.416 for plains game?

[Beck]

Has anyone done this? Bullet Recommendations? I have heard people say ".416 Rigby/Remington/Ruger is great for planes game" granted most of these people have never actually used a .416 for plains game.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

Yes, it's possible. I know a gent who does it with a .416 Remington Magnum Winchester Model 70 Safari Express. Not ideal but very much possible. Zero in your rifle for it's maximum point blank range.

As for bullets, 400Gr Swift A Frames get my vote as a general all-rounder. Barnes TSX is also excellent, provided that you aren't going after lions or leopards.

 

[mooze]

used 416 Rigby for deer with light monolithics, up to 250Y a 350 Barnes TTSX should be fine though. see my comments here

Impala bullet info needed

I see Impala Bullets of South Africa makes not one but two sub 300 gr bullets for 404 Jeffery. Their website has very thorough loading information but only in a powder unavailable here (presumably also RSA). I am intrigued. A 250 gr 404J bullet flying at 2500 fps might have great potential as...

www.africahunting.com

 

[Chris M.]

While certainly not ideal, I did use a 416 Taylor (Mauser M98 rifle loaded with 410 grain Woodleigh bullets and 2350 fps muzzle velocity) for plains game in Tanzania. I brought it as a "one rifle for all" primarily for Cape buffalo hunt use, but served its purpose on Thomson gazelle, Olive baboon, Black-backed jackal and a Kirk's dik dik. The latter being quite ironic, as this was the smallest African animal I've shot with the largest caliber rifle I own, which also was used on the largest animal, a Cape buffalo in South Africa.

If you plan on bringing the 416, use solids on the small to medium sized plains game. The above referenced animals were shot with the solids which penetrated easily but did not do extensive damage. The furthest shot on the gazelle, was about 220 yards. With a bench rest, the rifle shoots at approximately 1" MOA accuracy which conceivably, I could push shots out to 300 yards to take plains game. Off sticks though and a 7 power scope, however, I'd limit shots to about 200 yards in the future.

So while my recommendation is yes, you could, realistically the shots would be closer (to 200 yards maximum) and suggest you also bring solids. The 416 would provide some good "smack down" capability on eland or zebra using soft points. Standard Cup and core bullets are good as the "softs" and there are many good manufacturers of these bullets, including the Swift A frames referenced in the previous post. I use 0.416" Rigby 410 grain Weldcore RN SN Woodleigh bullets as my "softs." I would recommend against mono-metal or gliding metal bullets at relatively greater ranges (such as Barnes TSX, all copper types, etc.) as they would not likely have the velocity to properly expand and act as "solids" anyway.

 

[Jon R15]

I used my 416 Remington on a kudu and impala last September in Limpopo with fantastic results. The rifle is just under ten pounds scoped with a VX6 1-6 and is a pleasure to shoot. I was using a 350 grain TTSX handload at 2573 fps with a 150 yard zero. The kudu was quartered toward me and I hit him right behind the facing shoulder. The bullet exited mid-ribcage on the opposite side with a tremendous amount of damage in between. He ran downhill about 30 yards before piling up in some trees. Later that day I made a snap shot at 30 yards on the impala and it dropped in its tracks. This wasn't the only rifle I took on this trip but I wouldn't hesitate using it for a one gun safari.

 

[Backyardsniper]

I will throw in my .02. I think the 416 is perfectly fine for PG, African animals are tough! Really tough and you aren't going to "overkill" anything. That 416 with 400 grain A frames will make a .416 hole going in and make about a .75 hole on the backside, if it even exits. I killed an eland, kudu, and a hyena with mine. Sometimes you are not presented with the best shot and you have to make do with what you have, a little extra horsepower will be very welcome when that situation arrives. The 400 gr A frame at +/-2400fps is very similar in trajectory to a 308 with a 175gr and carries plenty of energy out to 400 yards. Work up a solid load for the rifle and practice all you can with it. As an added bonus if you are hunting in DG territory and find yourself in a sticky situation, then you will have enough gun to get yourself unstuck if necessary.

 

[Philip Glass]

I shot a Red Lechwe with a .416 after the ele and buff. It's not ideal but there is no real problem with it.

