Posted by Willy-N [108.162.246.176] on Friday, July 21, 2017 at 23:14:39 :
In Reply to: Mark posted by Paul(in NY) [162.158.63.7] on Friday, July 21, 2017 at 20:04:56 :
The bones are cleaned by beetles first after my Daughter removes the meat off them pretty much. Then I get them loose inside a couple big boxes. I have pictures of animals skeleton's I can look at for general assemble like a Motor Manual you get a few pictures but nothing really on how to put them together again? Then here is where a construction mind comes in handy. I can see the skeleton in my mind and I fit the bones together they either fit or they don't 99% of the time. Then I figure a way to support them after a layout of the spine and neck. I take a rod long enough to go from the rear to the nose and shape it with a curve of the animals back bone. Then I drill out all the vertebra's to slide down the rod with spacers to make up for the disks that are gone. You have to space the bones in the back bone to make it look right or the ribs will not line up. I used a 1/2" dia rod for this one. I thread one end for a nut I hide in the last big vertebrate. The other end of the rod is cut to fit when you know for sure the back bone is compressed tight. I use a bushing to slid over the other end and compress it over night to fit the felt pads into the curves of the vertebrates. I do this with a ratchet strap to pull them tight. Once the play is gone I drill the rod thru the bushing and put a pin in it. This keeps it tight. You have to take it apart to fit the steel hangers in to bolt it to the frame below. Once all this is done you then start putting the legs together and mount them to the cow with threaded rod or alum/stainless steel pins. Can't let it rust inside the bones!! Every bone is pined in place and glue used to hold the pins in. Making the frame is easy but making it fit the cow before you build it takes some figuring first. I over size it then cut it down to fit. The most important thing is to make it like a cow not a horse, goat or other each animal has different angles and curves. Just because I never done it before does not stop me. Jump right in and figure out what needs to be done and build it. Each one is easier to do. Did this one in probley 40 hours total and it is worth $11,000.00 which to me pays real good! I let my Daughter make the profit. This one I am charging her a Pocket Knife I want that cost $75.00 she got the better deal! I will post a picture before legs go on.
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