Learn from my mistakes - Buffalo

When I shoot a deer here in KY and it runs away, I almost never have opportunities to make a 2nd shot. I will sit tight and wait at least 30 min for it to bed down and bleed out. As well stated by others, this is a good practice and about all I can do. When I wounded a Kudu last year it escaped into the trees before I could make a 2nd shot and it took us over an hour to track it and it was bedded when found and I killed it with my 2nd shot when it stood. All good. Kudu in the salt. But, had I been given enough time to take that 2nd shot as it ran off, I would have. Why? First, I have wounded it and will be paying the fee even if not recovered and I know that chances of recovery are higher if shot twice. More importantly, as an ethical hunter, I want to harvest my animal as quickly as possible. I owe it to the animal to give it a quick end.

To that end, when I shoot a deer or antelope or other non DG animal and it is down but still struggling hard, I shoot it a 2nd time to end its life fast, rather than stand there watching the poor beast struggle for a long time. Yes, I may waste a little meat but it is the right thing to do. I love to hunt but do not particularly enjoy the act of killing. To me, the shot is the sad period at the end of the hunting story.

A few years ago, I shot a nice Whitetail deer with my 7mm RM. It was only 125y away and out in an open grass pasture. It dropped at the shot. I knew the shot was well placed but it was struggling to stand and so, I shot it again which ended the struggle instantly. It only suffered for the time it took for me to reload and fire. A few seconds. Was the 2nd shot necessary? No. Was it better for me to take the second shot? In my opinion, it was the ethical thing to do. This past winter, I shot a Nilgai with a 338wm at 155y following a very fun stalk from almost 300y away thru mesquite bush. The big beast dropped in its tracks. Later examination of the entrails showed that the first shot burst its heart into pieces. So, in retrospect a 2nd shot was not necessary but I did not know this at the time. After dropping the big bull attempted to regain its feet. They are tough animals and the guide had warned us that they do not leave much of a blood trail and are hard to find if they run far. I shot it a 2nd time and ended its life. These are PG hunts and are not the same as DG hunts.

If we choose to undertake a DG hunt, we are responsible for our own safety and that of the rest of our team. PH's, trackers, etc. These men all have families and want to go home at the end of the day as do we. I refuse to let my ego prevent me from attempting to kill the Buffalo as quickly and efficiently as I can. Make that first shot count and they will only be on their feet for a few seconds. Just know that in 15-30 sec a buffalo can cover more than 100y and can kill or maim everyone with you. So, keep shooting, even when you know the first shot was mortal. Do it for your family and your friends in the hunting party and also, do it for the Buffalo. Odds are, the buff will not charge. They only rarely do (unless you are using a 570NE, lol). Just know however, when they do charge it is fast and savage and you will be shocked and could waste a few precious seconds acting unless you were already expecting the worst and in the act of making that fast 2nd shot already. In that case you will have already reloaded and already been in the act of aiming and at least might have enough time to place that life saver shot well.

On the other hand if you were not planning a 2nd shot, you will have to see, react, respond, reload, may stand there with your mouth hanging open, eyes bugged out, in a state of shock for too long. Now the out come is in the hands of God and your PH's. I do not like putting my safety in the hands of others, no matter how good they may be. Once out of my hands, I must have failed in some way.

I would love to be able to say, I killed a charging buffalo with a last second head shot at 5 paces saving my life and that of my hunting party all while standing tall and not shitting myself. But, that is a fantasy and I really do not want to have to do that in reality, if it is not necessary. Such an experience is only good after it is over and only if it all worked out well. Better off just killing the buffalo first and saving all that drama for the hunting novels. Carry on Lads.

JG26Irish_2 said:

We have about beat this dead horse (Buffalo) enough. Plus some of the comments have gotten skewed off course from DG hunting mainly Buffalo to hunting in general. Some clarification might help. When I shoot a deer here in KY and it runs away, I almost never have opportunities to make a 2nd shot. I will sit tight and wait at least 30 min for it to bed down and bleed out. As well stated by others, this is a good practice and about all I can do. When I wounded a Kudu last year it escaped into the trees before I could make a 2nd shot and it took us over an hour to track it and it was bedded when found and I killed it with my 2nd shot when it stood. All good. Kudu in the salt. But, had I been given enough time to take that 2nd shot as it ran off, I would have. Why? First, I have wounded it and will be paying the fee even if not recovered and I know that chances of recovery are higher if shot twice. More importantly, as an ethical hunter, I want to harvest my animal as quickly as possible. I owe it to the animal to give it a quick end.

