I have a buffalo/leopard/plainsgame hunt planned in Zimbabwe with us leaving on August 26th. I am taking 1 rifle for this safari. My PH would like for me to shoot the buffalo with a 300 grain Barnes-X and to take the leopard and plainsgame with a 300 grain Swift A-Frame. The point of impact of these 2 bullets is about 3 1/2 inches different vertically at 100 yards but both are now grouping at 1 inch or less with handloads. I think that this is too far apart vertically to be practical and I am running out of time trying to work all of this out with my handloads.

What would be wrong with hunting with just the Barnes X or the Swift A-Frame for everything that I have on my quota? It sure seems much simpler to use just 1 bullet and be done with it. I would not have to worry about what bullet I have in the gun and the different points of impact. I just can not believe that the Barnes-X is too tough to open up on a leopard or that the Swift A-Frame is too soft for buffalo.

This will be my first dangerous game hunt and I would like some advice from those of you who have more experience in Africa.

Thanks.

Ron L,
Welcome to the AR Forum. I can think of a few questions I'd like to ask of your PH but I'll just say that your instincts are better than his advice. Select one of the bullets and go with it.
I like the "X" but many fellows here will vouch for the A-Frame. Have a great hunt.

What? No solids?

George

That's question #1 George.

Ron L,

I would think the Swift A-Frame is plenty tough for buffalo (it worked for me on my buffalo). I assume you are shooting a .375 H&H, correct? Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but how much expansion are you normally going to get when you shoot a leopard with a .375? Not much I would think, so it really doesn't matter which bullet you use on the leopard, as both are probably going to fly right through him.

Your PH seems to be overly particular.

Regards,

Terry

[ 07-10-2002, 07:26: Message edited by: T.Carr ]

Ditto all the above.

I have shot plains game with the Barnes X 300 grain 375 H&H. It worked fine. I used the 416 on cape buffalo but the 300 X .375 would have done fine, I am sure. Saeed uses the 300 grain X on everything except elephant brain shots. Solids there.

I have used the 300 gr. Swift A-Frame on smallish Kodiak deer and 1800 pound waterbuffalo. Worked fine on both.

The 375 H&H is really way more than enough gun for leopard.

Pick either one of the bullets. The Swift might open up bigger and penetrate less on the really big stuff, but on a leopard it will blow out the off side for sure, as will the X.

Whichever one your rifle likes best is the answer.
Swifts are more often accurate in most rifles, but I have had great results with both the X and the Swift.

I would use the X-Bullet on everything, or alternatively take the Swift and a solid for buffalo, therefore Swift on leopard and plains game.

What? No solids recommended for the 375 H&H on buffalo? Yet picky about Swift versus X-Bullet?

Are you sure you haven't booked with Mondele? Maybe this is some kind of trick to make another American look bad by violation of the KISS principle?

Ron,

Either bullet is fine. Pick the one that shoots best in your rifle and use it for everything. If they are equally accurate, take your pick. Saeed loves the X Bullet and has shot lots of animals with it from buffalo to duiker. Expansion won't be a problem. I have had great results with the FailSafe which is similar to the X Bullet. I have also used Swifts on buffalo - again, no problems, great performance. Lots of other experience here with both bullets, but at the end of the day it really doesn't matter as much as where you place your first shot. Use any premium bullet and shoot well. Good luck on your hunt!

Last year on my buffalo/plainsgame safari in Zimbabwe, I used my 375H&H for everything. I was lucky enough to get the 300 grain Swift A-Frame to shoot to the same hole as the 300 grain Barnes solids at 100 yards. My first shot on my buffalo was with the A-Frame and I followed up with the solids. My PH said that if I had just waited a bit, only the first shot was necessary as the A-Frame took out both lungs on a 30 to 40 yard broadside shot. I didn't go to Africa to save ammo, so as soon as the herd passed my buff after the first shot (he fell behind the herd almost immediately) I put a few solids in him (actually through him). Two of the solids went through both shoulders and I think the bullets are still going.

I shot another 10 animals, ranging from klipspringer to kudu, with the 300 grain A-Frame. They did the job, but I almost think a Nosler Partition would have been better for plainsgame, due to the front half of the bullet being a little more explosive than the A-Frame.

In fact, if it is the 300 grain Barnes X that is shooting 3" higher than the A-Frame (and not the other way around), I would suggest that you load the 270 grain A-Frame or 270 grain Barnes X at 2,700+ fps for the plainsgame. Even the 260 grain Nosler might be a good idea. You may have a good chance of getting one of these bullets shooting to the same point of impact as the 300 grain Barnes X, and then your problem is solved.

In reality, you will probably end up shooting most things (except leopard) with the 300 grain Barnes X because you will be chasing/glassing/stalking buffalo when that trophy kudu, zebra, bushbuck, waterbuck, eland, sable, etc., etc., etc. steps out at under 100 yards. 4 of my plainsgame animals were taken while I was "looking" for buffalo.

Anyway, I find load development and getting ready to be one of the most fun parts of the trip. So have fun and good luck!

Tim

Yes, it is a .375 H&H magnum.

The Swift A-frames's point of impact is 3 1/2 inches above the Barnes-X bullets.

Originally, my PH suggested A-frames followed by solids for buffalo but I could not find a load for solids that shot well with the point of impact that was close to the A-frames. When I mentioned to him that Barnes-X soft were grouping well in the gun, he told me to forget the solids and plan on using the Barnes-X for the buffalo. He still thoght that I should use something "softer" for the leopard so he told me to bring the A-frames as they are also shooting well in this gun. I really want to "Keep It Simple Stupid" so I do appreciate all of this advice.

Thanks again, guys.

I would opt for the Swifts because I have had some bad luck with the Barnes X bullets...I would opt for the Failsafes or GS HV myself if I wanted a monolithic...

By the same token I know a lot of folks who have had nothing but success with the BarnesX and they swear by them.

Now that everyone else has answered the question, I'll chime in that they are all correct.

Personally, I would go with the Swifts. You don't need solids. Swifts alone have killed tons of buff. A frontal shot on a leopard will probably not exit, so you're not over-gunned.

Tell your PH to calm down...and you're bringing Swifts.

Will

Have you considered Woodleigh bullets?

They shit all over Barnes and Swift's for Buff and other Big Game. I have heard that many of the PH's use Woodleigh (protected point) bullets.

Ciao, Matt

[ 07-11-2002, 15:19: Message edited by: Scorpio [+] 4 pigs ]

I think its good to have solids with you. So I would use either the barnes X ot the A frame which ever had the closer point of impact to the solids

Just go with the 300 grain failsafe.

I would go for the bullet that had the best accuracy. I don't think there is enough difference between Barnes X and Swift a-frame. Both will work well.

A friend of mine used hornady FMJ for his 375. I think they are made with steel jacket that has been copper plated.

Good luck

JOHAN

What kind of velocity are you getting with each bullet? I would look at trying to vary the velocity of the two different bullets to try and get the point of impacts closer. Try something like 2450 to 2475 fps with the Barnes-X and something faster for the Swift..maybe 2550fps if you can reach it. I would also try and sight-in so the Barnes-X were dead-on at 50 yards and the Swifts were about 1" to 1 1/2" high at 100 yards.

Another thought would be to try a Nosler Partition which I think is a better bullet for leopard than the Swift but not by much.