Shipping trophies home

[grayghost]

Gerry, sorry for the slow reply. I have been hunting and attending the safari shows. Let's see if I can answer your questions:
The first thought that came to me was to wonder whether a 40% saving in shipping costs was worth using ocean cargo. I'm thinking of the hazards of getting a trophy from a landlocked country like Zimbabwe to an ocean port, reliability of stevedores in loading what? My trophy in its own crate? Yes

-or consolidated with other crates into a shipping container? Yes again.
-that will be much bigger than those used in aircraft transport? Yes
How about the crane dropping the load? Very rare. 99.9% won't happen.

What happens to my 42"buff then? That's why you insure your entire shipment of trophies.

I trust American stevedores in unloading - but theft on the docks is commonplace in American ports. Again, insurance.

Finally, what's the time difference between ocean and air shipments? Air- one week. Sea: 30 days

If only a few weeks, then it may be worth it - but I suspect that it's much more and, somehow I feel that air transport is safer all around. (Frankly, someone who has spent thousands of dollars to get that trophy ought not to be pinching pennies near the end of getting it home) Just my thoughts. I use the most reliable people in the business to ship and import my trophies and the same for my clients. It pays to protect your investment. However, in Africa, s$#@ happens. Plan for it and enjoy the good times.
grayghost