Safari Dreams: A Practical Guide To Your Hunt In Africa

15 January 2008, 23:17

author Boston T. Party

Howdy all,

My name is Kenneth Royce, author of the Boston T. Party books
(such as Boston's Gun Bible, carried by Brownells and
most 2A rights orgs).

I've learned some great tips here (thanks Terry Carr!), and
am highly recommending this forum to my readers.

I will be at SCI with my new book:
Safari Dreams: A Practical Guide To Your Hunt In Africa

It is written for the African safari newbie/novice.
Even intermediate level guys will get a lot out of my book.
(In it, I listed the AR safari book as a resource, though
I've yet to read it.)

Please stop by Gunsmoke's booths to visit me at SCI.
I'm looking forward to meeting some of you there
and exchanging African stories.

Good hunting!

Kenneth W. Royce (aka Boston T. Party)
http://www.javelinpress.com (Boston's books)
http://www.freestatewyoming.org (FSW website)
http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php (FSW forum open to all)

_______________
Safari Dreams: A Practical Guide To Your Hunt In Africa
by Kenneth W. Royce
ISBN 1-888766-10-7
$30 + $6 s&h (cash or M.O. only)

5.5"x8.5" softcover perfect bound
352 pages, 100 color photos
published January 2008
http://www.javelinpress.com

Javelin Press
POB 31
Ignacio, Co. 81137-0031

Our new title will be on our website by 22 Jan,
but is in stock now and for sale.
_______________

16 January 2008, 02:17

SBT

Welcome aboard BTP, hope to hear from you on the African Hunting forum as well.

16 January 2008, 05:54

billinthewild

Is that the same booth where Engonyameni will be?

16 January 2008, 09:11

author Boston T. Party

Thanks, SBT.
I look forward to more posts on AR.

billinthewild, yep, same booth with Engonyameni.

___________
Here's the Safari Dreams chapter list:

Foreword
Introduction
1 Ethics of Hunting
2 The Golden Age of Safaris
3 Planning & Pricing
4 Insurance & Health
5 Transportation
6 2x1 Hunts
7 Packing
8 Plains Game Rifles, Calibers, & Bullets
9 Buffalo Rifles, Calibers, & Bullets
10 Safe Gun Handling
11 South Africa People & Customs
12 Animals
13 Camp Life
14 Hunting
15 Tipping
16 Hotels & Shopping
17 Trophy Costs
18 Planning Timeline
19 Packing Checklist
20 For Women Only
21 Books, Videos, and Resources

___________
Also, I'm excited to announce that Brownells will be carrying Safari Dreams as of this month, and will serve as the order point in all book reviews (since Javelin Press does not take credit cards). They'll receive inventory next week.

It is product #100-003-438.
www.brownells.com 800-741-0015

Regards,
Boston

19 January 2008, 05:28

billinthewild

I will see you there. Keep the tea kettle hot....

20 January 2008, 21:19

author Boston T. Party

quote:
Having hunted with Royce in the field and after sitting with him for many an evening's campfire under the African sky, I know that he has tackled this book with a passion, not forsaking differing opinions nor shying away from controversial themes. Combining all this with up-to-date hard information, Royce has forged Safari Dreams into a must read; for all those who wish to be well-informed, successful African hunters.

Safari Dreams is a most useful planning and preparation guide, and is guaranteed to whet your appetite for at last making your African hunting safari happen.

-- PH Mark Ivy, Ivy Safaris -- Foreword excerpt from Safari Dreams

_____________
The Amazon link is now up, though they don't
yet have it in stock. It'll be two weeks at
least.
http://www.amazon.com/Safari-Dreams-Kenneth-W-Royce/dp/...id=1200845326&sr=1-3

Regards,
Boston

01 February 2008, 11:11

author Boston T. Party

A nice review of Safari Dreams was just posted at:

http://www.huntinglife.com/blog/id.351/blog.asp

NOTE: The above URL is a revised one, so click on it if the previous one didn't work.

