Home | Ezine | Forums | Links | Contact
NitroExpress.com: The Ideal African Hunting Battery

View recent messages : 24 hours | 48 hours | 7 days | 14 days | 30 days | 60 days | More Smilies


*** Enjoy NitroExpress.com? Participate and join in. ***
You are not logged in. [Login] Main Index · Search · Active Topics
New user · Who's Online · FAQ · Calendar

Hunting >> Hunting in Africa & hunting dangerous game
Previous topic Previous   View all topics Index   Next topic Next   Threaded Mode Threaded  

Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | >> (show all)
CZ_hunter
.275 member


Reged: 08/07/13
Posts: 70
Loc: Prague, Czech Republic
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Ezine]
      #233375 - 02/08/13 04:40 AM

My African two rifle battery alternatives:
300 H&H + 400 H&H rifle
or
350 Rigby + 416 Rigby rifle
or
333 Jeffery + 505 Gibbs
To cover all activities I would add 12 gauge shotgun.

CZ hunter

--------------------
CZ

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Claydog
.375 member


Reged: 17/08/12
Posts: 934
Loc: Katherine, Northern Territory ...
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Phillip]
      #233382 - 02/08/13 08:10 AM


These will do, Rigby 275, Jeffery 404

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Mike_Bailey
.400 member


Reged: 26/02/07
Posts: 2289
Loc: GB
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Claydog]
      #233395 - 02/08/13 07:26 PM

.375, .500 and a 12 bore, a .22LR would be nice for putting small game on the table but I suppose the shotty could do that, best

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
gwh
.333 member


Reged: 28/01/08
Posts: 277
Loc: Cairns Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Mike_Bailey]
      #233398 - 02/08/13 08:25 PM

I am at a stage where I now have the rifles I need ,for most hunting about the place.

If two rifles then my merkel 470 double and sako 270 wsm. Double for bush veld hunting of most things and the sako for open country plains animals and baboons. Of the 7 game animals I took on my plains game safari in 2010 with my .375 I think i could have taken 5 of them with my double.

If one rifle, then a 375 with woodleighs to suit the intended game.

--------------------
Hunt hard, shoot straight

"I speak of Africa and golden joys; the joy of wandering through lonely lands; the joy of hunting the mighty and terrible lords of the wilderness, the cunning, the wary and the grim"

Theodore Roosevelt, Khartoum, 1910

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Rell
.375 member


Reged: 03/12/04
Posts: 642
Loc: Oyster Bay, NY, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: gwh]
      #233421 - 03/08/13 07:07 AM

Chapuis SxS 450-400 3" with a 1-6 x scope in qr rings and another Chapuis SxS in 7x65r with. 2-12x scope in qr rings.

I'm going to try this in 2014.

--------------------
450-400, 9.3x74r and 7x65r.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
xausa
.400 member


Reged: 07/03/07
Posts: 2037
Loc: Tennessee, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Rell]
      #233431 - 03/08/13 09:11 AM

On my first African hunt I took a pre-64 Model 70 Winchester in .300 H&H, my Krieghoff Teck DR in .458 WM with two additional barrel sets in .375 H&H and 20 gauge 3" Magnum, plus my wildcat .505 based on a shortened .460 Weatherby case. I still have all those rifles, and would be happy to use them again, but I am now putting together a set which will include DR barrel pairs in .500 NE and 450/400 3" NE, plus a set of combination barrels in 12 gauge/.244 H&H Magnum. I may add a pair of 12 gauge barrels to round out the set, again based on a Krieghoff Teck action. Perhaps an insert barrel in another caliber for the combination gun shotgun barrel.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
grandveneur
.400 member


Reged: 21/09/08
Posts: 1290
Loc: France / Germany
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: xausa]
      #233434 - 03/08/13 10:30 AM

Do you have a lot of gun bearers , native boy's and other behind you ?

We are in the 21th century !

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
xausa
.400 member


Reged: 07/03/07
Posts: 2037
Loc: Tennessee, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: grandveneur]
      #233440 - 03/08/13 01:32 PM

Quote:

Do you have a lot of gun bearers , native boy's and other behind you ?



Just a golf cart.

I always hunted from a Land Cruiser pick up truck, with all the guns in the back, and the Krieghoff assembled with whatever set of barrels appropriate for what I was hunting. I don't ever remember changing barrels in the course of a day. I did have a gun bearer, but I carried my own gun.

