I was wonder which caliber is most popular with the big bore shooters here.I have had .375s,.416s and .458s and have shot my friends 470 capstick.I include Bears in Dangerous Game because they like to bite too and I like to hunt them!

Question:
Which big bore Caliber do you like best for your all around Dangerous Game rifle ?This includes Bears,Lions,Elephants,Rhino and any thing else that bites or stomps world wide

Choices:
.375
.400
.416
.458
.470

 

I like the 416 best.It hits harder than the .375 and shoots way flatter than the 458 and the recoil is about at my limit where I can shoot it very well.I had two 458s but I didnt see and advantage to them over the 416.I was very impressed with my friends 470 capstick but I really dont need one and it is above my comfort zone to fun shooting even though I will shot it again.I shot it 6 times one day and that was enough.My 416s are my life Insurance policy in alaska for bears.I have not been to africa yet but one day i will go.I just wanted to see which was the most popular these days.I want a 416 Ruger even though i have 6 416 Rem mags.Good hunting and shooting.

None of the the above, the .500 NE.

I prefer my 404 although a 416 makes more sense due to bullet availability and cost. Game animals probably can't tell the difference. I also own 375's and a 470.

dgr416

Of the calibers listed I chose 458 caliber. However, I much rather carry either my 50 B&M or my 500 MDM, .500 caliber, in general!

Michael

It is not the best plan to select one rifle in my opinion. The rifle I would use for elephant will be different than the one I select for leopard or for bear for that matter.

465H&H

Because you included the elephant in the list, I'd take my .458 Lott, otherwise my .375 H&H would do me just fine worldwide.

Those are all medium bores
Big starts at 1/2"

quote:

Originally posted by 22WRF:
Why is it that there isn't much attention paid to calibers between .416 and .458? Are there any bullets made for like say a .435 caliber?

.423" (404 Jeffery) and .435" (425 WR) diameters are for nostagia enthusiasts and wildcatter tinkerers like myself

404-375 and 435-06!

+1 on the 404 Jeffery.

Von Gruff.

I agree.....I said 416 since that's close to my 404 Jeff. In a modern gun, 2300 with 400 grs in a 404 is a no-brainer...and pressure is still way down from max.

Gary
DRSS
NRA Lifer
SCI
DSC

None of those. I like 500s!

What is the difference between a .40 and .416

Who makes bullets for which ctg in .400 ?

Right, where is the 50? Or 308,338? Over 50?

an ill conceived poll. I voted 416, but...

Out of the choices listed, my 450 Dakota.

But where are the 500's,505's,585's and 600's, which can be used for buffalo and elephant.

All the previous listed calibers are medium rifle bores.

Dak

quote:

Originally posted by ScottS:
None of those. I like 500s!

Music to my ears.

I vote my CZ in 450 Dakota.
Dangerous Game is not hunted at long range, so the purported trade off to a 416 for flatter trajectory is moot. I will see your 400gr bullet at 2400fps and substitute my 500gr Swift A-frame or Barnes Solid at 2470fps.

That said, I have a Searcy 470 NE coming.

Rich

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
I vote my CZ in 450 Dakota.
Dangerous Game is not hunted at long range, so the purported trade off to a 416 for flatter trajectory is moot. I will see your 400gr bullet at 2400fps and substitute my 500gr Swift A-frame or Barnes Solid at 2470fps.

That said, I have a Searcy 470 NE coming.

Rich

The 416 is great if you are doing plains game and dangerous game in the same hunt. The big 450's are pretty good, and have the reach, but I feel comfortable shooting the 416 from a seated or kneeling position, the same couldn't be said for the big 450's.

John

.458 Win. Mag or Lott. And so you think maybe the picture at the top of this forum is some sort of arbitrary choice?

When walking thru the woods for a hartebeest or roan you might run into a buffalo. For that, the 416 is significantly better than the 375. And loading a rifle up to 2700+fps in a TSX where the petals are still stable gives energy up towards 6000 ftlbs. Of course, if it were a Dangerous Game only rifle, then the 505Gibbs is pretty nice. But 'all-around DG'? I think Jack OConnor liked the 416 and it is my choice, too.

quote:

Originally posted by boom stick:
Those are all medium bores
Big starts at 1/2"

How about some more votes for the 458?

1st choice .500 Schuler Jumbo, .500 Jeffery, 12.7x70 Mauser; 2nd choice .416 Rigby

If you can shoot a 416 accurately, the 450 Dakota is not a real big step up in recoil. Put a recoil reducer in the butt and practice.