To that end, when I shoot a deer or antelope or other non DG animal and it is down but still struggling hard, I shoot it a 2nd time to end its life fast, rather than stand there watching the poor beast struggle for a long time. Yes, I may waste a little meat but it is the right thing to do. I love to hunt but do not particularly enjoy the act of killing. To me, the shot is the sad period at the end of the hunting story.

A few years ago, I shot a nice Whitetail deer with my 7mm RM. It was only 125y away and out in an open grass pasture. It dropped at the shot. I knew the shot was well placed but it was struggling to stand and so, I shot it again which ended the struggle instantly. It only suffered for the time it took for me to reload and fire. A few seconds. Was the 2nd shot necessary? No. Was it better for me to take the second shot? In my opinion, it was the ethical thing to do. This past winter, I shot a Nilgai with a 338wm at 155y following a very fun stalk from almost 300y away thru mesquite bush. The big beast dropped in its tracks. Later examination of the entrails showed that the first shot burst its heart into pieces. So, in retrospect a 2nd shot was not necessary but I did not know this at the time. After dropping the big bull attempted to regain its feet. They are tough animals and the guide had warned us that they do not leave much of a blood trail and are hard to find if they run far. I shot it a 2nd time and ended its life. These are PG hunts and are not the same as DG hunts.

If we choose to undertake a DG hunt, we are responsible for our own safety and that of the rest of our team. PH's, trackers, etc. These men all have families and want to go home at the end of the day as do we. I refuse to let my ego prevent me from attempting to kill the Buffalo as quickly and efficiently as I can. Make that first shot count and they will only be on their feet for a few seconds. Just know that in 15-30 sec a buffalo can cover more than 100y and can kill or maim everyone with you. So, keep shooting, even when you know the first shot was mortal. Do it for your family and your friends in the hunting party and also, do it for the Buffalo. Odds are, the buff will not charge. They only rarely do (unless you are using a 570NE, lol). Just know however, when they do charge it is fast and savage and you will be shocked and could waste a few precious seconds acting unless you were already expecting the worst and in the act of making that fast 2nd shot already. In that case you will have already reloaded and already been in the act of aiming and at least might have enough time to place that life saver shot well.

On the other hand if you were not planning a 2nd shot, you will have to see, react, respond, reload, may stand there with your mouth hanging open, eyes bugged out, in a state of shock for too long. Now the out come is in the hands of God and your PH's. I do not like putting my safety in the hands of others, no matter how good they may be. Once out of my hands, I must have failed in some way.

I would love to be able to say, I killed a charging buffalo with a last second head shot at 5 paces saving my life and that of my hunting party all while standing tall and not shitting myself. But, that is a fantasy and I really do not want to have to do that in reality, if it is not necessary. Such an experience is only good after it is over and only if it all worked out well. Better off just killing the buffalo first and saving all that drama for the hunting novels. Carry on Lads.

Click to expand...

Totally agree. Even if the first shot is going to be fatal if we can limit an animals suffering with a 2nd shot then we should take it even if if it will result in a little extra meat damage

