A question for those who have been there. What are the usual ranges at which Elephant are shot? after reading The perfect shot. How does one best go about practicing shooting to get ready for an Elephant hunt?

els
I have been to Africa one time, Zimbabwe, June 2004.
I killed 3 elephants with my 450 No2 double rifle. Two cows, frontal brain at 6 yards, side brain at 12 yards and a 55 lb bull at 120 yards, first 2 shots in the shoulder and leg, he spun around and charged us, I ran toward him, he went a short distance, fell down, and as he got up I brained him at about 55/60 yards.
I would be prepared for a shot from point blank to 100 yards.
Study the pictures in the "Perfect Shot". Then study real elephants at your closest zoo, and again when you see them in Africa.
There is NOTHING like Elephant hunting.
NOTHING.

for what it's worth the elephant's brain is about the size of an American football.

Dr. Stone, I presume?

Ernie,
Shot my two eles at 13 and 16 yards! Expect to be up close and personal. And welcome to the forum!

To get ready for the actual hunt, hang out with your local banker and engineer buddies and listen carefully to their well-crafted stories!

Generally the range is close, especially if you are trying a brain shot- Wouldn't suggest a client tries a brain shot at more than 25 paces and preferably closer. Most of the problem there is shot placement. See the African Hunter pocket shot placement book for a proper cut-a-way of the skull in possition on an elephant.

If you are taking a shoulder/heart shot, I would think anything over 60 yards is unusual, but when that 80lber is running for the parks boundary... 100 is feasible.

Find yourself a BF375 (Belt-Feed 375 H&H) then spray and pray!

Hi Russel,
I was thinking that if your gout was better I could get you to hold a helium balloon over your head and run back and forth. That should give me some real world shooting practice. Thanks for the replies. Off to the shooting range today.

Only if John can take turns with me!

Have shot 3 in Zimbabwe. One brain shot from front with 375 60ft. Went down right back up. One in lungs when he turned. Got across boundary into park and could not follow died there. Second shot at 50ft with 470NE heart/ lung. Ran 75yds and died. Third shot at 50ft with 416Rigby heart/lung. Went about a mile and died. Placement could have been better in all cases, but distance was not the problem. For some reason I was nervous. Can't figure out why.

Els, I hunted my bull in the jess...A thick river bottom 14 feet high brush and grass 8 to 10 foot high...Was as close as 20 feet to bull eles...My shot was at 30 feet with a very steep angle..I was on the river bed he was up on top of river bank maybe 15.5 feet to the top of his head or a little higher...
There were 24 bull eles together...
Know there anatomy...brain is behind there eyes and not above it...Shooting must be percise or you may shatter ivory...

Mike

Mike

thanks for the replies
It sounds as if almost all the shooting took place off hand at relatively short distances. No time for shooting sticks.

off to the range for some off hand shooting.

Dr.S, you will never be the same after you experience it that way...Up close...

Mike

IMO, it makes a difference if you are hunting a trophy bull or tuskless cows in a herd, that is the distance and prep for the shot. Mine was 47 yd frontal brain--only shot available at the time.
I would study the ele anatomy and visualize all the angles of the head from the front and shots from the side.
Also, know the bullet path at short and long yardages for iron sights and scope-low power and lastly practice 3 quick shots at target at different distances, offhand.
Don't propose to be an expert on this type of hunting, but these are the areas I need to work on before I go on a hunt.

Dak

els!

On a dozen elephants my initial shots ranged from 9 to 39 yards. Two cows that charged were killed at 6 and 7 yards. Know where your rifle hits at 5 to 100 yds (in case of a longer follow up shot on a wounded and escaping animal). Practice shooting off hand at 5 to 30 yds. For a brain shot you need to have 2" accuracy from off hand and your limit will be how far you can maintain a 2" group. On high heart/lung shots 4" groups will assure a good killing hit.

465H&H