Experiencing African and North American Hunting

In my lastest blog I wrote of what my ideal safari rifle would be, and shared a few reflections of my relatively brief ten day visit with our son and family in Senegal, West Africa. They were missionaries there, and Brent became a licensed big and dangerous game hunter. He took me on a one-day safari in the outback, where they had lived for nearly two decades with the nationals in mud-brick and thached roof huts. He killed wild game for protein and sport. An array of a few of his experiences. Cartridges, bullets and knife are mine.

Then I’d also mentioned, with some details, the fact of spending many hours of late night observing recent African Safaris during these long, blustery winter nights via YouTube. With professional videographers using the best ever equipment, including drones, it’s like you are there experiencing the drama. They have taught me a great deal about the land, the people, the animals and what it’s like to be on Safari in various African countries, East and Southern Africa in particular. I’m also very interested in the details of their hunting camps, staffing, locations, conditions, and the PH with his helpers. Then the clients – the rifles they use and their shooting abilities.

Shooting abilities: A very few are exceptional, the majority reveal mediocrity, and some – including some pros – are at best poor shooters in real hunting situations. Obviously, it’s relatively easy to shoot MOA from a “best” handload in a tuned Safari rifle, from a “bench” or solid rest. But under pressure, from a real (or imagined) charge of a “dugga” Cape buff, MOB (minute of buffalo) is more a matter of luck than precision shooting! But even when live ammo is put to the test just outside camp on a piece of cardboard tacked to a tree at ~50 yds with a 4″ black “circle”, few hunters can hit the circle even from a rest! The PH usually calls it “good” because the vitals of a Cape buff are over 1 foot, and most are shot well inside 100 yds. Then when – not “if” – the buff takes off at 30 mph, all offhand shooting is anyones guess at what might, or likely will not, connect with the wounded fleeing “dugga boy”. More often than not, it’s the PH’s turn to bring it down with a crash landing if he very quickly realizes that otherwise it will mean the follow-up of a very dangerous wounded, and agressive, Cape buffalo in thick jess!

The main problem is that a majority of African Safari clients are poor shooters of “big rifles” due to not having sufficient experience with them before heading to Africa. The cause of that is complex in that to afford such a trip usually makes a financial demand they can’t manage until their late sixties or early seventies. Till that time, if they’ve been hunting at all, the most powerful weapon used, perhaps once or twice annually, is a .25 to .30-caliber on whitetails. And unless their job involves hard physical challenges they’ve become rather “soft” and unfit for the regours of walking a dozen miles per day in 110* temps, and carrying a 10 lb rifle, aiming it over sticks on a moment’s notice and hitting anything in the vitals. Add the extra stress of facing-off with a DG in the process, and their’s little doubt that the PH must be on full alert to stop trouble before it gets started!

Before ever engaging Africa for a Safari, I’d make certain to be in the top physical condition possible. That is in consideration of age and any other potential infirmities. Being already in Africa is too late to address any physical issues that are either critical or potentially so.

<Cleaning up a half-ton bull moose at a thousand miles from home. You don’t do that sort of thing if you’re unfit and in your sixties! Of course I had a much younger partner who took the pic and gave a hand with those and all other chores – my son Phil.

The other serious question is the rifle chosen for the game on the list, or likely any to be added later. I discussed particular qualities for a safari rifle last time that would be intended for all classes of African fauna. Such a rifle would need to be extremely versatile, unless the hunter plans to take at least two rifles or even three. Personally, as I view matters today, one flexible rifle would be my first choice.

Why?

• Because I believe it’s possible for one to suffice by some non-critical compromises. Like this Winchester M70 in .458 Winchester Magnum. It was for sale at my emporium for $2000 and was gone the next day.

• Less bother. Developing handloads for a single rifle can take the form of 2 loads: One heavy for DG at close ranges, and one lighter-faster for longer ranges of PG. And less to look after while there.

What choices and why? I suggested some of that last week, but I’d like to go into it with a bit more detail:

First: a standard cartridge and rifle, not a wildcat in a custom build.

Second: A solid, durable, uncomplicated rifle that’s mechanically simple and natural to the operator.