Two weeks ago I killed my third buffalo. It was a culling. That morning we heard a large herd up on the mountain carrying on when a couple of baboons were bothering them. But up there is unobtanium territory so off we went after giraffe to cull. The day before I had spotted a well used trail out of the heavy brush on the other side of the river. PH was certain it was from buffalo coming to water so we left one of the trackers to watch it while we hunted skyscrapers. About an hour later he called on the radio. Buffalo coming down the mountain. We ran back as fast as my old legs could run (which PH later said were ten times more functional than the legs of average American client half my age ). The tracker could not see the buffalo but what we could see was the ripple of weaving thick brush as they made their way down the steep grade obviously marching in a long line almost one behind another. Finally we could glimpse them on the bench across the river. PH selected an obviously old dapple gray cow. But she stayed glued to the very distinctive herd bull. Finally the two of them disappeared in the thick stuff and didn't reappear. Others were starting to bed down so presumably the select cow was laying under cover. PH suddenly says there's another candidate. "Look on the far right. She's laying in the shade. Shitty horns. Shoot that one." I get on the sticks and he ranges it at 110 meters with his fancy binoculars. "Are you okay with that distance?" Sure. When we reattached the scope at the range it was still zeroed an inch high at a hundred. Looking at the herd I'm turned up to 4x on my 404's 1-4x scope (binoculars in the truck = dumb). I can see a cow laying partly in the shade but two calves laying right in front of her nose. "She's got calves." "Not that one. The one in the shade. She's right there!" But all I can see is the cow with calves. "You can make that shot. Take her." Then a tail twitches in the dark shade about fifteen yards above the cow with calves. Then I see the horns moving. She's laying down quartering away uphill to my right. Now I know where to put the bullet. Boom! Up she jumps running to the left. No one heard the bullet hit but tracker watching through binoculars says I hit it "in the stomach". That would be a bit farther back than I thought. Crap. I'm instantly reloaded waiting for her to stop. Still on the sticks and ready to reset. Too many animals running around to take a slap-happy running shot. After 25 yards running full tilt she suddenly stops and slowly starts to turn around. Been at this long enough to know when an animal is dying. She stumbles then falls over. That is signature behaviour for heart shot. No audible death bellow but the rushing river was making some noise. The herd immediately surrounded her and the bull was clearly agitated. Looking everywhere for the source and we stand still in the shadows. One young bull tries to lift the cow back on her feet. After a half hour they finally left. We found the cow dead and laying in a huge pool of blood. No need for an "insurance shot." PH was amazed at how much she had bled out. Our tracker was correct. I had hit her "in the stomach" but at the angle she was laying the bullet took out one lung and all the major blood vessels attached to top of her heart. The perfectly mushroomed 400 gr slug was found just under the skin of opposite shoulder. Tracker had to use pliers to pull it loose from the tangle of flesh and bone. Looking at her on the ground the PH thought she was pregnant which wouldn't be a big deal because they wanted those genes out of the pool. Turns out she was just fat and full. No fetus.

Should I have taken a quick followup shot at her on the run? If she was indeed shot in the paunch, and given the difficulty of the situation I could not verify even to myself 100% that was not where the shot went, then waiting for her to stop might have been the wrong call. But other factors indicate taking a second shot on the run would have been the wrong call. First, the difficulty getting a clear shot without possibly hitting another animal. Secondly, a hundred yards with that gun would not be an easy shot on the run. Throwing futile rounds into the air would only give away our position. I know from experience staying obscured after the first shot is always an advantage if the animal(s) haven't already spotted the shooter. They need to figure out which way to run. And lastly, it was possible, though unlikely, I missed the shot. We didn't hear a hit which ordinarily would have been audible (though in this case the noise from river could have obscured it). She jumped up and didn't immediately act like she was hit. If it was a miss, fine. I don't need to cull a buffalo so badly to take a crappy hundred yard shot at one on the run, especially with other buffalo running around in front and behind. All we had as evidence of a hit was the tracker's word that she was gut shot. But I shot her facing right and she immediately jumped up and ran left. The tracker would have only had a split second to observe the entry wound in shadows which it turns did not bleed much and there was no exit. The massive bleeding occurred out the cow's mouth after she was on the ground. It is worth noting my PH did NOT tell me to shoot again. He and I have always been on the same page. Great to hunt with.

Moral of the story: Filling the air with as much lead/copper as fast as possible is not always the answer, dangerous game or not. Others may have been raised differently and that's fine. I was raised in Montana, not Texas. And the man who raised me started his hunting during the Great Depression. He also had to help feed a large family living on the edge of poverty. Old habits die hard ... especially if they are based in sound ethics and common sense.

You did good. Congratulations!

