I am leaving Thursday for a buffalo hunt/shoot in north central MT. My question is on shot placement and caliber selection. What do you guys recomend?
Guide 2

On a front-on shot with its head up, put a stout bullet of .277 or greater diameter right between it eyes.
On a broadside shot, put a stout bullet of .277 or greater diameter right between its ear to take out the first cervical vertebra (Atlas joint), or
using a larger, say .338 or greater, but a heavy-for-caliber bullet into the lungs and wait for it to die.
Unless you hit it in the brain or spine, don't expect it to show any reaction to the bullet strike. Ranch bison usually just stand there until they lay down, or move a few yards, and then lay down.

If there are any ravines or gullies nearby, KEEP SHOOTING! You don't want to have to try to hoist a bison out of a ravine!

George

We took 6 bison the week before last. Rifles used were 3 7mm Rem Mags (175 grain Corelocks), 1 300 Win Mag, 1 375 Ultra Mag (300 grain Swift Aframe), and a PSE bow. All were shot right behind the shoulder from a distance of 120 yards (except the bow) and all were one shot kills. The only animal that reacted immediately at the shot was the one shot with the .375 Ultra. We had to track it 3 yards, straight down.

Good luck on your hunt

Guide2: I have been present over the last two years when 8 Buffalo were shot and killed here in Montana. The owner of the Buffalo ranch requested that the Buffalo be shot only when broadside and that the bullet be placed 2" below the ear and 3" toward the rear of the Buffalo. All 8 Buffalo were killed with one shot in their tracks. This shot does not harm the skull of the Buffalo which makes a great looking skull mount. I had one skull cleaned by the Demastid Beatle cleaning method ($115.00) and these are very attractive in my opinion.
The last Buffalo we harvested I was the back up man using my friends Model 95 Winchester in caliber 405 Wincheser (cool old Rifle). My friend shot the Buffalo with his pistol in caliber 45 Long Colt using a 300 grain bullet hot loaded. I took a picture of the Buffalo that shows it falling in its tracks from the above described shot. I recommend this shot especially if you want to have the skull processed for display.
Good luck and shoot some Coyotes while you are out here.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

222REM in in the left front hoof.just jokeing never killed nothing biger than a deer in my life other than a beef. And I hope you have a good hunt.GOOD luck.If you get one I like to see a pitcher.hope you have fun.

Guys,
The rancher said to use enough gun, last week one was hit poorly and had to be chased half a day. My hunting partner will bring his 340 Weatherby and a 300 Win in a BAR for a second.
I have three rifle to choose from
1. 300 Weatherby 180 SP
2. 338 Winchester 250 Asquare SP
3. 460 Weatherby 500 SP
I thought about taking the 460 just because I got one, took it out to the range and sited in +2" at 100 yds. The 338 is a old model BAR that shoots snuff can sized groups, always has. The 300 Weatherby is sited and ready to go.
I'm planning on a shoulder mount, will the frontal or side shots damage the mount?
Guide 2

Side/front shots are going to do absolutely no damage to the cape/mount. Sounds too me like a good excuse to use the .460 on something other than paper. Nothing wrong with either of your other two choices though.

If you haven't blooded your .460Wby yet, by all means do so on the bison. Whose soft-points are you using? Don't use the Hornady bullets at full throttle; use a Swift A-Frame (or Nosler Partition, Winchester FailSafe, Trophy Bonded, Barnes 'X').

The pelage on a bison is so thick, you will not be able to find the hole.

George

Take the 460. I had thought to use a 338 this last fall and was offered a 375, and was lucky to have had it. Unexpectedly I had a 20 yard shot on the bull I'd been after (best coloring) for a day and a half. 300 gr. partition entered chest, through the heart, and ended up under hind quarter flesh after a perfect mushroom, weight down to 246 grains. Unarmed partner who was just behind me was sooo thankful for the 375.
Take care

George and VarmintGuy are correct about the atlas joint shot from the side. It is a great shot IF you hit it. If you miss however, things could get interesting. On a ranch bull it won't be too much of a problem but it can be. I knocked down a bison with that shot and he got up and started running when we got within about 10 feet of him. YIKES! My bullet had broken up on a back corner of his skull. Note: Remington Core-Lokt bullets are not to be used on this type of shot.

On my second bison in The Yukon I primarily wanted the bull dead and had only secondary concerns about him getting to some thick brush. I used a .416 Rem mag loaded with Barnes X-bullets and fired two rounds into the heart/lung area and a quick third into the spine before he knew what was going on. This obviously ended the affair, but not before I had bought some insurance with those first two shots. Four days later we had that bull to the truck.

Have fun!

JohnTheGreek

[ 01-30-2003, 21:19: Message edited by: JohnTheGreek ]

Hunt Update
Just got home and it's to late to call anyone so I'll post a quick note to you guys. I met my outfitter on friday morning at the hotel and traveled to the ranch. At the ranch I met my guide for this hunt and was given some pointer before heading out. I got the 460 out of the hard case and found a CRACK in the stock. It's either in the finish or the stock I could not tell so I took my back up rifle. My wife got to see the value in bringing a second rifle. I had choosen the 300 Weatherby and out we went. I had the choice of a 2-3 old bull or a 5 + year cow. We looked over the animals and found a large cow with good horns and good coloration. Each time I prepared for the shot she would move or the herd would move and we would wait for a better shot. I finally spotted the shot at about 75 -80 yards. One shot low and behind ear worked great. Off to Butcher shop in AM called and he said that would be fine to say in truck over nite at 25 degrees F. Thanks for info and suggestions I'll check out the 460 tomarrow.
Guide 2

Good for you! We expect photos of the buff and cracked stock on the .460; it's possible Weatherby might repair it for you.

George

Congratulations sounds like you had fun.

On the ranch I book for you will probably have to go for a heart shoot or behind the shoulder as the bulls are wild, in mountain country, and are very hard to sneak up on and they watch the elk and deer movement, when the elk or deer start moving so do the Buffalo...They are shot at 100 to 300 yards for the most part..We like to have hunters that use iron sights, old rifles and like the idea of hunting. They try to get them right on the bulls if possible.

It took me 3 days to get a bull and lots of hiking up an down, it is no canned hunt!! I used a double rifle with iron sights to increase the difficulty and finally ended up crawling about a half mile in high grass to get a shot...It is a great hunt on large holdings in rough country...I would not hunt them otherwise...

The 450-400-3" behind the shoulder did the trick, and the buff went about 40 yards and fell over and tumbled down into a steep canyon...but we got him out and to the butcher with the assist of a draft horse, tractor and flat bed trailer....