The choices are: a single-shot, a semi-auto, a lever-action and a bolt-action. All are repeaters, including the single-shot – in a practical sense if not in a technical one. And all are manufactured of the latest and best materials in modern plants, though styles and types of all are from a bygone era.

And I’ve owned all four types, handloaded for them and used them in hunting.

Which is the best type? Keep in mind that all 4 types are still manufactured, sold, bought and in use today for a wide variety of game and styles of hunting.

A bolt-action repeater is the most common. This is my .375 H&H in a rare LH action with a 22″ barrel.

All four types of rifles that employ smokeless powder have some advantages and some disadvantages. In spite of the obvious fact that the majority of African Safari hunters use the bolt-action type, it has a flaw or two. Of course, it’s mostly referred to as a “repeater”, but not all bolt-action rifles are “repeaters” in the sense of a “magazine repeater”. Some bolt-action rifles are so-called “single-shots” because they lack a magazine to hold extra cartridges.

Then there is a fifth type, that’s rare and very expensive, but mostly found in the hands of PH’s – that being the Double Rifle with two side by side barrels, usually of a large bore for some very old English cartridges like the .470 NE. For a second shot they are the quickest, and that’s why some PH’s favor them against a wounded elephant in particular. But I’ll not discuss it further as they are not needed for the average safari hunter, and would create an excessively heavy financial burden in addition to all other expenditures. Of course, there are a minuscule number who “must have” and can freely afford such “toys”! They’re “cool” and relatively short, like my Ruger No.1H, due to the lack of a magazine and a bolt for locking the cartridge in the chamber. Yet, for stopping a really deadly charge, there’s absolutely no debate over their superior ability to do so. I’ve witnessed it on YouTUBE. A real live Cape buff charge at 35 mph headed for the PH. At 10 yds it got the first a bit high in the boss, at 3 yds it was dropped by the second barrel in the brain just as the PH stepped aside. It plowed turff right where the PH had been standing a moment before! What cartridge? A .500 NE.

I’ve watched that video several times (I have it saved) and each time I think: “If I ever go to Africa on Safari, that’s what I’d want!” Well, for eles anyway!

But there’s “hunting” and then there’s “saving your life”, and maybe sombody else’s! That’s the PH’s job!

As an African hunter, going once or maybe twice, I’d use what I now have. If going 4 or 5 times, or more, I’d purchse a dedicated African rifle in a BIG BORE! And as a handloader, with the proliferation of excellent bullets in both “softs” and “solids”, it would be a .458 Winchester Magnum. I gave a general description last week that would turn out to be a custom or semi-custom build. The Winchester M70, pictured above, could work after some semi-custom mods – like losing some weight and an inch or two from the barrel.

Details: As previously mentioned, I’ve owned several Browning A-Bolts, all in magnum cartridges. And all were in left-hand bolt-actions with a 60* bolt lift, in one of the smoothest actions I’ve ever used. They had 26″ SS barrels and long receivers that could handle 3.6″ cartridge COLs. In one of those, a .338 Win Mag was rechambered to .340 Wby. Recoil from my hunting load was 54 ft-lbs but I never noticed it because I shot it a lot and also due to the composite stock and its shape. Originally, I had one of those in .375 H&H shooting 300gr loads to 2700 fps. Recoil was calculated at 48 ft-lbs. . . I never noticed it. That rifle weighed no more than 9 lbs ready to hunt. (But it had an off-center bore that made me return it to the dealer.) That same Browning A-Bolt SS in .375 H&H has also appeared in a number of African Safaris as well as at least one Brown Bear Alaskan hunt, but all in RH actions, except one in LH action (like mine), and a few with the adjustable muzzle brake which came later.

My thinking is that such a rifle in LH action in .458 Win Mag with a 22 – 23 inch barrel would be ideal for me. With a bit heavier contour barrel than that .375 would come ready to hunt with scope, 3 cartridges and a sling at ~9.5 lbs. Perfect! That LH action was fast and slick! The stock shape, fit and flex made that 54 ft-lbs recoil from the .340 seem like a .30-06!

Here again is that Browning SS A-Bolt in LH, converted from a .338 Win Mag to the .340 Wby. As a .458 Win, I’d have the barrel cut to 22 – 23 inches.

A Safari Rifle should be like a good bird dog, unobtrusive and not a burden, but right there when you need it!

