I will be traveling to Namibia in 2005, for my first African hunt. Plans are to hunt for Kudu,Eland,Gemsbok,Zebra,Wildebeest,Impala,Springbok, and others.

I'm looking for opinions on my choice of guns that I plan to carry. I plan to take a 7x57 using 160 gr. bullets and my .35 Whelen using 250 gr. bullets. The Whelen is amazingly accurate.

I've been told by some that I'm going under-gunned. Is it so, and why? I do have a .300 win. mag. and a .375 H&H, but are they truly needed? Do I need the extra reach of the .300 mag.?

Your opinions are most welcome.

You are not under-gunned with that battery. The locals in RSA really like the 7mm for the smaller antelopes.

The Whelen should be good medicine for the larger antelopes. I am here to tell you that an eland is a BIG critter - a old blue bull can weigh 2000 pounds. But the Whelen should do the job fine.

A lot of cartridges will work well in Namibia, however, shooting distances can get long, and certain animals such as red hartebeest, gemsbok, zebra, etc., are very tough animals. You can end up with a long shot at a tough animal. For example, I whacked a gemsbok at about 400 yds. once in Namibia.

Luckily, I was using a .300 Win. Mag. loaded with 180 gr. Nosler Partitions at just under 3100 fps. and zeroed for 250 yds. I consider any of the .300 magnums or .338 magnums to be ideal general-use cartridges for Namibia. If you already own a good .300 Win. Mag., I'd take it and leave everything else at home.

AD

Nothing wrong with that battery IMO. I might be tempted to try a flatter shooting 140 grain Barnes X in the 7x57. And I would practice with both rifles a lot at 200-400 yards.

Chances are you will not shoot at ranges beyond 200.

For plains game I used a .300 H&H...it had a 26" barrel and was a trifle heavy....a return trip will include a .30-06 and proper handloads.....my '06 is a M-70 featherweight with a 22" barrel that won't catch as much brush and I have complete confidence that it'll be sufficient for all except the Eland and the Blue Wildebeest.

Taking two guns is a good thing to do and it's easy to keep both of them in the safari vehicle. For me the guns would be a .30-06 and a (flip a coin here) .375 H&H or a .338 Win mag for the Eland and Blue Wildebeest.

Having said that I suspect you'll be quite adequately armed with the 7 X 57 and the Whelen. Load them with premium bullets and go have a great time.......

Your battery is OK, but would not be mine.. I personally would opt for the 300 Win and shoot 200 gr. Noslers...Your going half way around the world for a hunt, so why take a chance on a caliber that is less likely to do the job, take the one that fits the situation best...Namibia is wide open in many places and you may get a long shot at a monster size Gemsbok, thats when the 300s shine...but it's all about choices and we all must live with them...I'd save my Whelen for the bush country, and elk in Idaho.

I own a 300 Win Mag,a 30-06,a 270 and a 35 Whelen Improved.Trust me, you will do fine with the 35 Whelen.The caliber and all the others mentioned will do the job.You specifically mentioned that the Whelen was very accurate and I take that to mean you shoot it well and are confident in it.That is much more important than the caliber(IMHO)
I have taken all the animals on your wish list and put them down in sight with a bow.African game is tough but not bullet proof.Get the shot where it belongs and all will be good.
I am not a PH but if I were I would be happy to see you with a gun that you knew and shot well rather than with the "perfect " gun that you were not as comfortable with...eyedoc

@Bearhunter,
the first question would be to ask, where in Namibia you are going do hunt. The northern parts are a bit denser concerning the vegetation, so in most cases your shooting distance is not as far as on the open plains in the south of the country. Referring to the list of species you mentioned above, I would pick the .300 and leave the 7x57 at home. In my opinion it�s enough for everything besides eland. Speak to your PH to get some details about the terrain. Taking a second gun is from my point of view too much of a hassle. customs-clearing etc.
Most of the Ph�s have spare guns to borrow in all different calibers. That�s only if you feel comfortable with a gun u are not used to.

For a plains game hunt I would want to know the distances I might be required to shoot. For 250 yards and in you choice is perfect... However if it might be required to shoot out to 300 or 350 AND IF YOU HAVE THE SKILL TO MAKE SUCH SHOTS I would take the 300 Mag and the 35 Whelen.

A friend of mine killed all of his plains game including a big eland bull with a 280 Rem and factory Federal 150gr Nosler Partitions. The only animal he shot twice was the eland, just "cause the PH told him to."

The main thing is to take the rifles you shoot the best.

Or take the rifles you like the best.

When I hunted Alaskan Caribou I showed up in camp with a 450/400 3 1/4" iron sighted double rifle. When the guide saw it he asked "Don't you have any thing with a scope?"

