hi everyone,
i recently joined after weeks of just reading and browsing etc and i would like to say thank you for a wonderful forum. the information here is unbelievable and i cant get enough.
i need to ask something that i cant seem to find anywhere. can anyone recommend a website or book i can get hold of that will help me in field judging trophy animals. i found a book - boone and crocket - but thats just for N America, i need something on african game PG and DG. can anyone please help?

The book "The Perfect Shot" has some info on field judging trophies. For common African species here are a couple:

Impala: when the horns get parallel, its good.

Springbok: When the tips of the horns turn to the rear, its good.

Black Wildebeest and Red Hartebeest: not much hair between the bases.

Gemsbok: The tips of the horns are above the shoulders when its head is down.

You really don't have to worry too much about it because your ph knows these things and has to take a test on them to get his ticket. He may mess up, but he'll be better at it than you can hope to be. Kudude

thnxs,
yeah the reason why i need to read up as much as possible is because im going for my ph training and will be tested on it. i'll check out the book you mentioned. anything will help thanks again

You know, there's a book published in South Africa on Hunting Africa by I believe three South African Authors, and in part of that book they discuss trophy field judging. I just, for the life of me, can't recall the name of the book at this time. It is a valuable book on hunting Africa and covers just about everything. I have it in my library at the office, but unfortunately I won't be back there for three more days. Sorry I can't help you any more than that unless someone else remembers the name of the book before Monday.

i will be happy to wait, i cant seem to find anything on african game. lots on american but that wont help me. thank you for your help

It's coming back to me now. . ."Hunting Africa: A Practical Guide", by Gerhard Swan, Pieter Smit and Dirk Botes. Try and find it. I think it will be helpful for you in many ways.

You can obtain "Hunting Africa - A practical guide" in the USA from our own Russ Gould. I just did. In South Africa try Sunbird Publishing.

thanks very much for all the help, i will try and get these books. great forum, great bunch of guys thanks again

If you are interested in judging buffalo try,"Buffalo" by Craig Boddington.

where can i get hold of russ gold?

Books are books. There is NO substitute for field experience. If you are going for your PH training, then spend your apprenticeship period, which I hope is no less than 2 years, teaching and measuring for yourself. Most PH's did it this way, and successfully too. Get to trust your own feelings.

Ditto on "Hunting Africa: A Practical Guide". I also got mine from Russ. You can order from his website at doublegunhq.com. His contact information is listed there as well.