Africa/Alaska Dangerous Game Cartridge - Make Your Case!

Pick your favorite "Dangerous Game" Chambering!

  • 375 H&H

    Votes: 99 43.4%

  • .416 Rigby

    Votes: 50 21.9%

  • .458 Win Mag

    Votes: 39 17.1%

  • .458 Lott

    Votes: 16 7.0%

  • .404 Jeffery

    Votes: 6 2.6%

  • .450 Rigby

    Votes: 2 0.9%

  • .500 Jeffery

    Votes: 4 1.8%

  • .505 Gibbs

    Votes: 12 5.3%
  • Total voters
    228
9.3x62 because chances are all I would shoot would be Buffalo and Leopard, and the 9.3x62 would be versatile enough for North America as well, I believe Phil Shoemaker carried a 9.3 for awhile.
 
416 Rigby in a Ruger and give it a good recoil pad and its pure heaven. Whatever you want to shoot well, make sure you own something bigger and it is easy. If you have a 416 the 375 is easy. if you shoot the 460 then a 416 is easy. Not cheap but fun
 
toebako said:
416 Rigby in a Ruger and give it a good recoil pad and its pure heaven. Whatever you want to shoot well, make sure you own something bigger and it is easy. If you have a 416 the 375 is easy. if you shoot the 460 then a 416 is easy. Not cheap but fun
Click to expand...

Good advise.
 
Demonical said:
What? No .416 Rem Mag? Incomplete...
Click to expand...

Indeed it may be the best choice, yet it is missing from the list.
I spent quite a few years with one until finally I got bored with it.:redface:

Even in Africa versatility matters.

IMHO the 416's are the largest cal most can handle effectively.
The fast 458s are another world.
 
Wow! Some great answers and advice there! I have to admit to playing devil's advocate a little. I figured more of you purists out there would've gone apoplectic with the mention of a push feed Remington 700 being used for a custom DG rifle build!:)

Looking at the poll results, I honestly thought the .458 Lott would've gotten a little more "love" than it has.

I considered adding the .416 Rem Mag to the list and a couple of the NE cartridges, but didn't simply because they are not currently factory offerings in the CZ 550 rifle that I'm probably going to end up with...someday!:)

From a purely practical perspective, the .375 H&H is obviously the most versatile choice there, and certainly makes the most sense for hunting N. American game.

However, there is a certain appeal and mystique associated with the names Rigby & Lott, especially if you're ever going to make that African safari a reality. I've always liked both the .416 Rigby and the .458 Lott. I'm not recoil sensitive and can shoot the .458 Win Mag well. The Lott isn't that much a step-up, but offers just a shade more performance, plus the ability to shoot factory .458 Win Mag ammo in the same package.

The .416 calibers have always seemed like a sensible compromise between the minimum legal African caliber, the .375 H&H and the big, big boomers. I don't expect I'll ever have the cash to drop on an elephant, rhino or hippo hunt, but Cape Buffalo and maybe Leopard/Lion are doable without the 6/49 entering into the equation sometime in the future!:)

I had the opportunity to shoot the .416 Rigby and have to say I loved it! Certainly not as punishing or nasty as I had been led to believe. Besides, who wouldn't have a smile on their face shooting anything with the name "Rigby" attached?

Cost of ammo is indeed crazy, but as I reload and even cast my own bullets, that issue is somewhat mitigated. None of these rifles, however, with maybe the exception of the .375 H&H, are rifles that you're going to shoot 2-3 boxes per range visit anyway...I don't care how recoil insensitive you are!

I think, probably my top three picks would be the .375 H&H, .416 Rigby and .458 Lott. In pure practicality, the .375 H&H wins hands down, especially for longer shots at Moose/Bear in North American and on smaller plains game in Africa...but then again, we're not too wrapped up in a purely pragmatic decision-making process, as were talking about taking "our" new rifle to Africa after dugga boys and elephant!:) That keeps the other cartridges still in the running!

The one cartridge I'm a little hesitant about, however, is the .505 Gibbs...that is one beast of a cartridge!:)
 
:D
I picked .416 Rigby.

Mine is actually a modified Model 700 .416 Remington Magnum that was originally built in the Remington Custom Shop.

I like the gun because I modified it myself to what I wanted. It was an educational winter project.

I cut the original "culvert pipe" of a barrel from 24" to 21" and re-crowned it.

I replaced the original trigger with a Timney & set it to break at 2 pounds.

I replaced the factory wooden stock with a Ramline synthetic stock that won't split under heavy recoil & has a rather generous & "humane" recoil pad because I don't believe in animal abuse especially when the animal being abused by heavy recoil is ME.;)

I had to rework the Ramline stock because it wouldn't accommodate the large diameter barrel in its factory configuration & there were a few other tight/rough spots that had to be shaved & sanded down.

