The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting Largest game for .30-06Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
| Largest game for .30-06 | Login/Join |
| One of Us |
Dear all, which would in your EXPERIENCE be the largest African (plains) game, for which a .30-06 is suitable under "normal" circumstances? I know this is a "fuzzy" question, but I am planning to get a .30-06 built for my general (European) use, but would like to be able to use it on plains game, too. my current reasoning for .30-06 is mainly its global availability and its potential for rather powerful handloads. Please assume that the range would be limited to app. 200 m and that top-quality bullets are used (e.g. a-frame) Many thanks, looking forward to your advice and or recommendations for other calibers. M. | ||
|
| Moderator |
With a proper bullet, kudu and zebra. George  | |||
|
| One of Us |
with good 180gr. bullets and proper shot placement I would be comfortable shooting anything below Eland size animals. Of course your shooting ability's and where your hunting do make a difference to. the 30-06 Imho is one of the best all around calibers on the market and has been forever. just my opinion and opinion's vary  | |||
|
One of Us |
Zebra and wildebiest by 30-06 are possible but with excellent shooting and good bullets. Eland,sable and roan are not for this gun. | |||
|
| One of Us |
guys, thanks for your quick answers. Do your assessments also apply for use of 225 grs. bullets vs. customary 180 grs. ? I would take handloads with me. cheers M. P.S. I do own a 7 mm Wby. which has more punch, but ammunition availability in case of travel loss is minimal/non-existant, therefore probably not a choice, is it? | |||
|
| One of Us |
With good bullets at the right weight in the right spot it is suitable for everything in Africa except elephant, buffalo, rhino and giraffe. STAY IN THE FIGHT! | |||
|
| One of Us |
IMO 180 grains loads that your rifle likes at good speeds is the way to go. but if your rifle like 225 better use them. mine loves 180 grains  as I love to say my 300 dollar 06 dropped a water buck like a fat lady diving for the last dounut  load up a bunch of ammo practice your ass off and have fun when you get to Africa  | |||
|
One of Us |
I love these 06 threads. In years past elephants were hunted with .303s According to one of the PHs in camp, (Quote) I have used my 30.06 to kill everything from eland to spring hare. It will do the job just fine. You might want to factor in the terrain you will be hunting. In alot of areas the shots will be rather short. Seems the 225 grain bullets will be the ticket there. In the desert and elsewhere you might want the lighter bullets if your more accurate with them. I have walked in the foot prints of the elephant, listened to lion roar and met the buffalo on his turf. I shall never be the same. | |||
|
one of us |
With good bullets, the caliber would do fine on any plains game, including eland. None of them are armor plated. Just take sensible shots and shoot straight. Tony Mandile - Author "How To Hunt Coues Deer" | |||
|
one of us |
In my opinion the 30-06 will effectively take any plains game animal in Africa. There may be better calibers for some of the large stuff however there is no question in my mind that the 30-06 can get the job done. I like 180 grain bullets in the caliber and feel they offer the best compromise between SD and velocity. I also believe in 200 grain Nosler Partitions if one plans on hunting the heavier antelope. As with all hunting, hitting the animals in the correct spot has more of an impact on success/failure than caliber selection. ****************************************************************** R. Lee Ermey: "The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle." ****************************************************************** We're going to be "gifted" with a health care plan we are forced to purchase and fined if we don't, Which purportedly covers at least ten million more people, without adding a single new doctor, but provides for 16,000 new IRS agents, written by a committee whose chairman says he doesn't understand it, passed by a Congress that didn't read it but exempted themselves from it, and signed by a President, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes, for which we'll be taxed for four years before any benefits take effect, by a government which has already bankrupted Social Security and Medicare, all to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a country that's broke!!!!! 'What the hell could possibly go wrong?' | |||
|
| One of Us |
When I used 30-calibre(300WM) for African's plainsgame , I shot 10 animals by 200gn Orix.It was excellent. I'm going to Masailand this October,for plainsgame there I'll use Orix bullet too. | |||
|
one of us |
With good shot placement and the right bullets they can and do take eland and buff without problems..... I'm not suggesting they're ideal for that but they will do the job..... and I've seen them do it many times. Thinking about it, Mrs Shakari took her eland with my 30.06 and it moved 2 paces after the shot. | |||
|
One of Us |
