The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting What Velocity Do you Load for hunting?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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Those of you that reload for DG, or even PG in Africa or elsewhere. Yes I know first things are: Safe loads, then what velocity the bullet is designed for. After that: ___________? What velocity do you strive for in your hunting ammo? I'd like to hear from those of you that load solid copper bullets: NF, CEB, WalterHog etc. Weatherby seems to believe the faster the better. Many others do too. I'm curious now that I have a rifle capable of more velocity than I need makes me wonder where I should quit. Thanks, George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | ||
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I think they believe that velocity sells more ammo and guns. Though it does allow for longer shots. I think of it this way. How many animals are killed every year with mid level for caliber vel. factory ammo? The main thing is the correct bullet for the velocity i believe. Some calibers do seem to have preferences it seems though. | |||
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I reload CEB Raptors and solids. in .416 Rem about 2450 .470 NE just over 2100 sbecause that is what regulates well in my double. Wish it was a bit faster but then they cross at 20 yard Good Hunting, Tim Herald Worldwide Trophy Adventures tim@trophyadventures.com | |||
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Unless you plan on taking really long shots. And I mean like 400 plus. Its really not a factor in my book. I went with a recommended starting load for the bullet I wanted to use. All of them shot accurately out of my gun, so I didn't mess with them to much. I did adjust my solids up a little to get the same velocity as my softs. I have walked in the foot prints of the elephant, listened to lion roar and met the buffalo on his turf. I shall never be the same. | |||
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For plains game I used a .300WM. My current load shoots a 168gn TTSX at 3215 FPS. It is effective. The hunting imperative was part of every man's soul; some denied or suppressed it, others diverted it into less blatantly violent avenues of expression, wielding clubs on the golf course or racquets on the court, substituting a little white ball for the prey of flesh and blood. Wilbur Smith | |||
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Load for accuracy. Then confirm the velocity. I would add to check that your velocity is within the performance envelope of the bullet but it is pretty unlikely that you are outside the performance envelope if your are using any kind of monometal bullet. There is also a lot to be said for staying between 2400-2850 in muzzle velocity. Rarely do you ever hear of erratic bullet behavior in that window of muzzle velocity. Mike Legistine actu? Quid scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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You want accuracy within reason (you don't need sub MOA for dg) and you need the velocity range where your bullets will work best. My experience is only with 375H&H which allows some velocity variation. First safari shooting Speer 300gr Grandslams. Having read Robertson's books about "tampoline effect", loaded to 2400fps (could have driven faster). Took only those bullets because my PH said, "You shoot softs. I'll shoot solids". The problem was that the Grandslams,at least back then, were very soft in the front core so they would upset very quickly and at the reduced velocity did not penetrate well. Following up a wounded buffalo with loads that seemingly have no effect is not a comforting feeling. After that experience I have used 350gr Woodleighs at 2400fps. Same velocity but significantly different performance. Longest shot, 350 yards on wildebeest so even with a rainbow trajectory, if you know your load, long shots are no problem. Have gun- Will travel The value of a trophy is computed directly in terms of personal investment in its acquisition. Robert Ruark | |||
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For my 375/404, which is basically used for everything on a safari - I keep the velocity between 2700-2800 FPS. We have two rifles in this caliber with different barrel lengths, and I only use one load for both. I found this velocity gives the best penetration on buffalo. No problem shooting at long distances - have shot animals around 500 yards with this combination. For purely plains game, I have built a 30/404 with a 28 inch barrel. With 180 grain bullets I get between 3430-3480 FPS, depending on the make. | |||
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George, I've used a quite a few different rifles and calibers on DG and PG. I always use a premium bullet for everything and try to drive them as fast as they will go and still maintain good accuracy and easy extraction. I never quite understood throttling back a load that performs perfectly well at higher velocity. I've only used solids on maybe a dozen animals but penetrations seemed to be more than adequate as I had exits on everything except elephant head shots and lengthwise shots on buffalo. If using expanding bullets I don't see how driving them as hard as they can practically go has any downside but once again you must use premium bullets like SAF, NF, TSX etc. Mark MARK H. YOUNG MARK'S EXCLUSIVE ADVENTURES 7094 Oakleigh Dr. Las Vegas, NV 89110 Office 702-848-1693 Cell, Whats App, Signal 307-250-1156 PREFERRED E-mail markttc@msn.com Website: myexclusiveadventures.com Skype: markhyhunter Check us out on https://www.facebook.com/pages...ures/627027353990716 | |||
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I started with 400 gr Hornady factory ammo for my 404 Jeffery at a listed 2300fps and then loaded down to 2100-2150fps. Much easier and more pleasant to shoot and both softs and solids passed through two buffalo and various PG. I would like to hear from others on this load for elephant. kh | |||
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Drive them too fast and they don't penetrate .. plus the faster you shoot them the louder and nastier the recoil, which makes it harder to shoot accurately. Also a good way to foul your barrel, lose your hearing, and erode the throat. These negative consequences are not linear with velocity, they are exponential. 2400 is all you need in Africa, that will do the job out to 300. So load the heaviest bullet your rifle will stabilize at that velocity. The only time you need more is when you are shooting long distance in wide open country and you really know what you are doing wrt distance estimation, wind, mirage, shot angle and all the other factors that greatly impact drop and drift. Russ Gould - Whitworth Arms LLC BigfiveHQ.com, Large Calibers and African Safaris Doublegunhq.com, Fine English, American and German Double Rifles and Shotguns VH2Q.com, Varmint Rifles and Gear | |||
