I returned Sunday from my hunt with Swainsons Safaris in Zimbabwe. I'd, firstly, like to offer my sincere congratulations to both Wendell and PAHunter on their absolutely fabulous buffalo trophies!

Very briefly, I took two nicely configured 40" bulls (SCI 101 & 103.5) with one shot each, using my .505 for the first time. With the Barnes 570 grain "X" bullets, the first bull was taken at 60 yards in the chest, just forward of the right shoulder, completely shattering the offside shoulder and recovered just protruding out of the hide. The second buffalo was shot at 100 yards just behind the shoulder. I had incorrectly judged him to be quartering away slightly at the shot and the bullet was found under the hide about an inch behind the offside shoulder. Although both shoulders were missed and heart untouched, both lungs were essentially gone. He expired just as quickly as the first and never, on cape buffalo, have I seen it so apparent that a followup shot was completely unecessary. Both hobbled for a few yards and expired. Both bullets gave 100% weight retention and I'll post a photo soon.

[ 03-27-2003, 14:31: Message edited by: Nickudu ]

Great buff !!,

Could you please tell me more about your .505 Gibbs rifle, what action, what scope length of barrel etc??

WOW! Very nice!

Nick

Nick,

Thresholds!!! as we have discussed before.

Bruce Bertram and Geoff McDonald reckon it all starts at 50 Caliber.

505 Power

Mike

Very nice , especially like the character of the bosses on the first one.

Thanks, Rusty.

PC,
My .505 is based on the CZ-550 action. It has a 22" barrel with integral lug by "Truvelo", of South Africa. While the rifle has excellent irons and shoots both the 570 "X" and the 600 Super Solids to the same 1.50" group at 100 yards, I feel more at home with a scoped rifle and selected the very rugged 2.5x Leupold Compact for this caliber. I've put over 300 rounds through the rifle to date, half of which with the scope attached and have had no problems. While there, I let all who wanted, try shooting the rifle and all shot it fairly well, including the trackers. My "PH", Lance Nesbitt of Swainsons, wanted to buy it on the spot but I deferred doing so until I take a few more buffalo with it, hopefully 2004, in Tanzania. Although the gun weight of 10 pounds was not exactly fun to pack around all day, it proved no more difficult to put to effective use than my 8.5 pound .458 Lott, on an earlier hunt with Swainsons. While I'm still looking for my dream buffalo, such as that of PAHunter and Wendell, I have a steak of 6 straight 100+ SCI bulls going at the moment and you won't hear me complaining.

Just prior to my arrival, a lucky hunter took a 44.5" bull that scored 126 SCI, I believe. Swainsons entered it in the Zim "Buff of the Year" competition. I saw the skull at the trophy storage shed and it was very, very special, indeed. I'll just keep at it and hope for the best. Heck, I hunted Wyoming 9x before connecting with my 36" muledeer.

Congratulations Nick! Nice buffalo and a nice rifle. What rings did you use to keep that scope anchored under the 505's recoil?

Thanks Kev!

Mike375,
I feel rather awkward talking "thresholds" with a mere two .505 bulls under my belt, but all those present were in absolute awe at the level of authority with which these buffalo were dispatched and these are chaps who've witnessed hundreds of kills. While I can't say the gun is a joy to fire from the bench, I am greatly encouraged by the fact that recoil proved to be a non-factor in the taking of these bulls. This rifle achieved the reaction to the shot I've been looking for on cape buffalo.

Nickudu,

Congradulations on a great hunt.

You are making me feel so bad I won't make this year to Zimbabwe.

Nick,

Are you saying that if you met up with Bruce Bertram and Geoff McDonald tomorrow, any disagreements would come later in the lunch

Mike

Really magnificient bulls! Man, they've got everything. Love those bosses!!

500 Grains - Thank You, my friend.
I used the original CZ mounts from an earlier ZZK-602 rifle as they look very strong and added a bit of weight too. I use that 3M Electrical coating we spoke about and I've never had a scope shift position.

Saeed,
Thank You. Perhaps you'll consider taking the next few decades off so I can catch up??

