The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting Will, don't look!! Another which rifle question.Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
| Will, don't look!! Another which rifle question. | Login/Join |
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I know you don't like these type of questions   But there aint nothing to hunt right now and I don't have anything better to do this morning.  So for everyone else heres the setup.A hunt in Namibia (not that I've booked anything, I'm still dreaming at this point) for, leopard eland kudu zebra Heres the rifles and scopes I have. winchester 270wsm with leupold 3.5-10x40 winchester 300wsm with leupold 3.5-10x40 winchester 338win with leupold 2.5-8x32 winchester 375h&h with leupold 2.5-8x32. So which would you take? I think you could hunt all of the animals listed with the 300wsm or the 338win. The 375 may be a bit much for the leopard, but its my new toy and I'd like to take it. So I'm leaning towards taking the 300 loaded with some 180gr noslers for the lepard and the 375 with some barnes xts for everything else. Thoughts??? ______________________ | ||
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Just take the .338, it will do anything the 375 or the 300 will do...I have all three and the .338 is usually the one I pick short of buffalo and I have killed a few buffalo with it..Ranges can be a tad long in Namibia and a 210 Nosler at 3005 FPS will reach out an touch them and have enough bullet to lay them low...Thats my pick....the others will work also. Ray Atkinson Atkinson Hunting Adventures 10 Ward Lane, Filer, Idaho, 83328 208-731-4120 rayatkinsonhunting@gmail.com | |||
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Ray, hope your feeling better! ______________________ | |||
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Mark, My chice would be a tie between the .338 and the .375 as both are pretty darn simular in killability and tajectory. If it were me I'd go with my .375 and 270Gr triple shocks @ 2800FPS plenty flat enough and they hit like thors hammer. ' Now to address your comment on the .375 being a bit to much for leopard. What are you worried about? It won't do much pelt damage with the right bullet in fact less than a hot .270 or a .300 will do. So what's the problem you worried about killing that cat too dead?  | |||
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I thought you just asked this a few days ago?  .375 H&H all the way.  ------------------------------- Will Stewart / Once you've been amongst them, there is no such thing as too much gun. --------------------------------------- and, God Bless John Wayne. NRA Benefactor Member, GOA, N.A.G.R. _________________________ "Elephant and Elephant Guns" $99 shipped “Hunting Africa's Dangerous Game" $20 shipped. red.dirt.elephant@gmail.com _________________________ Hoping to wind up where elephant hunters go. | |||
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Will,Will,Will..... I said don't look and I don't have anything better to do this morning.______________________ | |||
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270gr 375 bullet seems like overkill for a 120 pound cat. ______________________ | |||
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Mark, You will want the .375 or the .338 for the eland, these guys take some shooting. Yes, you can kill them with lessor calibers, but everything has to go just right. If you are after a trophy, your only shot may not be the "just right" shot. Your 32mm objective scope is on the margin for leopard at night, I would swap it for one of the 40 mm objective scopes. You do get longer ranges in Namibia, so a 2.5-10X or a 3-9X scope is useful there. I shot .375"/300 grain Nosler Partitions in Namibia to good effect. On the shots over 200 meters I first made a range estimate, and compared with the PHs, then adjusted my hold for the drop. jim if you're too busy to hunt,you're too busy. | |||
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Goodie I will play! winchester 270wsm with leupold 3.5-10x40 Though it would have great shock value for the leopard. Not my favourite for a tough to put down eland. winchester 300wsm with leupold 3.5-10x40 Too bad the short neck on this cartridge limits the bullets you can use. The 300wsm is primarily for deer sized game because of this. Pretty much the same limitations as the 270WSM. winchester 338win with leupold 2.5-8x32 Perfect for the game you are planning to hunt. High shock value with lighter bullets and plenty of punch for the big fellows. winchester 375h&h with leupold 2.5-8x32. Makes nice holes through everything but not known as a shock round. Guys round here who shoot deer with theirs are always surprised by how little meat damage there is and how far the game travels after the shot. It will kill a leopard certainly but be realistically prepared for the results. | |||
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Just a slight correction: The Leupold VX-III (or the older Vari-X III) 2.5-8x scope has a 36mm objective. -Bob F. | |||
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Mark, I have a question...are you going to book a hunt this year or continue to ask 372 questions to find the "right" deal with the "right" rifle, only to find out all the hunts you've considered are sold out for the next two years  ? Seriously, when ARE you going to book your hunt????????On the plains of hesitation lie the bleached bones of ten thousand, who on the dawn of victory lay down their weary heads resting, and there resting, died. If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch... Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son! - Rudyard Kipling Life grows grim without senseless indulgence. | |||
