You gotta be kidding me

[Kuduman]

Had a guy call me and ask how much I charge for a bear rug. His brother had shot a small bear and I mean SMALL about 60 pounds and he had called a taxidermist in Oregon (I won't say where) The quote was $2200
 I had done some work for his brother and that's how I got involved. I'll be doing his rug for what I'll bet he will call a crazy good deal.
Now I like making a profit but $2200 for a 4 ft bear rug..... That's crazy
I charge 145 a Ln.Ft. and that's about average or even a little low.

[markts]

Wonder what a 4ft $2200 dollar rug looks like

[Wea300mag]

Wow, that almost sounds like a lifesize full mount price for a bear that small.

[wsucowboy]

Sounds like your guy was going to get ripped off. Take some pics of it when you get it done.

[400out]

I wonder how many people don't look around and pay that price 

[WCTaxidermy]

Wow Jeff, that is unreal.  Is that a well known Taxi in Oregon?  John

[carpsniperg2]

thats crazy that would be a full size mount 

[Kuduman]

John:
 I'm not sure how well known outside his local area he is. Your not going to open Breakthrough and read about him.
 At $2200 it better be a real nice rug and 400out your right, Although price alone isn't an indication of quality I'm sure there are some that don't even bother asking around. In this case I was sure to ask if the quote was for a rug and it was. the estimate for a lifesize was 5K. Wow again.

[carpsniperg2]

5k for a life size, my half mount last year with 650. guy must be trying to pay for a new beach house or somthing

[Michelle_Nelson]

carp I thought your buddy does your work for you doesn't he?  Does he charge you full price?  Doesn't sound like it.

Every Taxidermist has atleast 1 if not more critters that when they come through the door it like "gosh daing it!".  Maybe this is the case for this individual taxidermist.  He doesn't like working on Bears so he jacks the price up to the point he brings very few in.  I know several taxidermists that do this.  Most of the time though it is skunks, Wild Boar, Bear Rugs, and Porkies.

Those prices seem extreamly high for a 4' Bear.

[Kuduman]

Michelle:
 Not sure what that first sentence means 
 I agree that allot of taxis inflate the prices of those items they really don't want to do and that might be the case here. I actually like to do bears they are messy but  after the first few hundred you BEARLY notice the mess  Pun intended

[Michelle_Nelson]

Kudu I fixed the first sentance.  I was in a hurry when I typed that and didn't proof read.

When I was down South I use to hear from quite a few Taxidermists that they hated doing Wild Boar or Wild Hogs.  Several had pretty high prices on them so people wouldn't bring them in. 

[bucklucky]

Maybee the Taxi thought the guy said 14 foot bear LMAO!

[Kuduman]

carp I thought your buddy does your work for you doesn't he?  Does he charge you full price?  Doesn't sound like it.

Michelle:
 Sill a bit confused by that corrected sentence. I think you might be under the impression that I consign out some projects... I Don't... I actually warn customers from using taxi's that consign out work. My philosophy is  that my customers are paying me to do their mount not someone else. I know a few that do this and I don't agree with that.

 If that sentence means something else let me know

Thanks

Jeff
A.K.A Kuduman

[Michelle_Nelson]

5k for a life size, my half mount last year with 650. guy must be trying to pay for a new beach house or somthing

carp I thought your buddy does your work for you doesn't he?  Does he charge you full price?  Doesn't sound like it.

I am not under the impression that you consign out your work.

[Kuduman]

Michelle:
 Thanks for the clarification. I don't know who that was intended for or what it meant.
Thanks Again

Jeff

[Coasthunterjay]

Wonder what a 4ft $2200 dollar rug looks like

that is rediculous...i hope he was going to throw some golden laced stitching and a complete leather strip all the way around it and add a nice rifle to it...lol...Jeeze....thats not ok...

Maybe some one should find out who this guy is and maybe report him to the local Taxidermy association and possiably approach him and tell him that this is un called for....THAT IS MESSED UP...!

[Michelle_Nelson]

Maybe some one should find out who this guy is and maybe report him to the local Taxidermy association and possiably approach him and tell him that this is un called for....THAT IS MESSED UP...!

Or maybe people should just be allowed to make there own decision if they are willing to pay that for a Bear Rug.  Instead of messing with some guys livelyhood and telling him how to run his buisness.  There are plenty of taxidermists to choose from.   

[duckaholic]

my buddy just droped his bear off with kuduman, he called me and asked if i knew any one so i got on here and started giving him name's he is very excited as this is his first big game animal. ill try and get some pics for u guys.

