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I am trying to figure out how to judge Gemsbok before my hunt in May. I'm guessing the bigger bull is close to 40". Anybody else have a guess? Am I even close?  ______________________ I don't shoot elk at 600 yards for the same reasons I don't shoot ducks on the water, or turkeys from their roosts. If this confuses you then you're not welcome in my hunting camp. | ||
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This is what I normally do..... 1. See the Gemsbock. 2. Look Through Binoculars at Gemsbock 3. Turn to PH and ask if its a Shooter 4. Go off PH's Judgment of Size and Quality. This standard has not failed me yet. Mink and Wall Tents don't go together. Especially when you are sleeping in the Wall Tent. DRSS .470 & .500 | |||
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don't bother guessing. since you haven't shot one before and are therefore not trying to get a bigger one, if your PH says it is a shooter-SHOOT IT. if you become obsessed with inches, you will miss out on the essence of an African hunt Vote Trump- Putin’s best friend… To quote a former AND CURRENT Trumpiteer - DUMP TRUMP | |||
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37x38.5 inches on the larger bull. LDK Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
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When does sierrabravo's PH say it is a shooter? Well, if the length of smooth horn above the ridged part is about as long as, or longer, the ridged lower part, it is almost for sure a shooter. Look closely at the two bulls in the photo and the wisdom of my PH school teacher many year many years ago is apparant. The bigger one is a shooter! BTW, just about all adult gemsbok have very much the same length of ridged horn. In good hunting. Andrew McLaren | |||
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Thanks Andrew. That is very helpful information. I obviously plan on listening to my PH's advice, but that doesn't mean I don't want to understand how he is making his decision. ______________________ I don't shoot elk at 600 yards for the same reasons I don't shoot ducks on the water, or turkeys from their roosts. If this confuses you then you're not welcome in my hunting camp. | |||
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1.If a Gemsbuck is grazing with his nose touching the ground a 40" will go past his shoulders by one hand. 2. Gemsbucks head is +-14" divide its head into the horns 3. I they stand up and tilt there heads back and the horns toughes the rump you are very close to 40" "Buy land they have stopped making it"- Mark Twain | |||
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Good tip, Andrew.  Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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This one is 40 and 1/8.  GLRodgers | |||
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This bull went 42" green............not my preferred style of Oryx bull, as it looks a bit like a cow, but long, for all that    Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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This measurement on a Bull is approx. 11 1/2". Us that as a reference and see what you get.  Jerry Huffaker State, National and World Champion Taxidermist | |||
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DC, On your hunt you may want to fool around field judging your gemsbok but what you willsee is a lot of animals with long black horns andv they all look alike. I think they are the most difficult African animal for a client to judge. I think the best option is to ask the PH what a reasonable expectation is for a trophy. If he says most run about 36"-37" but 38"-40" is possible then you can choose how fussy you want to be. Then you and the PH will be on the same page and you'll be happy with your gemsbok. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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Jerry, Using your method, I am getting only about 32"-33". Maybe he just looks big next the little guy?! ______________________ I don't shoot elk at 600 yards for the same reasons I don't shoot ducks on the water, or turkeys from their roosts. If this confuses you then you're not welcome in my hunting camp. | |||
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That bigger gemsbok is only at most 36 inches, most likely 35-ish. They're deceptively difficult to field judge. Experience has taught me to expect ground skrinkage sometimes up to two inches. Even seasoned PH's who've guaranteed me 42 inchers and 44 inchers before pulling the trigger are stunned at such shrinkage when taping it out. The earlier posters are correct about not being so obsessed with size, but we all understand your issue here. As a trophy hunter you want the best trophy for your money. 40 inches is the magical standard for gemsbok and unfortunately about the only way to assess the trophy nature of a gembok is by the length of its horns. There are exotic and curvy horn formations that you'll come across from time to time but devoid of that, size in regards to gemsbok does matter alot...My advice would be to pass on both of those gemsboks in the picture above and look for a bigger one. One with horns so long that you don't even have to ask the PH how big it is. That's when you really know that you've rolled up on a long horned one, when there's no debate at all whether or not to shoot it. Moja | |||
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about 450#'s   | |||
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I shot the first gemsbuck I ever saw, it went a shade over 42.5 inches. The PH was watching them come up through the brush with binos, he was 15-20 feet to my right and I couldn't see them yet. He whispered that one was very nice, I said which one, he held up 1 finger, so I shot the first damn one, the first head of game I saw in Africa. In this manner they are pretty easy to judge trophies. A shot not taken is always a miss | |||
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Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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This is a much better bull in my opinion, heavy and straight, went a whisker over 40".  Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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Although I am sure it would be horribly expensive, that pose on the right would make an amazing full body mount! Never use a cat's arse to hold a tea-towel. | |||