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I like the .375 H&H loaded with maybe a 235 gr woodleigh or a 270 gr woodleigh protected point for what you after. | |||
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There is only one degree of dead. ****************************** There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor polite, nor popular -- but one must ask, "Is it right?" Martin Luther King, Jr. | |||
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I was really glad I brought the 375 to Namibia, as was my PH. Nice exit holes on everything. I shot 260 accubonds which worked perfectly ane would probably be a good choice for leopard (but not having hunted one, I'd defer to the experienced). Depending on which part of Namibia, shots may be long or short. We were in the north in bushveld country, longest shot was 200 yds, most much closer. If game was farther away, we snuck up, which is half the fun. Unless your in the sand dunes, I'd go with the 338 or 375. Bob | |||
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The .375 Holland & Holland Magnum. I wouldn't even consider the others. Russ The doing of unpleasant deeds calls for people of an unpleasant nature. | |||
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From my experiance the Winchester short mag is a big no go!!!! If your ammo does not get there you will have a real tough time finding any there, at least in Sa you will. On the other hand you have two of debateable the most versital chamberings going, the .338 and the .375, take them both, one as your main rifle the other as back up and you can probably find ammo for either in almost any country in the world. It is not what you hunt with, it is how you hunt that matters! | |||
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I guess I'll book a hunt when I find the one I'm looking for! I just looked in my files and before I booked our first trip I talked to at least 11 PHs and/or booking agents. I only up to 6 so far on this hunt, I'm in no hurry and don't mind doing research because thats how I learn. As to the 372 questions, I thought that was what this board was all about. To help and learn from each other, but if my questions offend you then sir don't read them. I said up front I was bored and didn't have anything better to do on a Sunday morning. BTW it took me 9 months to buy my last truck. Partly because I didn't want to spend good money on a truck instead of on a hunt and partly because trucks now days are over priced! Sure, it took me 9 month but in the end I found one I could use and enjoy at just a little more than what I thought was a fair price. On the day I bought it I went to dealer A and drove his truck to the other dealers in town. I told them this is what I want, this is the offer dealer A made me and this is what I can spend. After 2 hours at dealer C I made the salesman my final offer and told him "if the sales manager lets me walk out over $500 then I don't need the damn thing and I'm going home". I drove his truck home. The early bird may get the worm but the first mouse don't normaly get the cheese. ______________________ | |||
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______________________ The truck piece was a nice addition. Now, I understand. | |||
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Mark could you please give me a definition for "overkill"? | |||
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I'm not sure there is one but I've shot a bunch of 120 pound deer, 2 black bears and 10 animals in Africa. So far the biggest bullet I've used has been a 200gr 308, they all died in pretty short order, based on that a 270gr 375 bullet seems a bit much for a 120 pound thin skinned leopard. Then again I've never even seen a leopard so I guess thats why we ask these questions. ______________________ | |||
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Great! Could you explain it to me???????? ______________________ | |||
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I know 2 wildebeest, a zebra, an impala and a duiker that would disagree with you on that!! I took all 5 last year useing a 300wsm and 200gr barnes triple shocks. If I draw a moose tag this fall that is the gun and load I'll use. Plus I plan to take it on my musk ox-caribou hunt in October. BTW I also took 4 deer with it this past season useing the 180gr triple shock. ______________________ | |||
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Mark, Touchy, touchy...I thought those stupid smiling faces denoted humor. Sorry if I offended you BUT I found humor in the fact you recast a question you had asked several days earlier in your thread "Scope and rifle combo". And I had no idea where you were going with the truck analogy! I came away with... I am cheap and have a hard time making a decision! You are right in that this is a public forum and folks can pretty much post what they want! Post away, my friend. On the plains of hesitation lie the bleached bones of ten thousand, who on the dawn of victory lay down their weary heads resting, and there resting, died. If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch... Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son! - Rudyard Kipling Life grows grim without senseless indulgence. | |||