I replaced the factory sights with Williams peep sights that I can still get a good sight picture through even though my eyes aren't what they used to be.

The gun gives me < 1" groups at 50 yards.

It's not a rifle you'd want to take plinking in a gravel pit but the recoil is quite tolerable.

The .416 Remington is a cartridge that "needs" to be hand loaded because the cost of ammo is over $100 for a box of 20 if you can even find it & I like to load 300 grain Barnes "X" bullets over an undisclosed (for civil liability reasons) weight of Hercules/Alliant Reloder 15 powder initiated by a Federal 215M primer.

I bought 5 x @100 case bags of Remington brass from a supplier in the US about a dozen years ago. It's a lot harder to get stuff from down there now.
 
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X-man, unfortunately you will find that the cost of a cat hunt is pretty much the same as an elephant hunt, as both require a 21 day license (Tanzania). Although my preference is for a CRF bolt gun, the key to any dangerous game rifle is absolute reliability and no less than Ross Seyfried carried a 700 in .416 Remington when he worked as a PH.

As for the correct cartridge for North American dangerous game . . .

3x375.jpg
 
458 lott.

Somewhat affordable to shoot. Hornady brass is available.

CZ standard loading.

Shoots 458 win. for practice.

Larger diameter cast bullets (for play) seem easier to make than smaller diameters.

Sounds a little old world.
 
I think the reason the 416 Rem was left out was because he was mostly talking about the CZ action where the Rem is not offered. The Remington would not be my first choice of action, but that's a totally seperate 1500 word diatribe.
 
From at practical standpoint, the .375H&H is still the best dangerous game cartridge going.

I own a .416RM and a .458Lott and hopefully I can take them both to Africa some day.
 
For a "dangerous game" calibre in Africa, I chose the .416 Rigby as well as the .375 H&H.

My first "big" rifle legal for African dangerous game was the .375 H&H in a Brno 602. That rifle turned out to be not nearly as bad as I had expected. With 300 grain Hornady Interbonds and a bunch of Hornady 300 gr. FMJ's for practice, the .375 offers a reasonable trajectory (I've got mine zeroed at 200 yards) without an unreasonable amount of recoil.

The .416 Rigby was one of those "I gotsta know" calibers (movie reference: those who recall the chit chat between Insp. Calahan and the bank robber in Dirty Harry know what I mean... "did I fire six rounds or only five...")

The .416 Rigby was simply an itch that needed scratching and I'm very glad I did. Loaded with the 400 grain Hornady RN or FMJ bullets for relatively inexpensive practice - handloading is the way to go - (with Swift A-Frames dedicated for the hunt) the .416 Rigby (in a CZ 550 and Ruger Mk II Safari) is noticeably heavier-recoiling than the .375 H&H but it's still an entertaining "big" calibre to shoot. As was mentioned before, field positions are preferable at the shooting range (shooting off the bench will be punishing and "prone" with these calibres is insane AFAIC). Yes, this is the big opportunity to practice shooting off of crossed sticks (as you will most likely be doing on your African safari).

Bear in mind that the .375 H&H is considered a "medium bore" in Africa (while it tends to be viewed as a "big bore" by many here in North America.

Given that the .375 H&H is the minimum calibre permitted for Dangerous Game in most African locales I can't see it as being the "ideal choice" unless that's the biggest calibre you can learn how to shoot well. IMHO, I would suggest that it would be best to learn how to shoot both the .375 H&H as well as the .416 Rigby, and then make your choice (or take both ;)).
 
100 asa Kodak film, or Ilford XP B&W.

You have to be a lot closer, and much more skilled to get an epic shot.

Nikon Optics, or Canon...
 
thats right - good point- always bring your camera to record the moment of the successful hunt - you will always treasure those pictures
 
I just read a very interesting article on the biggest calibers around.

http://w ww.fieldandstream.com/blogs/ammunition/2009/06/petzal-hardest-kicking-cartridges

Very amusing, albeit somewhat impractical...
 
Your post dosen't mention if you want something for hunting or stopping. If you want a stopper you're talking >.416 and 2000+ fps as a minimum. You don't need a gun like that for hunting.
Keep in mind a CZ 550 out of the box is not a dangerous game rifle. Have the stock bedded and another cross bolt put in by someone who works with big bores. Otherwise order you gun with extra stocks, you will split them. Getting these big cartridges to feed properly is another issue as well. Personally I would go with a .458, though a .375 would be better suited to your purposes. The key as many have mentioned is practice, practice, practice.
 
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458 win, mainly cause I have a CZ550 in 458. With the 1.5x6x50 Swarovski, I have holes touching@ 100yds using 500gr or 510gr slugs. I'm in the process of loading some 350gr slugs for the smaller critters. I don't want to depend on somebody else saving my sorry hide because I didn't have enough gun.
 
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