judge88

im looking for a big game gun. something i can take to africa, alaska for big game and make a quick kill. i have a 300 mag now and the african guide laughed at me when i asked if that was enough gun. ive narrowed it down to. .338 ultra mag, .340 mag,.375 h&h. does anyone have any first hand experierence with these guns. how hard is the ammo to get with certain ones. recoil is not a problem the gun will be worked on. also what brand of gun seems best in these big calibers? sako is what i was thinking. anything cheaper thats just as good?

DodgerDoob

Depending on the type of game, the 45/70 has been used there more than you think. Typically we think of european calibers because of Africas colonial status. American calibers haven't been accepted there. Some of the loads you get for the 45 are kind of light because the amount of old guns still in use, but you can handload some really hot loads for the modern ones. All of the major manufactures make one variation or another in that caliber. An african guide might laugh at that thought too, but I'd say it was ignorance of the capabilities of the 45 more than anyhting. To actually answer your question, probably nothing a 375 Sako couldn't handle.

Equalizer 2

A .416 Remington or similar would be a very strong choice if I was lucky enough to make this trip. Don't rule out a Ruger as a choice of rifle either as they make some good ones in the larger calibers.

judge88

looking at the trajectories of those calibers, they dont seem like a long range rifle. could they handle 300-500 yrds without dropping a ton? thats one thing that the .338 ultra mag caught my eye with. it dosnt drop that much.

irocpractice

Why not a .500 Nitro Express?

Hondo

I have done a bunch of research on this very subject. I helped my buddy pick out his Alaskan Brown Bear rifle. I recommend .375 H&H or the new .375 Ruger. As far as rifles go I am a big fan of Ruger, very strong rifles. Personally I have no desire to shoot any big game animal at 400-600 yards. The .375 will be effective to 300 yds and recoil is not exessive. I hope to go to Africa and Alaska within the next 10 years. Good Luck,

Hondo

madhat

I can sniff around for a .50 sniper rifle... I know a guy that has one.

Shovelhead

Do a "Google" search for .577 T-Rex.

txfiremedic

I'm gonna go with madhat on this one, You could kill an elephant at a mile with a 50 cal. Ya'll HAVE to watch this video of these guys shooting that .577 T-Rex, thats a FUNNY video!!!!

http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/p...572930,00.html

judge88

lol,
no elephant hunts for me but im going for cape buffalo. i want to kill it so it dosnt kill me. most dangerous animal in africa.

06dually

I think the .338 Win. mag is a better choice than the .338 Rem. ultra mag.

iweb

I got a .338 Win mag in Win model 70 in Alaska in the late 70's and killed a moose every year with one shot and shot a mtn goat at 400 yards with one shot. Today I can take it out of the safe and drive tacks at 100 yards. I use factory 220 grain and it kicks less than my 30.06.

rustyshakelford

thats funny stuff. at one point i though they were running a terrorist training camp...the good old county boy at the end showed them how its done

brett

Hondo

.338 will not be allowed for Cape Buffalo. .375 is the smallest allowable caliber in most of Africa for Dangerous Game. With that being said it is probably one of the most popular, effective and proven rounds on big dangerous game, and again not too punishing.

Hondo

annabelle

What type of African game? Weatherby .378 or the Rem .416 are good choices. I have two friends that hunted African plains game last year. One brought home 5 heads with a .30-06, the other 7 heads with a .270. I think it is more important to have a quality outfitter and hunt good land. Let me know, I have a friend who is South African, and is a big game relocater/ outfitter.