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Pretty much what the original goal loads that made the cartridge popular. .30-06/180 2700 .300 RUM/180 3200 .330 Dakota/185 3300 .318 WR/250 2500 .375 H&H/300 2500 .416 Rigby or Remington/400 2400 .470/500 2150 Those are the ones I’ve actually killed stuff with. I use premium bullets only, and have found that by and large that area is where the best accuracy is found for me. The .375, .416’s, .330, and .470 were all monometal bullets- Barnes or Northfork. | |||
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This has been my philosophy since I began reloading back in the late '60s, although I didn't start using premium bullets until about 1978 when I had my .30-06 rechambered to .30 Gibbs and started loading 180 grain Nosler Partitions in it at 2920 fps. Most of my hunting rifles I've been able to develop MOA or better loads. My first experience with mono bullets was in 2005 when I put together a .375 RUM for a buffalo and PG hunt in Zimbabwe along with PG in South Africa. My load for that hunt was with 300 grain TSX bullets at 2830 fps. In 2007 I again took my .375 RUM to South Africa for a PG hunt in the Eastern Cape, and for that trip I loaded 270 grain TSX bullets at 3043 fps. I've used my 7 mm Rem mag on hunts in Montana, South Africa, and Canada shooting 160 grain Nosler Accubond bullets at 2824 fps. I just worked up a new load for this 7 mm RM shooting 160 grain TSX bullets at 2875 fps. I will be using this load for moose and caribou in Newfoundland this fall. I've used my .300 Weatherby on several African PG hunts and hunts in New Zealand and Montana shooting 168 grain TTSX bullets at 3350 fps, and 168 grain TSX bullets at 3298 fps. My current load for my .300 Weatherby is with 180 grain TTSX bullets at 3220 fps. So far the only animal that I've shot with that load is a Dagestan Tur in Azerbaijan, and it was an instant kill at 327 yards. NRA Endowment Life Member | |||
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My magic numbers: For big bullets, 2,400 to 2,500 fps. For medium bullets, 3,100 to 3,300 fps. Less will work. But not as well. Mike Wilderness is my cathedral, and hunting is my prayer. | |||
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Springfield V16 Longslide in 45 Super: 255g hardcast at 1100 fps Rem BDL in 270 Win: 150g Partition at 3000 fps CZ 550 in 500 Jeffery: 570g TSX at 2300 fps Regards, Chuck "There's a saying in prize fighting, everyone's got a plan until they get hit" Michael Douglas "The Ghost And The Darkness" | |||
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Just what I was hoping for. Thank you all. Good variety. Most quite slow. Buffy: close to what I've gotten. Always tried for around 2900-3000fps. But, .243/100gr, .300Win/m 180's blew one up on a cow elks ribs and went to 200gr GK's, hunted two years and no shot. Am just getting into this .358RUM. Only bullets I've gotten so far are no good for high velocity: Speers 250gr. Still good to develop loads with. AA7828: 90gr_= 2884fps, 99gr = 3260fps. Don't feel I need that much, and haven't decided what to try next. I would like to see what 300gr will do. Damn the health problems getting in the way. Just starting to get over a new knee I wrecked it by falling and had to start all over two months ago. Hopefully I can get back to it soon. Saeed: Was thinking you were loading at 3000fps. Ok, thanks. Thanks guys, appreciate the info. George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | |||
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I have tried the Barnes 300 grain X bullet at 3140 fps. Terrible penetration. | |||
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I have ran the 375 H&H at 2450 give or take and it has served me well if I placed it in the right spot | |||
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The last few years I have hunting buffalo with .577 NE and 50-110 Win. I use CEB and NF bullets and get quick kills at 1,900-2,000 fps. (close range) IHMSA BC Provincial Champion and Perfect 40 Score, Unlimited Category, AAA Class. | |||
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450/400, 370 grain, CEB 2150 fps. 375 H&H, 300 grain Nosler partition, 2450 fps. Excellent penetration. | |||
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Saeed: What happened with them? Couple more questions: What's the ovlength of your .375 bullets? and what's the depth of the grooves on them? Thanks, George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | |||
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Length = 1.551 Diameter to engage the rifling = 0.37480 Minor diameter = 0.3620 I make all my bullets slightly smaller than specs. Seems to work extremely well, as all our bullets shoot better than any factory bullets we have tried in large bore rifles. | |||
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I shoot the 270gr Barnes TSX in my .375H&H Mauser, with IMR4350. Accuracy is excellent, with velocity just under 2400fps. This load has accounted for buffalo, lion, crocodile, and numerous PG in Africa, as well as moose, caribou, and brown bear in North America. Accuracy, bullet placement, and bullet performance are far more important than velocity. | |||
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Thank you. I had a fresh jug of AA7828 so that's what I used to start with. Since then I've gotten a jug of 4831sc but, haven't gotten around to loading any 358's with it yet. ADI makes the powder over there, Hogedon's imports it here much cheaper here than over there. Don't make sense. Got that, as that's what's available in OZ. Wanted to have loads figured out as i can't take powder and primers over with me. IF I ever get to go now. That's the sole purpose of building this rifle. George "Gun Control is NOT about Guns' "It's about Control!!" Join the NRA today!" LM: NRA, DAV, George L. Dwight | |||
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The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting African Big Game Hunting What Velocity Do you Load for hunting?
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