You shoot when your PH tells you to shoot…

Ontario Hunter said:

Two weeks ago I killed my third buffalo. It was a culling. That morning we heard a large herd up on the mountain carrying on when a couple of baboons were bothering them. But up there is unobtanium territory so off we went after giraffe to cull. The day before I had spotted a well used trail out of the heavy brush on the other side of the river. PH was certain it was from buffalo coming to water so we left one of the trackers to watch it while we hunted skyscrapers. About an hour later he called on the radio. Buffalo coming down the mountain. We ran back as fast as my old legs could run (which PH later said were ten times more functional than the legs of average American client half my age ). The tracker could not see the buffalo but what we could see was the ripple of weaving thick brush as they made their way down the steep grade obviously marching in a long line almost one behind another. Finally we could glimpse them on the bench across the river. PH selected an obviously old dapple gray cow. But she stayed glued to the very distinctive herd bull. Finally the two of them disappeared in the thick stuff and didn't reappear. Others were starting to bed down so presumably the select cow was laying under cover. PH suddenly says there's another candidate. "Look on the far right. She's laying in the shade. Shitty horns. Shoot that one." I get on the sticks and he ranges it at 110 meters with his fancy binoculars. "Are you okay with that distance?" Sure. When we reattached the scope at the range it was still zeroed an inch high at a hundred. Looking at the herd I'm turned up to 4x on my 404's 1-4x scope (binoculars in the truck = dumb). I can see a cow laying partly in the shade but two calves laying right in front of her nose. "She's got calves." "Not that one. The one in the shade. She's right there!" But all I can see is the cow with calves. "You can make that shot. Take her." Then a tail twitches in the dark shade about fifteen yards above the cow with calves. Then I see the horns moving. She's laying down quartering away to my right. Now I know where to put the bullet. Boom! Up she jumps running to the left. No one heard the bullet hit but tracker watching through binoculars says I hit it "in the stomach". That would be a bit farther back than I thought. Crap. I'm instantly reloaded waiting for her to stop. Still on the sticks and ready to reset. Too many animals running around to take a slap-happy running shot. After 25 yards running full tilt she suddenly stops and slowly starts to turn around. Been at this long enough to know when an animal is dying. She stumbles then falls over. That is signature behaviour for heart shot. No audible death bellow but the rushing river was making some noise. The herd immediately surrounded her and the bull was clearly agitated. Looking everywhere for the source and we stand still in the shadows. One young bull tries to lift the cow back on her feet. After a half hour they finally left. We found the cow dead and laying in a huge pool of blood. No need for an "insurance shot." PH was amazed at how much she had bled out. Our tracker was correct. I had hit her "in the stomach" but at the angle she was laying the bullet took out one lung and all the major blood vessels attached to top of her heart. The perfectly mushroomed 400 gr slug was found just under the skin of opposite shoulder. Tracker had to use pliers to pull it loose from the tangle of flesh and bone. Looking at her on the ground the PH thought she was pregnant which wouldn't be a big deal because they wanted those genes out of the pool. Turns out she was just fat and full. No fetus.

Should I have taken a quick followup shot at her on the run? If she was indeed shot in the paunch, and given the difficulty of the situation I could not verify even to myself 100% that was not where the shot went, then waiting for her to stop might have been the wrong call. But other factors indicate taking a second shot on the run would have been the wrong call. First, the difficulty getting a clear shot without possibly hitting another animal. Secondly, a hundred yards with that gun would not be an easy shot on the run. Throwing futile rounds into the air would only give away our position. I know from experience staying obscured after the first shot is always an advantage if the animal(s) haven't already spotted the shooter. They need to figure out which way to run. And lastly, it was possible, though unlikely, I missed the shot. We didn't hear a hit which ordinarily would have been audible (though in this case the noise from river could have obscured it). She jumped up and didn't immediately act like she was hit. If it was a miss, fine. I don't need to cull a buffalo so badly to take a crappy hundred yard shot at one on the run, especially with other buffalo running around in front and behind. All we had as evidence of a hit was the tracker's word that she was gut shot. But I shot her facing right and she immediately jumped up and ran left. The tracker would have only had a split second to observe the entry wound which it turns did not bleed much and there was no exit. The massive bleeding occurred out the cow's mouth after she was on the ground.