Rich

Rich, I am not so sure I agree. I load my .416 Rigby with 410 Woodleighs. At around 2300 fps, it's a piece of cake to shoot. If I push a 500 grain bullet out of my .450 Dakota at 2300+, I think it is a big step up in recoil. I have found the best combination in both guns is a 350 grain TSX in the Rigby and a 450 grain TSX with Reloder 15 in the Dakota. Using Reloder 15 and dropping down to a 450 TSX in the Dakota gives me more velocity but seems to be a big step down in recoil. You should give it a try. If you need load data, let me know.

If you run a sensitivity analysis on felt recoil you will find bullet weight is the key factor. Therefore, big difference in felt recoil between a 300 gr .375, 400 gr .416, 500 gr. .458, and 600 gr .510 etc,etc,etc.

I would think you would really want to consider the 404 Jeffery! That seems to be overlooked! To many people base a decision on the latest wiz bang super high speed round. This is often sold by a gun shop that has NO experience in the applications on which the guns are being purchased or intended. We are a society of over compensation! Why reinvent the wheel…The 404 Jeffery has history and is a proven cartridge and because it lack flash is considered obsolete…I laugh at all the rave of the biggest and fastest cartridges that people have to have that have no idea of what they are buying…Ignorance is everywhere…just look at our presidential election.

-Tony

quote:

I would think you would really want to consider the 404 Jeffery!

thats because the poll is poorly written. It should have been better stated, with examples:

28 (7x57,7mmrem, etc)
30 (300 wby, 308 )
34 (338win, 340 wby,etc)
38 (375hh, ruger etc)
40 (404,416Rigby,416xyz etc)
45 (458wm, Lott,470NE etc)
50 (505Gibbs,500NE, etc)
>50 (577NE,600NE, etc)

I believe, sadly this is what he meant. I think, then again, who knows??? What the heck is .400 I am still waiting to hear?

If I had to choose one "all around" dangerous game caliber it would be a .416, such as the Rigby or the Remington, that is capable of driving a 400 grain bullet at 2,400 fps.

for me its my 404j with the northfork bullet.it simply works.

404J

Any of them will work if pointed well. I would choose the 458 win or lott simply because of ammo availability.

416 Rigby for me no question

sorry I forgot the .423s,404s and .500s.You just dont see those in stores much.We have gotten to where we have almost too mant choices which is good and bad.Some calibers get more popular and some disapear all together.We have gotten smallers than Samual Bakers 2 bore .This is due to better bullets and smokeless powders.The 458 use to be the cartridge of choice of Africa.Not as many of us go elephant hunting these days so we use lighter guns.I have decided my recoil limit is the 416 Rem mag .I can shoot it alot of times accurately very fast without fear of shooting it.I shot my friends 8 pound 470 Capstick a few times and I was flinching after a few shots.I shot his 405 winchester the same day it was like shooting a 20 ga shotgun.I know Teddy roosevelt loved the 405 winchester but he liked the stopping power of his big double Rifle better.I like my 416 rem mags for big bears and have not been to Africa yet but will someday.I love big bores and if I had a 470 Capstick with a muzzlebreak I bet i could shoot it alot better.Good hunting and shooting this year to you all!

For the list of animals you provided...and only one rifle....416 Rem or Rig! That said...I don't even own either.

DGR416
What is the .400?

Selby used a .416 Rigby for most of his career and says the .375 H&H is the greatest cartridge ever developed and given that he no doubt has forgotten more about hunting than we all know collectively, I'll go with either one.

for what John Frederick said.

You've goota like Selby. And he did his hunting before the monolithic bullets allowed the more effective use of smaller calibres.

Since I don't hunt 'only' DG, I'll stick with the 416 Rigby, but demand that it have expanding monolithics up the spout (like the 350 grain TSX) and 65%-meplat flat-nosed solids underneath. (I've never considered doubles because of price.)

It's the bullet that does the work. After putting the bullet on target, the next criterion for me is guaranteed penetration and the 416 has always had a great rep for penetration, if not the best.

My vote is pretty much one sided as the .375 only because it is the biggest caliber I have personally used to kill my biggest animals (brown bears and moose, and yes I realize moose are not dangerous game).
There are most likely better choices but my experience is limited.
The various .375s have killed from warthogs to impala to blacktails to caribou to sheep to moose with no complaints.