What is this fascination with calibers over 50?

A .375 when properly aimed will handle anything on the planet taken by a "hunter."

A 50-bore stopper is adequate in a bolt rifle, and really the most that can be made into a 10 to 11 pound rifle that is easy to carry all day and doesn't need a muzzle brake to allow for quick, aimed followup shots at still moving quarry.

Double rifle one-up-manship with the Nitro-expresses stopped at 600 NE until a latterday wild hair erupted for show, and it seems to have been a failure of poor penetration on its inaugural outing safari. Requires use of a gunbearer too.

Is there something Freudian going on?

Rip!

You know the American saying "Bigger is always better!" even if it doesn't make much sence.

465H&H

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

In 1927-28 the American Rifleman chronicled the North American continent adventures of one Grancel Fitz, who was the first person credited with collecting the North American Grand Slam. All twenty-nine species of big game found here, and all with a sporterized Remington P-17 in 30-06 and all of them with 150 and 220 grain soft points.

So, is vanity anything over the old '06, or are we less capable than he at stalking big game and harvesting it cleanly?

About one hundred and thirty years ago Lord Acton addressed the Houses of Parliament. His memorable quote "...power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts...absolutely.". Power is seductive, and controlling big(ger) bore rifles is a challenge surpassed only by going scary fast on a motorcycle.
An Idaho law enforcement agency clocked me last summer at just a tickle over one hundred eighty miles an hour on my slightly tweaked ZX-12R. I called it the "Kompressor". It compressed time and space, and began to remind me too forcefully of my own mortality after a couple runs. No margin for error, and that can wear on a man.

The idea of controlling the uncontrollable is the most addictive narcotic known to man.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

Bad eyes Rip. I can't see little(50cal
and under) holes in target. Ed

Dave E has convinced me that the 470 Mbogo is the most shootable cartridge with true big bore power.

The big 50's and up don't buy you much if any additional stopping power/penetration/etc, but what little it does offer comes at a pretty big cost in shootability.

The 500 A2, with its 600gr bullet at 2400 fps is sufficient reminder of that.

So from a hunting oriented pragmatic viewpoint, I don't see any good argument for any cartridge bigger than the 470 Mbogo.

Of course, pragmatism has little to do with human behaviour, and like many on this board I quite like messing around with the power generated by the biggies.

Cheers,
Canuck

Rip, maybe you should move on down to the medium bore forum where the 375 belongs anyway.

quote:

Originally posted by Bitterroot:
Rip, maybe you should move on down to the medium bore forum where the 375 belongs anyway.

LOL !!!!!!!


Why drive a Ford Festiva when you can drive a Ferrari

Hmmm,
Ed,
Did you start going blind before or after you started playing with the bigger bores?

Bitterroot,
I know where you are coming from.

Rich,
I don't care for motorsickles anymore either, ever since I bounced my helmet faceplate along the asphalt at 50 mph. I would not have a head left if it had been at 180 mph.
I learn fast, one wipeout was enough for me.

Canuck,
Yep, 470 Mbogo is plenty, more than enough. But bullets for the .510's are so much more interesting, price and availability.

All I want for X-mas is more .395 bullets.

RIP, are you feeling a little inadequate?

Whitworth,
I am so adequate that I don't need or want anything over 50-bore.
Besides, I am heading into the second half of a century of life, and do not want to end up like Walter before I die: blind, deaf, and with a terrible flinch.

I am really getting tired of people wondering why people want the really big bores. I agree that smaller guns will usually do the trick. So... here is why some people have really big bore guns...BECAUSE WE LIKE THEM!!!!! Why do people like steak when hamburger is available? Why do people drive cars that will go 3 times the speed limit? Why do people like great looking tall slender well built women when there are a lot of short fat ugly ones around? Why do people spend 10 times as much on a H&H double rifle when a bolt gun will kill just as dead? All have the same answer, pay real close attention now. BECAUSE WE LIKE TO, WE WANT TO AND WE CAN !!

The only thing shooting has affected
is my hearing, Wife says I am 3/4 deaf.
The guys say 'Gee that's loud' and
I respond 'whadya say"...Ed

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
What is this fascination with calibers over 50?

Stand less than twenty yards from a group of elephant with nothing between you and them but your rifle . . . then you will know the answer to the question.

quote:

But bullets for the .510's are so much more interesting, price and availability.

Maybe where you live!!!


Cheers,
Canuck

i dunno... why?

quote:

BECAUSE WE LIKE TO, WE WANT TO AND WE CAN !!

Great reply....now I know why I quit at the 404 Jeffery.....

bigdoggy700,
Everybody has got to be crazy about something, or life gets pretty dull. Good enough. But don't ask me to empty your drool bucket for you someday!

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
What is this fascination with calibers over 50?

Stand less than twenty yards from a group of elephant with nothing between you and them but your rifle . . . then you will know the answer to the question.

MJines,
I would be much happier with a 470 Mbogo or 500 Mbogo in that situation. Best of best of. More than enough.

As MJ stated earlier "if you are standing within 20 yds of a group of elephants you know the answer"(or any DG critter for that matter), IF, IF, IF, you can shoot a 50 caliber well then GET ONE. For me personally, I have 375's, 416's, 458's, so I wanted a 50+ caliber. I now have a Heym 500 N.E. on the way to keep my 505 Gibbs company. Do I hunt elephants, yes, so I have a lame excuse for one since 95% of the greatest elephant hunters who ever graced the African bush did not have one. Bottom line, as also wisely stated earlier, we're Americans we do as a culture like the biggest, badest, fastest thing we can usually get our hands on, so being an American first and an elephant hunter second, I have-will have two 50+ calibers.

quote:

Originally posted by Canuck:

quote:

But bullets for the .510's are so much more interesting, price and availability.

