My Kudu mount

[762 shooter]

This the Kudu that I shot in Zimbabwe in '95. I was poor at the time and couldn't afford to get it mounted. Well, I am now self employed and making good money so off to the taxidermist it went, 9 years later. I picked it up from the taxidermist on friday Dec. 31st and here it is, All 48" of horned splender. now I have to get a few other animals to him. My wife thinks it's the most beautiful thing in the house nest to our baby boy.

[splattermatic]

oh is that beautiful..

jelous...................

i was supposed to go to namibia this may, but life got in the way,, so maybe in the near future....

and , a kudu was number 1 trophy...

[Da Nerd]

Outstanding..

[wt]

pretty cool,

Quick question...( I need to preface with the fact that I have never had anything mounted) How did you store it for the last nine years?

[762 shooter]

Well... When I got back from my trip I knew I wouldn't be able to afford the taxidermy. So I called a couple of taxidermists and I was told to keep them dry and that the salted skins would be OK for years. Jump forward in time 9 years and the taxidermist that I took it to tells me that I would have been better off having the skin tanned and then freezing it for the duration. The skin suffered a bit of salt burn. It didn't stretch all that well and had some hair slip. He was an old bull when I shot him and didn't have much hair when he died. Has just a little less now. But the mount still looks good, even up close. I still have the bullet that killed him, or whats left of it. 190 grain 300 win mag. But I prefer big over fast. Me and John Taylor.

[darkknight9]

That is SO cool!!!!

Thanks for sharing!

[Jon Frum]

Impressive

[Para Driver]

does he have nice 'Ivory' on the tips.. that is also impressive...
and the meat is out of this world.. yum-yum to say the least..

the chevron under the eyes tend to be a genetic traite, or so we believed.. we shot two on the same ranch in Zim in '92 and they were virtual twins in that respect... probably brothers or even twins??

[idsubgun]

762 shooter, nice mount!

Yeah, the best way to preserve them is to have them tanned and then freeze them. If you have access to a vacuum packing machine, then that's even better. I've got several I need to get in the freezer myself because I can't affod to have all mine mounted right now.
My Kudu in it's original mount. :)

[idsubgun]

Here is my buddy's Kudu. It damn near became the number 1 record for Greater Kudu but slipped back into 2nd or 3rd place after it dried. I don't know where it ended up for sure. This Kudu turned into a fiasco as he had it mounted in SA and they really screwed it up, plus it took forever and forever, so I try not to even talk about it with him much as it's still a sore spot for him. The damn thing was mounted with a smile. You look at it and it looks like it's smiling at you.
We were warned about having animals mounted over there. I'm glad I didn't have any done in SA.

[762 shooter]

WOW!!!:eek: While I don't think there is such a thing as a lousy kudu, ( I saw one that was harvested with a broken horn and it was still impressive) your buddies kudu is AMAZING! Idsubgun, do you recall what it measured out at? And yes, I have heard numerous horror stories about African taxidermy.
-Paradriver, my kudu has about 2 inches of ivory. LIke I said he was an old bull which is what I wanted. Where in Zim did you hunt and who with? I went with a friend of mine who is an artist. He paints primarily african wild life. Anyhow, he invited me along and said I wouldn't have to worry about paying for the hunt, he was going to trade a painting or two for it. All I had to pay for was airfare. I have been looking for a similiar deal since I got back, they are hard to come by!
I got to hunt with a guy named Vivian Bristow. He supplied San Diego Zoo with their first white rhinos back in the '70s and for those of you that have seen The Gods Must Be Crazy He supplied the animals and did all of the animal training for the movie. He was quite a character. He had a trained hyena during the rhody war that could sniff out land mines. Hyena died of old age. He said it was the most amazing animal he had ever owned. I'm the only person I know that has played fetch with cheetahs, all because of Vivian. God I miss Africa...

[idsubgun]

You know, I don't recall what it measured while green. I just emailed him and asked for the numbers again.

[idsubgun]

Did you save the back skins? They make nice backdrops for photographing firearms.

[762 shooter]

Ah, if I new then what I know now... Didn't save half of what I should have. I didn't think I would ever be able to afford to have them mounted. My eland is now an european mount. I wish I had kept his skin just in case. It's funny, my wife and I were living on top ramen and kool-aid at the time but I went hunting in Africa.:tongue: I had to borrow one of Dad's rifles. He gave me the rifle when I got back but I think that might have had something to do with him not being able to pry my fingers from it. My only regret from the trip is a roll of film that broke within the camera. I thought I was taking pictures but the film was not advancing. I lost pics of a world record nyala, 3 of the largest cape buffalo I have ever seen, a black mamba that had to have been 15' long, me playing fetch with cheetahs, holding a hyena in my lap, detailed head shots of my crocodile... Pardon me I have to go bang my head.

[moparman]

Originally posted by 762 shooter
a black mamba that had to have been 15' long,

Much as I would love to hunt there, I don't think I will just because of that statement......:uhoh:

[EMDII]

Awesome!