Mike375,
I think I'd just shut up and listen during lunch and stem my irrepressable tide of "BS" until after dinner!

MikeH375,
Many Thanks!

You turkey, you are suppose to turn on the flash so your face isn't invisible. Well, on the other hand, some may be thankful!!

Two beautiful bulls, very symmetrical. Good job.

Will

Nickudu,

Great bulls and good shooting. What, you couldn't find a bigger hammer?

Perry

Troll Bullshit - Deleted

[ 12-02-2002, 06:09: Message edited by: 500 AHR ]

NicKudu,

Congratulations to the buff's.

There is one problem with this picture, I can't see the rifle that well

Don't be shy, show us

/ JOHAN

Thanks Will,
Sorry we couldn't hook up over there, buddy. When are you planning to show the guys your special prize??

PWN,
Thank You. I think this is the biggest hammer I'll ever need.

Todd E.,
Yes you certainly did tell me, Todd but I had to experience it for myself. I'm looking forward to trying other loads to develope a real good idea of what this case can offer. It's funny, but after a while the big shell just doesn't look that big anymore. I love the symetry of this case. Just a beautiful round.

Johan,
Thank you much. I'll email you a few photos if you wish.

Nick

Congratulations on a couple of great bulls. If I can take one approaching yours in just 26 days I will be

In which concession in Zim does Swainsons operate?

Nice rifle too. Yes photos please.

[ 09-05-2002, 02:06: Message edited by: NitroExpress.com ]

Nickudu,

Thanks for the mention. The ironic thing may be that for a period of time last week, you and I might have been hunting the exact same Buffalo! One specific herd we hunted would hang around the border to Swainsons area (Dande). We chased this herd around Mozambique for a three days. If you shot this bull anywhere near the border there is a (remote) chance I have seen him.

They would cross the border into Zimbabwe after drinking from a spring in Mozambique. We caught them here three mornings. On the fourth morning, Lions caught a calf here and the herd boogied into Zimbabwe.

Isn't that something else? I was holding out for a Buff in the 39"-40" range and would have shot yours in a second. Good job. That is a couple great Buffalo.

[ 09-05-2002, 02:54: Message edited by: Buffalobwana ]

NitroExpress.Com,
Swainsons operates in the Dande North area and one of its' camps, Masau, is situated on the Zambesi.

Wendell,
While you were there, did you hear about the 70+ pounder they got on the Moz side?? My man, Buzz Charlton, of Swainsons was hot on his trail when they crossed over. It broke his heart when he got the news that someone had collected it.

Congratulations Nick, those are two great looking old Bulls. It must have been a fun hunt.

Nickudu,

I practically slept with those tusks! Very impressive! I am sure it did break his heart to see this monster cross over.

I took a couple of pictures of the tusks and will post them soon. He was 86lb x 73lb.

He is a dandy! (or should I say Dande).

Wendell,
Buzz is an absolute ele fanatic. When I arrived he told me he was on a bull of 65 pounds and he was being overly conservative in his guesstimate. He was on the bull for 8 days when his clients hunt ended. When the next client arrived, Buzz got him pumped to resume looking for this bull but the hunt ended on Day 3 due to an injury. Shortly after, they spotted the tracks crossing back over into Moz and, shortly after that,the news of the kill came through. This is an extraordinary bull for the area, as you well know.

Thanks Jerry. Yes, it was a fun hunt. My videographer was Ian Lewis of Safari-Video Productions, Harare and he is one of the most entertaining guys I have ever known. I'd recommend him to any of the members. His contact info is on my website @ www.bigbores.com.

Mark Harper, the ph who was responsible for guiding the Spanish client (Luis Barcenas) to the Bull, tracked this guy for a long time. They knew he would come to drink at a specific waterhole. They pitched a fly camp a few miles downwind of the waterhole and got on the tracks early the next morning.

The rest is history.

He is the second largest Elephant killed this century.... Ok so this century is only 2 1/2 years old, but it sounds nice!

I will get a picture up soon.

[ 09-05-2002, 04:36: Message edited by: Buffalobwana ]

Enough already. I'm getting sick just thinking about that elephant.

