Best taxidermy mounts? Needing some inspiration

[wildfowler.250]

Right folks, what’s the best taxidermy mounts you’ve either 1) seen on the internet if you can find the photo or 2) have had done yourself?

I’ll probably get the mounts done in the uk,(spread costs out if needed, actually get the capes across before any daft legislation etc) but who would you say is the best taxidermist in SA? Splitting image? Highveld?


I’m really looking into plains game but keen to see anything. Even to see some more common poses to see what I like,(eg ear position, turn ).


Help me out. Plus I’ve got a year until I go and actually can’t wait that long..

 

[Firebird]

Use that year to actually visit all the taxidermist options in the uk and use that knowledge to pick the one your stuff will go to.

Taxidermy is very “eye of the beholder.”

That said surfing the net will give you ideas about poses and positions you find most agreeable and creative. YouTube also has footage of competitions that you can view that will be helpful in your research.

Good luck!

 

[wildfowler.250]

Use that year to actually visit all the taxidermist options in the uk and use that knowledge to pick the one your stuff will go to.

Taxidermy is very “eye of the beholder.”

That said surfing the net will give you ideas about poses and positions you find most agreeable and creative. YouTube also has footage of competitions that you can view that will be helpful in your research.

Good luck!

I like the YouTube idea, thanks! I’ve certainly got a chap here that I would use all being well. Doesn’t hurt to have a plan B though in case of retirement or other commitments coming up

 

[Red Leg]

Whatever poses you choose, pay for quality work. I have a couple of friends who have spent fortunes hunting globally and apparently are committed to saving money on taxidermy. Their mounts resemble something found in an Egyptian tomb rather than on the veldt. If you browse this site you can find examples of some of the very best and worst anywhere.

 

[Ryan]

Do a lot of looking. Check out lots of shops work, local and in Africa. And online taxidermy supply sites will help a lot too, giving you more ideas. One little thing I don't get is plain straight shoulder mounts. Straight out of the wall, looking straight ahead. Those typically look lifeless to me. Even a little offset or turn does a lot to make it go from "deer in the headlights" to alive. My eland has a light right turn, and it improved it in my opinion.

Don't forget about skull mounts, also great if done well.

 

[wildfowler.250]

Do a lot of looking. Check out lots of shops work, local and in Africa. And online taxidermy supply sites will help a lot too, giving you more ideas. One little thing I don't get is plain straight shoulder mounts. Straight out of the wall, looking straight ahead. Those typically look lifeless to me. Even a little offset or turn does a lot to make it go from "deer in the headlights" to alive. My eland has a light right turn, and it improved it in my opinion.
View attachment 596591
Don't forget about skull mounts, also great if done well. View attachment 596592

They all look great! Work done in states or Africa? Funnily, if I get a black wildebeest the I will go for a euro mount, they look great!


Also if anyone has any zebra mounts in particular, I’d be very interested. Who knows if I’ll hunt one but I’m tempted. I still can’t decide if the chess piece mounts look excellent or will look strange over time.

 

[wildfowler.250]

Whatever poses you choose, pay for quality work. I have a couple of friends who have spent fortunes hunting globally and apparently are committed to saving money on taxidermy. Their mounts resemble something found in an Egyptian tomb rather than on the veldt. If you browse this site you can find examples of some of the very best and worst anywhere.

Agree with that! Nothing worse than bad taxidermy. Although I very much get the impression, field prep prior to taxidermist makes a heck of a difference

 

[Ryan]

They all look great! Work done in states or Africa? Funnily, if I get a black wildebeest the I will go for a euro mount, they look great!


Also if anyone has any zebra mounts in particular, I’d be very interested. Who knows if I’ll hunt one but I’m tempted. I still can’t decide if the chess piece mounts look excellent or will look strange over time.

Everything African was done there. It worked out a lot better for me. That said, be picky, like anywhere, there is good, bad and ugly. The kudu and skulls were done in Namibia by a place I don't believe does taxidermy any more. The eland was done in South Africa by Relive taxidermy. I think they're part of Splitting Image now. I got some good head mounts and some not so good skull mounts done by Safari taxidermy in the Limpopo region. My complaints with the skulls are that they painted them white when we had a written agreement- no paint. And instead of sanding the teeth down they appeared to have just chiseled them down rather rough. They aren't horrible, but they are second rate, and their costs were first rate.