28 May 2008, 23:52

author Boston T. Party

On a South African ranch road I saw something small standing at great distance.
The black-backed jackal lasered out to 613yds. I smiled as I dropped into prone,
looped up with my self-fashioned Ching sling, put the Shepherd 310-P2 scope
600yd reticle on the jackal's back, and squeezed off 40 ounces of crisp Winchester
Model 70 Classic trigger. I called the shot good as 200gr of .30 Swift A-Frame bullet
left the barrel at 2625fps. Time to impact was about .6 seconds and I watched
for it through the scope. No visible impact, and a very confused jackal looked
downrange at a bullet strike that went high. So high that I did not see it hit.

Moving away from the impact, the jackal began to run towards me, and stopped
at about 400yds. I smiled again at such an odd second chance. Still in prone,
and very steady, I squeezed off another round. Same result. Way high and way
beyond the jackal the bullet struck, causing him to run even closer towards me.
300yds. Bang. Miss. I began to become very concerned with my shooting.
200yds. Bang. Miss. 100yds. Bang miss. Extreme concern. I reloaded.
Several more shots at within 100yds -- all huge misses.

The jackal never saw me, and ran as close as 50yds before diving into the bush.
I was out of ammo, and, besides, at that point I was no longer confident that I
could have hit him even at 50yds.

In a very confused and sour mood, I trudged over to the camp's shooting range.
I fired one round at a new target, and I wasn't on paper at 100yds. Then, I
boresighted the scope. Uh, oh.

What had happened became clear: airline baggage handlers had dropped (or thrown)
the rifle hard case onto its handle side, causing my Model 70 to impact the internal
case wall by its objective lens bell. Even though the rifle was sheathed in a thick
soft case, the scope was bent downwards about the thickness of a credit card.
This translated to being off-zero at least six feet at 100yds. Even at 50yds I would
not have hit that jackal. And, the POA/POI discrepancy was too great to adjust for.

Even though my rifles similarly packed had nicely survived three previous trips to
Africa, I learned a crucial lesson: detach scope from rifle and pack separately.
(I'd read this before somewhere, but it hadn't seemed necessary until now.)
All the more reason to choose a zero-hold/QD mount/rings, such as the excellent
Leupold Quick-Release system, or the Talleys.

Hadn't I confirmed zero before I went afield? Yes, but no. The Shepherd has a
Dual-Reticle System which will instantly show if the internals have become out
of line, and my scope seemed fine. At the range with other hunters, I saved my
one shot zero confirmation for last, and seemed to have hit about .5" from POA.
What I and my spotter later realized is that in our rush (and not having changed
targets, to save time), is that I'd never hit paper at all and unknowingly confused
another's bullet hole for my own.

You see only what you look for. And since I'd hunted Africa last year with that
same Model 70/Shepherd rig with perfect results, I had utter confidence in it.
Since my rifle packing protocol had worked fine the past three safaris, I wasn't
expecting any damage. Murphy, however, is a stubborn bastard, and can spot
complacency like a leopard can spot a limping impala calf.

OK, problem diagnosed, but how to get my .30-06 back into action? (I had a
second rifle to use, but my Marlin .45-70 Scout was limited to 200yds, and
I had only 26 rounds left for it.) After some thought, the answer materialized.
Turn the scope upside down in its rings, and bend it back with a twisted loop of
cloth. (see photo) That tube is strong; it took quite a bit of force to rebend it.
(The baggage handler impact must have been dramatic to have bent it at all.)

I carefully and gradually tightened the cloth, checking the boresight until
I was back on paper. Then I spun the scope rightside-up, and slid the scope
back in the rings about .15" in order to place the previous bend inside the ring
for protection. Back to range for rezeroing, and my .30-06 was now back in action
after a very basic (though effective) field repair.

Just this morning, I got a duiker ram with it -- so, all's well that ends well.

