Jim Lucas Taxidermy- Part 2

Link: https://www.facebook.com/Jimlucastaxidermy/

Phone Number: 636-352-6610

Jim has been fishing and perfecting his taxidermy trade for ten years.  While that might not sound like a long time to some of us, he is only 25 years old which might put things in perspective a little bit more.  I was surprised by his young age (relative to mine that is) and even more surprised by how skilled he is both on the water and with his mounts.  He has caught over 100 lunker trout and large specimens of other species such as catfish and wipers/hybrids.  He has also held multiple state fishing records.  That’s a pretty impressive resume for a guy that is only 25 years old if you ask me!

Jim’s favorite place to fish is at Missouri trout parks and he mainly fishing with spinning tackle.  He has caught lunker trout at all four of Missouri’s trout parks.  I was lucky enough to see Jim’s custom made spinning rod that he built himself and I can attest that if he ever wants to get into the rod building business, he could do that too!  He is incredibly skilled at hunting large trout and can catch them using multiple methods from bait to hand-tied jigs.  He showed me a few pictures of trout that he has landed and I’ll be honest, I didn’t know we had fish that big in trout parks anymore.  It seems like all of the lunkers that I see posted online are in the 2-3 pound range but Jim’s fish are substantially larger than that!

As far as Jim’s taxidermy business goes, it is his full-time job.  His business is growing and his desire for perfection in his mounts could be a big reason why.  Jim can mount any fish for his clients as well.  He has even mounted 34 inch, 20 pound white koi with black bars and an orange head.  He has mounted gar, bass, hybrids/wipers and other species as well.  While Jim is skilled at all types of mounts (including deer and other mammals), he is especially skilled at mounting Missouri trout.  As Jim explained to me, Missouri and Midwest trout are unique and differ from western trout.  Missouri trout are a little shorter but stockier at the same time.  Over the years, Jim has perfected mounting these specimens unlike anyone else I have ever seen.  One of the reasons that Jim has such a skilled and trained eye when it comes to bringing mounts to life is the fact that he has seen so many mature trout in person and has a great set of references to go by.  This is probably due to the fact that he creates his own molds to create his own replica casts from trout that were actually caught in the Midwest and specifically Missouri.  This catalog of mounts will be something that saves people both time and money.  Based on the lunkers he has caught, he has a pretty impressive collection of casts that is continuously growing and widening.

As I mentioned earlier, Jim is a perfectionist.  While all replica mounts must be painted by hand, he puts particular efforts into making each one as close to the fish you caught as he can.  He told me that he spent about 8 hours painting my brown trout and has spent much more on other mounts in the past. 

To summarize, Jim is a perfectionist with reasonable prices and quick turnaround time.  Honestly, I’m not sure what else you could ask for in a taxidermist.  On top of that, he is an ethical fisherman that knows Missouri fish, and specifically trout really well.  If you are in need of a replica mount or skin mount, I cannot recommend his services and skills enough.  Please feel free to visit his Facebook page, send him a message using Facebook, or call him directly at 636-352-6610.  After my own personal experience with him, I have decided to use him again in the future if I get the chance.  Now all I need is for a trophy fish to cooperate.

Link: https://www.facebook.com/Jimlucastaxidermy/

Phone Number: 636-352-6610