[duckaholic]

.

[JackOfAllTrades]

Love that stripe down the back!

-Steve

[duckaholic]

ya it looks awesome.

[carpsniperg2]

5k for a life size, my half mount last year with 650. guy must be trying to pay for a new beach house or somthing

carp I thought your buddy does your work for you doesn't he?  Does he charge you full price?  Doesn't sound like it.

I am not under the impression that you consign out your work.

o.k. now i am really lost my friend does do my work for me. but i still pay full price for eveything other then 1 horn mount that i had already boiled the skull and was going to do the work myself but took it to him since i wanted it to look nice for my wife. since it was her deer and he knocked 10.00 off. i have a lot of friends but doesn't mean i get things or free or discounts what is the normal charge for a half mount bear i thought 650-700 was standard.

and i was not talking about anyone here when i said what i said i was meaning the other guy that quoted him the price. not anyone here

[duckaholic]

here is a nother pic.

[bucklucky]

5k for a life size, my half mount last year with 650. guy must be trying to pay for a new beach house or somthing

carp I thought your buddy does your work for you doesn't he?  Does he charge you full price?  Doesn't sound like it.

I am not under the impression that you consign out your work.

o.k. now i am really lost my friend does do my work for me. but i still pay full price for eveything other then 1 horn mount that i had already boiled the skull and was going to do the work myself but took it to him since i wanted it to look nice for my wife. since it was her deer and he knocked 10.00 off. i have a lot of friends but doesn't mean i get things or free or discounts what is the normal charge for a half mount bear i thought 650-700 was standard.

and i was not talking about anyone here when i said what i said i was meaning the other guy that quoted him the price. not anyone here

Lets keep in mind these figures are off the top of my head and not perfect by no means but get to the point.
OK, here we go again about pricing, lets see if I can make this sensable to people. My half mounts are $1200.00 starting depending on habitat, open mouth , etc. Prices vary on form prices , but on average lets say 300 for the form. Ok now shipping on top of that say 40.00 . Now factor in caping, turning , fleshing, and about 2 1/2 hours time on that, so $125.00. Now the tanning Im gona say about $75.00 plus time or shipping envolved. Factor in fitting , and mods. I havent had a 1/2 mount fit perfect yet, average about 4 hours on the form, there is another $200.00 in wages. OK, now final prep on the cape, lets say about an hour to get the eyes, nose , lips and ears done and ready for the mount. 1 1/2 hours, theres another 75.00. Now mount time and I will say 3 hours on that so 150.00. There is other costs in there like eyes, hide paste etc...Almost forgot the finish work. Closed mouth add another hour on there so thats another 50.00. Well grand total is $1015.00 if you broke it all down. This is how I break down all of my pricing on mounts, you have to figure in wadge, material costs, and buisness profit. If it is my buisness, Im not going to be doing mounts at a loss, if you do that means what?  I dont think I have to answer that. I see myself as fairly priced. Now Carp, if your buddys prices are truely that low then he is cutting his own throat, but if thats what he wants to charge so be it. $2200.00 for a rug is holy cow expensive, but like I said before, maybee it was for a 14 foot bear LMAO! If somebody had buiult up a reputation to get that kind of price then whats the big deal. Im jelouse  

[Michelle_Nelson]

I charge 60% of the cost of a Life Size.  So around $900 - $1300 that is with minor mods and a pose out of the catalog.  Base, habitat, extra mods are extra. 

[Coasthunterjay]

I agree that taxidermist get every little bit of what they deserve, BUT.....and i say BUT! There is no excuse for someone charging $2200 bucks for a 4 ft bear....That is uncalled for....

and if any taxidermist wants to sit at that guys side and say that its ok what hes charging...Then im sorry that wrong! two three hundred dollars difference maybe...i can see that...But seriously..when it comes down to it, its not another taxidermist thats gonna help the customer make the final decision...ITS THE CUSTOMER....and the only way a customer can make a well educated decision is if the taxidermist is truthful....Luckily his cost was so rediculously expensive that it raised a red flag and the guy i hope took it else where...

You wont see me charging that much for a rug. Kuduman...I understood what you where throwing....And i was just saying there should be some kind of code of conduct....Not to screw people.....Taxidermy is a hard job to do sucessfully yes(as bucklucky said it is time consuming and expensive...and We as taxidermist ear that money), but holy cow....i hope that guy gets to sleep every night nowing that he is litterally raping someone for a 4ft bear rug. It really honestly is uncalled for...