There is NO southern or east African plainsgame that you wouldn't use a .30-06 for, and for about 95% of circumstances it'd be fine. Sure, for LD Eland you want a bigger gun, but for Cape/Livingstone's Eland under most conditions where they are hunted today, the .30-06 will get it done just fine if you use a quality bullet and put it in the right place. Quality bullets and being patient enough to get good shots are the key, for any animal and any caliber. My wife, son and I have combined to kill kudu, zebra, sable with .270s, using 150 grain nosler partitions, and they were all 1-shot kills with the animals dropped very close to where shot, nearly always in sight. If it can be done well with a .270, there is no reason a .30-06 should give reason to pause. I think that a quality 180 or 200 grain bullet for a .30-06 is about perfect. With the offerings we have to choose from in this day and age, there is no reason to need a heavier bullet in this caliber. | |||
|
| one of us |
Elephant, it's sooo obvious. Fill in some anecdotal story about some half crazed ivory hunter here...... Don't forget the pygmies here..... I met a guy that killed a polar bear at 200+ yards with a .223. | |||
|
one of us |
Assuming proper shot placement, the .30-06 will do the job on plains game just as effectively as a larger caliber. I just returned from Zim, where my son took among others two zebra, two wildebeest a kudu and a waterbuck with one shot each using 180 grain Failsafe bullets in a .30-06. | |||
|
| One of Us |
This months sports afield had a piece On Jack O'Conner and his rifles. His wife used his 06 in africa as a heavy rifle, taking lion, a bull elle , buff and a tiger in Inida among other game JD DRSS 9.3X74 tika 512 9.3X74 SXS Merkel 140 in 470 Nitro | |||
|
| one of us |
If I ever get to hunt bongo I won't be using a 30 06 Good for just about anything else with horns that is smaller than buffalo | |||
|
| one of us |
There's a guy here who works for the game dept and does all their control work. He has free rein to use any of the firearms in their armoury including a 500 double and he chooses to use his own .300 win mag for everything including elephants at night. I'm not suggesting I'd recommend small calibres for big game for everyone or as a matter of course, just that with the right bullet and shot placement, it's not impossible. | |||
|
One of Us |
Anything up to and including the smaller duikers.  Mike Wilderness is my cathedral, and hunting is my prayer. | |||
|
| one of us |
In my EXPERIENCE the .30-06 is not suitable for any African game. I have never shot anything in Africa with a .30-06. In fact, this might sound like heresy, but I have shot only two animals with an .06 - a caribou and a deer. I prefer a .308; if that won't do, then I move up to a .30 Magnum or a .338 Win, the latter being the ideal PG rifle IMO. | |||
|
One of Us |
Any and all plains game. I see no practical difference between a 300 win mag and 30-06 inisde of 250 yards. The differnce in velocity is going to be about 135 fps and the difference in energy is going be about 10%. There is not an eland on the planet that will know the difference and...250 yards is a long shot in the bush. Mike Legistine actu quod scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
|
| One of Us |
Bell killed 1,011 elephants with a series of 6 Rigby-made 7x57mm (.275 Rigby). http://www.africahunting.com/h...ell-1881-1951-a.html | |||
|
One of Us |
The 30-06 has killed many a moose in its day, so anything eland and below will fall to it. | |||
|
| one of us |
I've used an -06 700 Remington purchased new in 1972 on everything from dik-dik to Eland and most species in between. I have also taken lion and leopard with it. I usually used a Nosler partion 180 Grain handload at 2,725 fpd. That load is still very accurate in that rifle hundreds of rounds later. Using the old Hornady .308 220 grain steel jacketed solids it did a fine job drilling into hippo skulls. Don't ever sell the .30-06 short. Rich Elliott Rich Elliott Ethiopian Rift Valley Safaris | |||
|
One of Us |
I agree. I would not hesitate to hunt anything with a .30-06 and proper loads besides buff, ele, rhino, hippo. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ J. Lane Easter, DVM A born Texan has instilled in his system a mind-set of no retreat or no surrender. I wish everyone the world over had the dominating spirit that motivates Texans.– Billy Clayton, Speaker of the Texas House No state commands such fierce pride and loyalty. Lesser mortals are pitied for their misfortune in not being born in Texas.— Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to Texas in May, 1991. | |||
|
| One of Us |
I with Rich Elliott. I used a .280 for a long time and switched to a .300WM. Basically, anything .270 to .338 is similar to the .30-06. The .30-06 will do the job on nearly anything. | |||
|
One of Us |
I've had no problems with large PG, using 160 grain bullets out of a 280 Rem for years. Soon I will be committing sacrilege and taking 165 gr Remington Core-Lokt's. I'm sure they will bounce off Duikers and Baboons Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
|
One of Us |
My .30-06 has killed more game for me than the rest of my rifles. But it is, after all, a legendary and invincible Argentine WWII sporterized Mauser!  This was the first animal I successfully hunted in South Africa. This cull eland bull went 20 yards at a slow walk and dropped in his tracks. Even worse, I used 180 grain factory ammo. ~Ann   | |||
