I am planning to go to Namibia in July to hunt a huge Gemsbok and an impeccably striped Zebra. I have a Win Model 70 in .300 WinMag, a Model 70 in .375 H&H and a Model 70 in .404 Jeffery and a CZ550 in 416 Rigby. I am an equally poor shot with each rifle and will only take one anyway. Which would you recommend I take and why?

quote:

I am an equally poor shot with each rifle

First order of business is to get better st shooting one of them.

In which case I suggest te 300 mag.

Or, if you see that you are not getting any better at shooting any of the above calibers, you might wish to listen to the "bigger is bber" crowd with marginal shots.

Then I suggest you get a 50 BMG

Depending what the terrain is like.
If its more open I would take the 300 with tough bullets like 180grn Swift A Frames.
If its Bushy terrain then I would take the 375.

My question is which is more comfortible shooting for you also which wouldnt you mind carrying on your shoulder for 10 hours aday and which of the bunch is scoped my go would be the 300 shoots flat hits pretty hard

Anything from the 6.5x55 Swedish and above would be my choice.

I have shot quite a lot of plains game with various 270 caliber wildcats.

never felt I needed anything bigger.

Ive only used a 7x57 and 8mm rem for plains game but 270 and 300 would work very well reserve the 375 for the dg

Gemsbok and Zebra are tough but they are not battle tanks so you don't need a cannon to kill them.

Another vote for the 300 if you practise or get some tuition to shoot it well.

Why don't you shoot it well ? Is it recoil ? Your openess and honesty about your ability is refreshing and your P/H will respect you for it.

July makes it almost too late to buy a lesser recoiling rifle unless you have a lot of time to iron out any anomolies and practise between then and now.

What you will need is a HUGE and IMPECCABLE rifle preferably shooting Platinum bullets. If you can't afford platinum bullets, then gold or silver bullets might work but aren't as much of a sure thing. With platinum you should have no problem. Don't worry about not being able to hit the broad side of a barn with the rifle.

Wink says he is equally poor with the rifles, but I think he is more likely equally proficient and can shoot. I would recommend the 300 with Barnes Triple Shocks or A Frames.

There are occasional opportunities to take newly declared problem lions or problem ele's at bargain prices in some areas, and for that reason, I would recommend the 375 H&H or larger.

300 WM.

Your self-deprecation seems to be under-appreciated...

Because of the distances in Namibia, scope combination may be an issue worth reviewing.

Otherwise I'm in the bigger is usually better crowd...or one.

I have shot numerous zebra and gemsbok with the .300 WSM and it was quite adequate, with 180 grain trophy bonded bear claws.

You can't go wrong with the .375 with TSX or A-Frames. Use the 270 grain, it should shoot as flat as you need out to 300. Anything past that needs a closer look, IMO.

Good luck!

I went to Namibia in 2006 and shot 14 animals including gemsbok and mtn. zebra with a Model 70 300 win mag using Federal factory 200 grain TBBC bullets. All 1 shot kills. I only took that rifle using a Zeiss 3X9 scope.

So I would take the 300 mag and enjoy.

BigB

Take the 300. Both of my teenage boy's shot zebra & gemsbuck last year. All were one shot kills with a 30-06. A 300 is plenty of gun.

.300wm with Swift A-Frames will serve you well.

quote:

I am an equally poor shot with each rifle

if this is indeed true, you should be asking walter

Count another vote here for the .300 Win Mag. I killed an old Gemsbok bull with mine using 180 grain Nosler AccuBond bullets and it worked just fine.

I know I'll probably get some flack for this, but if being "equally poor" with each rifle is the result of being recoil sensitive, you might consider a good muzzle brake.

My .300 came with one on it and I love the fact that it recoils like a .243.

Wink,

I agree with ozhunter. If you are hunting where the shots are not way out there I'd take the 375. A marginal hit on a zebra or a gemsbok can cause a real goat rope and the 375's added horsepower may come in handy. If your talking about vast open spaces the 300 with a premium 180 or 200 grain bullet would be my choice.

Mark

If you only hunt animals such as the 300 WM have enough, if you want to hunt something bigger and get the 375, but zebra and oryx with you 300 well-armed.

Oscar.

Saeed
You are a consistant voice for the smaller calibers for plains game and quite clearly a most experienced African hunter. I don't wish to hijack this thread but my question to you may be relevant and helpful to the originator, since there is always talk here about various caliber/animal/condition scenarios. So I'd like to pose an extreme question. If you were carring an accurate 270 Weatherby magnum loaded with a high quality 150 grain bullet and had a clear shot from a stable position on a calm day at a large Eland at exactly 300 yards, would you take it?

300 hands down

Wallace I may not have as much experience as Saeed but my first eland was taken with a 7x57 and it worked great so a 270 would work just as well shot placement is key to success

I used a .300 WSM on my safari to Namibia. I took a Mt. Zebra and Gemsbok, the zebra went down within 50 yards.

Use a premium 180 or 200 grain bullet and you'll be set.

