Muskox Gun

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Bigbill

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My colleague is a resident of Cambridge Bay Nunavut, and has never hunted. He intends to go after muskoxen this year. The local people have told him that the 223 Remington is entirely adequate for this purpose, and he asked me to help him find a rifle in this caliber.

My view is that the local hunters use this round because it does not damage very much meat, and the said hunters are content to wait until the animal bleeds to death. Unlike southern hunts, there is no fear the animal may be lost in the bush, and I do not think many local people are concerned about the suffering of the animal.

I have never hunted either, but think a far more substantial caliber should be used. I think that the minimum should be a 257 Roberts, with a heavy premium bullet. This choice will allow for a more humane kill, while also accommodating the inexperience of a novice hunter.

I would like to generate some feedback, or perhaps find some authoritive sources, so that I can convince my colleague to up gun.

Thanks
Big
 
From what I understand, the outfitters ask you to use a non magnum wiht a regular bullet, to reduce the chance of over penetration on a tightly bunched herd of animals.

Cartridges liek the 308/270 etc are often used
 
Here we go again.
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no hunter i know waits for the animal to bleed to death, they shoot the critter with the 223 then they walk up to it and if it's not dead they crank him in the head
 
"...has never hunted..." Does he shoot? Have a hunting licence? A PAL? If he doesn't, he's not likely to be going hunting this year.
For some reason, Nunavut's hunting regs are not on-line. He should start there. I suspect the rules for natives will be different than those for non-natives. Assuming that applies. Chances are that the .223 isn't allowed for non-natives.
A musk ox can run 800 pounds. Subsistence hunting isn't the same a sport hunting. The .223 is too light for elk(roughly the same weight), so it'll be too light for a musk ox too.
 
uphere said:
no hunter i know waits for the animal to bleed to death, they shoot the critter with the 223 then they walk up to it and if it's not dead they crank him in the head
Click to expand...

"Hunting
Eskimo's have always hunted the muscox. They used to make utilities of their bones, coats of their skin and ate their meat. However, whalehunters were the ones who where responsible for the near extinction of the species. Another cause is the muscox defensive behaviour. When they are attacked, the herd will form a circle with all horns directed to the outside. Even if one animal is shot the whole herd will still try to protect that animal. Eskimo's used a different hunting method, they shot one animal and then left. As soon as the herd had moved on, the eskimo's returned to pick up their meat. Europeans are always in a hurry. They did not have the patience to wait for the other animals to leave. They also shot the other animals, just to take some animals with them and left the others to rot. There is no real muscox hunting season. Animals are shot after the mating season and only the ones which are repudiated by their herd are shot.."

Quote from http://www.caf-exotic.com/en/sorti_moschus.htm

I guess you don't have many Inuit friends?

Big
 
I'd go with at least a 30-06 with a premium bullet. Better yet would be a 338 Mag with 250 grainers, or a 375 Ruger
 
Bigbill said:
My colleague is a resident of Cambridge Bay Nunavut, and has never hunted. He intends to go after muskoxen this year. The local people have told him that the 223 Remington is entirely adequate for this purpose, and he asked me to help him find a rifle in this caliber.

My view is that the local hunters use this round because it does not damage very much meat, and the said hunters are content to wait until the animal bleeds to death. Unlike southern hunts, there is no fear the animal may be lost in the bush, and I do not think many local people are concerned about the suffering of the animal.

I have never hunted either, but think a far more substantial caliber should be used. I think that the minimum should be a 257 Roberts, with a heavy premium bullet. This choice will allow for a more humane kill, while also accommodating the inexperience of a novice hunter.

I would like to generate some feedback, or perhaps find some authoritive sources, so that I can convince my colleague to up gun.

Thanks
Big
Click to expand...

A 30/06 to .300 Win Mag or even larger would be a better choice if he was an experienced shooter. Musk Oxen are large animals, 700 to 800 lbs, and a .223 is marginal even in the hands of an expert. Because your friend is not a shooter/hunter he is probably best served with a compromise caliber like the .243 as the heavy recoil of larger calibers may give him trouble. At Cambridge Bay he will have the opportunity to hunt Caribou, Seals and Musk Ox and a light recoil .243 might be his best choice unless he has to deal with a Polar Bear.

Because your friend is new to this game your suggestion of a .257 Roberts would be a good one because of its light recoil however availability of ammunition will be a problem. A .243 will work on Musk Oxen if he does the following; (a) Start practicing his shooting skills long before the hunt (b) Stalks to within 100 yards or less (c) Places his shot carefully in the lungs and (d) Uses premium bullets such as 100gr Nosler Partitions.

1st time hunters should be in the company of someone who has experience.
 
BigBill, I'm currently in Cambridge Bay until the 21st of this month ... if you want your friend to find out some info, view some rifles, etc ... tell him to come visit myself at the airport here as I'm managing it til the 21st when I return home to Rankin Inlet. I have many family members here and most would use a .223(highly unlikely), .308 and .303 British in such hunts. I have been taking many pics of Umingmak(muskox) here during my last 3 weeks and have to say that if I had an opportunity to hunt one ... I'd go with my .308! However I'm leaving before the Umingmak(muskox) SEASON begins this fall.(not sure of exact dates) They(muskox) will bunch up, however it's not hard to coax one or two away from teh herd ... and the herds I have seen are awfully small ... several in a group to about 15 in a group. I'm planning on going up to Mount Pelly here on the weekend for a hike if your friend wishes to join?! Cheers,

Otokiak(Jason Todd) ... :cool:
Rankin Inlet, NU(currently in Cambridge Bay)
CANADA
 
Bigbill said:
My colleague is a resident of Cambridge Bay Nunavut, and has never hunted. He intends to go after muskoxen this year. The local people have told him that the 223 Remington is entirely adequate for this purpose, and he asked me to help him find a rifle in this caliber.

My view is that the local hunters use this round because it does not damage very much meat, and the said hunters are content to wait until the animal bleeds to death. Unlike southern hunts, there is no fear the animal may be lost in the bush, and I do not think many local people are concerned about the suffering of the animal.

I have never hunted either, but think a far more substantial caliber should be used. I think that the minimum should be a 257 Roberts, with a heavy premium bullet. This choice will allow for a more humane kill, while also accommodating the inexperience of a novice hunter.

I would like to generate some feedback, or perhaps find some authoritive sources, so that I can convince my colleague to up gun.

Thanks
Big
Click to expand...

I used a 223 on my Bull Muskox and it worked great from 50 yards away. We use 223 on our wolf hunts at the same time we go after Muskox just make sure you have a clear shot of the lungs and you will be fine.

Also the word Eskimo is no longer used it is Inuit;)
 
For God's sake don't saddle him with too much rifle. The 270 is plenty as long as he uses good bullets. There's no need for a 300 Winchester for Ox. The locals in Sachs Harbour mostly use 222, 223 and 243 (the 243 is considered a heavy rifle up there) for everything from caribou to musk ox to polar bear. The guys I know tend to be pretty damned good shots and only take head or neck shots. That being said, they shoot a lot of ox and bear over the course of their lives and know them intimately. I would suggest a 140 gr NPT or TSX in a 270 would be ideal for Ox. My friend used his 270 in Cam Bay years ago to hunt ox and caribou. Your friend would be well served to follow suit.
 
"Eskimo's" ? Bigbill ? Also, Columbus in the year of 1492, thought that he was in India, so he called the Natives "Indians" :)

The political correct name for an Eskimo is "INUIT" :)
 
Maybe he should take what ever rifle that he is currently usinfg and that he is comfortable with! Just make sure that he uses a hunting, not match, bullet.
 
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