Problem with skull mount costs

[artschool]

Hello all,

I was in South Africa early last year and hunted a gemsbok. hunt was good and all was well.

Then about a year later I received an invoice from a taxidermist asking for $650 for a skull mount. I hadn't agreed to any work, they said they emailed me but I must have missed the email or it went in the spam filter.

I thought this price sounded high and they have dropped it down to $200 and said that the first invoice was a mistake. Now I have been going to South Africa for 26 years and know what its like with prices. I am a bit annoyed that firstly they didn't try to contact me a bit harder through my PH, secondly they didn't ask what cut I wanted on the skull mount and thirdly they obviously tried it on with the bill.

I am not sure how to resolve the problem. I am not really into trophies in any big way so am not bothered about the skull mount.

Any suggestions?

 

[Red Leg]

You obviously don't have a signed contract and if they don't have an email from you saying you agreed to the work, then you can likely tell them to pound sand. However, if you negotiated with them over the cost - even just verbally - then it sounds like you at least implied you were willing to pay the bill. I doubt that changes the legal basis of anything, but you will have to decide whether you have an ethical dilemma.

 

[AES]

It's $200 . . . pay it and get your mount.

 

[gordon kings langley]

Walk away, it’s a scam

 

[sestoppelman]

Too little info here. Did the OP have more than just one animal? Were they sent to a taxi at his request? Did PH arrange it without consulting? Why would it be at any taxi in the first place if not intended to be mounted? Hat the original intention been pix only?
Makes little sense to me.

 

[buck wild]

Also, was this taxidermist also doing your dip and pack per se- thus the skull would have been handled by them OR are you paying a different dip and pack PLUS the euro costs. If it's $200 for dip and pack and the euro- pretty good deal if you ask me although I would not have appreciated the initial request for the much higher amount.

 

[IvW]

Hello all,

I was in South Africa early last year and hunted a gemsbok. hunt was good and all was well.

Then about a year later I received an invoice from a taxidermist asking for $650 for a skull mount. I hadn't agreed to any work, they said they emailed me but I must have missed the email or it went in the spam filter.

I thought this price sounded high and they have dropped it down to $200 and said that the first invoice was a mistake. Now I have been going to South Africa for 26 years and know what its like with prices. I am a bit annoyed that firstly they didn't try to contact me a bit harder through my PH, secondly they didn't ask what cut I wanted on the skull mount and thirdly they obviously tried it on with the bill.

I am not sure how to resolve the problem. I am not really into trophies in any big way so am not bothered about the skull mount.

Any suggestions?

What was the original arrangement? How can one scull mount take a year to get to invoice stage?
I don't think all the information is on the table?
What did you ask for and agree after the hunt? What were your instructions regarding the mount? Copy of the taxidermy register?

If nothing tell them to shove it, if you had an agreement stick to it, if you had none well then I guess it is open to discussion.....

 

[CBH Australia]

He more info Would be good.
I completed. Cull hunt and they ere welcome to the meat. I don’t do trophies t mostly shoot pests. A Warthog would look far better than a Feral pig anyway.

If you didn’t have an agreement or even a request do as Redleg said, tell them to “pound sand” it’s pointless I guess like flogging a dead horse. I like that I’m gonna use it when I have to be diplomatic about telling someone where to get off.

 

[artschool]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. The PH would have dropped it off with them and I just forgot about it as I was busy. I didn’t know who it was with or what the charges were until the large invoice landed. It’s definitely my animal. I never chased it as i am not bothered about trophies.
sounds like the cost they are now taking about it reasonable.

 

[Cam Moon]

Usually the Skinner's or your PH will ask what you are wanting done, so they know how to skin it. European, cape for shoulder mount, full skin, backskin, etc.... At that point wouldn't you have said that you don't want it at all?

 

[artschool]

Usually the Skinner's or your PH will ask what you are wanting done, so they know how to skin it. European, cape for shoulder mount, full skin, backskin, etc.... At that point wouldn't you have said that you don't want it at all?

yes I definitely would have said at the time that I wanted a skull mount to my PH! it was the communication issue with the taxidermist I suppose and the fact that they didn't phone me before carrying out the work.

I will probably just pay it because it seems everyone thinks its a reasonable price.

