Quote:
Watching the video, I'd probably shoot a buffalo too high in the head. I must one day look at a cross sectioned head or skull. From the video, the cartoon graphic image looks the brain position much lower than I'd expect. I reckon most guys would go for a between the eyes shot. Head held high, too high. Head held down, perhaps would work?
The video says, head held down, go for the spine.Something I've read but wouldn't consider. Now I would. The spine is bigger than the brain, wow.
Frontal chest shot. Depends on the angle as well. I've read the point of the V under the neck is the correct spot. On the fave of it, looks too low for me, but one must consider the angle of the same shot, looked at from the broadside view of the heart and lungs and spine, if it misses them all it is a slow kill shot and as Ganyana said, a nine hours follow up on a perky buffalo.
A broadside shot breaking the shoulder might not kill the buffalo but may disable a buffalo, orbslow it down a lot. The heart and lungs are also far easier shot.
I'd like to see some Big Game style paper targets feature some of the varying charging positions. Head up way high, the buffalo standing and looking at you, is the usual image. Head up charging would be a good variation. Head down charging is rarely a paper targets image but should be. How many of us would shoot at the spine above the head?
Another consideration. In the excitement of the hunt, follow up and charge, most of us shoot way too early, too far away. Looking at Ganyana's comment 15 yards is considered a long distance by him! Those "Mark Sullivan" brain shots can only be done at very close range. Or Ganyana's over the head spine shot. Who among us could wait that long and let it get that close.
I know with my water buffalo charge, it started at about 90 metres. When it stood up on the hill above me,mi shot and completely missed. It started the charge. I fired the second barrel. Probably hit it to no immediate effect. Empty rifle. Fuck, he's going to kill me! Reload the double, maybe run around this little tree and shoot it in the nose at the end of my muzzle as it chases me. It instead crashed past me at about 15 paces so used the one barrel loaded to put a broadside bullet in. Three hours, R0Five hours, follow up, up and down the creek, crossing to the other side, found it dead in the waist deep water.
Lessons: 1. Shoot better at 90 metres with my ,450 double. Take more time to make a good shot, missing byba metre, it must have been an excitement driven bad shot. One is also thinking, I must hit it before it runs away again.
2, Wait 30 minutes. Hard to do. But the water buffalo I'd shot in the back of the lungs area or forward gut was lying down. Found him on the hill under a tree lying down 5 to 10 minutes later. I didn't time it, Just set the position on the GPS and started following. We don't have skilled trackers, we need tondomit ourselves. Waiting 30 minutes that buffalo might have stiffened up, maybe bled to death? But without good trackers I think I'd still go straight away.
I had shot this buffalo broadside too far back, as a calf or younger buffalo's head pointing backwards, obscured most of the chest of the bull. I aimed to miss the nose of the young buffalo.
3. If shooting at long range a bolt action would have three to five shots available. Very useful at 90 metres. Several shots could be fired on a 90 metres charge.
4. If shooting to stop a charge WAIT for it to get real close. If with a double, you've used one barrel already, tough to face a charging bull at very close range with one barrelm alone.
This is where a double is far better. Two shots, instantly available at close range, Few bolt action shooters can emulate this, physically impossible,
5. Lastly, during the follow up, I was in the high grass for maybe 75 metres, END OF MUZZLE VISIBILITY. Big bore double rifle territory.
Practice reloading under pressure. Practice shooting charging targets under pressure. Big Game type charging targets shoots, maybe static, then charging, are a great practice discipline. Even better actual real life charging beasts. Pigs, running pugsm charging pigs, Charging scrub bulls, Scrub bulls are FAR more likely to charge than any other bovine IMO. Charging water buffalo, cape Buffalo, banteng. The real thing. I've never shot charging eleohant. Thankfully dropped them, frontal brain shots, before any charge,
I have to say, I agree with everything said here. I also think the Lessoned Learnt is good analyst of what went wrong and how to fix. This is the sort of thing I do and most good hunters that I know do. Some unfortunately do not give things a second thought.
|