What to do after harvest

What are some things you can do with a turkey of you aren't getting it mounted?

 

Seen people mount the fan and beard. Buddy has one on kinda of a old barn siding plaque with a pic. If that's what your meaning I guess ha.

 

Yeah thats what i meant

 

Here's how to mount a fan /beard from the NWTF website:
Welcome to the National Wild Turkey Federation | Conserve. Hunt. Share.

 

eat it

 

I've seen some guys make spur necklaces that hang from the mirror in their truck. some guys I've seen take the beard and glue it into the brass part of a shotgun shell and hang it up that way.

 

I mounted the fan and beard of the first turkey I shot. I made the plaque out of a burl from a cherry tree. I made enough room for two other beards. So I put the beard from the turkey I shot last year on it too. I'm hoping to finish it it this year with another beard.

I did this mount of the Tom that I called in for my father-in-law. I made the spurs part of the mount. As well as the shotgun shell he shot the bird with. My son was only 2 months old at the time, so I added a pic of him and grandpa with grandpa's turkey.

Here's a spur necklace.

 

I 've seen some Jake Decoys made into very realistic Full strut Decoys with the fan and wing feathers just a thought..

 

Eat it

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made this one about 8 years ago. Skin the back feathers and tail fan as one piece put clean as much gunk off as you can, put the whole thing in a large, shallow box with something to hold the fan open cover it in Borax, let it stay In there til its completely dried out. I've done a few with old barn wood as a background, beard glued in the shell used to harvest the bird, and spurs glued on the board as well.

 

I like to mix it up. This is the last one I did.

 

This is cool

 

I caped my bird from last year and made this Pa state plaque to hang the feet and beard from. First time I did this I think it turned out ok, on jakes I shot in the past I used their fans for additions to my decoy, doesn't look amazing but the turkey don't seem to mind at all. Google search there are a ton of really cool things.

 

I typically cut the Spurs and beard off, throw them into a shoebox with the 25+ others, and eat the breast. I usually keep one tail fan a year to replace the one I use in the field for fanning birds in. I have no room or desire for any more tail fan mounts than I already have (first bird ever plus first two merriams on the wall).

 

Some very cool mounts guys. How hard is it to mount the wings? I've done the fan,cape, and Spurs, but not the wings or feet. I'd like to try both. How are you preserving the feet and legs?