I just got my Cape Buffalo & Nyala horns and hides back from the tannery. The Buffalo horns look as if the South African taxidermist boiled them to long. All of the natural scrapes & dings in the horns have lifted up & peeled back. Giving the horns a waffled look. This can be repaired by the taxidermist (extra $$$). The worst is my Nyala cape which came back with a huge amount of hair slippage on the neck, making it worthless. This with all of the outer "misunderstandings" that came with this disastrous hunting trip. Have made for a once in a life time experience I will never forget!

Is the bare spot on the nyala on the bottom of it's neck? They do naturally have very thin hair coverage there. Sorry to hear about the damage.

That's got to be a sickening feeling and I'm very sorry to hear of it. I just got an email from my taxidermist that my trophies just arrived and I pray that everything made it here in good shape.

Again, I'm really sorry to hear about your trophies.

Robert, which taxidermist did you use?

Is it standard practice for African taxidermists to "repair" and color horns? After seeing some of the work, I specifically requested that my horns be left as-is.

I was most concerned with the kudu horns. It seemed that standard practice was to rub a black compound on them to even the color. Mine were a lighter shade at the bottom, which I liked. Some of the prepared horns did not look natural.

I think scores, chips, etc add character. Is this unique to Americans?

I too believe that "character" features should be left alone but gross oddities or changes should be attended to especially if they differ from the photographic record. My taxidermist does put something on the horns and it does make them slightly darker but adds no shine. I too have seen the "shoe polished" effect and it doesn't look natural.

My Kudu ended up with a hair slippage problem on the one side of it's neck. It's not noticable unless you are looking for those things. The display is set to show the other side as the dominant view. Further, I hit him in the heart and he ran about sixty yards, just far enough to run up a rocky outcropping and fall into the dried (and rocky) stream bed below (about 10-12 feet). This added a few dings to his horns but nothing major and they are still there today and no one has ever mentioned them as being odd or out of place.

Shakari
True-Form Taxidermy did the dipping & crating. Because I do not know who boiled the horns,It would not be fair to blame them for any of the problems.

The Nyala was hung in the direct sunlight., and for some reason not skinned immediately( 1 hour before skinned ). I don't think any of the skinners realized how fast a cape can slip.

Robert, the buff horns should be no problem for your taxidermist to "clean-up". Check on his "shop hourly price". Should be no more than $45 an hour and he should not need much more then that.
The Nyala cape is a sin! It may not have been the tanners fault though. If it was not properly fleshed, salted and dried that could be your problem.
You have two ways to go if you want a shoulder mount.
1: Get another cape. More cost($150 maybe) and "it aint yours"???
2: Mount it and what ever bare spots can not be removed by your taxidermist, hide with some habitat material.
All in all what a raw deal!!!

Robert,

I would consider replacing the cape on the Nyala. I had my PH replace a cape for me on a Waterbuck I shot that was not found until after I returned to the States. The horns were fine and the cape looked great. They very often have extra capes because many Europeans opt for a skull mount.

CFA

Did you post a "hunting report" on your "disasterous" hunt. I did a search and could not find anything.

Inquiring minds want to know!

Jim
Look at hunting report #3217
After you have read the report Please email me and tell me who you think is at fault. Don't worry about offending me
Thanks
jjohnson@alaska.net

Robert,
With buffalo horns, unless they are really old, solid and worn smooth, they will always "flake" once they come out of the dipping/boiling process. A young buffalo will really flake alot and you will normally loose up to a couple of inches from the Boss as a result. As mentioned by other posts, your taxidermist will fix it easily. I would not worry too much about that and I would not fault anyone for that. If you don't boil them, they have to stay in the "dipping" process for up to 3 weeks in order for all the "meaty" bits to come out from under the boss. Boiling is a faster method but unless one is really careful, you can really damage the horns/boss.

The Nyala sounds like a disaster; as Ann asks, if the lack of hair is on the underpart of the neck, that is quite normal. They do lack hair there. Hopefully that is the case.

Happy hunting!

I have a source for Nyala capes if you need one.

The buffalo I shoot had 15" hard boss, with a 3/4 inch gap between the boss. All of the boiling damage is in the middle of the horns.(The boss is in good shape ) It can be fixed, it just bothers me to pay $500 to a outfitter for dipping. Then have to pay a taxidermist to fix the damage caused in the dipping process.

The Nyala cape is a total loss. There is hair loss on most areas of the cape. The largest amount of slippage is in the middle of the neck. To me Sable & Nyala are the prettiest animals in Africa. Hopefully I can find a replacement cape.
.

Mr. Johnson, I cannot find your hunt report but would be very interested in reading it. Can you link me in? Thanks!

Robert,

You mention that the taxidermist was True Form. I am hoping you were not mistaking this firm with Life-Form out of White River RSA. I have five animals with Life Form right now.

JLB,

Life-form does Excellent work. You have NOTHING to worry about.

Best,

JohnTheGreek

The taxidermist I used was LIFE-FORM TAXIDERMY. Please remember I am not blaming them. They boiled,cleaned a warthog which came out excellent. It's my "GUESS" the buffalo horns were boiled on site by local labors, before they could be transferred. I remember something about it being a red zone.