|
| One of Us |
I'd think anything but the really Big Four. Cats are fodder. Rich DRSS | |||
|
| One of Us |
JD has this one right. Eleanor O'Connor killed a hefalump with a 30.06/180 at about 25 yards. Dropped to the shot. Betcha' my dollars against your donuts that Jack would NEVER have written about that, if there had not been a bunch of Caucasian witnesses. Now, let's get real. We all know that the no. 1 elephant gun is a 7x57. So long as Bell is doing the shooting. My apologies for the hijack. Sorta'. Good hunting. | |||
|
| One of Us |
Given the ballistics, it could kill any animal in Africa, but I wouldnt want less than a .375. The nice thing about the 30-06 is that ammunition is readily available and cheap. Its not as hot as say a 300 weatherby, but who wants to spend 60 bucks a box. Often Americans will flinch with Weatherbys as they shoot faster and recoil worse. A friend just bought a 30-06 as he wanted something that was cheap to buy up lots of ammunition. | |||
|
one of us |
I am embarrassed to admit that I must be the only American hunter who has never even owned a 30-06. That isn't because I don't admire the cartridge, I do. It's just the way things turned out. Personally, I'll shoot anything with a .375 but there is many a well-known hunter who feels exactly about the '06. Their opinions are worth serious consideration. However, in Africa I'd go with the heaviest bullets my rifle liked. Penetration and short ranges are the key. In Africa 150 yards is a long shot. Sarge Holland's .375: One Planet, One Rifle . . . for one hundred years! | |||
|
| One of Us |
100s of animals with the 30-06 including, tough/big animals like bluebull, wildboar, moose etc. I think a good 180 grain bullet is essential for the bigger animals. I dont think a step up = 300 mags (yes I know the weatherby is a real killer and all), probably better to go to a 338 WM with a 250 grn bullet. | |||
|
| one of us |
Well, you ain't the only one. I have probably owned, bought, traded for or sold somewhere between 75-100 rifles over the last 50 years and not a one was a 30/06. That said, I did reload for one -- the Rem.742 my grandfather used for about 15 years. But I used my .264 with factory 140-gr. loads to kill 11 plains game critters that included gemsbok, kudu and zebra. All but one --because of me and not the caliber -- were one-shot kills. I've also used it on three caribou, at least eight elk, a red stag, three black bears and a 60" BC moose. So there's no reason a 30/06 wouldn't have done just as well on the plains game. On the same trip to Africa, my hunting partner shot his eland with a 7mm mag using a 165. gr. bullet. It went about 20 steps before dropping. Tony Mandile - Author "How To Hunt Coues Deer" | |||
|
| one of us |
mauser93..I double checked before chiming in on this one. Eleanor has 220 grain handloaded solids in her .30-06. Rich Elliott Rich Elliott Ethiopian Rift Valley Safaris | |||
|
| One of Us |
I have used my 300 Win with mild loads (very slightly faster than an 06)for everything but eland. Use Swift bullets and you are good to go for anything. A pal who is a crack shot uses a 250 Savage for everything up to and including eland. Never shot a roan but sable are much smaller than an elk. | |||
|
| One of Us |
Never been a fan of the 30-06 either but your statement is rather foolish...but this pretty much runs in the nature of many of your posts... | |||
|
| One of Us |
i think the original question referred to the 30~06 and from my experience, using the 180gr will be more then adequate for plains game,been using mine in Africa since 1994 and had no problems/worries,it does what it says on the box !! | |||
|
| One of Us |
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Mike_Dettorre: Any and all plains game. I see no practical difference between a 300 win mag and 30-06 inisde of 250 yards. QUOTE] +1 .30-06 with a 180gr bullets has been the benchmark for decades, its even better now with modern bullets. Thousands of plains games are taken with .30-06's each year in Africa with no hassle at all from forests to deserts. Too many people think you NEED a .375 to kill a kudu. Its great to use a .375 if you so choose but a .30-06 is the 'boring' everyday choice for many... While we discuss all kinds of fancy bullets and wildcats there are umpteen hunters who are not as gun nutty and hunt extensively with common calibres and never have issues...I think we lose sight of this too often For every fanatic with a wildcat and specially honed loads in a custom rifle there are 10 guys on safari with a .30-06 killing kudu, waterbuck, wildebeest, zebra et al quite effectively. I have used the 06 on warthogs, impala, eland, blesbuck, reedbuck and ostrich and used a .308 on kudu, all died quickly. | |||
|
| Administrator |
Exactly! I have used various 270 caliber wildcats to shoot several hundred heads of African plains game. Including sable, kudu, zebra and eland. I used 130 grain Barnes X, 140 grain Trophy Bonded Bear Claws, and 150 grain Jensen bullets. All performed extremely well. | |||
|
| Powered by Social Strata | Page 1 2 |
 | Please Wait. Your request is being processed... |
|
Visit our on-line store for AR Memorabilia