Gemsbok, Kudu

I would not have the hides tanned in Africa- tell customer to use dip/pack and ship only and they'll arrive in the US as dry salted. Then you can have them tanned in your usual way although I think some would agree using a commercial tannery for Africa stuff is preferred over any shop tanning methods. Whatever you might save in "time" by not caping/fleshing/salting will probably be given back and more in getting the hide prepped to mount. Although the last couple of Africa batches I have received have been remarkably well taken care of with good initial hide prep done in South Africa, but that's not always the case.

 

Not sure if you were assuming they would be tanned there, but as buck wild said, I wouldn't recommend it. The African pieces I get are dip packed and shipped with the horns. Once they get here, I'll ship them out to a tannery so I know that the hide has been tanned properly. So, in essence, the only work done in Africa is the skinning/caping. After tanning, form selection, eyes, ears, shipping, etc. the cost will start to increase. Add in your time to prep, mount, and do the finish work $800 for a kudu will be on the very low end, if you make any $ at all.

 

X2 on having everything tanned here commercially. I would suggest that the hunter investigate how his chosen Safari operator is prepping the trophies. After caping and turning lips, etc, most operators simply lay them put in large salt beds with questionable "used" salt, then air dry indoors over racks before having their local taxidermist pick them up for either a dip/pack/ship or full service. To really insure that those capes/hides are prepped correctly, see if the hunter can ask that his capes also be soaked in a saturated brine solution before it goes onto the salt bed and dried out. IMO those that also use brine tend to have better end results. I also suggest a brine submersion for fleshed skulls as it does reduce the chances for insect infestation (horn borer beetles). Some antelope (especially spiralhorns) have a tendency to slip in the heat and quickly getting it soaking in concentrated brine can help reduce a bad outcome. If he is not using a brine, suggest maybe that he would best serving his clients down the road if he investigated using it. There are a number of formulas that these guys use but basically it is a large tub or vat of a saturated salt solution which may include a small portion of formic acid plus possibly an insecticide.

 

Any african capes we get in that are tanned there we will re-tan them in our studio.