Would be very disconcerting to have humped a bloody great heavy thumper like the 700NE all the way to Africa and then see your prize trophy turn tail and head for greener pastures on the shot.

John Taylor only ever advocated the use of the heavy 577NE or 600NE in cases of emergency when potentially facing a charge from a wounded beast and where a bullet placed in the face or close to the brain would turn the charge or bring the animal down, giving time for a killing shot to be inflicted. He also stated that these weapons should only be required to be used by very experienced and skill professional hunters.

JT himself preferred the 400 – 500 calibres that had good penetration and could reach the brain or vitals in the chest from most angles. That is, the shot was made into the killing zones using lighter and sweet shooting weapons.

Our gun nut with the 700NE proved JT’s point exactly.