Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa What is the best caliber for Africa hunting?

Hunting Africa has been a dream of mine for many years now. I am going to make this a reality in the next few years. From those of you who have actually hunted in Africa what is your take on a good caliber. Currently the largest caliber I own is a 7mm WSM. I am heavily considering a 338 win mag but I am not sure if this is really needed or preferred. I am not planning on hunting dangerous game, at least for my first trip. I would mainly like to get a few of the common species such as a nice kudu, impala, warthog, etc...

I only have one PG safari under my belt

In June of 2014

I used a Remington ADL in 30-06 shooting 150 grn Accubonds at 2900ish

I killed eleven different species of game with no lost animals

Kudu........................225 yards
Blue Wildebeest.....100 yards
Black Wildebeest....125 yards
Waterbuck...............200 yards
Gemsbock...............250 yards
Blesbok....................175 yards
Impalas x2...............100 and 341 yards
Vervet Monkeys.......50 to 250 yards
Rock Hyrax s............50 to 300 yards
Warthog....................125 yards
Bushbuck..................225 yards

Like big stick has said.......bullets trump headstamps

I will say placement of good bullet trumps headstamp

Your WSM with a good bullet of 140 or 150 will kill everything your after just as dead as your 338

Your 7 WSM will be fine. Use a 160gr premium bullet and you'll cover even the big Plains Game.

I went to SA in 2010 for plains game...
I took a 375 H&H shooting 270gr Barnes tsx..
My buddy took his '06 and killed everything he shot at with one bullet each...

I was glad I had the .375 when I shot my zebra, but overall it was probably too much rifle, although I didn't have to chase any animals, especially the steinbok.

Pick a good bullet and learn to shoot your 7mm whizzum off of sticks. Practice at distances up to 200 yards. You will be fine.

If you like the 7mm WSM it would work fine. I've been twice and took my M70 .338Win Mag. That being said, I wouldn't be afraid at all of using my .308Win. for most plains game. What ever you choose, don't go cheap on the ammo. Use one of the premium controlled expansion bullets.

I went to the RSA in 2009 for plains game and took a .338 Win Mag. I went 10 for 10 on everything from Impala to Kudu to Blue Wildebeest.

Going back again this year and leaning toward the same rifle and using 210 gr Barnes TTSX again. Could go with a 9.3x62, with 250 gr Accubond because of Eland, but not convinced I need it.

donsm70

Sure should be able to kill all the plains game with a WSM. Took the god grandson in 2013, he took 5 animals, 3 kinda small ones, Impala and Black Wildebeeste and two larger ones, Nyala and Zebra. Used a 308 on everything but the zebra. Used an 06 there, because the PH wanted him to. All except the BWB one shot kills. I have been a couple of times and used a 280, and 06, and 45/70. At the time no real good bullets for the 45/70, so not impressed. A 308, or 280 or something in that range should be great. If using your 7mmWSM, use 140gr bullets, Ttsx or Swifts, and it'll kill like lightening. 160s more than needed, and on small stuff like a Steenbok, at 20 lbs, over kill and a half. I shot my steenboks with a 280 and 140gr Ttsx and one with a BT, and both hit the ground like something dropped on them. Go have fun. Don't take a 375 or some monster masher as definitely not needed. MOST African plains game about the size of a whitetail deer, pronghorn or larger Muley.

I wouldn't flinch given the chance on Eland with a 30-06 and a good 180

I did my first plains game safari with a 7mm mag. Took everything from springbok to kudu without a problem. My hunting pard had the same with the same results. Your 7mm wsm will do the job with 160 Nosler Partitions or TSX's.

Don't buy another rifle, use that money for more trophy fees!!!!

Not an African hunter. But, taking the gun you can deliver with and close the deal with is the way to go. My experience with the .338WM and .340 Wby, to me they kicked too much. Both of mine went down the road.

Check out JG'g 7RM experience using 160 NAB's. NPT's or TSX/TTSX's would probably work as well. His rifle liked NAB's best. Partitions are his personal favorite, generally.

