Opinions on Best Big Bore Rifle

A couple great reads:

African Game Trails, Theo Roosevelt. He had 3 main rifles, a Springfield .30-03, a M1895 Winchester in .405Win and a Holland and Holland double rifle in .500/450.

Green Hills of Africa, Ernest Hemingway. Hemingway shot most of his big game, including members of the Big 5, a .30-06 and 220gr standard cup n core bullets.
 
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The 35 Whelen is a great cartridge but rifle selection is extremely limited as is factory ammo. If you plan on building one and reloading it's a great round. Not a big bore but still plenty big enough for any game in NA. I went with the 9.3x62 myself as there's alot more choice in rifles and I really like the Sauer s100 xt classic rifle and I like the heavier bullet options.
If I were to pick the best big bore I'd argue in favour of the 458wm
As a reloader the case is easy to load
It's big enough for all game walking the earth.
You can spit 300gr hollow points at 2700fps or 500gr rhino stoppers at 2150fps. I get 2200fps from a 26.5" barrel. Or you can load it as a giant pellet gun with a 405gr hard cast at 1000fps.
Recoil is manageable. Rifles aren't that hard to find. I think every major ammo company loads it. They will all be suited to dangerous game loads but reloading makes it a very versatile cartridge.
I shoot a 400gr woodliegh ppsn at 2450fps zeroed at 100 yards I'm 7" low at 200 yards. Not bad for an elephant gun.
 
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brybenn said:
The 35 Whelen is a great cartridge but rifle selection is extremely limited as is factory ammo. If you plan on building one and reloading it's a great round. Not a big bore but still plenty big enough for any game in NA. I went with the 9.3x62 myself as there's alot more choice in rifles and I really like the Sauer s100 xt classic rifle and I like the heavier bullet options.
If I were to pick the best big bore I'd argue in favour of the 458wm
As a reloader the case is easy to load
It's big enough for all game walking the earth.
You can spit 300gr hollow points at 2700fps or 500gr rhino stoppers at 2150fps. I get 2200fps from a 26.5" barrel. Or you can load it as a giant pellet gun with a 405gr hard cast at 1000fps.
Recoil is manageable. Rifles aren't that hard to find. I think every major ammo company loads it. They will all be suited to dangerous game loads but reloading makes it a very versatile cartridge.
I shoot a 400gr woodliegh ppsn at 2450fps zeroed at 100 yards I'm 7" low at 200 yards. Not bad for an elephant gun.
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9.3 x 62 would be my vote also (.366). Factory ammo can be found; there is a good selection of reloading components, and my old Husky is accurate. The hunting record on this calibre speaks for itself and certainly accounts for it's on going popularity. You can get into a good quality used commercial Mauser push feed for around $400.00

This is mine; beside it are a couple of my home loads, the 9.3 x 62 beside the 6.5 x55 for comparison. The 9.3 is a 286 gr. Privi Partisan hunting bullet.

Rifle.jpg9.3 vs 6.5.jpg
 
35 Whelen can be fun to to load for and be fun to shoot.

It depends on what the end use is for Hunting in Canada? or a combination of hunting and target shooting

Ammo Availability ? if you reload no Problem, its Based on the 30-06 so all you need is 30-06 brass and a 35 Whelen die set

you can shoot plinkers all day (Pistol bullets) you can shoot Cast bullets or you can shoot Jacketed bullets

A rubber recoil pad is a must have if shooting lots of heavies
 
Medium bore caliber, hard to beat 30-06 for rifle or ammo availability. Can hunt 98% of north America and defend from the other 2% (polar/Kodiak/northern brown bear). 35 Whelan can be hard to find factory ammo, 300 win mag is a nice upgrade from 30-06. Heard the 9.3x62 can hit way above its weight class. Big(er) bore 338 win mag or 375 H&H.
Personally very interested in both the 35 Whelan and the 9.3 x 62 caliber. But I don't have time or money to get into handloading. Also I pretty much have my one rifle for everything already, in 30-06, and don't need to turn myself into a rifle hoarder.
Developing a flinch from carrying around a too big caliber won't help much with predator defense.
 
I love the 35Whelen cartridge. I have a locker full of amazing rifles but they all stay home as the 35 goes on all my hunts. Built my custom 35 a couple years back and absolutely love it. I built a medium bore, lightweight that can reach out to 600 metres if necessary. I can make that shot but I tend to keep most of my hunting within 300 metres.
 
I'm done with bigger bores now, but had a few 35 Whelens over the years along with a few other 35s and 375s. I always liked the 35 Whelen. If for some reason the 30-06 wasn't big enough, I'd choose the 35W. Brass is easy with 30-06 brass and always had the goods with 250gr Speer SPs.

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Has the OP thought about what the use case is?

If it's Canadian game, below grizzly levels, something like a .45-70 or 577 snider, .450-577, 500NE, etc. might be interesting choices that don't dislocate the shoulder as easily. Heck, even though tit's likely not a "big bore" to many here, a Winchester "big bore" 94 in something like 375 Winchester (aka .38-55 improved) might even be fun.
 
I had a 458 that was pretty fun, ended up getting rid of it in favor of my 378 wby. I know it’s not a true big bore by diameter but it is more practical for me and a little more functional at longer distances. Also in the process of putting together a 338-06ai, with the right bullet selection it should be very versatile.
 
