Originally Posted by atkinsonhunting
...For plainsgame take your favorite deer and elk rifle and your good to go..I would be satisfied with about any decent caliber..but never think you don't get some damn long shots in Africa just like any place else that has desert or Mountains and Africa has some real desert and some awesome mountains.

The PH may not allow you to take that kind of a shot but that is something between you and him to be cleared up before you go.

Atkinsonhunting mirrors my African experience on several fronts. First, I had shots on all sizes of animals from steenbok (273 yards) up to kudu (115 yards) and gemsbok (347 yards) in environments ranging from completely flat, desolate desert-type conditions to lush, green mountains, to a lot of in-between conditions. So, indeed, never assume or prepare only to shoot 200 yards and under. My personal advice would be to stretch your training out to at least 300 yards. If that doesn't feel comfortable, no problem. Stick to shorter ranges and make sure you PH knows your preferred distances.

As far as caliber, I believe that a .338 Federal will be just fine. I used a "measly" 7mm-08 pushing a 140 gr. AccuBond @ just 2769 fps on all of my African game and it smoked them dead. Here are some vids from my hunt - a springbok at 200 yards even and the kudu at 115 yards:

Springbok:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yl3Fwys368

Kudu:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9ejJnZrkV0

With the .338 Federal, you're looking at a heavier bullet (say, a 180 gr. bullet doing 2830 per Wikipedia's sample load) going even faster than my 7mm-08. While nothing is perfect, I can't see where there would be an issue.

Last edited by LuisL; 09/14/10. Reason: typo/grammar