Frugal Hunter

[Hunt anything]

@Nyati
In your opinion have the prices increased in recent years, and how much - roughly - of course?
In estimated percentage if it is easier?

My hunt in Mozambique in 2014 cost roughly $20,000 including charter flight to camp, Buffalo, sable, warthog, nyala, Lichtenstein hartebeest reedbuck and bushbuck. I recently looked up the price for the same hunt because I’m dreaming of going back to the same area and the same hunt would cost north of $30,000.

 

[Deuce]

All great suggestions. Yeah the plan was to take my top list of animals I could afford and it was a bonus to have my daughter along for that trip.

Now I am already planning another and I like the suggestions of mixing up euro and shoulder mounts on a trip to allow you to hunt, but also keep crate size and shipping costs down.

Someone mentioned looking at estate sales as well and it may be an option if I ever did chose to convert a euro mount over to a shoulder mount to save on cost.

Good idea!!!

 

[steve white]

I've been to South Africa twice, and have done three safaris. My first safari was great, and did shoulder mount of the 7 animals I took. The taxidermy work was sh*t, and turned into a total cluster f*ck. I for ripped off by the SA taxidermist.

Second and third safari were fantastic. Learned my lesson from my previous safari, and only did dip & pack of the 7 animals taken. I have one of the sponsors here doing the work.

Both safaris I chose a package from the outfitter and added extra animals I wanted to take. So far, I've taken every animal I've wanted to take.

If one thing you can out of this post, is to have your animals mounted back home. There are too many horror stories about taxidermy. Good luck!

Yet my only horror story was done over here!

 

[Charles de Ribeau]

Makes sense, but I was told it was cheaper to have them done in South Africa and have them shipped as completed taxidermy, so that was the route I was looking at. Guessing that may have been a bad idea?

On my first safari, my PH told to NEVER have taxidermy done in Africa. That's all I can offer. You can get bad taxidermy done on any continent - even from the taxidermist down the street who has done all of your other mounts and did a fine job with them can do a bad job.

 

[Charles de Ribeau]

Take pictures and take more animals.
No taxidermy, no broker, no customs, no air freight, no storage. Given today's insane prices you will be able to hunt twice as many animals.

Yes, photos or Euro mounts.

My taxidermy has cost me a lot more than just the cost of shipping and taxidermist charges. We had to put a sizable addition on our house to accomodate my mounts. After 15 years with a trophy room that I loved, we decided to move. Those mounts made finding a new house much, much more difficult than it would have been without all those big shoulder mounts to deal with. They are now in a room with an 18' ceiling (which is a good thing), but getting those bad boys on the walls was not trivial. (Try wrestling a cape buffalo or any other big mount up and onto sn snchor 15' above the floor.)

Shoulder mounts take a lot of space - both vertical and horizontal (they stick out into the room a lot). Unless you have a room with a minimum of 10' ceiling, anywhere you have a large mount, it will also take up the floor space below it.

Another thing to keep in mind is maintenance of the mounts. They will collect dust and cobwebs unless you periodically clean them. Also, there is the danger of moths attacking them. That was a real danger at my previous house, but so far (knock on wood) it hasn't seemed to be an issue in the new house. However, just to be safe, Spring - Fall, I have a bug light discreetly placed and on a timer to run during the middle of the night. I also keep a few moth traps set out. Wouldn't have to do that if all I had were Euro mounts or photos.

Yes, shoulder mounts can be very impressive, but think of it this way... if you don't bring home any of your trophies, with the money you save, you're halfway to your next safari.

So, all of that said, I'll go back to my opening bit of advice: photos or Euro mounts.

 

[Rem280]

New to the sight and looking to see if anyone has done their homework on the “Magical” or should I say most economical number of trophy’s to take on a trip. Obviously dip and pack takes up less space, but you have to air freight and although I do like some euro mounts to me a shoulder mount gives the full effect of the animals colorization and a appreciation of their size.

