I won't go anywhere else for a trophy mount.
If you just need a hide tanned, European mount, or a 300 Bull, I'm sure there are other that would be less expensive and do fine. Until I see their equal, I will continue to use Fidalgo for the good stuff.

[Mark Brenckle]

Pictures people, PICTURES! 

[Boss .300 winmag]

Fidalgo has performed mounts for me. Fidalgo is a little more expensive but I KNOW the quality they produce and I won't go anywhere else for a trophy mount.
If you just need a hide tanned, European mount, or a 300 Bull, I'm sure there are other that would be less expensive and do fine. Until I see their equal, I will continue to use Fidalgo for the good stuff.

They are top notch taxis, everything in my house they have done, not cheap but worth the extra coin. 

[Tbar]

A rule of thumb with taxidermist, good work ain't cheap and cheap work ain't good!  Garth might charge more but it's represented in the quality of work.  If you pencil out the work fidalgo is not getting a fair wage for the quality of work they produce.  They do good work and are great people.