If we are defining "big bore" as over .30 caliber, I shoot and like rifles chambered in .35 Whelen, 9.3x62, 9.3x74R, .375H&H, and .450-400 3" Nitro Express.

The most versatile of them all for North American game is the .35 Whelen. but very limited in rifle and factory ammo choices. I have taken many Canadian elk and moose with mine with complete satisfaction.

The most versatile internationally is the .375 H&H. Rifles and ammo in .375 H&H are available anywhere worldwide. Big enough for the biggest game, small enough to shoot comfortably with some training and conditioning. I've shot everything ranging from Impala to moose and elk to Cape buffalo with the .375 H&H. Ranges from 300 M to rock throwing distance - it does it all and does it well.

The cartridge that is capable for shooting anything on earth, with mild recoil, and is available in a multitude of handy light bolt action rifles and with a wide variety of good factory loads is the 9.3x62. It can do it all, but is not legal for dangerous game in some African countries. It's my favourite. i've taken everything from small bushbuck to gigantic giraffe with mine. It doesn't kick much for such a capable cartridge and kills just as well as a .375 H&H. The 9.3x74R is the same, just chambered in double rifles if that's your preference.

The .450-400 3" or ".400 Jefferey" is my favourite double rifle cartridge. It is low pressure and has a proper rim for assured extraction. Once even more popular than the .375 H&H for dangerous game, it is a true giant killer, doesn't kick too bad, penetrates better than most, and is well respected. I've use mine for elk, moose, and a couple of Cape buffalo.

My experience with the .416 Remington is limited to one safari with a rented rifle. It was effectively employed to kill small Impala and medium sized wildebeest at ranges of 150 M or so, and stopped a full-on charge from a big bull elephant at 5 meters. Based on that one experience, if I was to choose a dedicated big bore stopping rifle with some extra versatile medium range capabilities, it would be a bolt action chambered in .416 Remington.
 
Longwalker said:
If we are defining "big bore" as over .30 caliber, I shoot and like rifles chambered in .35 Whelen, 9.3x62, 9.3x74R, .375H&H, and .450-400 3" Nitro Express.

The most versatile of them all for North American game is the .35 Whelen. but very limited in rifle and factory ammo choices. I have taken many Canadian elk and moose with mine with complete satisfaction.

The most versatile internationally is the .375 H&H. Rifles and ammo in .375 H&H are available anywhere worldwide. Big enough for the biggest game, small enough to shoot comfortably with some training and conditioning. I've shot everything ranging from Impala to moose and elk to Cape buffalo with the .375 H&H. Ranges from 300 M to rock throwing distance - it does it all and does it well.

The cartridge that is capable for shooting anything on earth, with mild recoil, and is available in a multitude of handy light bolt action rifles and with a wide variety of good factory loads is the 9.3x62. It can do it all, but is not legal for dangerous game in some African countries. It's my favourite. i've taken everything from small bushbuck to gigantic giraffe with mine. It doesn't kick much for such a capable cartridge and kills just as well as a .375 H&H. The 9.3x74R is the same, just chambered in double rifles if that's your preference.

The .450-400 3" or ".400 Jefferey" is my favourite double rifle cartridge. It is low pressure and has a proper rim for assured extraction. Once even more popular than the .375 H&H for dangerous game, it is a true giant killer, doesn't kick too bad, penetrates better than most, and is well respected. I've use mine for elk, moose, and a couple of Cape buffalo.

My experience with the .416 Remington is limited to one safari with a rented rifle. It was effectively employed to kill small Impala and medium sized wildebeest at ranges of 150 M or so, and stopped a full-on charge from a big bull elephant at 5 meters. Based on that one experience, if I was to choose a dedicated big bore stopping rifle with some extra versatile medium range capabilities, it would be a bolt action chambered in .416 Remington.
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Hey Longwalker, your 450-400 is a Merkel 140 right? Any idea what ammo it was regulated with? I just picked up a Merkel in 470NE and am curious what they were regulated with from the factory.
 
Northern Shooter said:
Hey Longwalker, your 450-400 is a Merkel 140 right? Any idea what ammo it was regulated with? I just picked up a Merkel in 470NE and am curious what they were regulated with from the factory.
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Yes, mine is a Merkel 140 AE. Merkel should be able to tell you what it was regulated with.

Oddly, mine was supposedly regulated with Federal ammunition according to the test target that came with the rifle. But when I went shopping for ammo, learned that Federal apparently did not ever load .450-400 3" ammunition. So that was a mystery.

The only ammo I had available to purchase was Hornady Dangerous Game series ammo. It didn't shoot particularly well with that, so I sent it to J.J. Perodeau in the USA and had him re-regulate it. Shoots very well now. 2" composite 4 shot groups at 50 yds, handheld & standing with only a fore end rest under my front hand. A couple of handloads do just as well.
 
Nothing wrong with the 35 Whelen. While ammo is periodically available, it kinda falls into a re-loader category. But then again most of bigger bore calibers above 308 fall into re-loader category too. Bullets in the 35 Whelen are good with a 225 to 250 grain projectiles.
 
For ammo availability, I would rate the .375 HH as the "all-around". Meets the base minimum for "dangerous game" in most countries around the world.
For Canada/ North American hunting, the .338 WM or even 300WM , but my personal favorite is the .358 Norma
 
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