Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Best Oils for Horns, Antlers, and Ivory

I've heard and/read that the best oils for treating trophy headgear(or elephant ivory) is as follows:

Antlers - Linseed Oil
Ivory - Mineral Oil
Horns - Clear shoe polish.

Supposedly this will prevent cracking and flaking.

What do you guys use?

Thanks.

Scotts Liquid Gold is what my taxidermist suggested. No ivory here though.

You might try Renaissance Wax. It is supposedly used by museums on just about anything. The label does list Ivory specifically. Gene Ingram recommends it also.

Linseed oil will oxidize and exhibit a build up over time. Regardless of selection, do not get too heavy handed. Antlers have the same composition as ivory, so I'd be inclined to go with the museum suggestions. They are some of the few that may retain things for geologic time. 1Minute

On horns & antler's I use Van Dyke's wax #01352404. Works well with toothbrush on horns that are rough & a cloth on antlers. My taxidermist uses Derma Grip #304, also from Van Dyke's, to touch up noses & hoofs. I have my taxidermist in once a year to do touch ups & check for diseases in my mounts. Van Dyke's is owned by Cabelas.

I have some antlers from the 1950's and they look the same. I have heard we should keep direct sunlight off of them, but do we really need to do anything else to antlers that are kept indoors?

My cousin has the mounted head of an elk that was killed on our place in 1875. The head and cape were replaced but the horns are perfect. I asked him what he used to keep them looking so good. He said his wife has used Lemon Pledge on them a few times. I wouldn't recommend it but...

Johnny $

Not to highjack the thread but what do you guys suggest to give back the natural colours to antlers that were left outside and bleached by the sun? I got a moose rack that I left outside so the bugs could clean the skull but I kinda forgot about it for a while!

A taxidermist friend brews up some strong coffee and uses that! I've seen it work too -- I watched as he rejuvenated some really white/light gray moose antlers by swabbing on this coffee concentrate.

He says he prefers this to wood stain because if it stains too dark, he can lighten it somewhat by rubbing with wet rags.

John

Thanks everyone.

I've learned a lot.

I never thought of having a taxidermist come in once a year,
to check for bugs and such. Make sense when you think of how
many thousands of dollars you've invested in these trophies.

I live just a mile or so from Jonas Bros (the one in Colorado) and I get most of my mounts done there. I also know they do a lot of work for Cabela's, so I think I'll stop by there and see if they have any Van Dykes or products they recommend.

Good hunting, all.

buffhunter

I believe that bugs prefer the tight, dark, places, one of which is the rear of the mount against the wall. I arrange to have a surface below, against the wall- a bookcase or a shelf, or even a small strip of wood with no other purpose, so that I can easily see fallen frass and take quick action.
Sign or no, when I go off on a hunting trip I leave behind my wife and instructions to bug-bomb the room that contains my mounts.

(I keep my antlers brown by being a smoker. Everything else turns a yellowish-brown, too, but I suppose that's a small price to pay. )