Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only What's a good, low-recoil DG Cartridge?

I find it strange for Kevin Robertson to recommend the 9.3x62 for buffalo while having a discussion in a country (RSA) where it isn't legal to use. I like everything I hear about the cartridge. It sounds perfect for my needs...except the part where it seems I wouldn't be able to use it for the game animal I seek.

If someone would come out and say definitively that I CAN use it for buff in both Namibia and the RSA (since these are most likely where my first two safaris would occur), my search would be over.

When I hunted in Namibia a few years ago, I was thinking about a 9.3x62. I asked my PH if it would be legal for DG and he said, "Yes, quite a few folks use them. I like them. It's a good all-around rifle for African game".

seattlesetters,
I would suggest a PAST Recoil Shield worn under your shirt.
Nobody needs to know it's there and they work!
They work great for sighting in heavy recoiling guns like patterning a Turkey shotgun or 12 gauge slug loads. They have a model made for Magnum rifles if I remember correctly.
My sister in law had a double masectomy and still hunts with a 30-06.
whelennut

You could also try a McCoys Shooters Shield , supposed to be as good (if not better) and cheaper, at least on the say so of two frineds of mine...

Thanks, gentlemen. I'll look into those recoil shields.

A choice of Namibia and Zimbabwe for Cape buffalo should yield plenty of options. To be honest, I kinda hoped to avoid the high fences for my first trip or two. I'm not completely adverse to them, but I wouldn't mind saving that experience for a chance at one of my dream trophies...nyala.

There is a lot of misinformation floating around out there about what is legal and what is not legal in africa...The 9.3x62 IS legal in Zimbabwe with a handload btw as it meets the energy and velocity specs required...

Every safari company that I know of in any African country will allow a kid, wife or injured person shoot DG with a 7x57 or 30-06, as long as they have a backup. In most countries the game scout himself can make that call on the spot.

These gentle people shoot the light calibers well and I don't recall a single failure on Buffalo, elephant or Lion, nor do I remember the need for back up in a single case. Is there a lesson to be learned here?

All that aside, in every African country I have hunted in and booked for they overlook such things as caliber, sometimes for a small price, and sometimes not, and sometimes because they don't have enough education to read the caliber, but mostly because they are a practical lot that don't think like we do, and for the most part don't really care...It is not a bad way of life, does away with red tape, keeps money on top of the table as opposed to under the table,and is more common in the world than our approach to law...It is not flaunted in the 3rd worlds but with proper ediquite it is perfectly acceptable. Always let your professional take care of such things as this.

Every Safari company in Africa that I know of will allow a muzzle brake before they would turn down a paying client. Most that I know would prefer the muzzle brake and good shooting as opposed to bad shooting..All my companies have clients with muzzle braked guns from time to time..If you run into one that won't allow it then there are plenty of others that will, give me a call for one and I'll fix you up.

The muzzle brake is THE most effective way of reducing recoil, and although blast may be bad, any big bore rifle will damage your hearing just as bad as a muzzle braked gun will according to a couple of audiolgist and ear docs that have booked with me and discussed the pros and cons with me..These guys tell me any firearm should be shot only with ear protection and went into the decible explanation that really didn't mean much to me but was of importance to them...

A good practice is to use muzzle brakes at the bench, and for testing loads..at the end of each firing session religiously fire 6 to 12 shots without the brake and from an off hand position..In time you will use the brake less and less..It worked for me and I can shoot any rifle without flinching without a brake, even though I don't care for the big kickers, and really see no need for them..I like the 40 calibers best. I don't know if this will work for injured shoulders, only the original poster and injured folks will know this...

Our poster states he can shoot a .338 Win, so IMO a 338 with 300 gr. Woodleighs is fully equal to a 375 with 300 gr. bullets, it lacks the cross section of the .375, and that is important IMO from a stoping standpoint, but it gains in important SD that relates to penetration so lets call it a push...They are equal from a practical standpoint IMO, and I know the .338 would be book legal had it been around when they wrote those arcaic laws so many years ago and I have been told as much by the old timers..

While hunting you can have ear plugs on a string around you neck..I do this, but in all honesty I usually neglect to use them, and my hearing is damaged anyway being from a pre ear protection era..My quite world ain't all that bad, especially when the conversation gets boring or the wife starts ragging on me..:)

Just my opine on this subject.