I want power and accuracy without shock, distractions or unfriendliness from the rifle!

<That was my 2nd .458 Win Mag – a CZ 550 at 1000 mi/1600 kms from home in the Far North of our Province of Ontario. This is where I shot a bull moose eight years earlier using the .340 Wby. In this pic I was a 72 y.o. The load was a 350gr TSX at ~2700 fps from the 25″ barrel. Using 80 grs of RL-7 before the hunt, it averaged 2748 fps. Being significantly colder this far north, and 2 or 3 weeks later, it lost ~50 fps. The following spring (May 2009), I switched to H4198 (78 grs) and got an average of ~2750 fps that remained constant regardless of temps, and shot a bear with that load. I now use that same load in my Ruger No.1H with the same consistent results.

But would the CZ 550 be the ideal rifle for me on an African Safari? While at that time it never felt too big and heavy (I carried it for hours every day . . . . . at times through heavy-thick alders), yet I’d want it lighter at 9.5 lbs (it was 11 lbs fully loaded with scope and sling) and shorter by two or three inches ready to hunt with scope, ammo and sling.

As above, this is my Zastava in .375 H&H. A few years ago a dealer here in Ontario offered it in .458 Win Mag for the same price. It would have come close to my ideal for a .458 Winchester Magnum at 10 lbs ready to hunt. The action is long enough to handle a 3.6″ COL. The barrel is 22″ and rifle OL = 43″. It would likely need an extra crossbolt to deal with the extra recoil – a job any good gunsmith could handle. As max loads I’d expect 2275 fps from 500s, 2400 from 450s, 2500 from 400s, and 2700 from 350s.

As 2 loads in the same .458 Win for both DG and PG, I’d use premium 450s at 2400 fps for the former and same quality 350s at 2700 fps for the latter, adjusting trajectories as needed from a scope suitable for such transient work.

On the other hand, as I’ve written in past blogs, a single load for a premium 400gr at 2500 fps could cover all scenarios when a 400gr solid is available if eles are on the menu. Still, if and when a legal elephant is the main target of the day, I’d have a few 500gr FT solids in my ammo belt, just in case! Hornady 500gr DGS/.458. I already have these in the DGX format. In tough media tests, the 500 DGX/.458 out-performed in penetration the 450 Swift AF and 550 Woodleigh Weldcore by a significant amount. DGS = Dangerous Game Solid. DGX = Dangerous Game Expanding. I wouldn’t hesitate to use these if my African Safari were primarily dangerous game. My current Ruger No.1H with a 24″ barrel will shoot the Hornady 500gr RN at 2317 fps/5960 ft-lbs over 81 grs of H4895 at 3.56″ COL.

I’d be really tempted to use that load under the 500 DGX or DGS on anything mean and dangerous!

Hey, for a 2 rifle Safari, the .375 H&H above and the .458 Win below could be my “go-to’s” even if my .458 was the Ruger No.1H. . . . !

< With adequate practice it’s not far behind a bolt-action magazine repeater! In several of the African hunting videos I’ve recently been watching, at least 1/3rd fumble getting a second or third cartridge into the chamber of their bolt-action repeaters when the PH yells “SHOOT AGAIN, SHOOT AGAIN!” And even a few of the PH’s have difficulty with bolt-action repeaters! NO KIDDING!! One almost threw his bolt-action away as he demanded his double from the tracker! I’m glad that they don’t edit-out all gaffes. Some of these vids are 1 and 1/2 hrs to 2 hrs in length!

The truck in the pic was not mine. I went with a friend to help him find a bull moose to shoot, knowing the area from two previous hunts. There’s also an ATV on the back of the 2-ton truck and pulling a camping trailer. We came close to catching up with a bull the last day of our hunt, but it outsmarted us by crossing the road after we’d passed. We never saw it, but 10 minutes later when we returned to that spot on a steep hill there were it’s fresh tracks. We stopped the truck, grabbed our rifles and ran into the thick brush and trees, but he was moving too fast for us on his way downhill to a small lake and up the other side. We knew he was spooked and we’d never catch up or see him again – oh well, as they say in Africa: “That’s hunting!” Another saying in North America is: “Don’t try to outrun a bear”, and still another is: “Don’t try to catch a running moose!” Like a charging Cape buff, they each can make about 30 – 35 mph!

