|
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 313
Campfire Member
|
OP
Campfire Member
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 313 |
is the 338 federal popular in Africa?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 3,874
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 3,874 |
No. Though it would work well for most plains game it is totally unknown over there.
RS
|
|
|
|
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 2,262
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 2,262 |
What could be a sadder way to end a life than to die having never hunted with great dogs, good friends and your family?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,748
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,748 |
I would say no. However, after playing around with mine, my PH really liked it. They tend to prefer heavy and slow premium bullets. I was shooting 160 TTSXs. They worked fantastic. The PH said he’d load 225 A-Frames at about 2400-2500 and think it was perfect.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,313 |
like I've wrote before on this forum about the 338 Federal: After 100 years of lengthening and shortening and necking down and necking up we managed to reinvent the 8x57. A 200 gr. bullet at 2500 fps of about the same diameter. Of course it will work.
Brushbuster: "Is this thread about the dear heard or there Jeans?" Plugger: "If you cant be safe at strip club in Detroit at 2am is anywhere safe?" Deer are somewhere all the time To report a post you disagree with, please push Alt + F4. Thank You.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 3,639
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 3,639 |
Of my trips to Africa, I've never seen a 338 Federal.....it's as if you remove the .30-06 from Africa and the .375 H&H, you're disarmed an entire continent.
There are others of course, but cartridge proliferation doesn't seem to have affected an entire continent like it has here.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 21,837 Likes: 4
Campfire Ranger
|
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 21,837 Likes: 4 |
Maybe those Africans are more practical (smarter ?) than us. How many cartridges between 27 and 35 do we need that move a 150gr to 180gr bullet 2700 to 2900 fps?
6.x55, 7x57 8x57, 30-06.
By 1906 we had the bases covered in medium game hunting. And, with the exception of the 6.5 vs '06, they overlap considerably.
If you listed all the cartridges that basically duplicate those war horses with similar bullet weights, you have listed most of the game rounds introduced in the last 100 years. Including some magnums.
Last edited by Dillonbuck; 04/28/18.
Parents who say they have good kids..Usually don't!
|
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 1,114
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 1,114 |
In my experience, no. That said, I would expect it to perform decently on PG animals of Kudu size and below at moderate ranges providing you are loading it with a well constructed bullet and placing your shots in the so called "deadly triangle".
Don't expect to be able to find any .338 Federal should yours be lost or should you run out of cartridges.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 5,828
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 5,828 |
I think it has more to do with less discretionary income and the fact that most of the guns and ammo are of imported nature. While here in the States, we make the stuff and well we can buy it also at prices those in Europe or Africa can just dream about! Then there is that other elephant in the room, guns are much more controlled in those places than here. That is also an issue governing what may or may not be popular. I have a 338 Winchester Mag, I see no real reason to buy a 338 Federal. Heck for my current hunting needs, a 7 x 57 or 6.5 x 55 I have both is more than enough.
"Any idiot can face a crisis,it's the day-to-day living that wears you out."
Anton Chekhov
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 457
Campfire Member
|
Campfire Member
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 457 |
No it is not. Africans are practical and see no need to constantly reinvent the wheel.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 11,952
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 11,952 |
...... if not for the 30-06.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 1,326
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 1,326 |
Practical? What could be more? From 243 Win to 358 Win with every 308 based cartridge in between formed from the SAME dimension brass and conservative on powder all the while getting the job done seems like nothing BUT practical.
Last edited by RedAstrachan; 04/28/18.
|
|
|
|
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 2,262
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 2,262 |
...... if not for the 30-06. The .308 rules in Africa. The .30-06 lags way behind there.
What could be a sadder way to end a life than to die having never hunted with great dogs, good friends and your family?
|
|
|
|
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 205
Campfire Member
|
Campfire Member
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 205 |
The .308 rules in Africa. The .30-06 lags way behind there.
For hunting? LEGAL hunting that is. I know there are lots of poachers using surplus military rifles, but thought that the .30-06 was still the primary hunting round used for safaris and by PHs.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,785
Campfire Regular
|
Campfire Regular
Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 1,785 |
Practical? What could be more? From 243 Win to 358 Win with every 308 based cartridge in between formed from the SAME dimension brass and conservative on powder all the while getting the job done seems like nothing BUT practical. The most practical thing for most Africans to do is to not sell the rifle they are currently using (and familiar with) to start over with a perfectly fine but otherwise non-differentiated cartridge. For those just starting out...well, let's just say that .338 Federal rifles aren't exactly filling the shelves. Not to mention the ammo. Just my $0.02 as always! Tim
Last edited by Tarbe; 04/29/18.
USMC 0351
We know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,748
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,748 |
The .308 rules in Africa. The .30-06 lags way behind there.
For hunting? LEGAL hunting that is. I know there are lots of poachers using surplus military rifles, but thought that the .30-06 was still the primary hunting round used for safaris and by PHs. The three PHs I know a 7x57, 308 and 30-06 respectively as their primary plains game rifles.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,200
Campfire Outfitter
|
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 8,200 |
In the Eastern Cape, the 270 Win is very popular.
|
|
|
|
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 457
Campfire Member
|
Campfire Member
Joined: Oct 2016
Posts: 457 |
Practical? What could be more? From 243 Win to 358 Win with every 308 based cartridge in between formed from the SAME dimension brass and conservative on powder all the while getting the job done seems like nothing BUT practical. Yes, practical. African usually don’t have the money to spend on very expensive reloading equipment and hard to find components. And they are not interested in one more cartridges that duplicates others ballistically. And try to find factory ammo in .338 Federal. That’s a joke. In 14 Safaris in 7 African countries I have never seen any plains game camp rifles in ANYTHING other than 30-06, .270, 7x57, or .308. Practical indeed. Americans have a love affair with making something new that “improves “ on something that already exists and works just fine. African don’t.....
|
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 3,133
Campfire Tracker
|
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 3,133 |
It isn't popular for all the reasons stated above. On our Africa trip a few years ago, the three of us had a .35 Whelen, a .338-06 and a .358 Win. They all worked just fine on all the plains game we shot, including blue wildebeest, hartebeest, zebra, kudu, nyala, waterbuck, etc. One shot kills all. 225 gr partitions in all.
�That rifle on the wall of the labourer's cottage or working class flat is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there.� George Orwell
|
|
|
Forums81
Topics1,192,503
Posts18,490,593
Members73,972
|
Most Online11,491 Jul 7th, 2023
|
|
|
|