Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa How many and what caiber guns should I bring?

I get this question all the time from my hunters. It goes something like this:

How many guns can I bring to Africa?
what guns should I bring?
I want to bring my 270 for the small antelope and my 416 for the big antelope.

Well the questions are always good but the idea of two rifles has some limitations. If you have a mixed bag of game including Buffalo and eland and you decide to pack along the 270, 7mm mag, 30/06 or similiar and the Big buffalo or Eland is located that becomes a problem! Long gone are the days where you will have a gun bearer that walks around behing you like a golf caddy handing you the proper club or gun for the shot at hand.

My suggestion to all the guys coming over is to bring one rifle that can handle everything. Guns like the 30/06, 300 mag, 338, and 375HH, 416, are all really good all around plains game rifles. If bigger game like Eland and buffalo or even bigger are on the menu then starting with the 375HH and the 416 will give you nice range capability and enough brute strength to get the job done. You will likely never use the smaller gun because in Africa you never know what will step out from the next bush.

The bigger guns are always better unless you have a specific animal in mind and you have a rifle dedicated to that species. As an example lets say you are hunting Elephant and you have a 500 nito express double rifle. When you have a hunt of the magnitute and expense of the Jumbo you will likely forgo all other species anyway.

When on a multi species plains game hunt you need a rifle that will dump a 2000 pound Eland at 300 yards and a rifle to shoot a hopping steenbok at 50 yards. The bigger guns do both quite nicley where the .270 would not be a good choice on a 2000 pound bull eland! It can certainly kill an Eland but will you ever find it?

I would prefer that my guys (or gals) come with one great comfortable rifle with high quality ammunition, and a good scope. If you're worried about a failure I would not concern myself with that to much. I have taken out over 150 people now in Africa and the failures are virtually unknown.

Funny thing is when I was guiding in Alaska all the hunters would bring only one rifle. I saw countless failures, corrosion, and dirty actions causing a struggle. In Africa everyone wants to bring at least a couple rifles and the weather and conditions are so much better one never seems to need the back up.

I have seen quite a few scope failures on rifles in Africa and Alaska. So a spare scope is a good idea. Anytime you hunt near a vehicle or boat guns tend to get a bit more banged up. Much like hunting horseback in the mountians.

Just get one very comfortable gun with a good high qualtiy scope setup and you will only need one!

JJHack,

When you guided in Alaska, what were the most common failures you observed and on which rifles?

John

The word problems would be better then failures but I suppose when you pull the trigger and nothing happens it would be a failure to fire!

When you spend a week in SE Alaska or maybe 10 to 14 days on some hunts and your using brass shells they will corrode turn green and make the feed ejection process a struggle from time to time. Many of the hunters came up with a leather shell holder. Either a belt with loops or an actual leather shell holder the belt slides through. This leather style shell holder will accelerate the corrosion of the shells. It was also very difficult to get the shells out of the leather after it had gotten wet with salt water and the shells left in it for a week.

Because of the small amount of corrosion on this brass the ability to feed and eject was a problem for some rifles. It's also why I switched to all nickle plated brass early in my hunting time there. The other issue was a nearly identical situation on the firing pin inside the bolt. It would cause a weak strike of the primer and a fail to fire.

I saw that with Remington and Browning rifles. The other major problem I saw was the Weatherby rifles with such a strong magazine spring that it would bend the shells in the magazine and often launch the top shell right out of the magazine when the action was cycled quickly.

My ideas and opinions were formed after many years of working with big game and big game hunting. I was originally a bow hunter and did not own a big game rifle when I was younger. I almost always had a borrowed rifle when I worked as a guide.

Because if the things I saw in the field with rifles and the experiences of so many other guys doing this work my opinions were formed early on. I had never seen a single malfunction with a Ruger or a Winchester. While sitting and chatting with other guys about this they also added problems they had seen and guns that had malfunctiond. Still nobody had seen a problem with a Ruger or a Winchester. That's a whole lot of guides with 100's of clients rifles to base their thoughts on.

