# Turkey Beard Board



## gobblinglawyer (Jan 27, 2005)

Here's a few pictures of a turkey beard board that I built last week.

The board is a piece of antique heart pine out of one of the barns at my farm.  You should have seen the board before I planed it with my father-in-law's planer.  It looked horrible.  I can't believe it cleaned up so well.  Then I cut off 17 shotgun shells (all had killed turkeys) at 1 1/4 inches, cut small notches in the shells to hold the beards and popped the primers out.  Then I drilled 17 holes 3 inches apart and fastened the beards and shells to the board with 1 1/2 inch #6 brass screws.  You can hardly see 'em when you look at the board.  They fit flush right in where the primer was.  

I have another 20 or so beards (a few of them are jakes, though) that I'm planning to do the same thing with.  Just waiting on my next trip to Natchez, Mississippi (where my father-in-law lives).


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## QuakerBoy (Jan 27, 2005)

GL....that's pretty cool.

nice work


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## Dog Hunter (Jan 27, 2005)

Cool


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## Trizey (Jan 27, 2005)

Very creative GL!   

I've been trying to think of my own unique way of showing off beards and spurs    

Anyone else care to share how they mount or "show off" their turkeys?


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## Carp (Jan 27, 2005)

How big of a notch did you cut in it ?


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## gobblinglawyer (Jan 27, 2005)

Carp said:
			
		

> How big of a notch did you cut in it ?



Just big enough to slide the top of the beard in.  

My guess is about 1/2 inch wide and 1/4 inch deep.


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## Carp (Jan 27, 2005)

Thanks !


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## Glenn (Jan 27, 2005)

I think you are gonna need a bigger board soon


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## QuakerBoy (Jan 27, 2005)

Glenn said:
			
		

> I think you are gonna need a bigger board soon



you could always just do a chair rail


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## Gadget (Jan 27, 2005)

Nice looking. What about all them spurs? They'd look good strung on a rope or something.


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## gobblinglawyer (Jan 27, 2005)

Gadget said:
			
		

> Nice looking. What about all them spurs? They'd look good strung on a rope or something.



I made a spur neclace.  I'll try to get a picture tonight and post it tomorrow AM.


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## Loafy (Jan 27, 2005)

Wish I needed a display board.....


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## Jody Hawk (Jan 27, 2005)

Looks good Dalton !!!!!!


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## river swamp rat (Jan 27, 2005)

Looks great Dalton. I'm going to do something like that soon. I had to start over saving my beards 8 years ago cause ex done away with them.


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## gobblinglawyer (Jan 27, 2005)

river swamp rat said:
			
		

> I had to start over saving my beards 8 years ago cause ex done away with them.


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## fredw (Jan 27, 2005)

*Gl*

Looks great.  That's a good way to display them.

Now I just need to get a beard....those turkeys in Kroger don't come with one


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## CAL (Jan 27, 2005)

Good idea and nice display of your kills!


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## GAGE (Jan 27, 2005)

Looks great!

You are a killin machine,  nice job!

Gage


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## deersled (Jan 28, 2005)

very professional looking. how long you been chasing them birds?


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## gobblinglawyer (Jan 29, 2005)

I killed my first one (a jake) at age 12 in 1988.  I will be 29 this turkey season so I guess 17 years.  

Never have really thought about it that way, though.  Hope I can chase 'em until I'm gone.


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## bilgerat (Jan 30, 2005)

*carefull*

      be carefull not to let a dog get near them, my lab pup chewed up my beards all over the house!I had them hanging over the couch were he could reach them.


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## dominantpredator (Jan 31, 2005)

bilgerat said:
			
		

> be carefull not to let a dog get near them, my lab pup chewed up my beards all over the house!I had them hanging over the couch were he could reach them.


I feel your pain...I have had the dogs get 4 or 5 of them and the cat got one too. They never even brought them back. Oh well, I still have a few. The smallest was my first turkey ever ( about 12 years ago) all the ones on top are multiple beards. Notice the small one on top, it is double bearded and sported 1.25" spurs...his beard was singed my the smoldering embers where we had burned off our planted pines. The four bearded turkey came from Troup Co. on an Easter Sunday. Man o man...I can't wait....counted 17 longbeards in my wheat and clover field last Thursday


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## Thunder Head (Feb 1, 2005)

Here are some pics of how i mount mine. First cut the plastic part off and push the primer out of the shell you shot the gobbler with. Next thread your spurs on a piece of leather string, put thru the primer hole and tie nots in the end. fill the cap with hot glue and stick the end of the beard in. Let glue set up. I also came up with hanging all my beards on a piece of drift wood. I even had my taxidermist stain the drift wood the same color as my bobcat and fish mounts.


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## deersled (Feb 1, 2005)

I've got plenty of wood, plenty of glue.......just need some beards! You guys kill me. One day.....maybe one day.


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## Carp (Feb 1, 2005)

That looks good Thunder Head.


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## Gadget (Feb 2, 2005)

Carp said:
			
		

> That looks good Thunder Head.


Ditto that!


 How did you get the leg of the spur to look like that, doesn't look like the leg???


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## QuakerBoy (Feb 2, 2005)

looks real nice thunder....


gadget...I think you get the leg to look like that by  just scraping/sanding it down.


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## Thunder Head (Feb 2, 2005)

Gadget,
 I take and cut the leg off above and below the spur using a hack saw. Be sure and give your self plenty of room, some times you can crack the bone if your not careful. Take a knife remove the skin and all the meat and tendons you can get off. Next take a piece of wire and poke the marrow out of the inside of the bone. (this is were the string goes) I then grinder or sander to trim the bone down close to the spur. Last use a piece of sand paper and hand polish the remaining bone until you get it cleaned up. It sounds like alot but doesnt take long after you fiqure it out.


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