 

[mark-hunter]

As a side note, a scull mount is the simplest form of trophy preparation, at home, I cook the head fully immersed in boiling water with a spoon of detergent (to help dissolve fat), take it out of water, wash well using High pressure water gun, apply 30% peroxide with a brush, hang and dry on sun, and when is dried, it is finished.

This is usually less then 3 man hours work, end chemicals used could be different, but I do not see difference if other similar chemicals are used.

Additional cost can be mounting on would plaque, but question is how much what that cost? (best commercial plaques are sold for less then 100 EUR at my place, with some wood engraving, less then 30 eur plain wood, no engraving). But I do not see mentioned here a wood plaque.
I received my scull mounts from Namibia without any plaque, as agreed - so neither did I ask for this, and I suppose even in this case wood plaques are not quoted, so unless agreed differently, scull mounts without wood plaque should be a standard?

How it gets here to 650 USD, the question remains.

 

[IvW]

yes I definitely would have said at the time that I wanted a skull mount to my PH! it was the communication issue with the taxidermist I suppose and the fact that they didn't phone me before carrying out the work.

I will probably just pay it because it seems everyone thinks its a reasonable price.

Fu....them don't pay......nothing in writing he can hang it above his fireplace.....or the PH can......

 

[One Day...]

I find interesting the first attempt to get $600 out of you (I am assuming we are discussing taxidermy work only, right? no shipping, deep & pack, paperwork, etc.). Although, like Red Leg, I am not sure I understand why you would negotiate the price of something you reportedly did not order and do not want to buy, FYI even going down to $200 - regardless of any other consideration - would still not be acceptable to me.

FYI, find attached the Splitting Image and Umlindi price lists. Both show $135 for a Gemsbok skull mount, and this of course includes the wood plaque. These prices do not even consider the recent drop in exchange rate...

FYI too, when we close the books on a Safari with a client at Huntershill on the last day, one of the documents we ask the client to sign, and to keep a copy of, is the quote for their taxidermy work from one of the several taxidermists we work with and we introduce to the client, and that the client selects, unless the client already had a taxidermy solution lined up in which case they just come and retrieve the frozen trophies from us. I would expect other outfitters to do the same, hence the absence of any paperwork surprises me a bit if supposedly you agreed to some taxidermy work. I tend to be on the side of "if it is not in writing, it does not exist" when it comes to financial arrangements...

 

[Cam Moon]

I'm a bit confused, and agree that there may be some information missing. And at the same time, I'm a bit surprised at a couple of comments.
Written agreement or not, I know how I would handle it...... My word is worth more to me than my signature on a contract. (Not legally, but morally)
The OP acknowledged that he had requested to have a Euro mount of his Gemsbok. From my experience, the hunter has a choice of who does the taxidermy, and has (at the very least, access to) the information on the cost of the taxidermy work. I think that $650 would be a ridiculous amount to pay for Gemsbok Euro mount!! Even $200 seems high. Was this cost never discussed? Was this Gemsbok the only animal taken? Was there anything else requested from this Gemsbok? (Skin, plaque, etc?) Like I said..... Missing info. But if he requested it, and agreed to it, then I would say he keeps his agreement, regardless of a signed contract.
Cam

 

[Hank2211]

As a side note, a scull mount is the simplest form of trophy preparation, at home, I cook the head fully immersed in boiling water with a spoon of detergent (to help dissolve fat), take it out of water, wash well

Just for information, do you do this on the stove at home, in the pasta pot? If so, I congratulate you on escaping with your life! My wife wouldn't be quite so understanding!

 

[JimP]

As a side note, a scull mount is the simplest form of trophy preparation, at home, I cook the head fully immersed in boiling water with a spoon of detergent (to help dissolve fat), take it out of water, wash well using High pressure water gun, apply 30% peroxide with a brush, hang and dry on sun, and when is dried, it is finished.

This is usually less then 3 man hours work, end chemicals used could be different, but I do not see difference if other similar chemicals

While it is quite easy, if you want a professional type job done it does get a little bit more complicated.

I've been doing euro mounts for over 25 years and have changed how I do them over the years. Now the quality that I turn out is just as good as the high priced beatle feeders

 

[mark-hunter]

Just for information, do you do this on the stove at home, in the pasta pot? If so, I congratulate you on escaping with your life! My wife wouldn't be quite so understanding!
@Hank2211



I got quite big garden around the house, so I do it outside. I have a gas cooker, and large cooking pot (in old days such pot was used for boiling the laundry).

