Would like to know what restrictions there may be on hunting plains game in various African countries with a rifle that has no manufacturer or caliber markings and is an 8X57. I have a Mauser that my dad picked up during the great war in Europe. It is in a sporter stock and the metal has not been altered so it is stamped with the plant and year of manufacture and serial number but not much else.. I have heard that some countries will not let you bring in rifles chambered for military cartridges. Does this still include the 8X57 and what are they going to say about no caliber stamp on the rifle?

They are going to say that you can't bring it into the country.

quote:

Originally posted by sharpsguy:
They are going to say that you can't bring it into the country.

Which county do you have experience with?

RSA.

Namibia won't care

Only Zambia may present a problem for a "military" caliber, but since the 8x57 is no longer in use by any military (to my knowledge), even Zambia should be OK.

Regarding the markings on the rifle, the only thing they care about is the serial no. For make, just put "Mauser". If they ask you about the markings, tell them they are under the scope bases.

8x57 is a fine caliber for Africa, a sort of "junior" version of the 9.3x62. Shoot everything excluding Buff/Ele with it. Yes, I think it's good for Lion, esp with old fashioned softs.

I have never had anyone check the caliber of my rifles.

All they want is the serial number should match the import permit.

quote:

I have never had anyone check the caliber of my rifles.

All they want is the serial number should match the import permit.

Only two trips.....but Iv'e had the same experience.

.

I have had a lady at the Bulawayo airport check the caliber on the rifle and check each cartridge headstamp for caliber. I am glad I did not reload my 8mm rem mag with 375 brass.

Tom

Twoseventy...thats just because she was looking for a bribe not because of any law.

My rifle is a 'mauser' made by Dumolin...it Says Dumolin on the barrel and has 3 serial numbers (to match licenses in various countries). I have handed Scandinavia, Poland and German as well as my Native Zimbabwe and I do alot of hunting in Mozambique and taken the rifle with me to SA and Namibia...never had a problem

Point out the correct serial Number to match the paperwork and everybody is happy.

re the ammo...It is always wise to carry ammo that is headstamped to match the cal of the rifle. It is something that the uninformed can jump on. I did have trouble 12 years ago going hunting in SA with 9,3 ammo loaded in 30-06 cases but it took 10 minutes to clear that up and I continued on my way. Still, not worth the hassel and have always carried correctly headstamped ammo where possible.

South Africa doesn't have any restriction on ex military calibres but you might be getting confused with the international law that prohibits airlines from carrying ex military calibres.

Fortunately, most airlines ignore this nowadays but some do not and are a real pain in the arse about it.

These might help:

http://www.shakariconnection.c...l-with-firearms.html

http://www.shakariconnection.c...ort-regulations.html

You might also like to do a search on the Travel forum where this has recently(ish) been discussed.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Ganyana:


My rifle is a 'mauser' made by Dumolin...it Says Dumolin on the barrel.....

Dumolin ? .....Must be a fake

i may be wrong but the military has and still does use 30-06, 12 gauge shotguns,45 auto, and snipers have used 300 win mags and many others. i think that law or rule was used more when there was more military actions in SA,Zim,Zam and angola but not sure if that is true

Gerry,

The rule goes back to just after WWII when it was agreed that commercial passenger aircraft could carry sporting weapons but not weapons of war and some bright spark or more accurately, dumbarse decided the difference between the two (in the case of ordinary small arms) would be that if any particular calibre had ever been used by a military force anywhere in the world, it was a weapon of war and if not, it was a sporting firearm. - I know that's bloody ridiculous but that was the criteria set down at the time.

Most airlines, esp American ones are sensible about it and pretty much ignore the rule but some, notably BA usually do not and we've had several occasions where hunters coming from the UK on BA flights have been told (in advance) that .308s would not be permitted to travel.

If you check previous threads here (I think) and in the travel section, you'll find this has come up several times and several times I've tried to get a definitive statement from BA about what they will and will not allow to travel and they've always dodged the issue.

My advice would be to try to avoid calibres that have been used by the military if at all possible and expecially when travelling on BA flights and/or especially out of the UK.

quote:

Originally posted by twoseventy:
I have had a lady at the Bulawayo airport check the caliber on the rifle and check each cartridge headstamp for caliber. I am glad I did not reload my 8mm rem mag with 375 brass.

Tom

I had this happen leaving Tanz. They checked my wife's 308, counted the cartridges and the empties and checked that against our import permits. Luckily they did not do this with my 375 cuz I gave all of my leftover rounds to the PH.

I don't think they care about what you take out. If you leave ammo with the PH, jsut tell them you got done hunting early and shot the leftovers at targets, leaving the empties in Africa.

What 270 said, +1.
Zimbabwe, 12-2008 checked headstamps and counted coming in, and counted leaving.
RSA 4-2010 checked headstamps entering.

It ain't worth going to jail and risk confiscation of the firearms.

Rich

Tell them your scope got knocked out of alignment, really bad, and you had to resight the rifle.
Mostly true story for me, stock screw backed out and I did have to resight rifle, just made it sound worse than was when leaving.

As Steve said, I think the caliber problems will be encountered with some airlines. I once had to jump through hoops to get BA to accept my wife's .308. They list 7x57, 30-06, 8x57, etc. on their no-fly list although with proper explaination I think any of them can go... if you want to go through all of that. They are the only airline I've had the problem with.
I've hunted RSA with an 8x57 and it is a good caliber for virtually all plains game with proper bullets. Mine to was a sporterized Mauser. Can't see it being a problem so long as there is a serial number that matches your paperwork. Have also carried a re-barrel "Mauser" (7x64) with no markings except serial number and caliber without problems. Just to be sure, why not have a gunsmith stamp the caliber? Its a simple thing to do and wont harm the finish. Only take a few minutes and at most wouldn't cost but a couple dollars. Small price for peace of mind!