I have a regular zebra pedestal. I like it, but they didn't do the mane well. Also, it takes up a lot of space, I think I'd do a wall pedestal instead if I did it over.

 

[wesheltonj]

While not in the UK, in Belgium you have one of the best taxidermists in the world.

Accueil - Taxidermy

www.taxidermie.be

 

[ActionBob]

They all look great! Work done in states or Africa? Funnily, if I get a black wildebeest the I will go for a euro mount, they look great!


Also if anyone has any zebra mounts in particular, I’d be very interested. Who knows if I’ll hunt one but I’m tempted. I still can’t decide if the chess piece mounts look excellent or will look strange over time.

 

[yhc]

My friends and I used Life Form taxidermy in South Africa for our 2021 safari. We are all very pleased with our trophies and their customer service was second to none. I highly recommend Life Form.

Life Form

 

[wildfowler.250]

Everything African was done there. It worked out a lot better for me. That said, be picky, like anywhere, there is good, bad and ugly. The kudu and skulls were done in Namibia by a place I don't believe does taxidermy any more. The eland was done in South Africa by Relive taxidermy. I think they're part of Splitting Image now. I got some good head mounts and some not so good skull mounts done by Safari taxidermy in the Limpopo region. My complaints with the skulls are that they painted them white when we had a written agreement- no paint. And instead of sanding the teeth down they appeared to have just chiseled them down rather rough. They aren't horrible, but they are second rate, and their costs were first rate.

I have a regular zebra pedestal. I like it, but they didn't do the mane well. Also, it takes up a lot of space, I think I'd do a wall pedestal instead if I did it over. View attachment 596609

Thanks! Splitting image do seem very good on paper. Although they will only show the best ones I suppose.
Didn’t think the floor ped would take that much more space but I suppose it does. I’ve got a red stag on a ped and figured it can ‘go anywhere’ if we move house and walls change etc.
I feel your pain there, hate a painted skull. I’ve had a couple back which I’m fairly sure have a varnish on them and i hate it.

View attachment 596667View attachment 596668View attachment 596669View attachment 596670View attachment 596671View attachment 596673

Excellent!

My friends and I used Life Form taxidermy in South Africa for our 2021 safari. We are all very pleased with our trophies and their customer service was second to none. I highly recommend Life Form.

Life Form

They actually look really good. Hadn’t heard about them before. They are a good 6 hours from where I’m hunting though so maybe that’s a logistical issue? Can I ask what the turnaround time for them was?

 

[wildfowler.250]

While not in the UK, in Belgium you have one of the best taxidermists in the world.

Accueil - Taxidermy

www.taxidermie.be

I thought Belgium had a trophy import ban, I’ll need to check! Thanks for the recommendation

 

[Sarg]

I think Life-Form do amazing work & Nico Van Rooyen have done for a very long time.

Most if not all the others I have seen are very hit & miss, I suspect because there are some many "Boys" working out the back as Taxidermists & only a couple of them are actually any good/craftsmen/artist.

I see most people can't seem to see the difference between mediocre & great Taxidermy from the comments I see on here & many other sites, where the posters will praise a mount which is actually rubbish !

 

[yhc]

They actually look really good. Hadn’t heard about them before. They are a good 6 hours from where I’m hunting though so maybe that’s a logistical issue? Can I ask what the turnaround time for them was?

Life Form’s turnaround time for us was less than 6 months in 2021. At that time, we were probably one of the first few groups after the pandemic travel restrictions were lifted. So it may be a bit longer now. You might want to reach out to them and ask what the turnaround time is now.

The area we hunted in Limpopo was approximately 6 hours away from Life Form. They came by and picked up our trophies within a couple days after we completed our hunt. The pick up service was included in the price…no additional charge.

They are one of the sponsors here so you could check out their posts here in addition to their website.

 

[DieJager]

I thought Belgium had a trophy import ban

Only a couple of species, similar like in the Netherlands. But probably no problem if the end destination is UK.

 

[Hunt anything]

I’ve had work done here in the states and in Africa, I would say all are above average and indistinguishable from which were done where. But I feel like I did my homework on the taxidermist.
Where my taxidermy stands out to me at least are some of my waterfowl mounts, many of them are world class.