The Accurate Reloading Forums
Croc question
03 April 2014, 19:29
Jason PCroc question
Ok, first off, I want to say that I have absolutely zero experience with this topic!
My question is: What is your minimum, recommended caliber for a croc hunt? I will be hunting one this coming summer and would like to know your opinion.
Thank you
03 April 2014, 21:21
JCS271I have never shot a croc but I watch Swamp People reruns all the time when I stay at the Holiday Inn. They believe that .22LR is best but 17HMR is gaining popularity. If you want a little more horsepower,just use your scoped .375. Have fun, good luck!
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03 April 2014, 21:23
freischuetzHi
you can use a 22 hornet but sensible would be min 243 up is all about shot placement!
Hope that helps
03 April 2014, 21:31
fairgameAccuracy and choice of ammunition is the name of the game here and any flat shooting calibre in the 300 range will do.
If you want the skull then you have to be familiar with the neck shot. The PH will help you out with bullet placement.
I would guess about 30% of crocs are lost to poor shooting.
Hunting a big croc can be very fine sport indeed.
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03 April 2014, 21:33
MARK H. YOUNGJason,
A brain or spine shot hasto be taken on croc or your going to loose them in the water but you don't need a big rifle to brain a croc with. Any PG caliber with a good expanding bullet will work fine. If your going to try the spine shot at the back of the smile you might want something heavier as you'll need more penetration.
I brained one with a 338 WM and spined a second with 375 WBY but I think a 30-06 with TSX or similiar would have worked just as well.
Mark
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https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 03 April 2014, 21:52
shakariIf you're going for a head shot, I'd strongly recommend you use a solid because if you use a soft, it could well blow the skull to hell and the taxidermist will curse you.
03 April 2014, 21:57
Jason PThank you everyone. I was also going to ask about recommended bullets; thanks Shakari! I wasn't overly impressed with Barnes tsx when I used them for plains game, but it sounds like this might be good for a croc.
I have given my son my reliable 300 win ma to hunt with. I now have my "back up" 7mm WSM to use for the hunt. Factory ammo availability is very limited. I need to start preparing!
Thanks again!!
03 April 2014, 22:01
shotgun46The gun you shoot best with
03 April 2014, 22:08
MARK H. YOUNGSteve of course is correct. A brain shot particularly taken from an angle with a soft point does tends to blow the top of the head to peices but a soft can make up for being a litte off on your mark just because of the explosion of the head. A solid has to be placed very precisely in a croc's small brain but you'll have a very neat small hole in the skin. I think I wouold go the solid route if I ever hunted crocs again.
Mark
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https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 03 April 2014, 22:12
L. David KeithAs several mentioned, accuracy from a rifle you shoot well is paramount to killing a dinosaur. If you study croc anatomy, it makes better sense to aim for the neck than their small brain. You have more of a target that will kill or immobilize. I know of an instance where a client insisted upon the brain shot as his .375 "Will kill him stone dead if you hit them anywhere near the brain." He took the shot; the croc lunged into the river leaving his skull cap behind on the rocks. Never recovered. I use a .280 (160 grain bullet) but most any well placed shot with a good bullet into their spine will paralyze if not kill it.
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Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt:
http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018
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http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more:
http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more
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03 April 2014, 22:44
Rich ElliottWe always recommended an accurate .300 Win. Mag. Emphasis on accurate. My wife brained
a 14 ' 8" years ago with a .30-06. That rifle still puts 3 shots under and inch at 100 yards.
Rich Elliott
Ethiopian Rift Valley Safaris
03 April 2014, 23:05
shakariI should have course mentioned that pin point accuracy is vital in a croc brain shot...... you need to be confident of hitting a target the size of a golf ball or perhaps a chicken egg at whatever range you're shooting at.
Here's what can happen if you use a soft on a brain shot.
04 April 2014, 00:34
shakariAlternatively. You could just go fishing....... or should that be crocing?
04 April 2014, 01:03
Use Enough GunIt's been quite a while since you brought up croc fishing Steve!