So , I do it outside, and try to choose nice sunny day.

Usually, I keep trophy heads in freezer, and when there is more then one, I choose the day for trophy preparation.
Then one of my hunting friends who does not have space at home, brings his roe deer, fallow, etc heads, so we make an event on a weekend, when hunting season is not yet open.
It just happens to be that my barbique place is near by. So, we combine trophy preparation, beer consuming, hunting stories and barbique during this event.

So this is easy part.
The tough part is, after the head is mounted o the plaque, having a democratic conversation with my better half, where to hang it on the wall.

I have another friend, who does not have HP water gun, so after cooking the deer heads he goes to car washing local station, puts the coin in HP washing machine, and wash the heads there. (while other people are washing the cars)

 

[mark-hunter]

While it is quite easy, if you want a professional type job done it does get a little bit more complicated.
@JimP

South African prep for dip and pack is this:

PREPARATION: SKULLS/ BONES/ CLAWS
All skulls, bones, claws have been boiled with Sodium Carbonate (Na2C03) for a minimum period of one
hour, cleaned and sun-dried for at least 7 (seven) days. Thereafter the parts are dipped in a 40% Formalin
(CH20) concentration for a minimum period of 24 hours and then soaked in an 85% Hydrogen Peroxide
(H20 2) concentration for 2 hours.

Something of this is good industry practice, but (possibly?) something may be required by export regulations.
However, once it gets on the wall, or even with close comparison - I do not see any visual difference when compared to home made trophies. The sculls are all clean and equally white.

Professionals are also human, and human part it is to err, from time to time.
I received in two shipments from Africa few minor damagaes of the sculls (required gluing from my side), and two heads + 2 sets of warthog tusks received are not my trophies. (same species, but not mine).
So, "proffesional service" can have very different meanings, as well.

So, yes, it is a bit more complicated!

 

[artschool]

I'm a bit confused, and agree that there may be some information missing. And at the same time, I'm a bit surprised at a couple of comments.
Written agreement or not, I know how I would handle it...... My word is worth more to me than my signature on a contract. (Not legally, but morally)
The OP acknowledged that he had requested to have a Euro mount of his Gemsbok. From my experience, the hunter has a choice of who does the taxidermy, and has (at the very least, access to) the information on the cost of the taxidermy work. I think that $650 would be a ridiculous amount to pay for Gemsbok Euro mount!! Even $200 seems high. Was this cost never discussed? Was this Gemsbok the only animal taken? Was there anything else requested from this Gemsbok? (Skin, plaque, etc?) Like I said..... Missing info. But if he requested it, and agreed to it, then I would say he keeps his agreement, regardless of a signed contract.
Cam

I never spoke to the taxidermist. in previous years the PH dropped it off with them and then they would get in touch and agree everything in writing.

I didn't receive anything until the invoice arrived. The $650 USD was for the skull mount only, no permit and no shipping.

I find interesting the first attempt to get $600 out of you (I am assuming we are discussing taxidermy work only, right? no shipping, deep & pack, paperwork, etc.). Although, like Red Leg, I am not sure I understand why you would negotiate the price of something you reportedly did not order and do not want to buy, FYI even going down to $200 - regardless of any other consideration - would still not be acceptable to me.

FYI, find attached the Splitting Image and Umlindi price lists. Both show $135 for a Gemsbok skull mount, and this of course includes the wood plaque. These prices do not even consider the recent drop in exchange rate...

FYI too, when we close the books on a Safari with a client at Huntershill on the last day, one of the documents we ask the client to sign, and to keep a copy of, is the quote for their taxidermy work from one of the several taxidermists we work with and we introduce to the client, and that the client selects, unless the client already had a taxidermy solution lined up in which case they just come and retrieve the frozen trophies from us. I would expect other outfitters to do the same, hence the absence of any paperwork surprises me a bit if supposedly you agreed to some taxidermy work. I tend to be on the side of "if it is not in writing, it does not exist" when it comes to financial arrangements...

I also think that $200USD is a lot for a skull mount, it is much cheaper to have it done in England. This is why I asked the forum as I want to be reasonable if I end up paying for it.