Moral of the story: Filling the air with as much lead/copper as fast as possible is not always the answer, dangerous game or not. Others may have been raised differently and that's fine. I was raised in Montana, not Texas. And the man who raised me started his hunting during the Great Depression. He also had to help feed a large family living on the edge of poverty. Old habits die hard ... especially if they are based in sound ethics and common sense.

Click to expand...

Sounds like you definitely made the correct decision. No ethical shot due to distance and proximity of other buffalo. Good call!

Now if she had run off to the side by herself away from the herd would you have tried a follow-up shot with no chance of wounding another animal?

Mark458 said:

Sounds like you definitely made the correct decision. No ethical shot due to distance and proximity of other buffalo. Good call!

Now if she had run off to the side by herself away from the herd would you have tried a follow-up shot with no chance of wounding another animal?

Click to expand...

I commended you on your decision not to try a follow-up shot in your situation, but you never answered my follow-up question.

SStomcat said:

I'm a little baffled. Not questioning the kill but wondering!. Both these shots "seem" to be quite high and more towards the right(back) than what I'd have thought.If you look at K.Robertson's perfect shots he recommends right around the shoulder 1/3th from the bottom should you split it into three sections.

Click to expand...

I like double lung shots with the .500. Those shots worked for that.
Also, in both cases the bullet was found just under the skin on the opposite side.

Mark458 said:

As I detailed earlier in this thread, the buffalo a shot a few weeks ago was only hit in one lung. I misjudged how much he was quartered to me in very last light. Again this was my fault and I'm not making excuses. The PH and the trackers could hear him coughing up blood and we saw evidence of this the next morning.

The PH and myself got the job done after a relatively short tracking job the next morning. There was a charge, but both of our shots were fatal and dropped him at 10 yards

My point is that the bull was spraying blood from mouth and nose and the shot was not fatal. I had no opportunity in low light for a follow-up shot or I would have taken it even though I felt good about the first shot.

Click to expand...

I am a bit surprised your PH would let you shoot at any animal (varmints excluded), let alone a buffalo, in "very last light." My PHs have all called it quits well before twilight even though they all knew I "can shoot." Agreed, bleeding from nose and mouth is not a sure indicator of rapid impending death but typically that's the case. I presume your bull had to get up to come for you? Or did he hear you coming and able to get on his feet before the encounter? Glad it worked out.

This was my first buffalo.

As you can see, taken late in the afternoon as we were headed back to the truck. She was a hundred meters facing us and I almost didn't take the shot. The afternoon breeze had kicked up and I couldn't get steady on the sticks. I decided not to take a chance and PH stepped up to steady my right arm. What a difference! Put one 375 bullet into her heart. She went maybe thirty yards and fell over. I later learned my PH looked at the lodge owner (who was along as observer) and ranch manager and they both confirmed it was okay to take the shot. Those guys had a lot of faith in a fella they barely knew only three days. Glad I didn't let them down.

Ontario Hunter said:

I am a bit surprised your PH would let you shoot at any animal (varmints excluded), let alone a buffalo, in "very last light." My PHs have all called it quits well before twilight even though they all knew I "can shoot." Agreed, bleeding from nose and mouth is not a sure indicator of rapid impending death but typically that's the case. I presume your bull had to get up to come for you? Or did he hear you coming and able to get on his feet before the encounter? Glad it worked out.

This was my first buffalo.
View attachment 789076
As you can see, taken late in the afternoon as we were headed back to the truck. She was a hundred meters facing us and I almost didn't take the shot. The afternoon breeze had kicked up and I couldn't get steady on the sticks. I decided not to take a chance and PH stepped up to steady my right arm. What a difference! Put one 375 bullet into her heart. She went maybe thirty yards and fell over. I later learned my PH looked at the lodge owner (who was along as observer) and ranch manager and they both confirmed it was okay to take the shot. Those guys had a lot of faith in a fella they barely knew only three days. Glad I didn't let them down.

Click to expand...

