Dip and Pack, Shipping Advice Needed

traviselmore

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I will be taking my first safari to South Africa this summer. While I have done some research on dip and pack, and also shipping options I wanted to get some advice from guys who have experience in these areas. Below is my current plan...

I hope to take the following species in my hunting package:
Kudu
Red Hartebeest
Black Wildebeest
Blue Wildebeest
Springbok
plus I hope to add 3-4 other animals as oppurtunity presents itself (i.e. impala, zebra, black/white springbok, blesbok, etc.)

I plan to do shoulder mounts (In the U.S.) on each of these and therefore have no need for the entire skull but only the skull cap, cape, and horns.

Also I live in North Carolina and live close enough that I can drive to Atlanta to clear the animals myself upon arrival.

My questions are...
1. Is it cost effective to cap the skulls rather than keep the entire skull if a shoulder mount is being done? And can I reduce dip and pack costs if I request this?
2. Would you recommend shipping by air or ocean if I am shipping to Atlanta?
3. Is it wise to clear my own shipment when it arrives?
4. What dip and pack companies would your recommend? (I will be hunting in the Eastern Cape)

Thanks in advance for helping me navigate through these questions.
 
Hello,

I cant answer all your questions but here is my advice:

I also live in NC and have used Coppersmith in Atlanta 3 times. They will clear and do all paperwork for around $400. I would ship by ocean as it will be cheaper.

Best of luck
 
I hunted the eastern cape last year, did the dip and pack with Hunters and Collectors Taxidermist, about $100 per animal and I think that included the crating. The freight forwarder in Port Elizabeth was Rex Shipping and they told me air and sea freight was about the same, but sea freight just takes longer. So I air freighted to Seattle, had Coppersmith clear them and ground ship to tannery in Montana.

I recommend using someone to clear your shipment, like Coppersmith. Rex Freight was tied into Coppersmith and I made one single online payment for everything.

If you are wondering about cost difference, I think it would be cheaper to have the taxidermist work done in RSA and have one shipping cost direct to your home. You eliminate the dip and pack, the shipping to the tannery and taxidermist, and then final shipping to your home. However, doing it all in RSA will require a bigger crate and a bit more weight.
 
You will have some extra freight charge if you do boat as Atlanta is not a port. Air freight would go into Atlanta for you to pick up. The air shipping is down in price over a few years ago and I would get a quote and compare how much difference there is.

For around 400 you can have coppersmith clear them for you and more then worth it.

As for skulls to just skull caps that maybe be a wash prices wise. But your guy mounting them would be able to get sizes off the skulls to maybe help him with the form sizes.

I would check with paul at relive taxidermy in the east cape for a quote and then check with rex freight for shipping.
 
My bill from Coppersmith last month was $550 for a clearance. If you hunt warthog or baboon the costs for a customs clearance will be more due to USDA permits required.

So to estimate:

Dip/Pack Charges ~ $750
Air Freight ~$1500
Coppersmith ~$550

Total cost to get raw materials delivered stateside ~$2800

Almost forgot, DON'T pay less / save money by just having the horns delivered to the USA, make sure to get the whole skull. Why? If your hides go bad at LEAST you have a european mount if you brought the whole skull home. Otherwise, you'll have chopped horns and no cape at all if you run into a problem with the hides!
 
There is also a fee with the black wildebeest but not sure what it cost me.
 
Probably not wise to do your own clearing. As far as that goes, get a price for the taxidermy work being done in Africa and then shipped to your doorstep. For us it was a wash to dip & ship to a Taxidermist in the U.S. I know the Taxidermist in the U.S but I don't know (other than by reputation) any of the Taxidermists in Africa. The cost of shipping a large crate containing all of your mounted animals will offset any savings in taxidermy costs.

You might ask your taxidermist in the states if he has any preferences for a dip & ship co. in SA. If he has been doing taxidermy work for a while than he must have had some experience with the various dip & ship outfits in Africa. Then go with his recommendations. Same on the sculls and or scull caps.
 
Many people are quite happy with Taxidermy from Africa, I was not. I used Cuan at Trophy Consultants International, one of the "best" African taxidermists according to most people you'll speak with. Net result is I found the work to be 50% mediocre and 50% terrible/defective/shameful.

For the same money +/- 15%, you could hire someone like say Dennis Harris (won best in the world) here in the USA. (and an AH sponsor)

The cost of freight, crate and all the other nonsense for finished taxidermy erodes the savings greatly. Never again will I do Africa taxidermy. To be even handed, I do recommend TCI in Africa for zebra rugs as that is indeed affordable and they do it well...just not mounts.
 
Does your safari outfitter recommend a dip and pack company that they use regularly? If not talk to them and see who they recommend. All the cape preparation will be done before it even hits the dip and pack company. I used Hunters and Collectors out of Port Elizabeth also. I had their price sheet from a sportsman's show that I attended so I knew close to what it would cost. Crating was another 15% of the dip and pack.

