The double rifle forum has been sooooooooo quiet lately. Let's juice this thing up!

You guys that have a 9.3X74s, regale us with some of your fun hunting stories. What's the longest shot you have ever made? What's the biggest animal you have ever taken? What bullets have you used and how did they perform? Has you 9.3 ever been called upon to stop a charge? Give us the dish!

Dave

I'd love to hear them too. Just bought my first DR (9.3x74R) and trying to get a feel for the same things Dave has asked about. . .
Cheers,
Bill

I've posted this info before, but the longest shot was a bit over 200 yards on a Zebra. The biggest animal was a cape buffalo and the bullet for both was a 250 grain Barnes X, all shot from a Merkel 141(e) with a 2.5 Leupold.

I've since re-regulated using the adjustable feature to factory Norma 232 grain factory ammo for local hunting.

Using the set trigger feature for the right barrel, 200 yards was not a stretch at all. The buffalo was 30 yards or so and ran about 80 yards or so and was quite sick when a follow up shot ended the deal.

This past January I shot a 200 lb wild hog in Louisiana at 70 yards with my Ruger No.1 in 9.3X74R. The shot was through both shoulders for a quick kill. I would love to have a double rifle in 9.3X74R. The Ruger No.1 has worked well for me. One shot is all I have ever needed.

Bullet: Prvi Partison 286 gr.
Case: RWS - the very best
Powder: IMR 4064
Velocity: 2428 fps
Sight: NECG peep sight w/post front sight

120 meters on a smallish "boarlet" with 12 kgs. gutted. Nosler Ballistic Tip 250 grain, still have a couple. I also shot several smallish roe deer in that weight range, howsever with a 193 grain FP bullet that dropped them on the spot.

Ah, and the rifle is a Blaser B95 o/u combination.

Chapuis double. Bull moose about 75 yards away, shot him once and he stood there, gave him the other barrel and he dropped. Within 5 seconds he was up and running but stopped about 125 yards away. Gave him another two and the shots were absolutely perfect (have it on dvd to prove it) then he fell over. All with iron sights, Woodleigh 286 grains and off hand.
Any of the 4 hits would of killed him but he knew I was there and watched me put the bead on him and was pumped up.
I love this rifle!

quote:

Nosler Ballistic Tip 250 grain, still have a couple

DUKie,

Yeah, but my hoard is dwindling rapidly. Successor will surely be the new 286 gr. Hornady SP's. 64.0 grs. of H-4350. Never tried anything else because this was the first load I ever developed and it put 3 into <1" from the Get-Go.

My 9.3x74R chambering is in a Drilling underbarrel.

I've shot a good number of middle-sized Wild Boar, Roe, Fallow & Red Deer with it and the Nosler 250 gr. BT's deliver a good number of Bang-Flops on European sized game.

The funniest occurance was when I was sitting in the corner of a snow covered field in a High Seat. Snow falling - tranquility - I was half-asleep, sipping a warm cup of Coffee and enjoying every second of the pristine setting.

5 Fallow Does (3) & Calves (2) came outa the lower right-hand corner of the woods and began stottering across the field left-to-right single-file. Managed to pull myslef outa my self-induced stupor and into the andrenaline-rushed urgency the situation required.

Grabbed the Drilling and by the time everything was Hoyle I was jammed up against the corner post of the High Seat's roof twisted in a knot (Left-Handed shooter) trying to get a good sight picture. After clanging the Drilling barrel against the post (Duh!) the Fallow stopped. I popped the first Doe (later measured at 119 meters) and down she went; 250 gr. NBT thru the X-ring. That the remaining four stood standing attmepting to locate the source of the clanging, banging and my cursing as I re-loaded and got the Drilling moved to the left-hand side of the post was "An Amazement". #2, a Calf took another NBT for a Bang-Flop morning Duo.

Sadly, no pics as the several days of hunting in sub-zero weather had drained my camera's re-chargable batterys which I keep in the Rucksack.

With my tika o/u a russian boar about 200, a ferel sow about 175, a small cow elk. With my sxs a 10 point and a doe. All shots were 60 to 80 yards. The pigs and elk where shot with S&B. The deer with norma ornx. The ornx were soft and caused to much damage. I am thinking of trying 9.3 cup points on deer.

JD

quote:

Originally posted by Snowwolfe:
Chapuis double. Bull moose about 75 yards away, shot him once and he stood there, gave him the other barrel and he dropped. Within 5 seconds he was up and running but stopped about 125 yards away. Gave him another two and the shots were absolutely perfect (have it on dvd to prove it) then he fell over. All with iron sights, Woodleigh 286 grains and off hand.
Any of the 4 hits would of killed him but he knew I was there and watched me put the bead on him and was pumped up.
I love this rifle!

That must have been fun please post the video.
JD

Gerry,

you might try the Norma Vulcan 232 grain which shoots pretty flat and with N140 very well out of my B95. Never tried them on game, though...

Another interesting alternative I will consider are the Barnes TSX.

my far shot was at about 250 on a zebra, hairiest was a lion that was killing livestock at night in the tall grass. seemed pretty small at the time, a 105 would have seemed better, the the 9.3 did the job. my usual load is with a 300 gr a frame

The vulcan are by design quick to open up,

great at driven hunts, will yield a big hole and blod trail.