 

[fourfive8]

I have never taken two rifles. Sometimes I just borrow the PH's. Traveling with one is enough of a PIA! I have taken my Win M 70 416 Rem Mag for both PG and DG. For DG I've used both Barnes TSX and North Fork CPS. For PG, I've used North Fork CPS. I worked up loads for the TSX and the CPS that shot to same point of impact. Both bullets are extremely accurate in my rifle. Minimal meat damage is a great benefit to using the CPS on game down to impala size. The only caveat to using larger calibers, no matter the game, is to be realistic about ability to shoot rifle with a lot of recoil. Avoid developing a flinch. Practice a lot. Learn to well off sticks.

 

[SFRanger7GP]

On our last safari, I shot everything from warthog and blesbok to giraffe and buffalo with my 416 Rigby. I used a 350gr Barnes TSX and 400gr Barnes TSX, both moving just over 2400fps and shooting to same POA-POI at 100 yards. I shot a blesbok at just over 200 yards. Our next trip, I plan to do the same thing.

Safe shooting

 

[chashardy]

Like some of the other posters above, I used my 416 Rigby Big Game on zebra, roan, buffalo, and even an impala ram that wandered close to a bush blind when we were looking for kudu. It works just fine if you don't have to shoot very far.

 

[Tokoloshe Safaris]

For once I did not see where anyone said If you put the bullet in the right spot.

Lon

 

[bwanamrm]

Like others have posted, I have on numerous occasions used my .416's or my .404 for plains game when hunting for dangerous game due to ease of carrying one rifle and the confusion that occurs when toting the PG rifle and running into buff, etc. If you are planning a strictly plains game safari, say in Namibia, where shots are longer I would use a conventional light caliber rifle sighted out to 300 yards. But it could be done with a big bore if you accept the limitations.

 

[analog_peninsula]

I loaded my .416 Weatherby with 300 grain TSX bullets @ 2800 fps. It's a light's out shooter, and the muzzle brake makes precision shooting possible without killing at both ends. I used it for an 80 yard shot on a croc rather than on PG, but the principle is the same.

 

[Rosch]

I did quiet some plain game shooting with my custom .425 Magnum Express (400 Grain at 2400 fps, so it's about the same language), with the idea of getting used to the gun and being prepared when hunting the bigger chaps. The problem is, that if You have to do quick shooting (that happens all the time with plainies) and You don't have the gun deep in Your shoulder, the gun kicks and might hurt You. (eyebrow blues). That could initiate twitching and therefor I would not recommend it.
300th for plainies, 375th for semibig (like Eland !!) and .416 and higher for the real stuff.
If You can afford the real stuff safari, You should be able to afford more than one gun too!! )

 

[Beck]

My initial plan was to bring my .450 rigby for buffalo, and a .375 H&H for plains game. I have typically used either a .300 Weatherby or an 8x68s for plains game, but I had a tremendous amount of fun using my .375 on the last safari. I just bought another .416, and it occurred to me it might be fun to use as my plains game rifle - maybe loaded it up with 350 grain TTSX's.

 

[matt85]

I use a 416 RM for everything. My bullet of choice is the Barnes 300gr TSX.

 

[Green Chile]

I had great success recently using 416 Rigby and the 400 grain CPS loads for elephant of course...but also zebra and eland...all with CPS. The zebra shot broke both shoulders at 70 yards and I think that bullet is still going. The eland was 5 feet of penetration from root of tail to just under skin on shoulder.

 

[Longwalker]

While hunting in Zimbabwe last March with a rented rifle, my elephant hunt was finished on the first day. So I hunted Wildebeest and Impala with that .416. Oddly, both animals ran farther than I expected with decent shots to the chest, using Swift Aframe and Barnes TSX bullets. About 100 M death dash both times. Both animals were shot where I would aim on North American elk or deer. Both were shot a little too far back according to African antelope anatomy. Rear lung hits don't translate into quick kills even with a big boomer and relatively small game.

 

[358 Norma]

I'll be going to South Africa for Cape buffalo and Sable in June I plan on taking my Dakota 76 416 Remington mag and my Chapuis 470 Nitro double. The buffalo's the primary target but once the buffalo's done I'll hunt whatever Africa has to offer with the 416 and a 400 grain Swift A-frame bullet!

 

[Warren Knudsen]

It's a good option for a one gun safari, I took my 416 Rigby to Mozambique for Buffalo and plains game, 400g swift aframes did it all, warthog, nyaka and buff. For a dedicated plains game safari I'd look at 350g Aframes.