Cleathorn
AH veteran
I have been posting many questions recently, ever since I booked 2 safaris to hunt the Big 5 next year. Great forum and everyone is very helpful.
My current quandry is this: I will be hunting with a very reliable, rebuilt Remington P17 Mauser that I just had rebarreled to .375 H&H Mag. My .375 is equiped with a low power 1-4x DG scope and is an Awesome gun!
But, things happen. Guns get dopped, scopes break, etc. I am wondering if I should buy and take with me an extra DG gun. I can pick up a CZ 550, a Rem 798, or several other options for functional and nice looking guns at relativly cheap prices. All of them sport open sights, which I like and my .375 does not have.
So, what do you guys who have hunted Africa on long safaris think about the clinet/hunter bringing a back up gun? Is it needed. Do PHs usually have them in camp (I am asking my own PH same question but he is out hunting for next 14 days)?
I really do not have another use for the gun and will probably go with the .458 because the muzzle energy and felt recoil is not much more in the .458 than the .416 and the .04 diameters of bullet cross section seem to out weigh about 3-4 extra pounds/sq. in of felt recoil.
So: should hunters take a back up gun on safari?
My current quandry is this: I will be hunting with a very reliable, rebuilt Remington P17 Mauser that I just had rebarreled to .375 H&H Mag. My .375 is equiped with a low power 1-4x DG scope and is an Awesome gun!
But, things happen. Guns get dopped, scopes break, etc. I am wondering if I should buy and take with me an extra DG gun. I can pick up a CZ 550, a Rem 798, or several other options for functional and nice looking guns at relativly cheap prices. All of them sport open sights, which I like and my .375 does not have.
So, what do you guys who have hunted Africa on long safaris think about the clinet/hunter bringing a back up gun? Is it needed. Do PHs usually have them in camp (I am asking my own PH same question but he is out hunting for next 14 days)?
I really do not have another use for the gun and will probably go with the .458 because the muzzle energy and felt recoil is not much more in the .458 than the .416 and the .04 diameters of bullet cross section seem to out weigh about 3-4 extra pounds/sq. in of felt recoil.
So: should hunters take a back up gun on safari?