Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
As we head into the last third of the year, any help we can offer in terms of advice, tips, suggestions – please remember I am on the end of a telephone or email.
I have just returned from a trip to the USA and Canada where I had fruitful discussions and meetings with The Hunting Report, Safari Club International at their headquarters and then in Calgary and Edmonton with not only the SCI chapters but also the various parties that will be helping us as we build up to our expos in 2014.
The mood is positive in North America, particularly in Alberta and if the number of hunters on Delta 201 departing back for America and those with me on Delta 200 coming to Africa is anything to go by – things are buoyant!
Foreign hunters just need to be told about Africa, given the reassurances they need and be treated with world class service and I am certain we will have more hunters every year.
Enough of this talk – this month’s Bulletin has our usual round up of news, tips and advice and we hope it helps in some small way.
– Richard Lendrum
Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
Game Over Taxidermy
Owner / Manager Name: Raynardt van der Merwe
Location: 12 Fabricia Road ,Northern Cape Province, South Africa
Year Established: 2008
Primary Region Served: Canada, Europe
Tel No: +27-53-831 4891
Fax No: +27-53-831 4891
E-mail: gameover.taxidermy@webmail.co.za
Website: http://www.gameovertaxidermy.co.za
Specialities if any: All services
Dipper and Packer used: Various companies
Shipper Used: Safari Air Cargo
Average trophy completion time: 24-28 weeks
Average no of trophies handled per month: 40 – 50
Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
The New Mauser M-12 Hunting Rifle
In March this year, Mauser Jagdwaffen of Germany announced its M-12 hunting rifle at the IWA Show. The M-12 is the latest of the three models currently forming the Mauser rifle line-up. The other two are the Mauser M-98 and the Mauser M-03. The M-12 is a typical modern push-feed rifle and can be considered a kind of hybrid with features from both the M-98 and the M-03.
The design is a forward-locking recessed 6-lug design that locks directly into the barrel. It is a push-feed with two plunger style ejectors recessed into the bolt face. The M-12 has a 3-position side-swing safety on a bolt sleeve somewhat reminiscent of the Heym Express rifle.
The M-12 Standard has a 5-shot removable magazine and comes with 560mm (22“) barrels and is available in wood and a synthetic stocked models in .22-250 Remington; .243 Winchester; 6,5×55mm Swedish; .270 Winchester; 7×64mm Brenneke; .308 Winchester; .30-06 Springfield; 8×57mm IS Mauser, and the 9,3×62mm Mauser calibres. It is a lightweight that weighs around 3,1 kg (6.75 lb). The magazine latch is very conveniently situated ahead of the magazine.
The Magnum model has a 4-shot removable magazine with 620mm (24.5“) barrel and is available in only three chamberings at present: 7mm Remington Magnum; .300 Winchester Magnum, and the .338 Winchester Magnum. The Magnum model weighs around 3,2 kg (7 lb).
The stocks on the M-12 mercifully are of classic design rather than the German and Bavarian stocks so unpopular in the RSA and the USA. The M-12 will be the most affordable rifle in the Mauser product-line, and probably the most popular, as it is a rifle to rival the popular American offerings such as the Remington, Ruger, Savage and Winchester brands.
Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
Bushnell Fusion 1 Mile ARC Binocular
These Bushnell binoculars offer range-finding capability to a mile on high-reflective targets to an accuracy level of one metre. That means 1,600 metres. On low-reflection targets their accurate range is around 900 metres – way further than we shoot anyhow. They are available in 8×32, 10×42 and 12×50 models and offer ARC (Angle Range Compensation) for uphill and downhill shooting. They also offer both rifle and bow modules. In rifle module they offer the novel feature of eight trajectory options for different cartridge groups that calculates bullet drop for the hunter at the estimated range! These binoculars are not cheap, but at around R15,000 they are affordable and offer good value for money.
Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
Word of mouth is undoubtedly the best form of marketing and something we should all strive to make the most of.
But how does it begin, or rather, with who, does it all begin? Someone has to have been hunting with you in order to recommend you and that, folks, is what I urge you to stop to think about.
Our international hunting research indicates that:
- 73% of hunters believe that friends are either important or very important in terms of finding out about their next safari
- 93% of hunters had friends that had NOT previously hunted in Africa and then
- Of this 93% of hunters 53% had four or more friends who had never been to Africa.
So what exactly are you doing about this opportunity?
- Do you ask your clients to fill out a hunting report or survey after their hunt adding client leads?
- Do you give them extra brochures to give to their friends/clients?
- If you don’t have brochures, what about a postcard, or even telling them about your website?
- Do you ask them for something as simple as a reference?
- Do you know where your client heard about you – right from the beginning?
So while an advert, expo booth, brochure or website might cost you an initial investment – it is just that. An investment in the long-term pipeline of business that word-of-mouth clients can deliver. That is where it starts.
Aug 28, 2013 | Bulletin - August 2013
During August we have been active visiting outfitters in Namibia. It is a big country and it takes time, but the outfitters visited were:
