African taxidermy

[wildfowler.250]

Folks, looking for opinions on what you’ve done in the past?

I was going to have all my taxidermy dipped & packed and mounted in the uk. Gets it imported asap and I can have more dialogue with the taxidermist if needed. Plus it staggers the costs.

Skulls - was going to have them dipped and packed here in case they paint/varnish/break. But* I’ve heard that they have to boil them so much to pass dip and pack that you may as well go for the full euro mount anyway?

Taxidermy wise in SA : so the likes of Splitting Image seem to say they’re about 1 year turnaround - seems a stretch. The taxidermy itself over there is cheaper. But the shipping costs go up. But the increase in shipping mounts vs the saving mounting in SA vs UK would still make mounting in Africa cheaper. But you don’t know who’s working on your stuff along the line - let’s be honest, their photos are only of their best stuff.


Still inclined to mount in the uk, particularly with all the pending trophy import chat on and off for forever. But if anyone has some strong opinions on the above it would be interesting to hear them.


Cheers!

 

[Stalker62]

But if anyone has some strong opinions on the above it would be interesting to hear them.

Leave them all in Africa.

It really (really), is not worth the grief, cost and time.

Take photos.

Use the money you didn't spend on taxidermy, to pay for your next Safari.


I have done both.










I (all our wee group) now just take photographs.

 

[Selous]

My thoughts on this are that it may be money better spent on having a professionally made video to record the hunt or save the money, take photos and put it towards the next trip. Obviously there are situations where this may change, such as if you shoot a truly excellent specimen for your first buffalo as @NickJ did do in Zim!

 

[wildfowler.250]

Honestly folks, appreciate the idea but I wouldn’t bother going if I couldn’t take stuff back. I’d just spend the money on stalking hinds here instead

 

[doric_prince]

Folks, looking for opinions on what you’ve done in the past?

I was going to have all my taxidermy dipped & packed and mounted in the uk. Gets it imported asap and I can have more dialogue with the taxidermist if needed. Plus it staggers the costs.

Skulls - was going to have them dipped and packed here in case they paint/varnish/break. But* I’ve heard that they have to boil them so much to pass dip and pack that you may as well go for the full euro mount anyway?

Taxidermy wise in SA : so the likes of Splitting Image seem to say they’re about 1 year turnaround - seems a stretch. The taxidermy itself over there is cheaper. But the shipping costs go up. But the increase in shipping mounts vs the saving mounting in SA vs UK would still make mounting in Africa cheaper. But you don’t know who’s working on your stuff along the line - let’s be honest, their photos are only of their best stuff.


Still inclined to mount in the uk, particularly with all the pending trophy import chat on and off for forever. But if anyone has some strong opinions on the above it would be interesting to hear them.


Cheers!

Not Africa, but in past 2 years I opted to have taxidermy undertaken in Spain for import to uk, for the simple reason that the Spanish have more experience of ibex shoulder mounts than uk taxidermists generally. The problem is air freight as your mounts are bulkier and will cost more to ship.

 

[old 30-06]

If you do import taxidermy from Africa, please be very, very careful with it. I had some very alive, uninvited, additional species in mine ! Still found the odd one almost a year later.

 

[Stalker62]

Skulls - was going to have them dipped and packed here in case they paint/varnish/break. But* I’ve heard that they have to boil them so much to pass dip and pack that you may as well go for the full euro mount anyway?

The issue with 'dip and pack'.

If the inspecting Vet. finds one bit of 'matter' on the skull, then back it all goes to the originator; and you get the invoice.

 

[wildfowler.250]

Not Africa, but in past 2 years I opted to have taxidermy undertaken in Spain for import to uk, for the simple reason that the Spanish have more experience of ibex shoulder mounts than uk taxidermists generally. The problem is air freight as your mounts are bulkier and will cost more to ship.

There is that! I was on the fence as the manakins should be the same..

If you do import taxidermy from Africa, please be very, very careful with it. I had some very alive, uninvited, additional species in mine ! Still found the odd one almost a year later.

What did you get? Woodworms or something? Sounds grim..

The issue with 'dip and pack'.

If the inspecting Vet. finds one bit of 'matter' on the skull, then back it all goes to the originator; and you get the invoice.

View attachment 391916

True that is a worry. May be easier to have the skulls bleached.. I was going to use a company my taxidermist rates. They’re hours away from my PH but they seem happy enough to come and collect

 

[Dunwaters]

Why not buy some complete stuff when you’re over there.
Most taxidermists have a stock of stuff that people ordered and then didn’t want

 

[Jon P]

Why not buy some complete stuff when you’re over there.
Most taxidermists have a stock of stuff that people ordered and then didn’t want

If you are going to buy taxidermy of animal someone else has hunted, may as well buy it off eBay in the uk and cut out Africa all together

 

[old 30-06]

wildfowler.250, Fleas. Not English ones. Found about a dozen in all. Very large (four times as big ) and black in colour. At least six months after it arrived I found three nestled up in a sheepskin shotgun sleeve kept nearby. I did what every self respecting man should do, I kept schtum. I did not tell my wife !

 

[Jakebarr22]

Get the taxidermy , and get it done in Africa, you wouldn’t want Africans mounting uk deer, so same goes they know exactly how they need to look.
2 trips down, 2 lots of taxidermy by donclaire and wouldn’t look back. Yes adds on alot of £ but rather look at it every day than just pictures

 

[wildfowler.250]

Why not buy some complete stuff when you’re over there.
Most taxidermists have a stock of stuff that people ordered and then didn’t want

Interesting idea. Would be a bit like having a photo of someone else’s pet framed in the house though

wildfowler.250, Fleas. Not English ones. Found about a dozen in all. Very large (four times as big ) and black in colour. At least six months after it arrived I found three nestled up in a sheepskin shotgun sleeve kept nearby. I did what every self respecting man should do, I kept schtum. I did not tell my wife !

Lovely! Sensible call.. Something I’ll bear in mind.

Get the taxidermy , and get it done in Africa, you wouldn’t want Africans mounting uk deer, so same goes they know exactly how they need to look.
2 trips down, 2 lots of taxidermy by donclaire and wouldn’t look back. Yes adds on alot of £ but rather look at it every day than just pictures

Yeah it did cross my mind. I was thinking the manakins are the same, photo references online, a lot of these taxidermists have hunted in Africa anyway. But, it’s a valid point to be fair! Will look Don Claire up

 

[Julian S]

When i shipped my taxidermy back from Canada I brought a mountain goat hide back for me to mount in uk once settled .I had it tanned in Canada but the guy who taught me taxidermy told me to dry the hide out for a few months(it was wet tanned) as so there was no chance of it getting damp/mouldy if container was delayed, which it was. Then rehydrate it in a salt solution in the bath before mounting it onto the form. Turned out good.

 

[Safari Hunter]

I bring loads back all of the time for myself and clients. Put it all in one crate together to keep costs down. Yes it gets expensive but they are your trophies rather than buying someone else's.
Also had some mounted here but the cost difference is vast when comparing to Africa.