Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa African Myths about big calibers.

Fost I have done exactly that on two separate safaris

One of the animals Ingwe took on one of those safaris was a zebra where the shot was somewhat more angling than he planned. The 175 pretty much went lengthwise--and worked.

And I've also taken a 7x57 on two safaris, though with somewhat lighter bullets of 156-160 grains of several makes. It worked fine on game up to kudu and wildebeest. Even dared using the 160 Sierra GameKing on several smaller animals, bup to warthog in size, and it worked very well.

JB,,
I was interested in your post that you have seen pronghorn take some lead.

I used to guide for them on the sly years ago, and I firmly believe they are one of the toughest critters on four feet for their size.

Our own JJ Hack is also of the opinion African animals are tougher and he's hunted and guided here in the States as well. I don't have enough experience to proffer an opinion on the subject, but I will add this, my uncle hunted Angola and Mozambique in the late sixties early seventies and took many animals including the Big Five. He used two rifles, both pre-64 70s in 270 and 458 and he only used the 458 on two animals elephant and buffalo. He took his lion and everything else with his 270 and old-style Winchester Silvertips.

On the other hand, I've related this before, but Craig Boddington who's hunted more than all of us combined, tells of the biggest kudu he passed because the only shot he gave him was a going away shot and [sic] all I had was a 3006. He goes on to say he would not have hesitated taking that Texas Heart Shot had he been using his 375. As for me, I can't afford many safaris, much less one hundred plus like Craig, but you'll never see me in the bush with anything smaller than a 300 and 180gr bullets. jorge

My last safari, probably ever, was shot with combo guns.

I took everything with either a 12ga/8X57JR cape gun or a 12/12/9,3X74R drilling, including enough francolin for some great "tasty-bits" around the fire.

The mild 8X57JR was deadly to 250 yards on wildebeest on down. I also used it to finish my partner's muffed shot on a big eland. His initial two gut shots and one placed well with the 8MM cape gun ended things.

To a large degree, I am in agreement. To me though, I'd insist on using a larger caliber and heavier bullet on some PG - Mt. Nyala, Bongo, Lord Derby Eland, and Roan all come to mind. That combo would be borderline on the more common Eland species and on Giraffe, as well, IMO.

I guess I should quit planning a PG safari, as I don't own a 30-06 - just a 9.3x62mm, with a couple more in the works.

Sarcasm noted but, quite the contrary, you should proceed in planning, full speed ahead. The 9.3x62 has to be considered one of the greatest African cartridges ever developed.

I had friend who guided in New Mexico and Colorado for mule deer, elk, sheep, bear, antelope and lion. He then sold his US businesses and started hunting in Zambia and after quite some time moved to Tanzania. He probably has more lion and leopard in the SCI book than any other PH ?

Just a lead in to a comment he one time made to me somewhat in jest, but he told me directily that it had some basis in fact.

His comment was that if an elk was as tough pound for pound as an impala you would have a hard time carrying an adequate rifle. His choice of rifles was a 300 WBY and a Brown Built 458.

I've only been to Africa 5 times and have not seen much proof of this but I did assist tracking one impala that left a huge majority of his lungs hanging in the brush behind him. We found him dead a little over 400 yards from the original hit.

Some critters are just tougher than others within a species.

jorge,

Craig passed on the rear-end shot on the kudu because he wasn't sure the .30-06 bullet would penetrate enough, not because of any conviction that African plains game is tougher.

Craig has written many times that he believes African plains game is NOT tougher than similar-sized American game. I can quote you the exact passages from his books if you want.

6MMWASP,

It's certainly true that some individual animals are tougher than others, and stuff happens now and then. I once shot a doe pronghorn through the near shoulder and front of both lungs with a bullet that expanded nicely, the range about 110 yards. (I know the bullet expanded because it ended up in the far shoulder.) It ran over a little rise after the shot, so I waited a minute or so before following, expecting to find it down within 50 yards or so.

Instead I saw the doe limping up a hill 1/4 of a mile away. I watched where it crossed the ridge, then stalked the area from another direction. The doe was bedded just over the ridge and still alive 45 minutes later, and got up and ran a couple hundred yards, even though blood was coming out its nose and mouth, as with any typical lung shot. That was really uncommon, but it happened.

I've shot a pile of impala both as trophies and during cull hunts, and seen a bunch more killed, with cartridges from the .270 Winchester to the .375 H&HG, in Namibia, Botswana, Tanzania and several parts of South Africa. While one went farther than expected with a good hit from a 7x57, it still traveled less than 100 yards before falling dead. It ran downhill, and some of its travel might have been rolling down the steep ravine after it died. That's as far as I've ever seen one go after a solid chest hit with any cartridge. Maybe Zambian impala are a lot tougher.