Some say the wreck to much meat.

/Chris

quote:

Originally posted by DUK:
Gerry,

you might try the Norma Vulcan 232 grain which shoots pretty flat and with N140 very well out of my B95. Never tried them on game, though...

Another interesting alternative I will consider are the Barnes TSX.

quote:

Originally posted by J D:

quote:

Originally posted by Snowwolfe:
Chapuis double. Bull moose about 75 yards away, shot him once and he stood there, gave him the other barrel and he dropped. Within 5 seconds he was up and running but stopped about 125 yards away. Gave him another two and the shots were absolutely perfect (have it on dvd to prove it) then he fell over. All with iron sights, Woodleigh 286 grains and off hand.
Any of the 4 hits would of killed him but he knew I was there and watched me put the bead on him and was pumped up.
I love this rifle!

That must have been fun please post the video.
JD

Wished I could but I am still in the dark ages with this stuff. If you make it to Alaska I have an hour's worth of dvd on the entire hunt

Don't worry I am a old fart too. Go to photo bucket and open a account. Copy the part of the DVD you want to show to a file on your desk top.
Upload to photo bucket copy the link and past to the spot in your post where you want it to go. I done photos that way, I been told videos work the same. Or email me at jddonnelly@bellsouth.net attach the part of the DVD you wish to show and I will try to do it far you.

Have you had any trouble with your doubles in the harsh weather of Alaska. I would like to take my 9.3 or 470 on a mouse or bear hunt.

JD

No troubles at all but in fairness the rifle has only been used in decent weather. I usually carry a SS Ruger bolt when the weather is crappy.

Hope you meant moose, and not mouse

Snowwolf
I'll take you up on that. Don't make any plans I'll be over to watch the vido tommorrow. Make sure there is plenty of beer I'll bring a bag of chips.

All joking aside I'm tring to remember everything I've taken with a 9.3x74.
Eland, wildebeaste,impala,Feral hog,Russian boar.

Not a hudge list but not bad for a guy who has never owned one. My greatest shot with a 9.3 double rifle was at a friends house in florida. I stopped in there in rout to Zimbabwe because we were to hunt togather. He had just recived his 9.3 from the gunmaker after some repairs the day before we were to leave on the plane. We hurried out to a field to sight in the rifle and see how well it regulated and shoot with the ammo he had for it. That went surprisingly well and after sighting in we did a little practice with the gun by rolling some wild mellons like a bolling ball and shooting them on the move. My friend sent one out ahead with a stout roll as I bore down on it anticipating an explotion of green mellon. I squeezed the trigger and all hell broake out. A gyser of water shot about 20 feet in the air as the two of us looked at each other and in unison said what the hell was that.
As it turned out there was an iragation line burried a few inches under ground. fortunantly there was a shut off valve close by.

Never hunted with a 9.3x74R but I took a friend with me to Germany to hunt 3 years ago and he was given a 9.3 x 74 in a nice little Blaser Kipplauf to shoot. He fired a half dozen shots the day before to get to know the gun. It was sighted on its GEE of about 170 yds with RWS 286 grain ammo.

We were posted about 150 yds apart on the edge of a field above a creek bed. Not long after the hunting horn sounded to signal that dogs and handlers were moving, I could hear hogs running towards me down that creek bed. I let the leading sow pass and killed a "Ueberlaeufer"
(year old pig) and the pack of them took off away from me running towards my buddy. They were at a full run and by the time they got to his shooting lane they were a good 125-40 yds from his stand. He picked off one of the smaller animals at a dead run and rolled it in a heap. Bullet entered high behind the right shoulder and crushed the right shoulder and broke the left front leg on exit. That was his first shot. His second was that night about 10:30 when again he shot a young boar at almost 200 yds...and it lay no farther than 15 yds from impact.

He was invited back anytime he wants to come!!!I guess growing up in Montana with a 270 or an 8 mm in your hands helps

One shot on Cape Buffalo in Zim last October! I was using 286gr Nosler Partitions. It was a perfect heart shot, and the Buff ran ~50yds and went down!

Not a double; one of the "other" 9,3x74rs:

My least expensive and only current O/U DR a Valmet with 4 barrel sets ,one set in 9.3 never fails me.
Bullets fly, pigs die, deer die,even rabbits die.
The 9.3 lives on.
Now if I could only located a set of .375 Win barrels to ream to .375.
OOps , off topic.

JudgeG, do you know which barrel to use for long range shots? I assume that the regulation has gone to hell at 200 yards? The longest range I have shot my Tikka O/U is 100 yards.
Thanks, Peter.

The Merkel 141(e) has a set trigger for the right barrel so that is the first shot. At present, that barrel hits about 1" high at 100 yards with the 232 grain Norma and the left hits about right at the level of the bull and about 1" to the left... so... I get minute of animal groups at 200 yards using both barrels. Come up to Woodbine some day and shoot it. You'll see.

Thanks for the offer, I might take you up on it! In the meantime I might just try mine at 200 just to see what happens. Now that I have some 286 NPs I have to develop loads for that bullet (I was using 270 Speers and 286 PRVI's).
Peter.

i took many animals with 9.3x74r, mostly with my drilling in europe over 90 wild boars, now i have merkel 9.3x74r double rifle,i took nice black bear over 120 meters and one doe over 200 metres, great rifle for north america