I used 180 MRX's by Barnes.

I used a 300 RUM for my first plains game trip. Shooting 180 grain Swift A frames I had all one shot kills. My list included a gemsbok and zebra.

Stoke that .300 with quality bullets and don't give it a second thought. I've cleanly killed tons of African plains game, including 14 gemsbok and several zebras with various .300s without a problem. Longest shot on a gemsbok was at 467 and the longest shot on a zebra was at 370 - both crumpled. My closest shot was a big eland bull at about 40 yards. It dropped in its tracks, too. The bigger guns will work fine up close, but they aren't near as versatile as a good .300.

If you have a 375 H&H and don't take it to Africa you will burn in Hell for eternity.

quote:

Originally posted by ozhunter:
Depending what the terrain is like.
If its more open I would take the 300 with tough bullets like 180grn Swift A Frames.
If its Bushy terrain then I would take the 375.

Wink,

If you are hunting the Khomas Hochland for your zebra (I'm assuming you are after Mountain Zebra) then you WILL need the reach of a 300 Win Mag.

A 340Wby or 338RUM would be even better and it's an excuse for another rifle

Wink ----- I took my Zebra with a .358 STA and a 270 grain North Fork bullet going 2950 fps and was quite impressed with the combo, plus the Zebras toughness. If I were you I would take the .416 Rigby and use the 370 grain North Fork bullet loaded to 2750 fps, one of my favorite Rigby loads. The lighter Barnes TSX bullet would also do quite well for a flat shooting load. That said, the .300 Winny with the 200 grain bullets are also quite sufficient. Good luck and good shooting.

quote:

If you have a 375 H&H and don't take it to Africa you will burn in Hell for eternity.

The above should be taken seriously! Having said that, my zebra was taken with a 300WM using 180 grain CT bullets, while my Gemsbok was taken with a 30.06 using the same bullets.
Peter.

I have to agree with Fjold and Peter!

As a general purpose medium rifle I've always taken either a 9,3x62 or a .375 H&H. Both work dramatically well if you can shoot them well.

Of what you have ... which are all adequate ... take the one you shoot the best and won't mind dragging around for a week.

I used my 300 WM on both gembok and zebra in '05. At that time it was my only choice. Now if you took away the 416 Rigby we'd have the exact same battery, all M70's.

If I was to take just one rifle to Namibia today I'd take the 300 if I was in open country, or the 375 for bushveld.

Used a 7mm Rem Mag with 160 A Frames. One shotters on zebra at 175 and gemsbok at 300. If the .284 is good enough, the 300 will do very nicely.

.416 works great on zebra. All my gemsbok have been with a bow. (2 down in sight and 1 within earshot). I'd split the difference and go with a .375. Nice medium calibre with little recoil and pretty flat shooting which could come into play with either animal. But agree with earlier comments, get good with whatever you take. It's all about shot placement, bullet or arrow.

The question was: which of .300WM,.375H&H,.404J & .416Rig to use- not of lesser or greater calibers? That said, you cannot go wrong with any of them, though in my opinion, the .300WM is the best choice. Oryx and zebra are no tougher than our elk, and the .300WM is a fine elk round. The other three might be overkill, if there is such a thing. As always, whichever you use, use the best bullet for the job. For what its worth, I used a .338WM on my oryx & zebra with handloaded 225 gr Barnes TSX. One shot kills on both. Why? Because when I told my PH I had .300WM, .338WM & .375 H&H he said bring the .338= and stoke it with Barnes TSX. So, Wink, I would take the .300WM from your options, assuming you shoot it as well as the others, and not give it another thought. Otherwise, take which ever suits you. Good luck; enjoy the trip and TAKE IT ALL IN AND TAKE LOTS OF PHOTOS.

Wink- By the way, my hunt was also in Namibia, two hour drive northwest of Windhoek. If in a dangerous game area up north I would recommend one of the big bores(including the .375 which some consider a med. bore). I also had a .270 which I used for the small stuff.

Wink, if your in a dangerous game area, your P/H would have to be grossly incompetant, blind and out in the bush for the first time ever in his life, for you to get into trouble with DG.

Take the .300.

quote:

Originally posted by Wallace Gaye:
Saeed
You are a consistant voice for the smaller calibers for plains game and quite clearly a most experienced African hunter. I don't wish to hijack this thread but my question to you may be relevant and helpful to the originator, since there is always talk here about various caliber/animal/condition scenarios. So I'd like to pose an extreme question. If you were carring an accurate 270 Weatherby magnum loaded with a high quality 150 grain bullet and had a clear shot from a stable position on a calm day at a large Eland at exactly 300 yards, would you take it?

I have killed an eland with a 270 wildcat of our own design - 270/404 Short - using a 150 grain Jensen bullet - at over 500 yards.

I hit him in the shoulders with my first shot, he ran a few yards and stopped, and I fired another shot at him, he stumbled then fell down.

The bullets holes were about 4 inches apart. One went through, and one we recovered under the skin on the other side.

I think Wink is kidding that he is a bad shot.