Two products I cannot and will not fault: the case nor the scope. (The airline,
at the moment, shall remain nameless, though that will likely change after my
flight home later this summer.)

The Hardigg Storm iM3220 case is a new model, and perfect for most African safaris.
It is 6" shorter but 3" deeper than the classic molded resin rifle case. Thus, it
is not only easier to handle, but it fits in most cars across the rear seat (versus
having to load it lengthwise). Because of its 9" depth, four long guns can be
packed inside its double layer configuration. I brought with me two rifles and
an o/u 12 gauge, leaving free a quarter of the case for ammo, spotting scope, etc.
Any 24" barrel standard length bolt action should fit, but the internal length of 44"
will be too short for 26" magnum rifles, or if you've a muzzle brake or B.O.S.S.

While my old Pelican case held up just fine for three safaris, it was too long and
insufficiently deep for optimum packing for plains game safaris. The Hardigg Storm
iM3220 is just the bomb for most hunters taking a .308 or .30-06. I can't recommend
this case highly enough! Buy some 2" wide yellow vinyl tape to make backup
labels (with name and flight # in black Sharpie) in case your tag comes off.

http://www.hardigg.com/Hardigg-Product.asp?ProductNum=iM3220

______________________

Had the rear portion of the scope been bent, Shepherd's Dual Reticle System
would have alerted me to that. But, unfortunately, the objective bell side of the
scope tube is what got hammered, and since that portion is in front of both
reticles, no airline damage could be apparent through misaligned reticles.
Half of a mounted Shepherd is still vulnerable to airline damage, so it is
just good sense to remove it from your rifle for travel. I had done this very
simple precaution, I'd have saved myself some bother. (But, since I did not,
I am obliged to write this article and thus save you all from possible hassle.
It goes with the author territory.)

http://shepherdscopes.com/dual.asp

Since the scope has been through two trauma (damage, and then field repair),
I will file a claim with my travel insurance for a new replacement.

I continue to have full faith in my Shepherd scope, and can't imagine hunting
with anything else. The optical clarity, ranging circles, and other features
make the 310-P2 my first choice for the field.

______________________

At the first reprinting, I will revise my book Safari Dreams with this information.

Meanwhile, Brownells has it in stock:
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/productdetail.as...st=safari%20dreams&s

Pack well and good hunting!

Ken Royce

22 January 2011, 03:21

interested

quote:
Originally posted by author Boston T. Party:

Howdy all,

My name is Kenneth Royce, author of the Boston T. Party books
(such as Boston's Gun Bible, carried by Brownells and
most 2A rights orgs).

I've learned some great tips here (thanks Terry Carr!), and
am highly recommending this forum to my readers.

I will be at SCI with my new book:
Safari Dreams: A Practical Guide To Your Hunt In Africa

It is written for the African safari newbie/novice.
Even intermediate level guys will get a lot out of my book.
(In it, I listed the AR safari book as a resource, though
I've yet to read it.)

Please stop by Gunsmoke's booths to visit me at SCI.
I'm looking forward to meeting some of you there
and exchanging African stories.

Good hunting!

Kenneth W. Royce (aka Boston T. Party)
http://www.javelinpress.com (Boston's books)
http://www.freestatewyoming.org (FSW website)
http://www.fundamentalsoffreed...m/fswforum/index.php (FSW forum open to all)

_______________
Safari Dreams: A Practical Guide To Your Hunt In Africa
by Kenneth W. Royce
ISBN 1-888766-10-7
$30 + $6 s&h (cash or M.O. only)

5.5"x8.5" softcover perfect bound
352 pages, 100 color photos
published January 2008
http://www.javelinpress.com

Javelin Press
POB 31
Ignacio, Co. 81137-0031

Our new title will be on our website by 22 Jan,
but is in stock now and for sale.
_______________

Will you be at SCI 2011 next week in Reno with book?

Thanks