Best rifle calibre for plain game

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Guys
anyone got any sound experience in shooting plains game say from a kudu down to the small boks etc

really wondering what calibre to go for as an overall rifle to cover antelope, boks etc not water buffalo just standard run of the mill - thinking on a double rifle. rather than a bolt action ( at the moment)

any info would be greatly appreciated

cheers

phil
 
how about a classic .300 h&h for plains game and then a matching double in .375 h&h for anything bigger. :D regards SBM
 
I took a 416 Rem mag but like Dirty Harry believe you can never have too much gun. Everything shot went down and stayed down. No runners!
 
You're going to get every chambering between 7*57 and 375 H&H mentioned in this thread and lots of good reasons why their suggestion is the best answer. You may even get a few 6.5*55 die hards come out of the woodwork swearing they are the best option for Kudu.

There's very little that the good old 30-06 will not deal with and ammunition is plentiful. 300 Win Mag if you want to go a little hotter. The PH is likely to be very happy with anything you can shoot well and are proficient with and will not turn his nose up at either of those two.

I have never had the privilege of going, but I have read enough threads with the same question as yours to know what the answer is :) You're likely to be shooting everything between the sizes of Roe and Moose from 100m to 300m. Apply that logic and you will not go wrong.

Personally I would probably go with a 300 Win Mag and 180 Accubonds, but that's just me. I'm sure my 280AI shooting 160's would do just as well but isn't a trip to Africa a good reason for a new gun?
 
I'm taking a 30-06 next year; just got to decide on the ammunition now...which will involve another thread on here in due course!
 
The biggest caliber you can shoot consistently. Some African game is comparable to uk species, however some are much tougher pound for pound, I took a .375 and found on zebra 270gr rounds didn't exit but comprehensively killed the animal, and on an Oryx where the shot just went behind the shoulder (having been told to shoot everything through the shoulder I reverted to uk practices without thinking) that bull ran over 1km, and again, the round didn't exit. Fortunately there was an epic blood trail to follow, but when we caught up with it it was still very much alive and needed a second shot. So, my opening statement is the best advice I can give, go as big as you can shoot well, you'll find the damage to smaller species is probably less too, I've used the .375 for springbok and back home I've taken munties and on the whole exit wounds were minimal, animals were very dead.
 
I took a .300wm with 180 grain Grand Slams and a 9.3 x 62 with 232gr Oryx..........everything from duiker to wildebeest stayed down
 
Mate of mine shoots .338 WM. Not wild about the cartrfidge but I have to say, his with a medium heavy barrel taking some of the bite out of it is quite a nice shooting rifle. Certainly effective..
I hope to start going myself soon and I'm thinking of 7 mm RM because I've got a hankering for one anyway and I have lots of uses for it in the UK. Should do it all.
 
Cheers Guys

I'm going to try out .300. .375. .416 rigby and another calibre shortly to see how I get on with them and find a suitable calibre I can handle, yesterday Wilson & wilsons in ramsgate always have a few in stock, The Winchester bolt action rifles seemed a little forward heavy , but they had no scopes on, just open sights, The boxlock .375 SxS with open mounts and apex swing off scope and mounts all worked faultlessly, balance was very very good

i guess the biggest hurdle is recoil :scared:

onwards and upwards. �� Watch this space

Thanks to all for guidance, greatly appreciated, got a ways to go yet I think :tiphat:

phil
 
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My inclination is for the largest that can be shot accurately. Personally I would take my 7rem mag but would be tempted to splash out on a 300, 338 or 375
 
Hi

I used a .300WM (S-M) when 'ticking the box' on 'tours' in SA few years ago - worked very well using 180grn Nosler Partition.
Having said that, had I had my .375H&H (Win) then I would have loaded 235grn for the plains game and 300grn for anything dangerous which for both purposes, in my opinion, would have been just as effective.
Both calibres can be used just about anywhere with 'authority'.......

L
 
Keep it simple... 30-06 would be a very good compromise. Some shots could be quite long.
I'd take one of my 308's that I have enough practice with.
edi
 
I borrowed a moderated 300wm shooting 180gn interlocks. It was a gentle shooter and dropped very quickly everything from a small impala to a big fat waterbuck. You'd probably be allowed to use it for hunting in the uk as well.
 
You could add a 404 Jeff to this list, as it gives little away to the 416 in down range terms and works in a shorter action.

David.

Cheers Guys

I'm going to try out .300. .375. .416 rigby and another calibre shortly to see how I get on with them and find a suitable calibre I can handle, yesterday Wilson & wilsons in ramsgate always have a few in stock, The Winchester bolt action rifles seemed a little forward heavy , but they had no scopes on, just open sights, The boxlock .375 SxS with open mounts and apex swing off scope and mounts all worked faultlessly, balance was very very good

i guess the biggest hurdle is recoil :scared:

onwards and upwards. �� Watch this space

Thanks to all for guidance, greatly appreciated, got a ways to go yet I think :tiphat:

phil
 
The .338 WM performs well on bigger game here in Oz. Buffalo are fair game for it.
The recoil is very manageable too.
The .338 is and inherently accurate calibre too, not that it counts for much at most hunting ranges.
 
guys

I did lurch that way until my eldest lad reminded me it his inheritance I'm spending :rofl: and in the same breath does it mean that he can now have my .308 blaser

best I stay with one rifle - for now :D

Your son should be very grateful that you are taking the investment of his inheritance so seriously. Classic guns I think rank alongside fine wine and classic cars in that they are inheritance tax free. Crack on, get the H&H.
 
As rightly pointed out, pretty much every calibre will get its recommendations. Last time I went after plains game (Impala, Bushbuck, Duiker etc) I took my .270 and had no issues at all. My choice now would be my 30-06 for plains game (mainly as I don't have the .270 anymore), PH will be happy, wide range of bullet choices, ammunition easily available if you get stuck, main thing is to pick something you can shoot comfortably and accurately.
Interesting you're thinking of a double, no experience of them directly but as long as you'd be comfortable with scoped long shots, no reason why not I guess.
 
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