04 April 2014, 01:45
shakariI haven't even thought about it for ages but when the subject of hunting flatties came up, it reminded me of how much fun it is!
04 April 2014, 02:27
Wendell Reichquote:
Originally posted by shotgun46:
The gun you shoot best with
Maybe the best answer so far.
04 April 2014, 02:33
shotgun46Thank you Wendell
04 April 2014, 04:24
retreeverCrocs: lizards and monsters the difference is 14 feet long and they get massive head, teeth, and weight. In 06 when I shot my 16 footer, there was a 12 footer in the skinning shed. When laid side by side the 12 footer was a lizard.
As for accuracy good shooter is most important. I mean the trigger man with an accurate rifle. Brain solids, neck behind the smile soft. My375 H&H would shoot 1 inch at 100yds. That is the kind of accuracy. It is just like shooting prarie dogs, head shots.
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04 April 2014, 04:37
Dutch44Mike:
I'm going for his big brother!
Dutch
04 April 2014, 06:32
armorerIf you brain shoot the croc, as I did, do not delay in promptly placing one or more in the body. Behind the smile or into the shoulder are fine. A thirty percent loss ratio was mentioned earlier. Do not let this happen to you.
05 April 2014, 01:53
Larry Sellers9.3 X 62 with a 286 grain Barnes TSX. Been there done that along with Hippo in addition to the Croc. Penetrates like a solid with the expansion features of a soft. End of story, just hit them where they need to be hit.
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05 April 2014, 01:56
fairgamequote:
Originally posted by retreever:
crocs lizards and monsters the difference is 14 feet long and they get massive head, teeth, and weight. In 06 when I shot my 16 footer, there was a 12 footer in the skinning shed. When laid side by side the 12 footer was lizard.
As for accuracy good shooter is most important. I mean the trigger man with an accurate rifle. Brain solids, neck behind the smile soft. My375 H&H would shoot 1 inch at 100yds. That is the kind of accuracy. It is just like shooting prarie dogs, head shots.
Never get tired of seeing that croc. There is a 100 plus years of history right there.
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05 April 2014, 04:38
Jason Pquote:
Originally posted by fairgame:
quote:
Originally posted by retreever:
crocs lizards and monsters the difference is 14 feet long and they get massive head, teeth, and weight. In 06 when I shot my 16 footer, there was a 12 footer in the skinning shed. When laid side by side the 12 footer was lizard.
As for accuracy good shooter is most important. I mean the trigger man with an accurate rifle. Brain solids, neck behind the smile soft. My375 H&H would shoot 1 inch at 100yds. That is the kind of accuracy. It is just like shooting prarie dogs, head shots.
Never get tired of seeing that croc. There is a 100 plus years of history right there.
Can you imagine what's been in that croc's stomach through so many years??
05 April 2014, 11:01
georgeldFor something so damned ugly,
that's beautiful!!
Thanks for sharing the pictures again.
George
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08 April 2014, 02:01
Tim HeraldBeing no expert, I think about any well constructed bullet will obviously work for a head shot. What really stuck out to me is the huge size of the jowl/neck area on a big croc. There is a lot of (hide and) muscle to get through before you hit that large spinal column. I shot mine with a .416Rem soft a couple of times behind the smile for insurance, and to the best of my recollection, at least one did not pass through at 60 yards. That would really have me considering one of the larger calibers if thinking about a neck shot. I love the .300 mag, and I think most of the time it would be OK, but I would feel a lot better with a .375 or larger as long as it is an accurate rifle.
you can see what I mean about the super thick neck area...
And yes the hole in the jaw was from a pitiful shot the day before...doesn't matter how big the gun is, that kind of shooting won't kill 'em.
Good Hunting,
Tim Herald
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08 April 2014, 23:05
Gayne C. YoungThis man eater just caught in Uganda was 18 foot
http://gametrails.org/monster-...oc-caught-in-uganda/09 April 2014, 04:39
Marty
Behind the smile with a 375 RUM, Barnes TSX. On a mud flat across a small river in Mozambique, 2006.
He thrashed a might, but went nowhere.