Maybe where you live!!!


Cheers,

Canuck

What? You can't get 35 cent milsurp 50BMG bullets for plinking with? I'm sorry.

I think that BigDoggy said best, "because we want to".

Dak

Not where Canuck lives but he could probably find you a nice, slightly dented Sea King helicopter for a gallon bucket of those pulled fifties...

And some people just want to do crack.

Can't help it if your "bore envy" has perturbed your vision. I just like the way stuff explodes when you wack it with a really big bore gun. Personally for me Bore envy starts at 6 inches or more. I do love my Mortars though! If it were legal to own one, I'D Have a 18 incher! YeeHaH-Rob

quote:

Originally posted by Robgunbuilder:
Can't help it if your "bore envy" has perturbed your vision. I just like the way stuff explodes when you wack it with a really big bore gun. Personally for me Bore envy starts at 6 inches or more. I do love my Mortars though! If it were legal to own one, I'D Have a 18 incher! YeeHaH-Rob

So Rob admits he envies the guy with a 6-incher?

O.K.,
I fear retinal detachment.
You know, if you don't quit pounding so hard you'll go blind. With spectacles I can see as well as Chuck Yeager, so far ...

........I have been thinking that myself ..Since most of the time a medium bore will do everything most excellently ..... They are more fun to carry more easy to hit a target with,,they are easier on the ears and easier on the wallet ..and easier on the neck , head and brain ...But once in a while or once in a lifetime you really need something alot bigger ...For me that will probably stop @ the 500 A-2 .,.,.If I need bigger , well I probably won,t have it .....I rapped off 14 rounds of 458 this afternoon .,. with my old muzzel broke, synthetic stocked Ruger with a slip on rubber pad , shooting 500,350 and 300 gr bullets .,.,.,., My head don,t hurt , my shoulder don,t hurt ., and my wallet don,t hurt much .,.,.,Off hand the crosshairs were exactly where I wanted them to be when the rifle fired ...all but one time......need to load more ammo ....solve that one problem ..........

RIP- Whats not to envy in a 6 inch Mortar? Makes me jiggy all over! i'll show you mine if you show me yours!-Rob

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:

.......An Idaho law enforcement agency clocked me last summer at just a tickle over one hundred eighty miles an hour on my slightly tweaked ZX-12R....

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

If this is true, probably not, then MY Opinion of Your Opinion just went way down. IF, IF, IF you were doing 180 on a ZX-12R (whatever that is) then you were extremely negligent!! Kill yourself anyway you want to, but that behavior is childish and reckless.


Best case is you got away with it.....worst case is you could have hurt/killed an innocent bystander.

Hope your story is just BS as most of your posts seem reasoned and intelligent.....

Bore Envy.

quote:

Originally posted by hubel458:
Bad eyes Rip. I can't see little(50cal
and under) holes in target. Ed

This the best reason to own one plus they're easier to clean when you can scrub the grooves with your hand! Eh Ed?

Rip- I can clean my bore with a toilet brush!
AZGuy-180? on a Zx12? He chickened out! a simple 5th gear pull Should have seen the bright side of 200 on a Moded ZX12. Know I have on a heavily moded ZX10R. Crap my Viper will pull 212. Irresponsible? You Betcha! Wanna know how fast 2500lbs and 1500 hp will go in the 1/4 mile? Try 206 at 6.9 seconds!-Rob

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
What is this fascination with calibers over 50?


Is there something Freudian going on?

RIP,

No of course not why do you ask? But I do have a "friend" who may want the number that Phalloplasti clinic............

The better question -- in my mind -- why all the noise, threads, chatter about goof ball wildcats that simply duplicate the performance of multiple cartridges that have been around for years. Honestly who really cares about the .396 Wontonka Long Bore, the .413-75 King Kong, I mean really, who cares?

This subject is always good for a lot of laughs.
I just busted a gut ... having trouble catching my breath ... can't stop laughing ...

quote:

Originally posted by MJines:
The better question -- in my mind -- why all the noise, threads, chatter about goof ball wildcats that simply duplicate the performance of multiple cartridges that have been around for years. Honestly who really cares about the .396 Wontonka Long Bore, the .413-75 King Kong, I mean really, who cares?

MJines: boredom

Gasp! Wheeze!

quote:

Originally posted by Robgunbuilder:
If it were legal to own one, I'D Have a 18 incher! YeeHaH-Rob

Rob, I think if you have to load it from the front end, it's legit.

Of course, that means you will need a fork lift to load it.

Keith

Mike,

Clearly a lot of people care or they wouldn't be spending all the time and brain damage doing it! You aren't one of those boring chap's who carries around an ancient beater .375 H&H from a hundred years ago are you Mike?!

Hmmm,
Mortars and naval guns with 6" to 18" projectile diameter.
A certain cure for projectile dysfunction!
You can stand off to the side and yank a lanyard to fire them! Retinas are safe! I want one too!

RIP,

Quite simple really

The shooters in the 375 bore to 45 bore group see the 510 plus in the same light as the 338 calibre and down group see 375 and bigger.