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I go along with SableTrail My guess is you won't be able to tell a cow from a bull, let alone the size of "his" horns. Your PH will be amazingly accurate at picking out the biggest bull. After seeing twenty or thirty they all started looking like clones to me. I shot the one the PH liked. It turned out to be 40" and a whisker on one side, and short a whisker on the other side. | |||
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Best thing to do................ Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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That's a pretty one. Since Marc chimed in, that gemsbok you shot with Calitz on video was huge! Man, that was a beauty. I think Johan was more excited about that than some of the DG you shot. Any photos to post of that one Marc? _______________________________  | |||
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There is a nice article in the African Outfitter Mag for Feb about this topic with very nice photos illustrating the methods "Buy land they have stopped making it"- Mark Twain | |||
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Thanks YD. Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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This one was about 40 1/2. I had shot a 41 inch cow the year before and told the ph that I'd shoot a bull if he could find me a 40 incher. That's a tall order and we laughed when I told him that, but low and behold we found this bull. The ph said, "I'm not going to guarantee you 40, but it's 39 plus." I told him I wasn't going to hold him to a half inch. As you've recognized, they're very hard to judge. The one you've posted is scaring 40, in my opinion, but I would likely guess just slightly under. But who am I? I've only shot the two and don't consider myself an expert. When they're all running together, they all look big!  | |||
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By the way, I killed a 5 1/2" steenbuck about 3 hours later and, as tremendous as this gemsbok is, I consider the steenbuck to be the better trophy. | |||
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Gemsbok are hard to judge in the field, and probably impossible to judge in a picture, a couple of inches can make a big difference, just like Buffalo a 38 inch bull is average but a 40 is spectacular on these boards, but in reality that is an inch on each horn, so there ya go, its all  Trust your PH is the best advise you will get...Ray Atkinson Atkinson Hunting Adventures 10 Ward Lane, Filer, Idaho, 83328 208-731-4120 rayatkinsonhunting@gmail.com | |||
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Nice Steenbuck, Bwanna Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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Here it is Bryan. Moja | |||
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nope-that didn't work | |||
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It should be noted that often, it is the female of the gemsbok species that have longer but thinner horns. It is very difficult to even tell the sex of gemsbok in the field, less the horn length. Go with the recommendation of the PH. If there is substantial ground shrinkage, then it's his fault. He may let you shoot another at no charge. Geoff Shooter | |||
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There it is...that's the one we are all looking for! Geez, Marc why didn't you smile for that one? How big was that one?_______________________________ | |||
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Verbera!, Iugula!, Iugula!!! Blair. | |||
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PH said "SHOOT HIM", so i did. 45" bull from th e Kalahari in Bots.  Vote Trump- Putin’s best friend… To quote a former AND CURRENT Trumpiteer - DUMP TRUMP | |||
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Nice one Jdollar...especially for a guy wearing a PSE hat!  _______________________________ | |||
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thanks YD. i met Pete Sheply at Afton Guest House on the way to Bots.( he was headed to Zambia for lion with a bow, then on to Zim for an ele). he gave me the hat and i told him i would wear it for luck. must have worked. got a big kudu 2 hours after the bush plane landed, a leopard 2 days later, and this guy the third day. still wear the hat for luck. found out later that Pete got his lion and his elephant-both on film for his video series. as an aside, he is a helluva nice guy- very down to earth with some amazing stories of bow hunting African game. Vote Trump- Putin’s best friend… To quote a former AND CURRENT Trumpiteer - DUMP TRUMP | |||
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JD Excellent. Someone else said that he was told you could pick a trophy if the smooth part at the top of the horns was equal or greater than the rough bottom. Here you see that in action. The other poster said that if equal the Oryx would be a 'shooter'. Well that would depend on your definition of a shooter because it would make the animal about 32". Maybe a shooter somewhere but not everywhere. An Adult Oryx has a face approx. 14" Use the face to confirm the estimate. The biggest problem is judging a single animal. As Oryx horns grow in proportion to their body they usually look the same. It is hard to know if an animal is big or even full grown when it is alone. It is the rare bird, like Mark's and JD's that standout. Who was it said you would recognize a big one when you saw it? Gator A Proud Member of the Obamanation "The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left." Ecclesiastes 10:2 "There are some ideas so absurd that only an intellectual could believe them." George Orwell | |||
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Marc W. and Jdollar: Nice bulls! My first(and only gemsbok) was a male at 42"  | |||
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JD and UEG. Nice bulls. Look at the faces of all of our three animals...the white blaze is all the way across on the forehead on mine...on your two its broken by a patch of black. Mine is a Kalahari Gemsbok. Is that one of the ways to tell the difference. I'm not sure...just noticed the faces markings were slightly different, or maybe I shot some sort of hybrid freak. I know that's one way to tell the difference between Common Sable and Roosevelt Sable, by looking at the facial markings. Just Curious. Moja | |||
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