Driven Boar Calibre

[Koenig]

Muzzle brakes are good for the firer, reducing muzzle flip and felt recoil, but just unpleasant for anyone stood to the side/rear: The shockwave from a .308 once blew my ear defenders off of my ears! The Pinckney Engineering version is the one I have, it’s well made and not too hard on the pocket.

 

[artschool]

I just wanted to say that I hate muzzle brakes.

that's it really.

 

[John Gryphon]

Last boar I shot iirc I was out one morning in deer country and lookee here "wtf is that going up the opposite spur" btw there are no pigs in that country...down on guts lined up hairs bang...dead, 7mm mag 150 grain soft point.
brand new SS barrel hadnt even been taped it was that new. Shot schitt loads of them and they are easier to kill than big sambar.

 

[EMcC]

There is so much said about wild boar that anybody would think they are some sort of magical creature.
I have shot wild boar on and off since 1965 when I shot my first one. I must admit I was using a 7.57R which was given to me at the time, I've forgotten which weight bullet it was so long ago.
I befriended a local German firearms dealer and hunter and he was using 7.62 147gn bullets with the nose ground back just enough to show the lead core.
When I asked him if it was ground back to make it a soft point he just shrugged and said "could be but more like to turn it" he had access to that ammo for the several years that I knew him and being an RFD he had access to any calibre he wanted so if the '147' bullet was not doing the job he would have changed.
He did use an automatic rifle so if the first bullet did let him down he was well tooled up for a second or third shot although he did not mention this.
He also carried a pistol whenever hunting, he told me that was for protection if ever he came across any animal with Rabies.

 

[Rodgekeeper]

Most of my German hunting friends use a 308 or 30-06 as their primary boar gun as easy to shoot. They might reach for their 9.3 if very large boar are expected.

A good tough bullet and a rifle that handles and points like a shotgun, that fits well and shoots where you look is far more important than calibre. Some like red dot sights. I prefer a 1-4x20 scope.

In Germany the min legal is 6.5mm cal and 2,000 joules of energy at 100m.

In terms of action type, bolt action is most used along with straight pulls. Both can be reloaded fast, but realistically you have one shot, so make it count. Most of us cannot reload fast enough to get a second accurate shot at a group of piggies run through the woods. If you want an immediate second shot then its a double rifle that is needed.

Looked at some nice doubles. Just couldn't see me using it at home.

 

[Heym SR20]

Looked at some nice doubles. Just couldn't see me using it at home.

Why not, most doubles in the smaller calibres are more than accurate enough to shoot deer and antelope out to 200 plus yards, if not further. Furthest I have taken Roe or Red is 230 odd yards. Admittedly I treat it as a single shot rifle at those ranges as I know where the bottom barrel shoots in relation to the cross hair and the bottom barrel shoots sub moa if I do my bit.

 

[Corvid8x57]

Looked at some nice doubles. Just couldn't see me using it at home.

Go on - treat yourself to a double 9.3x74r - a beautiful thing to own & which will bring you much pleasure

 

[Bones]

I use 9.3 x 74r on boar and straight pull 30-06 on monterias. A straight pull with 9.3 x62 barrels and whatever other calibre barrels you prefer would do it all.

 

[WildBoarHunter]

I'm from Slovenia and we do driven boar hunting very near the border with Croatia. I have used 30-06 and 308 in the past, nowdays I use 6.5 mm. The key to success is the choice of a tough bullet and putting it in the right place. A bad shot is a bad shot, no matter what the caliber. Minimum in Slovenia is 6,5 mm, 123 gr monolithic bullet or 140 gr lead bullet and 2500 J at 100 m. In Croatia the minimum is 7 mm I think. Most boar here over the years were shot using 7×57R / 12 brno double rifles. These were the most common at the time, allowing the hunter to take a 12 ga shotshell shot in case a fox appeared. That was back in the day the fur was worth something. Nowdays most use centerfire bolt actions for driven hunting, the most common calibers beeing 270 win, 7×64, 8×57, 30-06, 308 and the mighty 9,3×62 is gaining a lot of popularity in the last years. Personally I think more important than the caliber size is to be able to shot well with your gun and shooting well is easier with a bit softer kicking caliber.
I have a straight pull Blaser R8 and I don't think the straight pull is a key advantage. It does not help to shoot 5 times in 3 sec if the shots are placed bad. All you get in the end is a lot of tracking, in most cases in vain.

 

[John Gryphon]

It does not help to shoot 5 times in 3 sec if the shots are placed bad.

Yes.

 

[jthyttin]

Minimum in Slovenia is 6,5 mm, 123 gr monolithic bullet or 140 gr lead bullet and 2500 J at 100 m.