Actually the 375 Scovill is the 9.3x62 necked up to .375. When Dave was working on it he didn't have 9.3x62 brass so used 30-06 brass that was fireformed to the 9.3x62 chamber ( which is why some folks mistakenly credit it as a necked up 30-06)
It could properly be referred to as a 9.5x62.
It is also a great round. I get a solid 2400fps using 286gr .375 Grand Slam bullets.

One of the big reasons Dave used the 9.3x62 case necked up to .375 is at the time there were very few 9.3 bullets available in America--and the 9.3x62 case had a little more powder capacity than other factory cases on the basic .30-06 case.

But now we have a great variety of fine 9.3mm bullets. So why screw around with wildcats?

I know it's not very imaginative, but a 375 H&H in a 10 lb rifle is a pussycat for recoil. A great selection of bullets, lots of rifle choices. Hard to beat.

Chuck

Can you share info on what handloads in the 9.3x62 with 286 grain bullets meet the requirements for energy mentioned by Atkinson?

By the way, I find the 9.3x62 with 286 gr handloads to be a bit easier on my shoulder than any of the .300 mags I've used, and quite a bit more pleasant than my .375H&H when it is run full throttle with 300 grain loads.

I know it's not very imaginative, but a 375 H&H in a 10 lb rifle is a pussycat for recoil. A great selection of bullets, lots of rifle choices. Hard to beat.

Chuck

Ray - That's what I was looking to hear. With that said, it looks like the 9.3x62 is exactly what I'm after.

It would also seem to fit nicely with my philosophy about rifles and the cartridges they're chambered for. I obviously go for the lower-recoling numbers, but I don't like to sacrifice performance on game. I also like my rifles to "back each other up" in terms of having a bit of overlap, but being just different enough to where each rifle fills certain niches rather commandingly. It would seem the 9.3x62 would make a good backup for my .338 Federal, but will obviously get the nod over the Fed for the heaviest or danerous game.

Before I went down the .375 Hawk-Scoville path, I'd just download a .375 Ruger or .375 H&H. Far less hassle.

I have a 9.3x62 and like it very much; I've never shot any dangerous game with it so I can't offer an informed opinion. I think Ray's the expert on this one.

How does 35 Whelen fit into this discussion?

I'm not venturing an opinion. I'm just asking the question.

If my memory is correct, I do believe that the 9.3 caliber is legal for DG in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and some areas of South Africa. I think that Namibia actually requires .375+ by law, but as Ray has mentioned in the past, the PH would more than likely make exceptions -- especially since the 9.3 is so widely respected throughout most of the African continent and one can't tell a bit of difference between hitting something squarely with it or a .375 (IMHO).

Originally Posted By: notlim
If africa is to be on the menu- even though you seem to want to avoid it the .375 is the only choice IMHO- especially if you want to use factory ammo. If your luggage is lost you could be almost guaranteed to find ammo for a .375 almost anywhere in africa. The others not so much.

I know. I just want something that sounds more romantic.

What could be more romantic than a .375 HH in Africa?

I know the history and the legendary performance of the .375 H&H in Africa. I completely give it its due respect....reverence, even. I just want something a little different. It seems everybody carries a .375, but I like the sound of a .404 Jeffery or a NE or even a Rigby, although I know the Rigby probably doesn't carry quite the history in Africa as some of the others.

If it didn't kick so hard, I'd just get the Jeffery and be done with it.

perhaps Ray can confirm this, but given a rifle of appropriate weight with a properly fitted stock, a 404J loaded to original specs does not seem to produce a recoil impulse any greater than the 375. have a look in the ballisticians corner at beartoothbullets.com

Consider a custom recoil pad, Maybe take a larger one and reverse grind it so it flares out from the stock, then maybe relieve an area somewhere in the more center area where it would normally bear on that screw you are talking about. Make it somewhat like a custom orthotic for your feet, only for the shoulder. Just an idea, it may not be pretty or conventional looking but should help.

Here is a link to minimums by coutry in africa. Take a look.

http://bigfivehq.com/mincaliber.htm


maddog