Guess i can say im just suprised that more people on this site arent appolled anymore than they are.....Oh well....

[Michelle_Nelson]

I agree that taxidermist get every little bit of what they deserve, BUT.....and i say BUT! There is no excuse for someone charging $2200 bucks for a 4 ft bear....That is uncalled for....

and if any taxidermist wants to sit at that guys side and say that its ok what hes charging...Then im sorry that wrong! two three hundred dollars difference maybe...i can see that...But seriously..when it comes down to it, its not another taxidermist thats gonna help the customer make the final decision...ITS THE CUSTOMER....and the only way a customer can make a well educated decision is if the taxidermist is truthful....Luckily his cost was so rediculously expensive that it raised a red flag and the guy i hope took it else where...

You wont see me charging that much for a rug. Kuduman...I understood what you where throwing....And i was just saying there should be some kind of code of conduct....Not to screw people.....Taxidermy is a hard job to do sucessfully yes(as bucklucky said it is time consuming and expensive...and We as taxidermist ear that money), but holy cow....i hope that guy gets to sleep every night nowing that he is litterally raping someone for a 4ft bear rug. It really honestly is uncalled for...

Guess i can say im just suprised that more people on this site arent appolled anymore than they are.....Oh well....

Appalled?  Why would I be?  There are dozens of other taxidermists for that guy to choose from.  Do I think it is to high of price?  Yeah, but I am not about to tell someone else how they should run tere buisness.  I do not have the time to tell other taxidermists how to run there buisness. 

If you feel that strongly about it than find out who the taxidermist is, call him up, and tell him he is ridiculous.  While your at it why don't you educate him on the proper way to run HIS business.

[carpsniperg2]

i don't know why he is charging what he is it was a 5ft bear 3 year old boar. closed mouth with a board on the back and him standing on a log he got himself i think i remember the form was 280 for that bear. i am not arguing prices with anyone or saying any price other then then 2,220 for a 4ft bear is not fair. i know how much work goes into them. if anyone wants his number feel free to pm me. for a 6-7ft bear i am sure it would be 800.00+ mine was as simple as could be. no cost for the scene or anything like that and closed mouth. so that is why mine was 650.00

[Kuduman]

CoasthunterJay:
 I totally agree with your comments. that $2200 was brought down to around 750 for an open mouth rug. The customer was very pleased and after looking at my work is very happy he came to see me. It's unfortunate that there is no moral or ethical code of conduct in our trade. I guess the philosophy would be that the bad taxis don't stay around long.
  

[gutsnthegrass]

I have a quick question, don't mean to thread jack here.  I had a 6'2" bear done a couple years ago, it was a simple rug with open mouth and 2 different colored layers behind it for accent.  I was charged $1100 for this rug, does this seem about right to you other taxis? And one other thing, you have have to look close, but is it normal to see staples in the ears? and if not would I be ok to pull them out myself?

[bucklucky]

I dont know why you guys are getting your panties in a bunch over a $2200.00 4 foot bear rug. I mean it is only like $550.00 a foot. I wonder if he charges extra for hangers too, probably $100.00 a hanger  . I mean , he is only like $400.00 a foot more than me  .......... 

gutsnthegrass, that price sounds fair . Did that inlude doing the skull also or just the rug? Looks like you paid about 175 a foot plus Tax. I call that a high average price. The staples shoudnt be there. There are so many ways Taxi's do things I couldnt tell ya why they are there. I dont use staples so I dont know.

[Kuduman]

WOW I had no idea this topic would generate so many responces.
 I'd like to give the name of the taxi but I have not personally talked to him about it and I don't plan to. His quote is his business and I don't feel it's to anyones benefit to address his personal business habits. Additionally I have a strict rule that I try never to say or do anyting to bring discredit to any other fellow taxidermist. I feel that dragging another person through the mud gets everone dirty and more often than not it's done for personal gain only and that's not what I wanted to do here. My only motivation in posting this topic was to educate sportsman as to what a reasonable price would be for a bear rug.


Gutnthegrass:
 Those staples are probably there because the taxi used a slow set ear adhesive when he worked on the ears. the should have been removed before leaving the shop so your probably OK to remove them. additionally I agree with Bucklucy on the price.

Charles I'll send a reply

[gutsnthegrass]

Bucklucky,
  No that didn't include doing the skull, wish it did.  I don't think I would recommend the taxi out here in Enumclaw, he did my bear and it took me 6 months to get the cigarette smell out of it, and wasn't the most personable guy.  That's just my experience with him, I hope others have had a better experience, he seems to be pretty busy.