Elephant hunting rifle, bullets and scope ?

dwightb said:

A true elephant experience should be at 10 Yards or less!

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An charging! That where the doulb barrel comes in.

Classic doubles gun big bore and a red dot . Your shooting up close and personal.
My buddy has a 416 bolt action and I found it was less recoil than expected. He also bought a 458 Lott I haven't shot it yet. Know idea why he got them we don't have any elephant in Arizona.

Which rifle,bullet and scope to hunt elephant calves ?

crazymonkey said:

Classic doubles gun big bore and a red dot . Your shooting up close and personal.
My buddy has a 416 bolt action and I found it was less recoil than expected. He also bought a 458 Lott I haven't shot it yet. Know idea why he got them we don't have any elephant in Arizona.

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We're overrun with them up here …..let me know when he's ready to sell that Lott!

Several years ago, I shot a 416 Rigby in a #1 Ruger……a " pussycat" to shoot! memtb

dragonxi4longrangehunting said:

Which rifle,bullet and scope to hunt elephant calves ?

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A small one like a 22.

memtb said:

We're overrun with them up here …..let me know when he's ready to sell that Lott!

Several years ago, I shot a 416 Rigby in a #1 Ruger……a " pussycat" to shoot! memtb

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Now they're working on bringing back wooly mammoths, you should get online and find a proper rifle.

That .416 Rem model 70 is very tame, with factory 400gr loads. I suspect a warm handload might be a different story.

Nothing like a double rifle--for mortals 450/400--if you want to hammer them 470 or 500 are quite the stopper.

I have used a 416 Rigby a bit on stuff like Buffalo and giraffes--I imagine it would do equally well on elephants

My 375 RUM worked well, along with my 450/400--brain shot --it all looks effective

Ed

Mike Matteson said:

A small one like a 22.

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Would you recommend a 22 Short……baby elephants aren't very tall! memtb

memtb said:

Would you recommend a 22 Short……baby elephants aren't very tall! memtb

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Because it't foolish to start with. Just how many people are really going to hunt elephants. You need a super deep pocket, even far greater than purchasing top of the line reload equipments. It's not a rabbit hole, but a cave, biggest enough to drive a truck in.
Your flight and stay plus shipping charges. You are looking at $60,000.00 +. That including travel. Just how many do you think can afford that.
The trip I took to Africa in 2018 I think cost me somewhere around $15,000.00 including mounts and shipping fees.

Gamehead, FMJ or other to shoot elephants ?

If gamehead such as Lapua .338lm
is used to shoot elephants
what difference in aiming is needeed
if the rifle such as Sako85 Long Range
is set up/adjusted to hit targets with
normal bullet heads such as FMJ ?

Can one adjust/program Terminator III
Laserscope in field to take into account
the bullet head and if, how easy/practical
would it be ?

Note:

Everything in elephant hunting is set to be
legal and based on laws stipulated
by the African country allowing the
hunting and giving licences i.e guns,
bullets, hunting licences, hunting practises,
game handling etc must be legal, whoever
comes to hunt - and hunters are arriving
also from countries condidered poor,
some supported by sponsors such as
charity organizations. It is big game
hunting as usual and the only difference
might be not so expensive, some guys
have calculated they will not only save
bugs but even earn some by selling
videos and stories not forgetting the
experience gained there!

dragonxi4longrangehunting said:

Gamehead, FMJ or other to shoot elephants ?

If gamehead such as Lapua .338lm
is used to shoot elephants
what difference in aiming is needeed
if the rifle such as Sako85 Long Range
is set up/adjusted to hit targets with
normal bullet heads such as FMJ ?

Can one adjust/program Terminator III
Laserscope in field to take into account
the bullet head and if, how easy/practical
would it be ?

Note:

Everything in elephant hunting is set to be
legal and based on laws stipulated
by the African country allowing the
hunting and giving licences i.e guns,
bullets, hunting licences, hunting practises,
game handling etc must be legal, whoever
comes to hunt - and hunters are arriving
also from countries condidered poor,
some supported by sponsors such as
charity organizations. It is big game
hunting as usual and the only difference
might be not so expensive, some guys
have calculated they will not only save
bugs but even earn some by selling
videos and stories not forgetting the
experience gained there!

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When I went in the 90's, the ONLY elephant hunting legally was on rogue elephants destroying villagers homes and crops. $30,000USD was the price back then. Didn't look at the regs because I wasn't there to hunt elephants. Although I had my 375 Weatherby and 416 Rigby, my buddy had my 404 Jeffrey so we were covered.
Have no idea what it would cost today.

Cheers.

I have an A-Square Hannibal in .470 Capstick, with a couple of boxes each of factory Dead Tough, Lion Load, and Monolithic Solids ammo. These are based on 1917 Enfield actions that have the military sight bridges ground off and are converted to cock on opening. They are very smooth, a very strong action, and the rifle has an oversized walnut stock. It's over 10 lbs but handles surprisingly well. I'm sure it would do a job on elephant, Cape Buffalo, lion, or any other dangerous game given use of the proper ammunition (bullets). I have only test fired one of these (not this rifle) as a dealer... met Art Alphin back in the mid-1990s at the SHOT Show and after test-firing one decided to buy it. The recoil is nowhere near as bad as a Weatherby Mark V in .460 Weatherby Magnum. IMO it's a sensible rifle... unlike the Mark V in .460.

I think a .375 H&H with the right bullets would also suffice for elephant. I'll defer to the folks who have hunted pachyderms, but the casual discussions I've had on the subject with people who had been there and done that indicates that brain shots are preferred, and heart/lung shots are thrown in if an elephant has been shot and is getting away... also hip shots from behind to reduce mobility until the hunter can maneuver to take a fatal head shot. It seems like bullet placement and sufficient penetration is critical, especially on frontal or side brain shots.

I don't have a problem with elephant hunting except to say that it doesn't interest me. I'd like to get a lion, buffalo, and leopard, certainly a croc. I have no doubt that they're dangerous as hell, and I think they're fascinating creatures.

snox801 said:

I know a guy that does it at less with a bow. He's definitely crazy

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It takes nerves of steel to bowhunt elephants! I quit only because I got tired of lugging around the decoys!