one caliber for africa

[neo76201]

if you could only take one caliber rifle to africa what would it be considering all game for the smallest planes game to the largest dangerous game. and what loads would you use for the different sizes of animals?
 
neo

[Big Red Trike]

A calibre u can shoot all day long without developing recoil shyness...so stay away from ultramags.....maybe a 30-06. I hear and read that all the African guides carry them.....maybe 2 rifles a 30-06 and I think its a 450 Nitro for the dangerous stuff......I like the 7MM REM MAG for all but the toothiest of critters.
 
Anyone else? As I have never hunted there, just read stories.....

[Kanibal]

I agree that most of the African game can be taken with a 7mm Rem Mag until you start after the water buffalo, Elands, Elephants and Rhinos.  I hunt black bear which are as big or bigger than a good sized male lion and use a 7mm mag to kill them so imagine it would work for lions as well.  A 7mm mag would work well for anything from a dik dik to a lion and Id imagine it would even kill an Eland.  I dont know if I would use one on a water buffalo though, they are very tough to kill. Also remember to pick something with some range to it.  In that a 7mm Rem Mag would be great.
 
Myself I chose the 7mm Rem Mag, just because I own one and it works great for me.  I imagine any of your favorites similar to a 7mm mag would work.  A 300 Win Mag or a 338 Win Mag would also be great.  
 
But one cartridge that you can load down and also load up for small animals to the bigger elephants and what not is a 458 win mag.  I believe you can load 200 grain to 500 grain bullets.

[The meerkat]

Hi

 
I live in South Africa and had been hunting Africa for the last 35 years. I have hunted everything Africa has on offer except Rhino which I refuse to kill. In Africa we all own two utility rifles that we hunt everything with. ( A possibility of 40 species or more. These are: A 30-06 for almost all the heavy stuff - whether in the Bush or desert and a  .243 for all the lighter plains game where we need distance of 250 meteres to 600. These are for Springbuck, Impala, Blesbuck, Duiker, Reedbuck and Ribbuck etc.
 
At 17 years of age, I downed an Elephant cow with an open sights .303 at 50 meters.
 
Our continent offers 30 species or more big game at distances of less than 150 meters. The sizes of these big game animals are almost 80% of them covered with comfort by a 30-06.
Regards
The Meerkat
Stellenbosch (near Cape Town)
South Africa

[Jay Edward (deceased)]

I suppose, strictly from a logic viewpoint...considering the range of bullets that are available...I would take my .375 H&H.

Standard bullet weights range from about 235 grain bullets (approx. velocity 3000fps) to 300 grain bullets (approx. velocity 2500fps).

This is predicated on the 'one rifle, one cartridge' conditional question.  Having hunted in a few different states, I've found that it pays to have all your bases covered in unfamiliar territory.  It has been represented to me that the .375 H&H cartridge is available all over the world, so I reckon that is the rifle I would pack around.

I rather like my .375 H&H Ruger No. 1...it has traveled many a mile with me in my younger days.  I really should take another, better photograph of it but the only one I have is with an Idaho Elk taken in the 80s.  So, for what it is worth...here is the first big bore that I truly fell in love with.

[Bushbuck]

well, a little different perspective here. I have hunted Africa 10 times and have taken many animals from Lion, eland, Duiker etc. I have never fired a shot! I have however let quite a few arrows fly. I guess my #1 choice would be a 80# compound with acc arrows and a 100gr  broadhead..
  I also would rather throw an arrow at a cape Buffalo than use a 7mm. I happen to like the seven magg and have taken many animals back home with one, but I believe that is to light of a gun for that animal. It may not even be legal, I am not sure as I have never hunted Africa with a gun. The Water buffalo in austrailia from what I understand is even a couple hundered pounds heavier and I am not sure what they would allow to take that animal also.

[CAfrica]

Hi Neo,
 
This remains a perplexing item.  Legally you cannot hunt the big five with anything less than a 375 calibre.  So from that point of view, Jay's choice is probably the most practical.  The 375 H&H Magnum has enough velocity for the plains game situations with its lighter bullets and it is enough gun for the heavy animals with the appropriate load and bullet.
 
This calibre limitation is a pity because I believe this excludes some fine calibres which fall just below this threshold.  The 9.3 calibres come to mind.  They have an excellent reputation and are enough gun for any situation (exluding special circumstances such as wanting a stopper when following up wounded dangerous game).
 
Personally, if I were to exclude the legal limitation, I would select something like a double bbl rifle in 9.3X72 (or is it 74?  I can never remember).  This cartridge has the same ballistics as the 9.3X62 but it is a long thin cartridge.  This means that you can build a fairly light double bbl rifle for it and several companies build lovely little pieces at a price that would not break the bank.
 
