Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Rifle lessons learned from Zim hunter proficiency exam.

I'll take it!

I've got my old Heym Mauser in 9.3-62mm leaning on my left leg while I type this, gonna develop a solid load for it just for fun, the 280 gr BBW #13 solids at 2550 should get it done with aplomb, been dry firing it for an hour, Wifeys watching the Arkansas game, she don't mind.

Yup and loaded with solids!

We need to go do that someday.

Yup.

I posted this because I thought it would be interesting to see the reaction from "the crowd". Of course that was a test for freight trains that charge and are wired to kill.
Over here, not so much.

I'd take a jackrabbit hunter over most hunters any day. JOC started out slaying jacks. In his writings, he mentions it and said it made him a better shooter. When I was shooting trap competitively, I used to think, these guys haven't seen chit until they've stood in the bed of a pick-up racing across the desert with a shotgun in one hand while holding on to the top of the cab with the other hand. Zig zagging back and forth with an old Oklahoman lumberjack yelling shoot them sumbeeches boys!!!!

BW, I've seen some dummies (most red blooded American boys/men) get buck fever and have malfunctions with perfectly good rifles and shotguns. It's just like JJHack described short stroking rifles. I've done the same thing when shooting doubles with my left handed 870. The problem was not in the shotgun, but the nut behind the butt.... . However, I averaged 49/50 with the old wingmaster. Short stroke or not...What matters is how you recover from the flub up...

Just read this old thread, especially Don Heath’s article. I had read this same article a few years back and was initially surprised by is comment about the Ruger RSMs, as I had one in 458 Lott, anticipating I would use it for elephant. As is my custom with hunting rifles, I practiced quite a bit - several hundred rounds of practice and mainly full power 500 grain loads - including rapid follow ups, without encountering any of the ejection problems he described. Guess I was lucky to have gotten a good one.

I never used that RSM rifle in Africa, as I used a 500 Nitro DR instead. That DR worked rapidly and well on the first 2 shots, and the subsequent insurance shots after the bull was on the ground.

More recently, I was fortunate to find a couple of Ruger RSMs, both 416 Rigbys, with the intent to have one rebored to 0.458” and chambered to 450 Rigby. Because I remembered Heath’s remark about the ejector issue, I had my GS polish as recommended and replace the ejector spring. So far, using dummies loaded with FP bullets to rapidly cycle the action, there have been no ejection problems. We’ll see if that pans out as I go through load development and practice with CEB 500 grain FP rounds.

I still follow the rule that for DG rifles, range practice with reduced and full power loads should follow the same sequence anticipated in the field. I pay particular attention to the performance of the rifle on rapid follow ups and in cycling through the entire magazine, as the side to side feeding can reveal problems with feeed rails or ramp angles that need to be corrected before the rifle is called upon fo perform in the ultimate circumstance. YMMV

Greener was a legend in his own mind and critical of everyone else. A friend from years ago grew up in Kenya and claimed to have killed numerous cape buffalo and many lions with his 1965 model 70 push feed rifle. The one thing with which I would have to agree regards the location of the safety on most rifles. GD

Most learner hunters can't afford a decent rifle and really good rifles are hard to come by in Zim anyway. As a result, the learners often get stuck with a POS that they bought from someone who either acquired a better rifle or took advantage of the learner's ignorance.

The Zim proficiency exams are conducted by experienced PH's who see a variety of rifles shot by learners with varying levels of skill/experience. Other than actually hunting DG animals, they are a good way to evaluate both the shooter and the rifle. A surprising number of learners fail every year because of rifle malfunctions that preclude them from completing the course. Both PH's and guides are required to complete the shooting test before they can be approved for a license. IMHO, a good system.

What might qualify as "junk" or a "POS" for the Zim exam or Heath's purposes doesn't mean a rifle is either for other purposes.

Most people will never hunt Alaska or Big Bear country, let alone Africa, Here in the US, most will never shoot anything bigger than .308" and at nothing more dangerous than deer. Many, perhaps most, cannot afford what Heath would consider an acceptable rifle for Africa and most will never have a need for such a rifle.

That said, there are many inexpensive rifles sold today that are more than adequate for their intended purpose. Among these I would include the traditional/standard offerings from Ruger, Remington, Winchester, Browning, Savage and others. By ""traditional/standard", I'm referring to the Hawkeye, M700, M70, etc. Some of these companies also produce "value line" rifles that, while fine for some purposes, are not anything I'd spend money on, in spite of their fairly low cost and the fact that they often shoot very well. This group includes rifles with press-fit barrels, flimsy synthetic stocks and other characteristics.

The most important functional characteristics for my needs include the following:
1. It goes "Bang" on demand.
2. It meets my accuracy requirements (varies by intended purpose, action type, etc.).
3. The safety works as intended.
4. Feeds and ejects reliably at normal speeds.

All the Ruger, Remington, Savage, Marlin and Interarms rifles in my safes meet these requirements. Only two are bedded and one of those is going down the road for reasons unrelated to function. They may or may not meet Heath's definition of "quality", but that's the thing about defining quality - it means different things to different people.

The great thing about rifles like the Ruger American, Savage Axis and others is that people can buy a rifle for a small amount of money and end up with a reliable rifle that will shoot well - often as well or better than rifles costing far more. This is a pretty good deal for many.





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You're right, depends on what you need or want. Range toy, grocery getter, competition etc, or weapon. If the latter or all of those, all that PH stuff does apply.

bsa1917hunter, or the same shooting situation as the jack rabbits while chasing the desert scaled quail. I was standing on the tailgate of a hard top Jeep once just as we busted a covey of blues. As I raised the shotgun, our driver hit a bump throwing me off the Jeep. As I was in free fall, I nailed the quail. Fortunately, I was uninjured and we filled our limits before mid afternoon.

Young and dumb, but fun. We used to pursue the jacks on wheat fields at night while our driver attempted to keep them within the headlights.

Jack

Meh.

Old thread, but a good one.

Good bud shot a 41" Cape in Zim with his .416 Rigby, Ruger RSM.

His PH thought the RSM was too heavy, packed a push feed M-70 in .416 Rem.

Go figure.

DF