Till the next . . . .

Shalom

BOB MITCHELL

“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble” – Psalm 46: vs 1

A SAFARI RIFLE . . . what would I choose?

“. . . . what would I choose?” I’ll not pretend to know what you should choose. I can only tell you what my first choice of several would be, and why.

I’ve been to Africa once, and got in a single hunting day at the expense of our eldest son, Brent, who was a missionary in Senegal. Through a lot of hard work, experience, finances and Government red tape, he eventually became a licensed resident big game hunter – including for both buffalo and lion – no elephant in the area. He sponsored me and provided a local guide. I saw and experienced Africa in the raw – in the “outback” where civilization had advanced insignificantly over the past 2000 years.

So the first hand experience of African bush, villages made up of mud huts and thatched roofs, with wild and hazardous game roaming freely has left an indelible impression. But I never carried a rifle. Instead, my firearm was my son’s 12ga pump shotgun loaded with Brenneke slugs. The only rifle was in Brent’s hands: his single-shot .22 LR as he walked behind me, as I followed the guide with a stick in his hand. Brent had slain dozens of warthogs with that single-shot, braining them through the ear-hole as they drank from a local pond. With that same single-shot .22LR, he killed a wild cow that was holed up in a mud-brick vacant school house with a consort wild bull. He was asked by the elders to kill it because it was a danger to the residents, especially the children. The building had two openings, a window and a door, neither of which had doors or closures. He asked his friend, the guide, to stand at the door with his shotgun and one Brenneke slug. Brent approached the window, and the cow (with long horns typical of “Long Horns” in Texas but not as heavy) stood up facing him. He nailed it between the eyes with a single solid from his .22. The cow went “SPLAT” with all four legs pointing in 4 directions. The bull took off through the other side making a new “door” – it didn’t get that final Brenneke. The Brennekes where very expensive and they had to be bought in Dakar when he was able to make that trip in the mission’s plane. Yep, I did manage to “harvest” some fresh-lean pork with his 12ga.

None of that makes me any sort of advisor on African safaris, however. Yet my son’s lengthy experience in killing wild game in African bush country, points out the fact that $15,000 rifles aren’t necessary for killing African game. However, in reading, research and watching multiple professionally made recent videos of African safaris, and in addition to considerable personal experience in the use of rifles and cartridges recommended and used in safari hunting, these have created some rather strong opinions in that regard.

< My Ruger No.1H in .458 Win, literally loaded for bear in 2020. That’s not far from where I hunted bear over bait in 2023 – 2024.

If you’ve been a follower of http://www.bigbores.ca, you already know my experience in making multiple handloads for .458 Winchester Magnums, as well as for several “mediums”, including .375 H&H’s that also legally qualify for the full gambit of Africa’s dangerous five, or whatever that number might be today.

So I have some definitive ideas of what I’d choose as an African safari rifle, given the chance and being a few years younger.

As mentioned: In the late evening hours (9 pm to 12 am) of these winter months I’ve been watching and listening to more recent and new videos via YouTube on African hunting safaris. I’ve learned a lot. . . and still learning.

One thing I’ve noted in particular, that contradicts Internet chat, is the increased number of late edition rifles with the, so-called, brakes on them! And PH’s are not objecting to them! No negative comments have been made by any so far! Three of the four big-game rifles left in my gun cabinet, have muzzle brakes! Now it’s two as one – the 9.3 x 62 – has gone to our eldest son, now retired in eastern Canada (the former missionary previously mentioned).

In former times, I never liked muzzle brakes, that is until I reached +75 years when some relief was wanted/needed from the recoil of my .458 Winchester Magnum due to arthritis in my shoulders and hands. The Ruger No.1H in .458 Win came with the Mag-Na-Ports so that was and is a help in that regard. I had a brake installed on my Tikka T3 Lite in 9.3 x 62 as it was indeed very “lite” and with my handloads was producing recoil in the 50 ft-lbs range. I’d owned it for a dozen years before having the brake installed. But apart from my arthritis needing some relief at that stage, it was destroying scopes! The Traditions G3 OUTFITTER in .35 Whelen was bought with an integral brake – good thing because it’s a light thing with a recoil number of ~33-ish (from my hunting loads) even with the brake!

