Has anyone hunted in Africa with the .460 in a Mk V and any experience with how it performs in the hot climate? I read stories about the ammo loaded too hot and sticking in the chamber and also feeding and reliability issues.

The older 460 weatherby ammo was factory loaded to 2700 ft/sec with a 500 grain bullet. All of the newer 460 factory ammo is loaded to 2600 ft/sec and has been for at least the last 8-10 years, maybe longer. You can always load it down to 2500 ft/sec and it will still drop anything on the planet.

I drug mine to Zim for a buffalo. Most hunting in Africa is done in their winter so it was cooler on my hunt than most of the times when I shoot it here in California. We hunted in mostly 70 to 80 degrees and the way the timing was I ended up working up my loads in 80 to 100 degrees at home. My guess is that unless you hunted in the later part of the year you usually won't see temperatures much over 90 on safari.

Most experienced folks will probably tell you that the "heat in Africa increasing pressure" is largely a non-issue in modern times.

While it shot the flat nosed solids REALLY well, they didn't feed 100% so I went back to the round nose and never had any issues. No sticking cases, but I didn't shoot factory stuff and I didn't load to super max either - no need.

The .460 is a bunch of fun, but there's no magic - you still have to put the pills in the right place. My Mk V is my most accurate big bore, but it's mighty heavy and doesn't hold many shells.

Hope that helps.

quote:

Originally posted by Kyler Hamann:
The .460 is a bunch of fun, but there's no magic - you still have to put the pills in the right place.

Good writing Kyler! Respect!

- Lars/Finland

I took mine to RSA and Mozambique last year but it was winter. Took an Eland with it because I had only shot paper with it.
I have shot it at home, Phoenix, AZ area, in a big bore shoot when it was over 100 F. I was using both hand loads and factory and had no extraction issues.
Ditto on what Kyler said, but when it is where it belongs it works really good. I used the Barnes 500 TSX

Mark

I took my 460 Weatherby DGR to Zim. I used factory 450 gr Barnes X on my cape buffalo from 50 yards. The recovered bullet was weighed at 390 grains.



He went down with one shot..

The great Tanzanian PH Pano Calavrius always carried a 460 wby loaded with special bullets which he always had handy for his driver to use on any wounded lion that was chewing on ol Pano's ass. Pano would instruct the driver to run up to the Lion and stick the 460 in it's ear and then pull the trigger. Pano said this trick worked every time! He had great faith in the 460 wby when used in this manner. After hunting with him for a week I removed the bullets from the 460 and fervently hoped for the best. I and the rest of the camp were unfortunately disappointed.I heard that he had a stroke while riding around in the Selous screaming into his microphone for Mark Sullivan. -Rob

I reload for my 460, and if I go above the maximum load of 123 grains of IMR 4350 with a 500 grain bullet the bolt gets pretty hard to open. I would just load it down a little bit if I was going up against dangerous game. Even the starting load is over 2500 fps.

Also I've only used round nose bullets, but mine has always fed perfectly.

Thanks for the responses, much appreciated.

Is the heat in Africa hotter than our heat here in Nevada and Arizona????????

I have always wondered that myself. Plus why does everyone think 3 shots is not enough, when the touted double rifle only holds two rounds. I like my mark 5 460.

OK If I do not say this I will explode!


I am so surprised that so many people are using NON-CRF rifles in Africa and living to tell about it!

quote:

Originally posted by POP:
OK If I do not say this I will explode!


I am so surprised that so many people are using NON-CRF rifles in Africa and living to tell about it!

POP,
Don't you realize those are ghost-writers penning post-mortem?

Rob,
I don't know what Pano needed a 460 for..He killed a full grown male Lion on top of him with a knife! True story...I've known Pano for years, he is not great, he's crazy!

I hunted with a PH that used the .460 almost exclusively and it sure killed buffalo well. My dear friend George Hoffman used the 460 Wby from time to time, but prefered the .416 Hoffman as the recoil of the 460 is pretty ugly.

My main complaint about the really big bores is recoil recovery is very slow when compared to a 40 caliber and the bigger they get the more the problem exists..I have seen this several times when things were up close.

Ray- Do you really believe anything Pano said?-Rob

Rob,
Well no as a matter of fact, nor any of his cohorts from the Seacliff! They do tend to wear their beer goggles with a modicum of pride!

I haven't hunted with the .460 Wby but I have used the .450 Dakota which is the same thing minus the belt. I would suggest loading it down from factory velocities. A 500 gr bullet loaded down to 2,300 fps or a bit more is very low pressure and very shootable. When you get them up to 2,500fps or more recoil is pretty grim and the velocity isn't necessary anyway.