I don't believe in hunting more than one thing at a time. No point in firing a shot which may scare off your primary quarry. Hunting elephant, buffalo or rhino, the .505 or .458. Lion, leopard, eland or greater kudu, the .375. Anything else, the .300, or on later hunts perhaps the 7X57 or the .222 I once brought along.

The beauty of the Krieghoff was that in those days I could hand the case to the flight attendant at the gate, and she would lock it away in the pilot's compartment during the flight and return it to me as we disembarked. No hope of that nowadays, of course.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
jvw
.300 member


Reged: 15/05/08
Posts: 100
Loc: Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: xausa]
      #233519 - 05/08/13 12:50 AM

What an interesting topic!

Essentials:

For the heavy it will have to be a .500 3" NE double by William Evans on a screw-grip action with ejectors (because Andrew Hepner has one, I've shot it, and it's a hell of a gun).

Next up I'll have to pick my custom Brno 602 .375 H&H with a Leupold 1,75-6x in QD mounts. Plenty of buff, hippo, kudu, etc. over the years. Enough said.

For long range stuff a decent .300 H&H of sorts with a good scope and decent handloads.

Next up a good 7x57. I've shot a bunch of game with the calibre, from big wildebeest on down, and every good home needs one.

An accurate .223 with a VERY good scope on it, for when you really need to cull impala or shoot the odd jackal. They work well for the odd two-legged varmint in the full moon as well.

A best-quality Woodward "Automatic" 12-bore, 29-inch barrels, cased, simply because I have one and every good home needs one.

A Webley screw-grip actioned 12-bore with Southgate ejectors heavy proof, tight chokes and 70mm chambers. Waterfowl and see "Rule .223" above.

A .22 Mauser. Scoped.

A Browning Hi-Power 9mmP with plenty of mags, a shitload of ammo and a couple of decent holsters. See "Rule .223".

Must-haves:

My .318 WR dating from the early 1920's. It kills things DEAD and is just about the nicest calibre out there.

The A-Grade Oberndorf 9,3x62 I bought recently. Every good home needs one.

A decent .30-06. Worked for Ruark and Hemingway, a must-have to this day.

A decent AR/M-16 with plenty of mags and a REAL shitload of ammo. See "Rule .223".

My super-accurate Remington .243. Can't live without it.

My trusty Browning 12-bore OU. Can't live without it.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Rule303
.416 member


Reged: 05/07/09
Posts: 4912
Loc: Woodford Qld
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: jvw]
      #233590 - 05/08/13 07:32 PM

CZ 550 in 416Rigby for all dangerous game. Scoped with Trijacon 1.25-4X24 or Aimpoint
Rem 700 in 375H&H for plains (and dangerous game if encountered) Scoped Ziess Victory 1.5-6X42.

Rem 700 in 35Whelen scoped with Aimpoint. For plains game
Rem 700 in 300SAUM scoped with Nightforce 2.5-10X32 - plains game
270Win in Styer Prohunter scoped with a Kahles 2.5-10X50 plains game.


The above is what I can draw from. My prefered 2 gun battery would be the 416Rigby and the 35Whelen. I would use 410 Woodleigh SN and Hydro's in the Rigby and Woodleigh 225 grain Protected Points and Hydros in the Whelen.

If I was to take the 300SAUM I would have 155grain Australian Custom Projectiles in medium and hard.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
bonanza
.400 member


Reged: 17/05/04
Posts: 2335
Loc: South Carolina
The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Ezine]
      #252215 - 16/08/14 08:26 AM

Maybe not ideal, but you fellows are always crying for "More pictures".

Here is my rifle collection, minus the H1 tropical .458 Winchester.
It's taken 10 years to get here with lots of buying selling and trading.

My goal was no single rifle over $10k, easy to reload, light recoil and can use
for any game. I'm taking the .284 this fall on a Mule Deer/Elk hunt in CO. First
time using it. Final thought, if I had to sell them and keep just one, it would probably
be the .284 Winchester. I can see me shooting/hunting that into my 80s.

1884 H&H .35 WCF top lever back action
2002 LH Dakota .284 Winchester M76 Lightweight
1885 Webly .500 BPE hammerless
2001 LH Dakota .376 Styer M76 Deluxe



--------------------


"Speak Precisely" G. Gordon Liddy.