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I would ask them but I fear they would be unable to answer. I have personally killed several deer with a 223Rem but because of this I do not claim it to be primarily a deer cartridge. For the record I understand you can kill all the animals in the list with any of the above mentioned weapons. You asked what we would use, I told you my thoughts were. As far as your 200gr Barnes load goes, have you shot that through a chronograph? Check it against other 30caliber cartridges with the same weight bullet. The 300WSM is honestly designed for 180gr max bullets. You are probably sacrificing some case capacity to shoot the larger pill. Plus realize that a solid copper bullet like a Barnes is longer than a jacketed bullet of similar weight. | |||
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__________ Getting any productive feedback from 24 hour campfire on this one? Just asking.  | |||
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.375 H&H Magnum. Go classic all the way. | |||
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Bwanamrm, Sorry, I was having a bad afternoon and over reacted. As to being cheap and having a hard time making a decision. I'm not sure if I'm cheap or not. I do know my yearly income is about 65k and a 15k leopard hunt is 23% of my income, so if that makes me cheap then I'm cheap. In regards to not being able to make a decision, I will admit that my nature is to be well informed and research any project before I commit it. I do like to know and understand how things work, I read as much as I can with my schedule. You know the old saying, “the devil is in the detailsâ€.Here is one more analogy for you. 20 years ago my wife and I wanted to build a log house, we were convinced that’s what we wanted. Well after 2 years of talking to builders, going to trade shows, to sawmills, reading many books and talking to log homeowners we decided a log house wasn’t for us. We still like the way they look, but they don’t fit our life style very well. That is just one case where my commitment to making an informed decision kept us from making a bad decision. Other than that I’m just a dumb ass country boy from Alabama who loves to hunt, reload and can’t spell or write a letter. So can we still be friends? ______________________ | |||
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Big Guy, I guess I thought you were one of those guy who hate the WSM line without ever trying them. Sorry, and thanks for your thoughts. Dungbeetle, Nope, we all know this is the best African board on the web. ______________________ | |||
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You're not cheap....you are just "careful with money". Seriously, I find that if I watch my nickels the dollars take care of themselves and I can blow them extravagantly on ridiculously priced hunting trips! NO ONE who hunts africa can ever be called "cheap" IMO. Best, JohnTheGreek P.S. When you gonna let loose with some of that cash and come upland hunting over here. I am heading to The Fayoum Oasis for Dove and Sand Grouse again two weekends from now. Hurry and you can still get a cheap fare! | |||
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Overkill is shopping for 9 months when you could have been driving a new truck! BTW I vote for the 375, never know when you might stumble across something big in Africa. Have gun- Will travel The value of a trophy is computed directly in terms of personal investment in its acquisition. Robert Ruark | |||
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Except that 9 months of $500 per month truck payments went into a safari fund that came to total $4500. That is a Namibia plains game trip or half a Tanzania Buffalo. I sold some real estate last year and needed a new truck desperately so bought a Toyota Tacoma 4x4. Can I just tell you how hard it was to do that when I knew I could have gone elephant hunting!?!? DOWNRIGHT PAINFUL ! Mark has his priorities straight and is smart enough to get the truck AND hunt the fun stuff! JMHO, JohnTheGreek | |||
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Mark, I'm going to have to agree with Ray, and Allen on this one! If you are takeing two rifles, which I believe would be a good idea, I'd take the 338 Win Mag, and the 375 H&H. The reasons have already been stated here by more than one person. You say you want to take your 375 H&H because it is your "AFRICA" rifle, and the 338 Win mag, properly loaded will do the trick on any of your targets. In this case you can take a couple of the animals with the 375 as well, to blood it in Africa, it is only fitting. The 338 with heavy bullets will not damage your cat, but then neither will the 375 H&H with a 300 gr Nosler Partition. Those are the two I'd take because the ammo for the others, might be hard to come by in Namimbia, if it is lost, as someone said the 338, and 375 are everywhere in Africa! ....Mac >>>===(x)===> MacD37, ...and DUGABOY1 DRSS Charter member "If I die today, I've had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"~ME 1982 Hands of Old Elmer Keith  | |||
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Thanks Mark, for the record I am not a WSM hater which I believe you have surmised. | |||
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Yeah your right. The problem was I REALLY didn't want to buy one but my old truck was costing me too much to keep it going. So I'd go to the dealer and get pissed of at the %$^&* sales people for trying to sell me an over priced truck, which would cut into my hunting. Then a month or so, and a few hundred dollars of repair bills, later I'd start over. ______________________ | |||
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