The joule limit is quite high, do you know is it for ruling out 7.62x39 etc.? It also rules out slow'n'low e.g. many 45-70 factory loads.

Is shotgun allowed with slugs? Because then the same bullet would be legal if shot from shotgun sabot at lower velocity...

 

[WildBoarHunter]

Yes the joule limit is much higher than for instance in Germany. 7,62×39 does not meet the legal criteria for hunting big game here. It simply does not meet the required joule energy. No shotgun shells are allowed for hunting big game, including buck shot. Buck shot was very popular here for hunting wild boar for many years. Nowdays only slugs are specifically an exception and can be used legaly for driven boar hunting only. This is because slugs are useful on driven hunts as shooting distances are usually short and slugs are very stable when flying through thick brush. They are also useful for quick folow up shots from combination guns when a second shot is required. Many older and even some young hunters still use combination guns here, but bolt guns are the majority in the last few decades.

 

[jthyttin]

I was wondering about the limit, since e.g. here in Finland, after WWII there was a lot of 7.62x53R/54R rifles and ammunition both in circulation and army possession. So legal limit for moose hunting was set at 8mm to prevent using them (limit has long ago been changed to bullet weight and energy combination).

So many rifles in civil possession were converted to e.g. 8.2x53R and 9.3x53R (I'm not 100% sure if those chamberings were commercially unavailable before WWII and have never checked from Finnish small arms literature that's quite extensive).

I hunt boar in Estonia, and especially dog handlers take the combination gun or even double barrel shotgun (if they don't have combi) when they expect close encounters. It's handy for the barrel length, usually points well and if you need to fire signal shots etc. (shots in the air) you can use cheap skeet/trap shells and they pose no real danger when descending. Or maybe better to say they take combi/shotgun unless they expect the need to stand in peg during the drive, where medium or longer distance shots are expected.

 

[WildBoarHunter]

Shotgun slug is suppose to have the most stopping power so these are frequently used for self defence against all kinds of dangerous game, including wounded dangerous game. So this applies to dog handlers as well. It also has the most recoil. I have used them a couple of times from a combination gun, the recoil is really nasty.

One more thing about driven hunting. It is not like army infrantry tactics, where firepower counts. It is more like a sharpshooter's tactics. Pick the right spot where you have the best overview of the area. Wait patiently and calmly, allways be on the lookout. Identify the correct animal and the right time to shoot, make the shot count. Most of the time the first shot is the most accurate one.

I screwed up a lot of times right before the start of the drive, when hunters are moving to stands, making too much noise and not paying attention of what is going on around them. The boar sense this and start moving before the drive even started. The hunters are not on their stands yet or they are unprepared still. And also at the end of the drive when when most hunters think it's all over allready and are not alerted any more.

 

[njc110381]

I'd go all out and apply for a 9.3x62, because why not? You have the justification there and it's a nice cartridge. I have a .35 Whelen which is very similar, but for European use you'll find 9.3 ammunition more readily available.

 

[Rodgekeeper]

Go on - treat yourself to a double 9.3x74r - a beautiful thing to own & which will bring you much pleasure

Can't fit a moderator for use over here

 

[Acm]

I don’t think there’s a boar on this earth that an 06 won’t take care of. Perfect for your reds too.
Wouldn’t bother with a double, pain in the neck to zero, shoot prone, mount a scope, shoot off sticks or change loads.

 

[Leroux]

I would consider how many days a year you will actually be boar hunting and what else you would like to use that rifle for? Surely a 308 or 3006 would give you much more all round use and would be more than adequate. Maybe with a variable scope that is not overpowered.

 

[big ears]

Personally I am use a 25” barreled double in 7x65r and don’t wear any hearing protection. The long barrels keep the noise well down, and on most hunts you fire one, perhaps two shots.

Statements like this show how stupid people are about their hearing and how little they understand about loudness.
140dB from 25” away will do instantaneous damage to your inner ear. One shot is all it would take to trigger off lifelong tinnitus.

Sorry don’t listen to this rubbish.

Buy yourself a good fitting pair of electronic defenders. You will hear better with them in and your hearing will be better for longer when you take them off.

As to calibre 30-06

 

[Rodgekeeper]

Statements like this show how stupid people are about their hearing and how little they understand about loudness.
140dB from 25” away will do instantaneous damage to your inner ear. One shot is all it would take to trigger off lifelong tinnitus.

Sorry don’t listen to this rubbish.

Buy yourself a good fitting pair of electronic defenders. You will hear better with them in and your hearing will be better for longer when you take them off.

True anyone not using a Mod should have their ears on regardless.