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/8867802/1

DF

I've used a SAKO A7 in 308 Win with 165 TSX bullets on 3 trips. Took a 9.3x66 as 2nd rifle on one trip and 270 Win on the other two trips. Your 7RMM will work fine.

Actually don't use the $$$ for more trophy fees

It cost a small fotune to export your trophies from Africa to the USA

Study dip, pack and ship fees for your region then remember there are fees inquired in the US to get said trophies to your door

This topic is rarely discussed

Go to the Accurate Reloading Africa forum and learn more on this before you go

My first trip was in 2002 and I used a 9.3x62 with the 250 gr Barnes X at 2650 fps. It worked like a champ from porcupine to eland. My second trip, a family one where I hunted little, I used a 358 Win and the 200 gr TTSX, I took warthog, bushbuck and nyala out to 250 yards (the hog) and all was good. My middle son used the same 358 to take a pile critters up to gemsbuck without issue. Basically like killing our deer...

cleaning, drying, dipping and packing not necessarily that expensive. I had the ones for my god grandson tanned in Africa as no more expensive to ship them tanned, and cost less to tan there. The only animals that cause any problems importing are pigs. The USDA gets involved with those. You do NOT need to hire a transfer agent here. If you tell the taxidermists to send it to YOU, YOU will get the papers on it, and can take them to the Customs people yourself. They then stamp them, and you go to the pick up area (where I am , a whole 50 yds away from the customs office), and picked them up myself. Had to pay $50 for some fee for bringing them to that area, but would have had to anyway. The import agents charge a whole lot of money for nothing. But if you feel safer using one, do so.

All I can add to this, is that I have nothing to add. Spot on.
The 7mm WSM will get the job done relatively easily.

Tedthorn says don't spend the extra money on trophy fees. But that the only way to get more animals. You do NOT have to bring them back home, and something like 40% of people now just take pictures. If something you particularly want, then take it to the taxidermist there, to prepare to bring over, but tell them they can keep the rest, or ask the PH what to do with the hides, etc.

Marius said:

All I can add to this, is that I have nothing to add. Spot on.
The 7mm WSM will get the job done relatively easily. [/quote]

He's a professional, knows what he's talking about, I took a 7mm Rem Mag and my son took a 270. I became a HUGE fan of the 270!!

2 schools of thought: 1: Don't buy a rifle/scope/clothes, etc,,, use the money for trophy fees
2: It's AFRICA get a safari rifle!! Either way it's YOUR hunt and YOUR choice!

Personally I subscribe to theory 1......

When I was looking into African plains game calibers, I was told "think elk", i.e. any cartridge that was adequate for elk hunting should do well for plains game.
When I went on my first safari last summer, I took a .338 Win. mag (didn't buy the rifle specifically for the hunt....had bought it a few years before I even thought about going to Africa) and my trusty .30-06. I ended up taking all but one of my critters with the '06 and a 200 grain Nosler partition handload.
Your 7mm should be more than adequate for the task at hand.

romad97,

I have been to Africa (Namibia and SA) three times with rifles.
Game taken ranged from Warthog and Springbok up to Zebra, Kudu, Sable, and Wildebeest on the larger end of the plains game spectrum.

First safari was to Namibia, where I took my .300 Weatherby and 200 gr. Swift A-Frame bullets. Worked just fine.

Second hunt with rifle was for Nyala, Bushbuck, and Waterbuck. Used a 7x57, again with very satisfactory results.

Third trip I used my .375 Ruger, on Sable and Black Wildebeest, and Springbok in the Karoo. Shots were between 200 yd. and 275 yd., and the 250 gr. Barnes TSX bullets worked perfectly.

Bottom line- a whole range of rifles, calibers, and bullets will work, in Africa as well as a lot of other places- and as always, shot placement is key.

For some fun reading on safari rifles, Craig Boddington's Safari Rifles II is a must. If I have the opportunity to return to Africa for another plains game hunt, the .300 Wby. or a .30-06 will once again go along, this time with 165 gr. Barnes TSX bullets.

I would take whatever rifle you can buy ammo for while you are there. Myself if going i would take my 7x57