Barbary lost chunk of horn, worth trying to "fix"?

[Str8shooter]

Killed an old bruiser Barbary ram in NM. The base of his horn is missing fully 4 inches on the front...Wondering if anyone has thoughts on whether a taxidermy trip for my euro mount is worthwhile? Ive seen some horn repairs done with apoxie sculpt that look pretty good, anyone have experience with something like this?
Ram is 30inches!

 

[StupidLightweight]

First off, congrats on the ram. My vote is to leave it as-is and consider it a non-typical. That unique character makes it even more special. A guide friend of mine says he'd love to shoot a broken horn aoudad ram. It's so rare he said he'd prefer that over a fully intact one.

 

[Bubblehide]

I've got to agree with stupidlight. But yes, it could be fixed.

 

[MOVA]

My rule is keep it how you shot it.

If a tip gets broken or something like that in transit, friend knocks it off a wall, etc. then fix it. But I don't "fix" anything to be different than how the animal was when harvested.

 

[MOVA]

Gorgeous by the way! As said above, great character.

 

[wildwilderness]

It's a great ram! Leave it as is

 

[Snyd]

Leave it be! Cool lookin Ram. Think of what he went through to knock that out of there!

 

[BC Alpine Hunter]

Congrats on the ram! I would definitely keep it as is. I love that type of character.

 

[OrangeMan73]

Leave it be!

 

[NRA4LIFE]

I agree also. Leave as is. I like to call that "character".

 

[S-3 ranch]

I’m in the leave it be
lots of aoudad and desert bighorn break off chunks of horn it adds major character as said above

 

[TNsavageman]

I would also leave it. I think it’s awesome.

 

[JREG19]

In case you needed another person to tell you that you should leave it, here I am.
Congratulations!

 

[WCB]

Grandpa shot a big ram that had an infection it its horn. had a hole down to the core in back the size of a baseball. left it how it is and mounted it so you can see it at a certain angle. Makes it way more interesting. No idea why people fix horns/antlers that are naturally damaged.

 

[CorbLand]

I have never had to experience it but I have always been the type of if it was that way when I shot it, leave it. If it breaks during a fall or after its dead, fix it.

 

[Boone-In-Wall]

I wouldn't touch it. Gives your ram some character and makes him look like an old warrior!

 

[FearedFactor]

I have repaired steer horns and a whitetail antlers with wood filler and stain. The hardest part is getting the color to match.

I don't know that I'd bother with your mount, but if you're worried about more coming off, a few drops of superglue in a few cracks will shore up the loose bits.

 

[Jimss]

Congrats on your warrier ram! It's really up to you. You may want to wait a while and how you feel with it cleaned up how it its.If every time you look at the euro mount you cringe, I'd get it fixed. If you are excited every time you look at it I'd pass on getting it fixed. Put the skull up where you see it every day before making a final decision that makes you happy. It doesn't really matter if you wait. If you get it fixed you are stuck.

In regard to repairing the horn. There likely aren't that many experienced taxidermists that I would trust a project like that. Sculpting and painting to match is a major art in itself! The last thing you likely want is an ugly repair job that you aren't proud of! My guess is that most taxidermists wouldn't have a clue and some may have more experience than others.

I use apoxi-sculpt all the time for repairing horns and broken tines. I repaired a gigantic elk antler shed once that had 3/4 of the burr and base missing. It turned out amazing. Apoxie-sculpt is pretty remarkable stuff. Next to the sculpting, matching color is one of the toughest parts. It may take a gob of color layers to match things correctly. It's really nice having a reference on the unbroken side.

I have lots of experience repairing horns and antlers. If I had a whopper auodad I would likely fix it just because it would be a challenge that I'm pretty darn good at! I think the broken area doesn't quite show the full potential of what that critter was like prior to be broken. Although he is awesome, the broken side is a distraction, and he may not look nearly as impressive with the broken side? I can also see the point of showing off what a warrior he was and leaving him as-is. It's really a judgement call and what makes you happy.

Take your time, get him cleaned up, and put him in a place where you can enjoy looking at him. If the broken side still bothers you....get him fixed!

 

[SCHUNTER73]

What everybody else said. It’s character that you will remember forever.

 

[tclipse]

My rule is keep it how you shot it.

If a tip gets broken or something like that in transit, friend knocks it off a wall, etc. then fix it. But I don't "fix" anything to be different than how the animal was when harvested.

This is it right here