Then there is the budget limitations. Maybe a full ocean container is the perfect number, but let’s face it most of us can not afford to blow the bank on one trip and besides then we would have a harder time making excuses to go back again.
So what is the “Magical” number 1, 2, 3, …… and when does the number push you to multiple crates?

YOLO! I booked my first African Safari with KMG next May and trying to hit another place right before or after. At least the total cost for everything won't hit me at once.

 

[Hunt anything]

To each his own but I have a curiosity killed the cat question. To the people that just take pictures, how often do you get out the photo album and reminisce through them? I look at my homemade videos of a couple of my safaris about every 6 months and may look through a photo album every month or so but I sit in my trophy room daily and relive the hunts. I will continue to mount trophies as long as I can afford it, we are by no means wealthy but being frugal I’ve found a way so far ( 4 safaris ) to mount what deserves to be mounted.

 

[Green Chile]

Lots of great advice already. One thing to think about for the future is doing some non-trophy, non-exportable type hunts. You can save big $ on non-trophy or tuskless elephant, etc and then you don't have to worry about shipping, taxidermy, etc. I will be doing more of that in the future. That approach gets be back more often and into the things I really love to hunt.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Take pictures and take more animals.
No taxidermy, no broker, no customs, no air freight, no storage. Given today's insane prices you will be able to hunt twice as many animals.

^^^^^This^^^^^ After nine trips, if I knew then what I know now, I would have done zero taxidermy.

 

[Red Leg]

To each his own but I have a curiosity killed the cat question. To the people that just take pictures, how often do you get out the photo album and reminisce through them? I look at my homemade videos of a couple of my safaris about every 6 months and may look through a photo album every month or so but I sit in my trophy room daily and relive the hunts. I will continue to mount trophies as long as I can afford it, we are by no means wealthy but being frugal I’ve found a way so far ( 4 safaris ) to mount what deserves to be mounted.

"what deserves to be mounted"

Depending upon the definition of "deserve," I think your last sentence sums it up for everyone. But the factors that go into that decision of what deserves to be mounted will be weighed differently by everyone.

My point is simply that if we wish to continue hunting, and if space and disposable income or a factor in what we bring home to memorialize those hunts, then at some point everyone has to do something other than mounts if the act of hunting is more important than the collecting of trophies. For some of us it is cull hunting, for others it is photography. I find writing an article for publication is yet another way to create a lasting memory of the hunt. The only other option is to quit hunting.

I personally have chosen what I consider a middle way that works for me. I have a few shoulder and pedestal mounts, considerably more Euro mounts, and a lot of photography. As I noted earlier, I enjoy hunting Oryx and Kudu. I do not need another on the wall to describe hunting either of them to a visitor. And looking at my Oryx pedestal mount brings back a flood of Namibian memories, not just that particular animal.

If you continue hunting, you will reach a similar set of decisions.

 

[Charles de Ribeau]

To each his own but I have a curiosity killed the cat question. To the people that just take pictures, how often do you get out the photo album and reminisce through them?

They don't have to be in an album. You can have large prints made, frame them and hang them on the wall. Over the past 15 years, I have done that even with most of the animals that I have had mounted.

 

[Green Chile]

Framed photos are an excellent way to remember the hunt and a fraction of the cost. Some of them look better than the taxidermy!

 

[Hunt anything]

Red Leg, “deserves”was a poor choice of words, I was thinking more in the line of an exceptional animal, extra hard tracking job or memorable shot. I do agree mostly about not duplicating mounts, but I’m a sucker for bushbuck and I do have a few whitetail and if I ever kill an exceptional buffalo I would probably mount another.

 

[Green Chile]

Anything is worthy of taxidermy if it means something to you. None of us have room for everything but don't be skittish about memorializing something special through taxidermy, photos, etc. None of my family hunts but me so I mostly do it for myself and that's reason enough. I just need more space!