"Life is absurd, chaotic and we must define its purpose with our actions" Abert Camus

"I''m the dude playing a dude disguised as another dude."

"Yo! Mr. White"

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Huvius
.416 member


Reged: 04/11/07
Posts: 3522
Loc: Colorado
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: bonanza]
      #252239 - 16/08/14 01:59 PM

Geez, Bonanza.
That Webley 500BPE with the proper bullets could cover about 80% of the requirements of an African battery.
I could see that being a go to rifle for all sorts of stuff. Of course, I have always wanted a nice hammerless BPE rifle and using modern reduced smokeless loads makes them super versatile.

--------------------
He who lives in the past is doomed to enjoy it.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
bonanza
.400 member


Reged: 17/05/04
Posts: 2335
Loc: South Carolina
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: bonanza]
      #252260 - 17/08/14 01:03 AM

Hivus,

I have the correct bullet for the 500 BPE. It's the Cast Performance 435 grain heat treated solid. It's the same bullet used in the .500 S&W.

--------------------


"Speak Precisely" G. Gordon Liddy.

"Life is absurd, chaotic and we must define its purpose with our actions" Abert Camus

"I''m the dude playing a dude disguised as another dude."

"Yo! Mr. White"

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Tom30887
.275 member


Reged: 01/07/12
Posts: 78
Loc: QLD
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: bonanza]
      #252279 - 17/08/14 05:45 PM

My three rifles.

Ruger Safari Magnum 77 in 458 Lott
CZ550 in 30-06
Ruger No1 in 375 H&H

Although only the 30-06 actually went to Africa with me (30kg baggage limit)

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Waidmannsheil
.400 member


Reged: 19/04/13
Posts: 2377
Loc: Melbourne Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Tom30887]
      #252281 - 17/08/14 07:33 PM

Tom, do you have any more pictures of that Ruger No.1, it looks like a beauty.


Waidmannsheil.

--------------------
There is nothing wrong with vegetarian food, so long as there is meat with it.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
JabaliHunter
.400 member


Reged: 16/05/07
Posts: 1958
Loc: England
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Waidmannsheil]
      #252289 - 17/08/14 10:56 PM

My ideal battery would be based around a take-down 9.3x62 (or a .375 H&H).
For a dangerous game safari I would take the first rifle as a back-up and add either a .404 (or .458 Lott) magazine rifle or a .450/.400 (or .450 NE) double rifle.
For a specific open country plains game hunt I would take a .300 Win Mag.
I think that takes good account of usefulness, effectiveness and potential back-up for ammo availability.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Ripp
.577 member


Reged: 19/02/07
Posts: 16072
Loc: Montana, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Tom30887]
      #252466 - 21/08/14 06:16 AM

Quote:

My three rifles.

Ruger Safari Magnum 77 in 458 Lott
CZ550 in 30-06
Ruger No1 in 375 H&H

Although only the 30-06 actually went to Africa with me (30kg baggage limit)





WOW-- those have really nicely figured wood..

Congrats

Ripp

--------------------
ALL MEN DIE, BUT FEW MEN TRULY LIVE..

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
gwh
.333 member


Reged: 28/01/08
Posts: 277
Loc: Cairns Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: bonanza]
      #252494 - 21/08/14 06:21 PM

My African experience is limited to one safari on plains game where i took all species with a Sako. 375 H&H.

I like to keep things simple, so my ideal battery would be a 470 NE double And a scoped 375 H&H. All scenarios covered

--------------------
Hunt hard, shoot straight

"I speak of Africa and golden joys; the joy of wandering through lonely lands; the joy of hunting the mighty and terrible lords of the wilderness, the cunning, the wary and the grim"

Theodore Roosevelt, Khartoum, 1910

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Ripp
.577 member


Reged: 19/02/07
Posts: 16072
Loc: Montana, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: gwh]
      #252508 - 21/08/14 10:59 PM

Quote:

My African experience is limited to one safari on plains game where i took all species with a Sako. 375 H&H.

I like to keep things simple, so my ideal battery would be a 470 NE double And a scoped 375 H&H. All scenarios covered



Agree with you 100% as that is the exact battery I plan to take next time. Right down to the Sako in .375 as that is the one I plan to take ..along with the WR .470...agree, all bases will be covered


Ripp

--------------------
ALL MEN DIE, BUT FEW MEN TRULY LIVE..