We have been back from a plains game hunt for one week. We took a Blue Wildebeest, one Oryx, and One Kudu all with a 3oo Win Mag shoot 180 gr partitions. The Wildebeest made about 400 years, the Oryx about 50 yards, the Kudu about 30. However, my son shot 2 Impalas and an Oryx with his bow. The Oryx went about a 100 yards. I expect bullet placement is the trick. However, in my limited experience, anything bigger than these might be nice to have a 375. We had a 7mm Rem Mag with us, but the PH was pretty solid on shooting the 300. However, he used a 308 on everything.

I dont have that much experience but do have an opion. . My perception is that there are general characteristics of breeds or species but also, as with humans, a great deal of individual variation may be found. "Toughness" or vitality may vary within a species, dependant on age, immediate environment, state of alertness, or genetic inheritance, much, perhaps, like in a soft, out-of-shape office clerk vs. An elite Special Forces individual. Maybe this is an analogy that cannot be made however. I'm not sure there is an analogous critter to the "soft" office worker but i would say that I've noticed as much variation to well placed slugs within a species as between species and that may include perhaps a hundred elk, deer (whitetail and mule-), caribou, antelope and PG (only eight of that number).

One can get impressions on a little experience. One of mine was that elk, gemsbok, and zebra might have similar "toughness" quotients. But I have seen whitetail toughness too while the occasional elk is just deflated at the shot -- "like a caribou".

Mule Deer

I bow to your experience, I didn't see what I saw. In South Africa.

Thanks for calling me a liar. Like you said it never happened

Outfitters are another bad example of perpetuating the myth. I have seen on more then a few websites "minimum calibers" for game animals. One in Namibia even stated we will not take you on a hunt for eland with anything smaller then a 300 Win mag with 180gr bullets.

Interesting theory on the toughness of American pronghorns.

I feel they are extremely easy to kill and have never witnessed any so called toughness from any the ones I have killed or witnessed. Even with less than perfect shot placement they seem to goes a little ways and bed down, easy to stalk up on and finish.

I have been hunting them in SD pretty much every year since 1979. Maybe Montana Pronghorns are tougher?

actually i agree with John on pronghorns......hit around the edges especially they will go a hell of alot farther than mule deer weighting twice as much on the average......dont have enough experience with elk to judge against them and havent been to Africa but hit a speed goat to far back and hit a mule deer to far back and you will usually be trailing the speed goat the farthest....

John, re-read my post, I don't believe I said African game was tougher, I just said I'm not qualified to proffer an opinion based on my limited experienc and I agree with Craig and you in that regard. The locus of my post was on caliber selection and I believe I stated exactly what you posted, that in that instance, the 06 was "not enough gun" and I agree, that is why at a minimum, I carry at least a 300 for Africa. jorge

I don't think it is whether or not an animal is tougher or not. Africa can be dry and dusty. A big hole means a bigger blood trail if it requires finding a wounded animal. This is what I read that "JJ" had to say. He suggests a 30 caliber minimum for a bigger blood trail where hurd animals run and it is dryer. His two choices were a 30-06 and a 375 HH. Both have similar trajectorys, so if you can shoot one, you can shoot another.

My kids have taught me more about what will work than all my years of what I thought I knew. I was never a big 308 Win fan probably because everyone had one. Everyone had one probably because they work. With a 308 my kids and even dad here shots oodle of stuff near and far with it. With that said I don't think we give credit to the bullets when talking calibers. A few on this subject have done that for validation which is how it should be. I have seen slow 125 gr bullets do better than normal speed150 gr bullets.
Sometimes bullets fail. How or why the fail may cause us to want to go with a bigger caliber to stack the odds in our favor. Trophy fees can do that for you. That was what drive my descision on what I used. But with kids you cant for bigger. The bullet is very important. When the XP3 bullet came out before our safari it proved flat shooting and accurate. We would be hunting the Eastern Cape and I knew shots might be longish. We harvested quite a few springbok but a shot at 80 yards on a blessbock did not work well. We spent almost 2 hours tracking and chasing that animal. During that time we thought my son shot low in the leg. Finally we got in position for an ambush shot at 385 yards and my son dropped him. The first shot was total bullet failure. The angle was from front into the shoulder. The damage was severe but the bullet never penetrated the chest cavity. It almost looked like the bullet blew up with the force going back outside based on the damage. It was like the bulet exited the way it came in. I had also brought along 168 TSX in case we got into something bigger and we used those the rest of the trip. The 80 yard shot was one of the closest shots we made. With my kids I didn't have the choice of a bigger cartridge, I had to choose a better bullet. They say sometimes things happen. I only let it happen once