So I’m no longer negative over muzzle brakes, and some comfort is also garnered from the latest African safari videos where hunters are showing up with braked rifles!

Apart from all that, what would be my primary and secondary considerations for a safari rifle, capable for a full bag of African game from small to large and dangerous?

The Cartridge: There are several to choose from, depending on the African country. Also, this would be a single rifle for anything and all things.

• .375s: .375 H&H (or AI), .375 Wby, .375 Ruger, .375 RUM, and .378 Wby.

Of those my choice would be between the H&H and Wby (not the .378 Wby).

• .416s: Ruger, Remington, Rigby and Wby. Or perhaps the Taylor.

Of those my choice would be the .416 Remington.

• .458s: Winchester, Lott and Weatherby:

Of course, how could it be anything other than the .458 Winchester Magnum?

• 500s: Personally, I have no interest beyond the .458 Win Mag.

The RIFLE: Obviously, my Safari Rifle would be chambered to the awesome .458 Winchester Magnum!

But there are several makes and models, as well as styles, including custom or semi-custom.

I’ve owned three that were all distinct in their looks, feel and handling:

• a Ruger 77, bolt-action, magazine repeater with tang safety and a 22″ barrel. OL = 42″, wt unknown – my guess in hindsight, about 8.5 lbs starting out bare bones.

• a CZ 550 with a full-length Mauser action, 25″ barrel, and a magazine that held 5 plus one in the chamber. It also had a single set trigger. Wt. with 4x scope and 4 cartridges at 10.65 lbs. OL= 45″

• Ruger No.1H, single-shot falling-block Farquharson type, no magazine, 24″ barrel, integral barrel scope bases and rings, plus open sights. OL length = 40.25″, weight with 3-7 x 32mm scope and a single cartridge = 10.3 lbs.

As a single rifle for African hunting of any and all fauna, none of the above would be “perfect”. The Ruger 77 would be the closest in it’s fit and weight as a bolt-action repeater. But I’d want a longer action to allow longer bullet seating for more versatility.

The CZ 550 is too long and heavy. I’d want shorter with less weight.

The Ruger No.1H is the best that I’ve used, but it’s not perfect. Ideally for Africa, if I did much hunting there, I’d want a repeater with a little less weight. However, it is ideal in OL, balance and LOP. And not having a magazine that determines COL, best ballistics are possible from its 24″ barrel. Another plus is fit and finish. It’s handsome in my view, and fits like a glove.

In essence then, I’d want a repeater with an action and magazine long enough to allow a COL of up to 3.6″ (My Ruger No.1 permits a COL of 3.68″), 3+1 cartridges, 22 – 23″ suitable wt. barrel, all metal SS, adjustable trigger pull, tang safety, integral scope mounts, sturdy stock of carbon fibre, 8.5 lbs bare bones, and accuracy of 1/2 moa with a suitable and best load! And since this would be a custom deal, I’d have to go back to work! Or sell my wife as a slave. . . .

Oh, really, really, I think I’d best be content with my Ruger No.1H in .458 Winchester Magnum, so then I wouldn’t have to sell my wife, and could live happily in my real world!

But the latest African safari video I’ve watched was of an American man in his 40s or 50s, well built, in great shape who’d built his own rifle (or put together parts he had others make plus some of his own handiwork). And he’d booked a hunt with the well known CMS Safaris. I’ll call him “John” because through the loud background of rock music, that’s all I could make out. (loud raucous music added to a safari hunt video that is outrageously out of place! And that’s not to say I’m against some appropriate background music that doesn’t drown-out talking, even in wispers.)

His rifle had a deep box magazine that would hold 5 cartridges. And everything was somewhat non-conventional including the cartridge that was a wildcat: a .338 Lapua opened to .458-cal. that made it a .458 Lapua Magnum Imp., because it was given a sharp shoulder. He gave the numbers ~ 2500 fps for a 500gr, but he reduced that load to 2450 fps for the hunt. And the projectiles were premium 500gr Swift A-Frames. I watched the vid until he’d first taken a trophy Bush Buck, and later a Cape buffalo at around 40 yds. That was interesting because the buff ran off about 50 to 60 yds (they said) before expiring, about the same as one shot by a .375 H&H, perhaps. Of course, we all know about bullet placement and angles, etc.