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Rigby350
.300 member


Reged: 11/11/08
Posts: 177
Loc: NSW,Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Ripp]
      #252541 - 22/08/14 08:50 PM

This is what I took two years ago, a Sauer 202T in 9.3x62 & my FAMARS 470 NE.

Tthe same setup will accompany me in a few days when I head back to Zimbabwe.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
ozhunter
.400 member


Reged: 18/08/04
Posts: 1692
Loc: Sydney, Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Rigby350]
      #253077 - 02/09/14 07:11 PM

Pleased to say that I haven't a change my mind over the years and consider a 9.3mm ideal for most of my lighter bush hunting and a heavy rifle for big game in 450 to 470 ideal be it a bolt or double rifle.

My VS custom bolt rifles in 458Mag and 9.3x62;

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
grandveneur
.400 member


Reged: 21/09/08
Posts: 1290
Loc: France / Germany
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: ozhunter]
      #348291 - 22/12/20 04:35 AM

After more 30 years of hunting in Africa I am of the opinion that there is no an ideal battery.

The largest part of the game that I shot in Africa were with the cartridge 460 WBY-Magnum , namely from the bustard to the elephant. The cartridge 460 WBY-Magnum limited me just to long range shooting , but very different cartridges filled this gap.

If I consider what I still own , an ideal three rifles battery for Africa would be a DR 577 Nitro Express for backup , a scoped bolt action rifle caliber 500 Jeffery or 460 WBY-Magnum and a scoped bolt action rifle caliber 340 WBY-Magnum.

Edited by grandveneur (22/12/20 04:42 AM)

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Ripp
.577 member


Reged: 19/02/07
Posts: 16072
Loc: Montana, USA
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: grandveneur]
      #348314 - 22/12/20 04:00 PM

Quote:

After more 30 years of hunting in Africa I am of the opinion that there is no an ideal battery.

The largest part of the game that I shot in Africa were with the cartridge 460 WBY-Magnum , namely from the bustard to the elephant. The cartridge 460 WBY-Magnum limited me just to long range shooting , but very different cartridges filled this gap.

If I consider what I still own , an ideal three rifles battery for Africa would be a DR 577 Nitro Express for backup , a scoped bolt action rifle caliber 500 Jeffery or 460 WBY-Magnum and a scoped bolt action rifle caliber 340 WBY-Magnum.



Have not seen this thread revived in a long time..

Interesting to read your thoughts and experiences..

I truly believe it depends largely on where you are hunting.. in S Africa I would have no problem bringing along a lighter plains game rifle.. In Zim or other "open" areas.. my minimum would be a .375H&H or similar caliber.. plenty of reach and large enough if you bump into something nasty you had no intention of hunting..

--------------------
ALL MEN DIE, BUT FEW MEN TRULY LIVE..

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
grandveneur
.400 member


Reged: 21/09/08
Posts: 1290
Loc: France / Germany
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: Ripp]
      #348324 - 22/12/20 11:03 PM

The focus was always on the buffalo hunt and thus the choice of rifle and cartridge. I also often had to do my backup myself , and problems with elephants were also to be expected , and that in areas where they cannot be hunted.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Ahmed577
.333 member


Reged: 13/06/13
Posts: 327
Loc: Western Australia
Re: The Ideal African Hunting Battery [Re: grandveneur]
      #348329 - 22/12/20 11:54 PM

African battery minimum. 600, 500, 375, 303, 300, 5.6x52r, 5.6x35r, 28b, 10b shot 32” barrels and 10b 27” rifled choke barrels anything less could spell death in the VELDT.

Post Extras: Print Post   Remind Me!   Notify Moderator  
Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | >> (show all)


Previous topic Previous   View all topics Index   Next topic Next   Threaded Mode Threaded  

Extra information
0 registered and 17 anonymous users are browsing this forum.

Moderator:   

Print Topic

Forum Permissions
      You cannot start new topics
      You cannot reply to topics
      HTML is disabled
      UBBCode is enabled

Rating:
Topic views: 35954

Rate this topic

Jump to

Contact Us NitroExpress.com

Powered by UBB.threads™ 6.5.5


Home | Ezine | Forums | Links | Contact


Copyright 2003 to 2011 - all rights reserved