Obviously in a double bbl, having different loads for plains and bush situations become a problem because of the bbl regulation. Still, I think I can live with that problem and would love one of these beaties in my gun cupboard.
 
Calibres that are within the legal limit and which would make fine "allrounders" are the 416's (Rigby etc) and then the 458's in various formats.
 
In Europe the "drillings"  are fairly popular.  The top bbl in a smaller  "allround" calibre and with the scope zeroed for it.  Removing the scope allows open sight shooting for the bottom bbl.  I once saw one with the top bbl in 7X64 (which has ballistics equal to the remington mag) and the bottom bbl in some larger calibre (can't remember exactly which one).
 
Regards.
 
C

[Springbuck]

Thanks C
 
Well argued. Could not agree more.  We have tried the 9.3 x 62 on smaller game, noteably Reedbuck and have found the meat damage excessive.  From practical argument I am in favour of the 7x64 and 7x57 on both bushveld as well as plains game, but would at the same time question the wisdom of the calibers on the bigger "dangerous" game.
 
Springbuck

[grizz1219]

For all African game from small to dangerous I would pick the 416 Rigby or a 375 H&H.......

[M1Garand]

With the size limitations I'd probably lean towards the .375 H & H, or either the .416 Rigby or Rem Mag.

[hunter veek]

I have recently returned from safari in south africa having shot a bushbuck , warthog and a 53 and one half inch kudu all with a .308. all 3 were one shot kills.A .30-06 woukd do just as well.
  But for the Big Five, I would use nothing smaller than a .375.

[Rodders]

If we were to stick strictly to the conditions listed in the original post, I would say that you would be very well served with a magazine rifle in .375 H and H.
 
This would be fine for most dangerous game situations (with well constructed bullets - FMJ or preferably monolithics) - guys have had bullet failure on close up shots at eles and buffs, as the muzzle velocity is too high at these close ranges, and the bullets deform or break up.
 
Once getting onto smaller game, the .375 would be great for bushveld hunting, where ranges seldom exceed 150 yards. Again, any soft point would be good beyond 75 yards, but good quality needed for under this, as bullet failure on big game has occurred due to break ups (eland, giraffe, etc).
 
Limit on .375 would come with plains game - Sprinbuck, Gemsbuck, blesbok, if they were hunted in their traditional habitat where 300 yards is close.
 
You could get by with the .375, as long as you have no objections to belly crawling to get close enough. It is here that something flatter shooting would be nice.
 
African hunting varies hugely on area and species, so this is a very general answer.

[fiorig]

For all African game from small to dangerous I would pick the 416 Rigby or a 375 H&H.......

:) Well ,I think there no definite answer.If you hunt with a PH and don't look for dangerous game ,you have a wide choice of excellent calibers for exemple the 9.3*74R in break -open action rifles or the ubiquitous .375 H&H mag in bolt action rifles
But if you are on your own you must be able to flatten a charging bull ,which is another story
In double rifles the formidable .470 Nitro Express or the modern .500/416 Nitro express by the German firm Krieghoff are mandatory .If you are bolt action minded the .416Rigby will foot the bill :the Czech firm CZ sells a bolt action 550mag cal .416 Rigby at rock bottom price
greetings to all
Fiorig

[RifleandReel]

The .375H&H is king and can be used for all African game species including DG. Another excellent all rounder for African game is something like a .30-06 or .308. You don't need a fast, magnum caliber for game in Africa unless you intend hunting plains game such as Springbok on the open plains where shots of 200 yards and more are standard. If I could only have one rifle though I'd stick to my .375.

[karl s]

Thanks C
 
Well argued. Could not agree more. We have tried the 9.3 x 62 on smaller game, noteably Reedbuck and have found the meat damage excessive. From practical argument I am in favour of the 7x64 and 7x57 on both bushveld as well as plains game, but would at the same time question the wisdom of the calibers on the bigger "dangerous" game.
 
Springbuck

Incorrect- most provinces in SA (excluding Natal and now the Northern Cape) have 9.3 as minimum, so does Namibia and Zimbabwe. (Not sure of Botswana, Mozambique & Zambia as I do not currently hunt there, but think you would be OK with it there as well.)
 
On the issue of the 9.3x62 causing more meat bruising, I beg to differ. It is high velocity and not size of the projectile (within reason of course) that causes meat bruising. There is no way you can accurately state that even the slower 7mm of the two (the 7x57) causes less meat damage than a 9.3. It might have looked that way to you, (maybe once off?), but will definately not be the rule.
 
i would still reccomend anything from a 9.3x62 to a .416 Rigby (and all inbetween, where legal of course), as a one gun "battery" for all, including elephant, buffalo, rhino, hippo, and maybe lion.
 
BTW CAfrica, the 9.3 you want is the 9.3x74, as the x72 is a real pipsqueek of a cartridge.