Will

Nick-
Great photos on some nice m'bogos, that 505 sounds like a real hammer! I'm sure it was a great hunt and would love to have seen that 505 in action!!

Hi Nickudu......

Wow two really great Buffs, CONGRATULATIONS.... The Boss on that first one looks awsome.

I also really like the look of that .505 it sounds like it was a good dose of Buff medicine with those 570 Grain Bullets. Hmmm maybe I have to step up to the 500 class.....Geez.... LOL

Hey Nicko anybody with 6 straight 100+ Buffs is a hero in my book. It proves you know what the hell it takes to bring home the big boys, and you done did it way more than one or two times.

I'm not knocking my Buff one bit, but even I must admit it was just the luck of the draw to come accross that big Buff my first time out. Thank you for the favorable mention.

Man this African forum is Buff City.... I love it, keep em coming.....

Hi Nick,
Good to hear your back safe and sound. Those are two really nice Buffalo. I'm glad to hear your 505 delt devestation with each pull of the trigger. The video you took,will it be shown in part on the site?
Take good care,
470 Mbogo

John S.,
Thanks a lot John. I'd like nothing better than to hunt with you, Allen and other forum members one day soon.

PAHunter,
Sure, it takes luck but it also takes a lot of effort, expense and time. I likely never see a buff such as yours but I can dream and that's a big part of hunting too. Enjoy your trophy and be happy that you have "made the grade" on one of the more expensive species, which may save you $ to apply to other species that may prove elusive.

470 Mbogo,
Hello, my friend and thank you. Yes, I am planning to make a copy available to interested forum members to pass around. We got so much great footage of beautiful animals and newly opened locales that I may minimize the actual hunting so that I can incorporate more of the other footage.

Hi Nick,
I would surley love to see the video. If there is any cost involed in copying etc. just let me know and it's on it's way. Hope to hear more good stories about your trip and will get in touch when I get back from Canuck's. We're busy with the early archery season for Elk. I'll be back around the 13th.
Take good care,
470 Mbogo

I love it when you guys post your Safari pics, Magnificent looking creatures!

Congratulations!

Nick,

First time I looked at your web site.

Very well done. Especially brain shot bullet paths. Should we call you Doctari Nick???

What was your powder charge and brass for the 505 load?

I love the Sabi river next to Kruger. So much wildlife!!!

I had no idea you hunted there.

Giraffe for $1000. What do you do with them? Any tuskless cows?????

Sign me up!

Andy

Hi Nick,
"Ho Ho Ho Geez HO HO HO!" as Motsoomee would say.

Those are two magnificent buffalo. You show good judgement in your selection of specimens. As advanced in the art of safari as you are, it is to be expected that you would pull trigger only once on only the best kind of heads to be had.

Congratulations, and welcome back!

Those are some fine buffs! Maybe I'll have to get a 505 after my .375H&H and .475 Linebaugh.

I'd love to here more about your experiences with the .505. What bullets did you try? Brass?

Best,
QD

Thanks Andy. My .505 Data is in the Reloading section. The final using load was backed off to 119 grains of RL-15 with 4 grains of Dacron filler.

DaggaRon,
Thanks much, my friend but actually I fired 3x as I missed a full frontal at 60 yards on the second buff two days prior to collecting him.
My "PH" turned around, aghast, and said: "What happened, Nick ... did you fart?!" I, quite honestly, have no idea what-so-ever as the how I managed this feat but it did serve as a wake up call to stop being non-chalant about my shooting and pay proper attention! My trackers found the smashed branch in a pile of brush about 20 feet behind and 3 or 4 feet to the right of where the bull was standing so I'm thinkin'(and hoping)the bullet hit something enroute to have veered off so far.

[ 09-06-2002, 18:22: Message edited by: Nickudu ]

NICK,

Once again, you have taken BUFF that have an awful lot of "Character". Congratulations on taking two outstanding animals.

I am liking that caliber more all the time!

All the best,

SAM

Thanks Big Sam. Let me know when you want a custom SABI Rifle in .500 Jeffrey and I'll get you a great deal!