THE MAGNUMS

Sellect a Rifle for Africa. .375 Magnum - .416 Magnum

If I were going to Africa to shoot "dangerous big game", not plains game, I would choose the .375 for the following reasons.

1. The .375 has higher velocity which means flatter trajectory. This simply means that you can not only use it up close but for longer shots on non-dangerous plains game. With the .416 the range will be more limted to closer shots.

2. The .375 recoils less which means you will shoot it more accurately.

3. If you run out of ammo or get the ammo stolen you can get .375 H&H ammo world wide, the .416 ammo is not as common.

4. The difference in killing power is negligible as a well placed shot from either caliber will floor even an elephant.

I would ask yourself, what kind of African game are you really going to hunt? Lets face facts if you hunt non-dangerous plains game, if you save your money this is actually quite affordable. Not so with dangerous game as it can run well beyond anything you will be ever be able to afford. So the question now is do you really need either caliber. The answer of course is no, as any high velocity rifle caliber from 6.5 mm on up will kill African plains game and to it more cheaply , with less recoil and way more human accuracy.

Several years ago the gun industry wined and dined a whole group of gun writers and treated them to an African Safari for non-dangerous game. Many chose the classic 7x57 Mauser which really raised a few eyebrows to the proletariat which thought they would all use super Gozzilla modern magnum rifles burning almost 100 grains of powder at a pop. Of course they did not use such guns because they new they were not needed. The classic 7x57 did just fine just the same as it did 100 years or more ago.

Everyone has dreams of going to Africa but few ever make it there. Many buy big bore rifles because when they are young and it fulfills a certain "African Fantasy". Young men love fast cars, fast women, and hard kicking guns. Its only when they get older and wiser they slow down their driving (if they are still alive) marry "not so fast women" and buy milder kicking rifles that kill and perform as well as the Godzzilla blasters if one uses the proper ammo and places the bullet in the kill zone.

If you are still a young man I would say buy both big guns and get it out of your system because the longer you wait the less likely you will ever be likely to afford either. Many of the guns that I bought for only a song 45 years ago have now become so expensive that only a rich man could afford one.

NOW THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION: DO YOU REALLY TRULY WANT TO GO TO AFRICA? If the answer is yes then buy a used 30-06, and save the rest of your money for the trip and you will be able to afford to hunt non-dangerous plains game there and much sooner than you think. You can save extra money also buy selling off everything you really do not need, you will be surprised on how much stuff you can actually sell and get rid off. Even a part time job used specifically for saving money for the trip will accumulate money far faster than you may think.

Lets face facts the money you would spend on two big bore blasters would be far better spent on saving the money for the African Hunt. Remember too that you can also rent a gun when you are there and again for plains game any garden variety rifle will work very well, there are lots of 30-06, 7x57 etc. rifles for loan in Africa.

CAPE BUFFALO

Gestation Period: 11 months

Habitat: Grassland and open woodlands

Behaviour:

The Cape buffalo is considered by many to be the most dangerous of the big 5. Large herds of buffalo are generally relaxed when compared to single buffalo or small groups, which are extremely unpredictable. Lone bulls are very nervous as they don’t have the safety and security of numbers and are therefore very quick to charge at any sign of danger. A charging buffalo is difficult to stop and many hunters have fallen victim to them, even after shooting warning shots.

Large breeding herds can reach up 1500 individuals, rarely more. With so many buffalo, the herd has to keep on the move in search of good grazing and water. The old, sick and weak individuals often fall behind until eventually losing their herd. Old bulls that were previously with the herd will often form small groups known as bachelor herds. The bachelors normally settle down into smaller areas of 5 or 10 km² that has sufficient water and food to survive on. When the breeding herds pass through their area, they will sometimes rejoin for a short period before remaining behind once again.

Another name for an old buffalo bull is “dagga boy”. Dagga is the mixture sand, water and cement, used in building, a dagga boy is the person that mixes the dagga. Old buffalo bulls love wallowing in mud and after sitting in the sun for a while, the dried mud on their bodies looks like the dried cement on a dagga boy’s arms and legs, hence the nick name. Mud wallowing is very good for the buffalo’s skin as it helps remove unwanted parasites such as ticks and mites. When an animal submerges into water, a small air-bubble develops around the tick’s mouth, where the mouth enters the host’s skin. This air-bubble supplies the tick with extra oxygen, allowing it to stay under water without drowning. Mud on the other hand is too thick to allow for these small air-bubbles, resulting in the suffocation of ticks. After good wallowing session, the buffalo then rubs its body against, large rocks, trees or termite mounds to remove the mud along with the ticks.

The horns of buffalo give a good indication of the sex. The male’s horns are slightly thicker than the females and the male has a very prominent boss. The bull in particular makes a regular habit of rubbing and polishing his horns and boss on trees. The purpose of this may be to prevent flies from laying eggs in the cracks of its horns. Eggs laid in the horns eventually hatch into larva and start boring through the keratin layers causing significant damage to the buffalo’s horns.

Diet:

The buffalo is a herbivore, feeding mostly on grass but in the drier seasons they will also eat more leaves.

Breeding:

Within a breeding herd there are a number of dominant tahr males. Only these males are able to mate with the females. At the age of 5 years the female gives birth to her first calf after a gestation of 11 months. The newborn calf has a light brown to auburn colouration which helps camouflaging it while being hidden away and suckled for the first few weeks, until it is strong enough to keep up with the herd. The calf will often stay with its mother until the time when she gives birth to a new calf, which is around every 2 years.

Enemies:

Lions are capable of hunting mature buffalo which may take just a few minutes to pull down or even a couple hours with less experienced lion. Spotted hyena and leopard normally hunt the young calves which are less of a risk as buffalo often team together and put up a good fight and are very capable of killing lions and the other predators.

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CAPE BUFFALO