I replied "Scope... why no, I can shoot this rifle pretty good to 30 or 40 yards... I heard you are a pretty good guide and could get me close. ".

I wanted to hunt with the double 400 and was willing to live with whatever limitations my choice required me too.

Out of about 8 hunters I shot the 2 biggest Caribou.

I have used the 7x57 in africa and it did fine on the smaller antelopes.

You won't be undergunned and I believe you'll do just fine with that combo. Try to use bullets with good balistic coeficient ratings like nosler-partitions. Sight your guns in for reasonable longrange and pratice alot. The 160 grain in the 7x57 is not needed for impala or springbok but you may have that gun in your hands when you see one of the heavior species and only the eland is more than it should be used on. Everything else is within it's capabilities.

Bearhunter,

As others have suggested if the ranges are not long your battery is more than adequate. Personally when I hunted Namibia for the same species you mentioned I never had to take a shot over 200yd. On the other hand Namibia is known for areas of open country where shots can be long. If that is the case in the area you are hunting than you probably would be better off with a 300 Mag. of some sort and premium 180-200gr. bullets.

Good Hunting,

Mark

With two trips to RSA under my belt I'm far from an EXPERT but I took a .280 Rem loaded with 175's both trips to RSA. Took a .375 first trip and a .338-06 with 250's the second trip. Of all the rifles I was the most impressed with the .338-06. Then again I was in brush country with under 100 yd shots the norm.
With 250's your Whelen is basically the same as my .338-06. The .280 shot a few heads of little stuff and a big Blk wildebeest. It WAS nice as it would really reach out.

Personally I'd go for the .300 Win AND the Whelen as my heavy.

I have to agree with Ray.

FN in MT

Bearhunter,

I think your battery is very good. This is the exact combo I will be taking to RSA this May. I have taken the 35 Whelen to Nambia in 2002 and thought it was perfect, but I limited my shots to around 300 yards. With the 35 Whelen, I loaded 225 grain Barnes X which worked well.

The only problem I see is if you come across that monster oryx when you have the 7x57, it might be just a touch light. Good Luck

BigBullet

As a young boy reading about Jack O'connor... his wife shot a 7/57 and her idea was if she could see it she could shoot it...and she did very effectively!!!

Mike

Bear Hunter:


I perked up reading your post because the 7x57 and the 35 Whelan are old favorites of mine and were in my "arsenal' for many years. (BTW, reading your user name - I shot a black bear once that was well over 300 lbs(we had no scales) and a 154gr. Hornady busted his shoulder on a side shot, went into the lungs and exited and buried itself about 4 inches in the mud bank.(it was near the exit of a pond to a brook)How's that for penetration?) The Whelan is fine but as Ray Atkinson says, you apparently will be taking long shots. I have found the Whelan, only just satisfactory for hunting purposes accuracy using a 200 gr.bullet to 200 yards. You are proposing to use a 250gr. bullet and I understand that the ranges may be up to 400 yards. I think you may be risking failure at the end of an eight thousand mile trip. I realize that you may feel familiar with the rifle and cartridge and that does go a long ways when we talk about bullet placement - but how good are you in calculating drop at 400 yards? (Take it from an old 'chuck' hunter who was shooting at such ranges and longer with a 220 Swift when our factory load was "hotter' than what the reloading manuals recommend today, calculating drop is just a matter of sheer guesswork - and you don't want that in the hunt of a lifetime. Ray Atkinson is not saying that the 35 Whelan won't kill these beasts. He's saying that you are asking the caliber to do more than it was meant to do.

Bearhunter,
I used a 338/06 and a 7x57 last year in Zim. I took an eland, kudu, blue wildebeest and Zebra with my 338/06 and an impala and a warthog with the 7x57. I used 200gr Barnes X bullets in the 338/06 and 140 X's in the 7x57. I used my 338/06 and a 257 Robert's the year before in SA. So far the 338/06 has taken 9 of the large African antelope and has worked great for me. The 140gr X bullet is all you will need in your 7x57 if they shoot well in your rifle. I shot a 250 lb black bear this past fall with my 7x57 and 120gr Barnes X. The bear ran all of 60 yd or so. I would use the 120 X bullet on the smaller African antelope if I needed to strech the range a bit. My furthest shot with the 338/06 was 250 yd on a gemsbok. Your 35 Whelen with a good 225gr bullet shoud work well to 300 yd. Unless you practice a lot at 300 and 400 yd, I'd pass on those shots and try to stalk closer. Remember, you pay the trophy fee even if you wound you animal. You will do find with your Whelen and 7x57.

Thanks to all that replied. You have definitely persuaded me into taking along the .300 mag. I do still plan on taking along the .35 Whelen. We'll be hunting the Kudu and Eland towards the Eastern side of Namibia, which will be a brushy, short distance type of shooting.