Hi, I have hunted in Zambia in desember using my 460Wby. It was hot hot hot, and the rifle performed without any problems.
I used handloads, just backed them down 2 grains under max.
I even used a Mark V in 340Wby for plain game.
It worked like a charm to!

Some 460 bullets:

quote:

Originally posted by 350 Remington Magnum:
Hi, I have hunted in Zambia in desember using my 460Wby. It was hot hot hot, and the rifle performed without any problems.
I used handloads, just backed them down 2 grains under max.
I even used a Mark V in 340Wby for plain game.
It worked like a charm to!

Those are Barnes TSX and Hornady FMJ? What was your loads?

quote:

Originally posted by LRH270:
Is the heat in Africa hotter than our heat here in Nevada and Arizona????????

The temperature may be the same but in many parts of Africa you are much closer to the equator. The effects of the sun are much different here and I grew up in East Texas so I know hot.

quote:

Those are Barnes TSX and Hornady FMJ? What was your loads?

Bullets used was 400grs Barnes-X and 500grs Woodleigh Solids.
Load used I have to check my notes...

Themperature was up in 113F or 45C on the hottest days.

quote:

Originally posted by tanz2007:

quote:

Originally posted by LRH270:
Is the heat in Africa hotter than our heat here in Nevada and Arizona????????

The temperature may be the same but in many parts of Africa you are much closer to the equator. The effects of the sun are much different here and I grew up in East Texas so I know hot.

Huh? I also grew up in East Texas and I know BS when I see it.

I reported on my 2005 Big 5 hunt where I used my 460 Wby Mk V with Barnes-X on all of them. It was very warm, and I never had any issues. Here's the old post with pictures of the recovered bullets, I hope it's helpful:

460 Wby and Big 5 in the heat

I'm not sold on the African heat running up pressure any more so thana lot of other places, I suspect what runs up pressures is too damn much powder in the case to get that extra 100 FPS thats about as necessary as tits on a bore hog.

I am not sure how close one is to the sun has much to do with anything unless your in one of Buck Roger's rocket ship or fresh out of NASA..

heat is heat, and it takes a lot of outside heat to change pressures more than one or two thousand PSI, and if your that close to max your in deep do-do...but some insist on doing that and they get in trouble and then they blame it on all manor of problems just like our man in the Whitehouse, Bush did it!

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Williams:

quote:

Originally posted by tanz2007:

quote:

Originally posted by LRH270:
Is the heat in Africa hotter than our heat here in Nevada and Arizona????????

The temperature may be the same but in many parts of Africa you are much closer to the equator. The effects of the sun are much different here and I grew up in East Texas so I know hot.

Huh? I also grew up in East Texas and I know BS when I see it.

That has to be one of the best posts I've seen on AR.

FWIW, I hunt in over 100 degrees every year and the ammo gets hot. I try to keep it out of the sun but not always possible.

It is also generally 90% humidity. One year it was closer to 50 degrees and 90% and it was almost unbearable, especially cutting up animals afterwards !

I agree with Atkinson re running close to red hot loads. No need, doesn't seem to do anything any different.

.

I was talking to Roy Vincent on the phone a few days ago and he told me its hotter in Midland, Texas than anyplace he has every been in Africa and colder too! I was raised about 250 miles So. of Midland and it gets up to 120-125 several times a year, and dryer than a popcorn fart...I have not seen it that hot in Africa and I have spent many months at a time there. I think it gets hot just about every place on earth..and I can't tell much difference in the heat once it kicks over about a 110..hot is hot...

100 plus up to 105 or 6 with high humidity is the killer for us human animals, and I have seen it that hot and that humid in Africa, Houston, Texas, Dallas Texas and Oklahoma. I have also shot rifles in all those weather conditions without problems, in fact I have never had a problem with weather and shooting hot or cold..

For me the .460 Weatherby Magnum only gets interesting when it's necked up to .510" and becomes the .500 A-Square.

And I've used the latter, loaded with 570 and 600 grain bullets at 2,500 fps, to kill big game, including elephant and Cape buffalo, in 125 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures.

I don't know what powders the factory Weatherby rounds are loaded with, but I would guess Norma? They may be okay, but I have very little experience with them.

I only use temperature insensitive powders like Hodgdon 4350 or my favorite, Reloader 15.

Do that and you'll have no problems.

I have to agree Michael. They best use of a 460 is to neck the case up to .510 and load with 570 grn.