Anyone used a double rifle on a driven European boar hunt ?

450-400 is what I have.

The feedback I have gotten from the outfitters is bring a blaser in 300 win mag or semi auto. The have not been to favorable to double rifles.


Thanks

Mike

Many Europeans use double or drilling rifles on driven hunts. But most use bolt rifles or semi automatic due to larger cartridge capasity. I have used a Blaser R8 Professional in caliber 30-06 on some driven hunts. Next driven hunt I will test the caliber 8 x 57 that is said is very nice on driven hunts.

Morten

I reckon your double might work, if you are well used to it - two quick well-aimed shots could beat three bad ones.

As to the calibre, well, years ago I found a century-old book by a man called Wynn who hunted wild boar with two rifles he found equally good. One was a 6.5x54MS and the other was a 4-bore db.

Mike, do you have open sights only on the 450-400? Open sights and only 2 rounds, plus the greater recoil of that round would make that a poor choice, i would think. Not many rifles cycle faster than a Blaser.

So if you need a fast big bore with a lots of magazine capacity, use a scoped AR15 in .458 Socom .
Fast second (and more) shots, accurate and bullets to 500 grains or so.

My son used his with 300 grain bullets on a Nilgai recently and it did the job nicely.

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
Mike, do you have open sights only on the 450-400? Open sights and only 2 rounds, plus the greater recoil of that round would make that a poor choice, i would think. Not many rifles cycle faster than a Blaser.

Biebs

Has a dr optic red dot but recoil would be an issue.

The outfitter said blaser is the best.

I am just trying to find a use for the double. Unlikely to take it Africa.


I bought it to hunt buffalo - lost interest in buff hunting.

Mike

Sell it to pay for hunts!

Biebs

Hunts are a bigger waste of money than doubles

You should say buy more blaser barrels.

Mike

The classic choice is a side by side double rifle in 8x57JRS or 9,3x74R..the animals come fast..!

But as said a bolt or semi is by far the most usual today.

A .450/400 is waay overkill on these hunts..

quote:

Originally posted by crshelton:
So if you need a fast big bore with a lots of magazine capacity, use a scoped AR15 in .458 Socom .
Fast second (and more) shots, accurate and bullets to 500 grains or so.

My son used his with 300 grain bullets on a Nilgai recently and it did the job nicely.

Sorry sir - but this is a very bad advice. If you try to use this in Europe and bring it by an airline you must be totally nuts !!

Morten

more velocity is your friend on running pigs.

Not an expert at all on German driven hunting but done a bit. There seems to be a fascination amongst the younger generations with Blaser R93s and R8's and you do see an awful lot of them in the field - generally in 308, 9.3x62 or 300 win mag. The idea being that boar tend to come through in groups and you can shoot three or four.

Trouble is you have to be a very good shot and very fast at reloading.

Blaser have a very powerful marketing message, and they put Blaser's in the hands of many outfitters at very much reduced prices.

But many hunters still use drillings, combination guns and doubles. With Drillings and combinations, a slug is loaded in the shot barrel.

I have used both my combination and bolt action rifle for Boar hunting. My one boar so far was a fast running boar at 60 odd yards and just swung through with my 7x65r combination gun and bowled over like a running rabbit.

Next hunt was encouraged to take a magazine rifle. For me its not instinctive to shoot moving targets with a bolt action and on my one chance I missed and by the time I had reloaded it hand gone. A lot of driven boar you are either in trees, or on tracks in the forest and your chance of a shot is two or three seconds at best. A double rifle gives you bang bang.

Thats why I now have a liner barrel in my combination so have a double 7x65r, loaded with 173gn H-Mantle bullets, and will be using that for a week in December on three days of driven pigs.

With a double I have two quick shots, open, twist barrels up, empties fall out, drop two more in, and two more quick shots ready to go for the next ones that appear.

With a magazine, yes you have three or four or five rounds in the mag, but they are slow to reload once empty.

And a German friend of mine rotates a R93 in 9.3x62, a 375 H&H double, a 9.3x74r Double and when he thinks there might be some big boar a 470 NE.

A 450/400 is not overkill - yes it will be on small yearlings, but depending on where you are some of the boar grow large. Friends shot one that was well over 300kg once gutted last year near Dortmund.

If you have a 450/400, you enjoy shooting it and can shoot well with it, take it with you.

I use a double 9.3x74R for driven boar, and is perfect. Open sights, too, just like a shotgun.

The idea that a double rifle will somehow be slower for the second shot than, for example, a Blaser, is laughable. The third shot? Maybe, but I have not heard many of those on shoots I have attended: opportunities are fleeting, not extended.

You will see all sorts of rifles on driven shoots in Europe,but doubles (as well as their drilling cousins) are widely used and liked, certainly where I have shot (France and Belgium).