When it came time to get my own rifle I also choose a Winchester. Many of the problems I saw had to do with proper maintainance or lack of. The real issue is the ease of doing that work. Or better yet the very complex nature of the work with tools on some rifle designs.

We all have opinions formed by what we have experienced in our own lives. This was how I came to be a CRF believer. Others in different more mild habitats or with a means of cleaning guns at home each night would never understand the difficulty of keeping a blued gun functional in a salt water environment for months at a time.

I ordered my SS 375HH right from Winchester before they were announced as a product. I found out about Winchester building these from a client. He gave me the number to call and I spoke to them( Winchester) about having one sent to me. My local gun shop made the final arrangments and I had my SS model 70 CRF. The dream rifle of every guide in coastal Alaska.

I have two now actually because the original one was lost by a client and thought to be dropped over board from the inflateable boat. It was however found 9 months later on the beach right where it was left. Imagine 9 months on the beach in salt mist and nearly constant rain. I use that rifle to this day and it has been to Africa countless times with me. Had it been a blued rifle I doubt it would have been worth the effort to save!

Just one of the reasons why I own Winchester's. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

JJ:

As near as I can determine, Winchester and others do not make a stainless rifle in 375 H&H with iron sights. How important are iron sights as a backup to a scope, or should you just bring a second scope. In the latter event, what kind of mounts should you use?

Indy

I belive I have read that the stainless winchester are available with iron sights upon request. If it`s not any more, a gunsmith can easily mount iron sights for you.

My 375HH Winchester has irons and I have a set of warne QD rings with a scope base mountable Peep sight just in case. It's a sweet setup for insurance. Dependingupon the gun I would like open sights or a spare scope.

I have only seen two gun problems in Africa so far. I have seen plenty in SE Alaska though. On the other hand I have seen a number of scope failures in both places. So far no Leupolds have given up so I have a lot of faith in that brand.

While in Africa you will be staying at a lodge or a full service camp in most every case. When in Alaska or the western USA you could be a long way from any type of help. Because of this I would opt for a spare scope in Africa because it would be easy to swap out at the lodge. For the remote western hunts I would opt for open sights. Open sights may not be of much help on a western hunt if the ranges are 200 plus yards though.

If you have a leupold scope your odds of needing a backup are low. With two leupolds and a good rifle your odds of any unsolvable shooting problem are near zero. If you choose to keep a backup then the rings I would suggest are either Warne or tally. Both are excellent and repeatable. They are both copies of the great Kimber design no longer made. If you own a Ruger then the Ruger rings are the way to go. Although not as repeatable as the others they are excellent quality and the only high quality rings made in Stainless steel that I know of.

The odds of trouble are very low in Africa with two scopes, or open sights your gonna be just fine. If your primarily a scope user then the backup scope is the better choice. I have seen a number of guys struggle with open sights when they have used a scope most of thier lives and have to switch over.

JJ,
It seems that the 375 HH, and Africa are mentioned quite often in the same sentance.

You mentioned a senerio of a 300 yd shot on a 2000lb. Eland. Is there that much differance in the performance of a 338 win mag. and the 375 HH on the large plains animals?

GB

With every incremental increase in bullet size and case capacity there is a noticable difference in performance. It's kind like asking if there is a real difference between a 338 and 300 win mag.

Yes the 375HH is a spectacular rifle for anything in Africa or the world for that matter. The 338 will work great as well, it's just not a 375HH. You may have read my quote here or on another site in the past. I always said when guiding in Alaska for brownies,

The 338 is just right for big bears, and the 375HH is "Just in case"! I still feel that my statement holds a lot of truth in Alaska or Africa.

JJ,
Just recently i have been bitten with the Africa bug, and i have been devouring all the info i can about hunting there. I know i will not be able to go for a long long time, but i was just wondering if my 7mm Rem mag stoked with 150grn. bullets would be good for Southern Greater Kudu, Gemsbok ,Impala
Red Hartebeest or Blue Wildebeest , Warthog, and Steenbok or Grey Duiker. I am intereseted in plains game only, and found a guide that offers a hunt for these. I know i wont go for a long time, but i figure if i have a gun i am used to and that shoots good, then i wouldnt need to buy a new one. I believe that my 7mm will handle any of the animals, but i just wanted to know from a man with such vast experience such as yours. Thanks.
Brock

The 7mag will certainly kill all the animals you asked about. It's not my first choice and actually would not even make my list at all with 150 grain bullets. It's just too fast for close range work.