It had a “normal” looking 22″ barrel in contour and length for .458-cal, but without a muzzle brake and the “kick” was very noticeable on a very muscular man of over 6′. In using some math, based on the 12 lb rifle, I calculated the recoil at ~75 ft-lbs. The question I asked myself was: Why not just buy a .460 Weatherby Magnum? No, that would not be my choice as an “all-purpose” African Safari Rifle, nor would the custom of that gentleman with his oversized .458 Lapua Magnum Improved. It’s not so much the recoil (I’ve experienced that amount of recoil from my former Ruger No.1 in .45-70 LT) at that stage of life (a well built +6′ at an est. 220 lbs, perhaps 45 – 50 y.o.) but the cost of getting it together and feeding it, and later trying to sell it in getting back investments.

I almost had my former CZ 550 in .458 Win rechambered to .460 Wby Mag! But usually I don’t let emotions dictate actions without a full investigation of needs, wants, costs and usage! Often that slams on the brakes! My gunsmith, who did the improved throat on my Ruger No.1 .45-70, would have done it for less than $100, but that would not have been the full expenditure . . . what about dies, brass, powder and bullets, plus a scope to handle that level of recoil? Thankfully, I followed good sense that time! There’s really nothing a .460 Wby can do that a .458 Win Mag can’t do! Ditto for a .458 Lapua Magnum IMP! Neither the bush buck not the Cape buff died quicker than if shot with a .375 H&H! The Cape buff, as mentioned, still ran 50 to 60 yds till it fell over!

Make mine the legendary .458 Winchester Magnum, please!

As always in all of life’s issues: “Too much is still just TOO MUCH!”

From a current down-to-earth reality perspective, if I were going tomorrow, I might take both the .375 H&H repeater and my Ruger No.1H in .458 Win Mag. . . then I’d not have to loose sleep over it! Actually, I like ’em both with a bent in favor of the .458. Also, I’m content that they’re distinct. I wouldn’t want those two to be identical in form or function, all apart from their chamberings.

<For Africa’s largest: L to R: 600gr Barnes Original, 550gr Woodleigh Weldcore SN, and 500gr Hornady DGX-Bonded. Yes, I’ve shot them in my Ruger No.1H.

Note: from the three owned .458s, I said they were “all distinct in their looks, feel and handling”. That could train us to be versatile in our outlook on things that matter to us in life. They each had a flaw or two, none of which kept me from using them as hunting tools. Also, they all reveal flaws in ourselves, some of which we may not like, if we’re honest. Is it the rifle that needs fixin’, or ourselves?

I’m sure you’ve observed Craig Boddington (famed writer and African hunter) firing right-handed bolt-action rifles from his left side. . . . he’s done it his whole life. And that’s due to being a left-handed person, and the scarceness of suitable left-hand bolt-action safari-grade rifles. I have done the same most of my life – not because I’m a lefty, but because of blindness in my right eye due to a childhood accident (at age six). So not only have I had to handle bolt rifles made for right handed shooters from my left side, but my left arm and hand are weaker than my right (as a right-handed person) in adapting to a left-handed bolt-action rifle such as my current .375 H&H. And Craig and I are not alone. The African PH made famous in Robert Ruark’s book, The Horn of The Hunter, was Harry Selby who also is/was a lefty who used RH bolt-action rifles – making the .416 Rigby famous, and later in life a right-handed Winchester M70 in .458 Win.

All that to highlight that a perfectionist view of :”everything must be perfect or right in any rifle, particularly for dangerous game” – when we consider that view in the glaring light of such famed men who overcame the significant disadvantage of using “wrong-sided” bolt-action rifles – we should come to understand that a rifle’s “perfection” has limited impact on success when ~90% of that depends on the hunter and not the rifle! Just ask our son, Brent! In life, nothing is perfect in marriage, work or play! Yet we overcome much of it by accepting some imperfections!

By the way, “John”, the .458 Lapua Magnum guy, got a forehead cut from his scope in shooting a baboon with his super-duper .458 Lapua Magnum Imp. Quite embarrassing! Really!

Till the next. . . .

Shalom

BOB MITCHELL