Re: Shooting Bill's elephants

11 October 2004, 10:47

LV Eric

Quote:

WILL, If he shoots #4 any lower he will go through the tusk socket. Those other two you said were high I don't agree with. The zygomatic arch is your landmark, and the brain resides just above this.

Geronimo

You are right but sometimes you have to shoot them through the socket to get into the brain. Thats why #4 is a bad first shot. If you shot it over the socket you probably would miss the brain.

11 October 2004, 12:28

Widowmaker416

I was a first hand witness to a Elephant shooting in Zimbabwe this past June. He took it through the lungs at about 40 yards. The Elephant didn't go 30 yards before dropping. I'd take a lung shot any day, I was evry impressed with how fast it ran out of air.
To much room for error on the brain shot.

Widowmaker416

10 October 2004, 16:37

Will

too far to the left

OK

too high

too high

10 October 2004, 16:33

Frans Diepstraten

First of all, Bill, great pictures. They inspired me.

I hope you don't mind I put them to use.

I tried to buy Bell's book on E-Bay the other day, but someone bid more than the retail price, so I missed the instruction on shot placement. I tried anyway:

[image]http://fdiepstraten.tripod.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/elephant1.jpeg[/image]

(this one doesn't show up in preview (?) See http://www.terrahunt.com/id17.html for the picture)

Classic side brain shot, I think I've seen enough pictures and drawing to put this one about right.

Wow, more difficult...what do you think?

The frontal brain shot, again, I think I'm about right...maybe a shimmer to the left would have been better.

I don't know, a trifle higher maybe?

Phieeuw...maybe it's better to wait for the frontal shot...in retrospect, I think I might be off to the right a bit...

I couldn't get Paint Shop to give me a smaller dot, just imagine the center of the blob to be the point of aim.

So...how many dead elephants have I got? How many either stomped me, or ran away with a headache?

Frans

10 October 2004, 16:45

LV Eric

Quote:

too far to the left

OK

too high

too high

I agree with the above especially #1 I made that mistake once on a follow up shot on a cow on the ground that was standing back up. That is when my 375 H&H wasnt enough gun. Experience is the best teacher.

#4 is Way too high because it appears his head is raised which changes things ALOT.

#2 is the only shot I would take as a first shot under most circumstances. I would wait for a direct frontal or side shot. The only exception is if it was a huge bull in a herd that was spooked and they were about to run off or some other similar thing like a bull swinging around just before a charge. If you hang with them long enough a proper shot will make itself avaliable. Rushing a shot on an elephant is not good and 1,3,4 would be a rushed shot. I dont like funny angles.

I have shot 9 elephants. Had 2 problems: one full charge and once got caught in a herd of cows and I/we were paying more mind to the cow walking quickly to my left side and not the one I needed to shoot, hiding behind a tree infront of us. I rushed the shot, not by choice, otherwise there would have been all sorts of hell break lose and charges etc as they were already stirred up. They were a fiesty group all stirred up. After aiming for a second or two and worring about the elephant to my left, I ended up shooting the cow too far foward as it came out from behind the tree and needed make a follow up shot like #1. I didnt even bother to look at the shot cow go down, I immeaditally looked to my left to see if we were being charged thankfully we wernt or there would have been alot of paperwork and explaining to Parks. Then when we looked at the downed cow we ran behind and I shot it just like its marked above.

10 October 2004, 18:23

Michael Robinson

When I do take mine, it will most likely be behind the shoulder. But shooting high seems to be the biggest error committed by those who try the brain shot on elephant. Just too damned tricky a shot for me, unless no other option presents itself.

11 October 2004, 04:46

Will

Geronomo,

If that elephant was sporting 100 lb. tusks, it matters not whether the bullet would pass through the socket, which it probably wouldn't in this case, to hit the brain.

Talk is cheap. When an instantaneous decision has to be made instead of studying photographs, it is a lot tougher and easy to choke ... which I have had my share of.

I think it would take an enormous amount of experience to be 99% certain of a brain shot under all circumstances. Even the old hands sometimes miss (that other 1%).

Old age and budgetary constraints will prevent me from becoming 99% certain, but I'm getting pretty close.

11 October 2004, 04:17

Geronomo

WILL, If he shoots #4 any lower he will go through the tusk socket. Those other two you said were high I don't agree with. The zygomatic arch is your landmark, and the brain resides just above this.

Geronimo