The animals you listed when hunted in their indiginous habitat will give you shots under 150 yards the majority of time. Hitting a steenbok or duiker in the shoulder will likely blow bones through the head and out the back of the body. The 7mm mag is much like a varmint rifle when light fast bullets are used. The light bullets tend to have the opposite effect on the bigger game. The blow up inside and don't exit very often. When shooting at a specific animal standing in a herd of 20-30 when they run off how to you find the right set of tracks without a drop of blood? A small group of 20 Gemsbok will have 80 feet while standing still. Now see them run and stir up the dust and when it settles there is nothing to go on! Gemsbok will continue to run until they forget why there were running in the first place. You either drop the one your shooting at or you have a long tracking job ahead. I have seen a lot of gemsok lost in the bush in my life!

Blue widlebeest and warthog are extremley tough and hard to track. A wounded warthog can easily run into a hole, Wildebeest are considered by the PH assoc as the toughest of all plains game to kill outright. They will also be in a herd situation.

My suggestion is to use the heaviest bullet your rifle will shoot accurately. A well placed shot will over come all other caliber and bullet problems I know of. If you really want a great plains game rifle to go on this trip with the .338 is as good as it gets for plains aniamls. The 375HH is king but has fewer uses in the USA then the 338.

If all I had was a 7mm mag I would not hesitate to go hunting with it. I would use premium heavy bullets in it to assist in the exits and the bone breaking potential. Always shoot for the back of the lungs or the diaphram on the steenboks and duikers. If you hit them in the shoulders you could end up with a blown to bits cape and skull from shoulder bone schrapnel. I've seen that more times then I can count. The Duiker and Steenbok are no bigger then a small coyote. Imagine a bullet in the shoulder of an animal that size from a 150 grain 7mm mag at 50 yards. Would you have anything left to skin? How many pieces would you have?

The 7mm mag is best when bullet impacts are in the 200 yards area or greater. It's a very long range rifle. South Africa's indiginous species are a thick bush close range affair. If you are hunting in the eastern cape your in luck with the gun, but out of luck with the game. It is usually all stocked on game farms in the Eastern Cape. They don't have many indiginous species there and must import them from natural areas or from actual game farming operations. Be carful when choosing a hunting lodge, get a book showing you the natural home range of the species your hunting. Then compare it to the area your interested in hunting. If they over lap your likely in the right place. If they don't your gonna be shooting game farm put and take animals!

JJ, you just made my day! I remember reading in your posts about losing the original 375, but never knew that it was found. I've got a couple rifles myself that hold a special place, and would be heartbroken if either was lost. It's great to hear that you got it back, if anything it probably makes it more special to you than it did before.

I usually take a light rifle and a heavy, not to particular about the caliber as I am about the bullets I shoot....I like to take my double if I am in for an extended stay...It is a 450-400-3" Jefferys and it goes well with a 300, 338, or 375.

I think a 338 and a 416 is a great combo, as well as a 300 whatever and a 404, 416 or whatever...

For a one gun safari, which sure has its advantages I'd go with a 375 or 416...
I got trapped into a one gun safari last year, so took my 416 Rem. with some 380 gr. North Forks, and a few GS Custom flat nose solids...Worked like a charm on everything from Duiker to Buffalo...Those North Forks are impressive on the small stuff, don't ruin much meat and they kill Buffalo like the hammer of Thor....I shot two Buff at about 125, 175 yards and one at 75 yards. One at 175 dropped at the shot with a shoulder shot, the one at 125 yds ran 200 yards and died, the one at 75 was coming at us full blast and I hit him in the brain, so it naturally died instantly...I'm convienced the 416 are at least as good as the 375 and argueably a bit better...

Lots of good ways to go out there and one is about as good as the other if you shoot straight.