 

[Red Leg]

Red Leg, “deserves”was a poor choice of words, I was thinking more in the line of an exceptional animal, extra hard tracking job or memorable shot. I do agree mostly about not duplicating mounts, but I’m a sucker for bushbuck and I do have a few whitetail and if I ever kill an exceptional buffalo I would probably mount another.

For sure. I have two sable wall pedestal mounts. Lovely creatures. I also took a 44" heavy beamed patriarch at @spike.t Takeri that dwarfs them. There is no room for another sable mount. Being selective is really good idea.

I do have some great photography however.

 

[Velo Dog]

Of the only buffalo I’ve taken, there is only a euro-skull, high up on my dining room wall and a couple of framed photos on two different walls in my home.
One is shown lower left of the skull itself and my favorite picture of him is an 18 x 20” black and white on canvas, in my bar, to remember that wonderful experience of said hunt.

Due to my blue collar budget, I do not generally have many animals shoulder mounted.
Most are skulls on plaques, with a framed picture of same hanging just below them.

They bring back wonderful memories of each hunt (and each rifle I once owned and hunted with).
The buffalo was taken with a one-two punch 480 grainers, (a classic soft and a solid), from my former .450 No2 NE double rifle, marked Army & Navy Cooperative, London England.
Grand memories.

I’m planning my 7th African safari and likely if I bring back any critter parts at all this time, it will be, if I’m successful, yet another eland skull and maybe warthog, plus photos for framing and hanging on the walls.
Shoulder mounts are wonderful but, because I want to afford more adventures, before the lions finally pull me down, I try to not over spend on taxidermy and ever rising shipping costs each time.

I also am a fly fishing junkie but have zero fish mounted, only framed pictures of certain ones on my walls.
My neighbor across the road from here has no skulls, only shoulder mounted mammals and full body mounts of some very impressive fish, including a huge sailfish, among others.
Fun to look at for sure but dang. $$$$$$$$

One man’s bread is another man’s poison.

 

[Red Leg]

Of the only buffalo I’ve taken, there is only a euro-skull, high up on my dining room wall and a couple of framed photos on two different walls in my home.
One is shown lower left of the skull itself and my favorite picture of him is an 18 x 20” black and white on canvas, in my bar, to remember that wonderful experience of said hunt.

Due to my blue collar budget, I do not generally have many animals shoulder mounted.
Most are skulls on plaques, with a framed picture of same hanging just below them.

They bring back wonderful memories of each hunt (and each rifle I once owned and hunted with).
The buffalo was taken with a one-two punch 480 grainers, (a classic soft and a solid), from my former .450 No2 NE double rifle, marked Army & Navy Cooperative, London England.
Grand memories.

I’m planning my 7th African safari and likely if I bring back any critter parts at all this time, it will be, if I’m successful, yet another eland skull and maybe warthog, plus photos for framing and hanging in the wall.
Shoulder mounts are wonderful but, because I want to afford more adventures, before the lions pull me down, I try to not over spend on taxidermy each time.

I also am a fly fishing junkie but have zero fish mounted, only framed pictures of certain ones on my walls.
My neighbor across the road from here has no skulls, only shoulder mounted mammals and full body mounts of some very impressive fish, including a huge sailfish, among others.
Fun to look at for sure but dang. $$$$$$$$

One man’s bread is another man’s poison.

View attachment 549476View attachment 549477

Looks great! Particularly the sepia - classic.

 

[Green Chile]

Agreed...that looks amazing.

 

[Velo Dog]

Looks great! Particularly the sepia - classic.

Thanks Joe.
My young trophy wife (she’s only 63) had that canvas print done and gave it to me for my birthday that year.
She’s a real peach.

 

[Red Leg]

Thanks Joe.
My young trophy wife (she’s only 63) had that canvas print done and gave it to me for my birthday that year.
She’s a real peach.

Sounds like she is worth keeping - try to keep her thinking the same way.