So please bring yours along: its an unusual calibre over here, so you will get lots of people wanting to look at it. And it will do the job on the boar just fine.

My opinion, for what it is wort, is that it is your hunt. If you want to use the 450/400 understanding a couple may get away as you reload I think you should. Two things are for sure the second shot would be there and the ones you hit are not going to like it. On big running boar shot placement may not be perfect and a little more gun than necessary can't hurt.

quote:

Originally posted by Macs B:
I have hunted driven boar and other game literally dozens of times using my 30-06 side by side with open sights and/or a red dot. Biggest thing is you must be able to handle the rifle quickly and shoot it accurately. Another great choice is a fast straight pull bolt gun like a blazer, heym, or kgun. They are equally well represented in the driven hunts.

quote:

Originally posted by LHeym500:
My opinion, for what it is wort, is that it is your hunt. If you want to use the 450/400 understanding a couple may get away as you reload I think you should. Two things are for sure the second shot would be there and the ones you hit are not going to like it. On big running boar shot placement may not be perfect and a little more gun than necessary can't hurt.

Gentlemen, I don’t find it a handicap using a double rifle for running wild boar. I have taken several hogs, two at a time, with a double tap and dropping them in their tracks. It is much easier with my 9.3 –74R double than with my 470NE double. However it all boils down to how well you shoot a double on running targets.

This is the one place I believe a double rifle with a single trigger may be of some value over double triggers. The only draw back the double has to a simi-auto rifle for this type of hunting is even a very quick re-load may let some targets pass while you are accomplishing the re-load with the double. With a standard turn bolt rifle the double is at “NO” disadvantage when worked by a well practiced double rifle shooter for a fast re-charge for shots three, and four.

…………………………I say go ahead and have fun with your double rifle, hunting is what a double rifle was made for, and unless one is used for that purpose, there is little reason for owning one!

........................................................................

.

8x57JRS Wolf double my "go two" for driven hunts. Works every time. Best drive to date was 3 pigs, 1 roe and a fox.

A 470NE on a German driven shoot would likely raise eyebrows in the wrong kind of way.

Whether bolt or double take and shot whatever works for you.

.

I would happily do this hunt with my 450/400,if recoil is an issue? just go with 300 gr bullets instead of the 400,Blaser lovers can go kiss their barrels lol ,there is nothing more gratifying than hunting with a DR,the doctor sight makes for incredibly quick target acquisition,have killed a lot of hogs with DR's.

Worked on this one (and on many more)



Before the hunt check the terrain you are going to hunt. On many videos that you can see on Youtube there are open forests with visibilty that offer long range shooting with scoped rifles. But then there are places with dense undergrowth that pigs use as a suitable cover and avoid open places like a plague and shooting inside 15m is the norm - now there a good fiting open sighted double shines - shooting is shotgun like - pointing, instinctive.

quote:

Originally posted by Charlie64:
.

8x57JRS Wolf double my "go two" for driven hunts. Works every time. Best drive to date was 3 pigs, 1 roe and a fox.

A 470NE on a German driven shoot would likely raise eyebrows in the wrong kind of way.

Whether bolt or double take and shot whatever works for you.

.

Charlie64, We do a lot of wild hog shooting in Texas, and the DRSS members use every double rifle they own from a 30-06 to a 577NE, and I'm sure you realize nothing larger than 30-30 is actually needed for wild boar, but double rifle shooters like to use their double rifles on hogs because it gives real practice for hunting other things where the use of large bore doubles may mean life or death if one misses the stopping shot with a big double on mean targets.
................................................
......................Practice on running game with a big bore double can be a life saver on real dangerous game in close quarters where hitting the right place on a very determined animal like a lion or cape buffalo is a must!

................................

.

Mac, I hear what you say and I have 4 doubles myself from .30-06 up to .470. Caliber for the occassion is my thought. But whatever anyone wants to shoot heck shot it and enjoy as long as it's legal.

As to real life situations and practice on driven boar vs lion or charging buff, I would rather be the guy with the gun than the guy driving the boar or lion or buff !!!!

Cheers and happy double shooting !

.

quote:

Originally posted by Charlie64:
.

Mac, I hear what you say and I have 4 doubles myself from .30-06 up to .470. Caliber for the occassion is my thought. But whatever anyone wants to shoot heck shot it and enjoy as long as it's legal.

As to real life situations and practice on driven boar vs lion or charging buff, I would rather be the guy with the gun than the guy driving the boar or lion or buff !!!!

Cheers and happy double shooting !

.

....... Me too on being the guy with the gun!

Here's my armament for driven wild boar (all running shots) :


Fair weather : FN-Browning CCS25 in 9,3x74R


Foul weather : Blaser R93 in 9,3x62.

I think going with the 300gr bullets is sound advice as long as they shoot to the sights.
I imagine that there would be some consternation from the other hunters but I bet that would cease if you prove to be proficient with the 400.