Also do yourself a favor and hire a importer to take care of US Customs. I used SSI. They took care of all the details once the capes and horns got to Hunters and Collectors. They dealt with all the payments for me and kept me informed of what was going on. In my opinion they are one of the best out there. They can arrange the shipment of your trophies to either your taxidermist or the tannery that your taxidermist uses. If you do bag a warthog then it needs to go to a USDA certified shop, so if your taxidermist isn't USDA certified then it will need to go straight to the tannery.
 
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I noticed alot of people give numbers on coppersmith prices. Anyone have the numbers for SSI? 8-9 animals?
 
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I have never cleared animal parts into the USA, but I have self cleared lots of other stuff. Its fairly easy to do, I would think as long as you don't have any CITES , primates or pigs, you should be fine. With the stuff that I have imported, it was pick up the paperwork from the bonded warehouse, take the paperwork to the customs office at the airport and drive back to the warehouse with the completed paperwork and have them load in the back of your truck and pay their bill. The biggest problem is storage charges from the b0nded warehouse holding your goods. You really have to be on top of the flight. All my stuff has come into IAH on BA, then by truck to SAT by Forward Air. Good luck.
 
I hunt the Eastern Cape and I used Lauriston Taxidermy, they do great work and he can do dip/pack/ship or complete taxidermy. He is located 20km outside of Grahamstown.
 
I hunt the Eastern Cape and I used Lauriston Taxidermy, they do great work and he can do dip/pack/ship or complete taxidermy. He is located 20km outside of Grahamstown.

This is some of his recent work.

greg3.jpg
greg4.jpg
My nyala.jpg
 
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First off forget sea freight on salted dip pack skins, they have to go air.
Prices for Dip pack and Documentation.... GET QUOTES from 4 -5 companies
Some will pick up from your PH's pace other Ph will drop them off for you
DON"t really on a PH recommendation, Unless you talk to your U S taxidermist and he has seen the dip pack work in his studio and can verify the quality. Sorry guys you aren't mounting them we are...
Best prices will come from dip pack companies that are not taxidermist
Get References ! Ask for client of their dip pack service
CALL the references and ask them if their sons tanned out well at the tannery or if they did.
Then ask them to give you the number of their taxidermist and ask him how whee the skins
Nowadays EVERY one in Africa wants to put what's in your wallet in theirs.
DO some research and do it diligently...You only get one chance at doing this right !
 
Many people are quite happy with Taxidermy from Africa, I was not. I used Cuan at Trophy Consultants International, one of the "best" African taxidermists according to most people you'll speak with. Net result is I found the work to be 50% mediocre and 50% terrible/defective/shameful.

For the same money +/- 15%, you could hire someone like say Dennis Harris (won best in the world) here in the USA. (and an AH sponsor)

The cost of freight, crate and all the other nonsense for finished taxidermy erodes the savings greatly. Never again will I do Africa taxidermy. To be even handed, I do recommend TCI in Africa for zebra rugs as that is indeed affordable and they do it well...just not mounts.
RH, I see that the thread is about the taxidermy and importation of shoulder mounted trophies or having the trophies only dip/packed then sent to an importer then the taxidermist. What is your opinion or knowledge if you have accomplished this in the past, the average costs if you had say 4 back skins fully finished in S.A., no mounts, then sent them to Coppersmith in Atlanta for me or my son to pick up there? I have no idea.
 
Would like to give you some advise.. If you just getting skins tanned whole or backskins just buy them in Africa off the shelf. WAY cheap...if you import anything fauna your going to have to go thru a broker thru customs and USFW and USDA inspection, $350 to $500 plus and the fright to the US. If you buy the types of skins you want from an airport curio shop or taxidermy shop in Africa get a receipt and bring them home on a plane, not specifically the animal you shot but a representation of the same species skin....You can usually buy skins for even less than a taxidermist in Africa is going to charge you.
 
Would like to give you some advise.. If you just getting skins tanned whole or backskins just buy them in Africa off the shelf. WAY cheap...if you import anything fauna your going to have to go thru a broker thru customs and USFW and USDA inspection, $350 to $500 plus and the fright to the US. If you buy the types of skins you want from an airport curio shop or taxidermy shop in Africa get a receipt and bring them home on a plane, not specifically the animal you shot but a representation of the same species skin....You can usually buy skins for even less than a taxidermist in Africa is going to charge you.
I'll remember that, thanks Dennis!
 
Would like to give you some advise.. If you just getting skins tanned whole or backskins just buy them in Africa off the shelf. WAY cheap...if you import anything fauna your going to have to go thru a broker thru customs and USFW and USDA inspection, $350 to $500 plus and the fright to the US. If you buy the types of skins you want from an airport curio shop or taxidermy shop in Africa get a receipt and bring them home on a plane, not specifically the animal you shot but a representation of the same species skin....You can usually buy skins for even less than a taxidermist in Africa is going to charge you.
Sent ya a message
 

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