When I say last light I'm referring to my cut off time to shoot. I can still see the animal without need of the scope. Prior to me shooting we had a staring contest for more than 3 minutes. We were slightly elevated above the bull and he was looking directly at us. I was ready for a frontal shot but he needed to lift or turn his head or I would have shot him through the muzzle. When he finally turned to his right his head was broadside to me but I didn't realize his body was quartered to me. I hurried the shot more than I should have after standing like a statue with finger on the trigger for over 3 minutes. Again it was my mistake. There were at least 7 other bulls with him in close proximity so in fading light a follow-up shot would not be ethical in my opinion.

The point I was making was that a buffalo hit in one lung was coughing up and spraying blood and it was not a fatal shot. At least not 15 hours later when he still had the energy to charge. He got up and charged directly at the PH. I was just to the left a few steps behind. The bull was to our left about 10-11 o'clock. We fired at the same time. Only heard one shot. I got him through the throat/neck/spine and the PH got him between the eyes. Game over. And yes even after that I put one more through his spine just to make sure. Myself or the PH was not concerned with meat preservation at that moment. I feel I handled the charge as well as I could hope to, but I wish it wouldn't have been necessary and I hope I never have to do it again. It was very exciting but I'm not an adrenaline junkie. I'd prefer a nice boring kill where he runs 30 yards and falls over dead, but believe me when I say if I can get another bullet or two in him in that 30 yards I'm going to do it.

Tucketed said:

I have been remiss with my report but I also made a poor first shot a couple weeks ago in a APNR of Kruger. Not really sure how I picked the wrong spot. He was at less than 20 yards, It was thick and they were bedded. After an hour and five minutes they got up and I was given the ok. I was on my butt on sticks. Grass was tall so legs of bull were not visible. My shot was back. Blood trail showed bits of liver unfortunately. After a short stalk he came charging out and the two PHs finished the job at 5 yards, View attachment 788761No excuses here, I screwed up my only job and the most important job of a hunt, the first shot! My second buffalo was different and a solid shoulder shot at 15 yards was perfect.

Click to expand...

I can see two wound channels in the nose area, one slightly larger than the other. Am I correct in assuming these were what stopped the charge, or am I mistaken?

At 5 yards, with the buffalo’s head down, I’m wondering if these shots were taken while the buffalo was still approaching. Otherwise, I can’t quite fathom how it could have been hit in those spots.

Also, what calibres were the two PHs using? One appears to be a .375.

Just curious, I have a curious mind!

Longwalker

I value the opinion of people who freely talk about things that didn’t go quite as planned.
Follow up shots are what they are. You don’t have time to make perfect shots..
I think you did a wonderful job and I appreciate you sharing this information.

You also did this with a double rifle with a left-handed cheek piece.
It don get no better!

I just wanted to comment so everyone knew I’ve hunted buffalo I just got back from Zimbabwe. I was fortunate to take 2 bulls. I can see why people want to hunt them over and over again. I wanna go back so bad

I agree 100% with shooting any game again and again until it’s on the ground. It wasn’t possible with either of mine given buffalo in the background in one instance, and disappearing behind cover in the other instance. But if I could have, I’d have poured it to them.

Mark458 said:

I commended you on your decision not to try a follow-up shot in your situation, but you never answered my follow-up question.

Click to expand...

I did answer but it disappeared. Twice it seems. First, until she tipped over, it was not clear I'd actually hit her. The tracker would only have had an instantaneous view of the alleged entry wound as she was laying facing right and jumped up running left (no exit wound). Had she left the herd that might be a strong indication she was in serious distress. In this case the herd ran back up the mountain. If she didn't follow, that also likely meant she's hurt badly. If I could have clearly seen her spewing blood (and the brush was too thick), it's unlikely I would have taken a running followup shot. Even with a couple indications she was hit, it is unlikely I would attempt a running followup shot. 110 meters would be a stretch for a running shot, even for me (and I'm pretty good at running shots ... if I do say so myself ... and I just did ). And finally, we had the wind in our direction, the rushing river undoubtedly confused the noise of a single shot, and the herd never saw us. I think even if she had not expired (or even if I had missed the shot altogether) I probably would have been able to get another standing shot at her before the herd figured out what was happening and took off up the mountain. It was more important to preserve the confusion and not throw a bunch of wasted shots to clarify things for them.

Appreciate the OP posting, always nice when people have no ego involved and just facts.

Also been enjoying the ignore list for a few months. It's blissful. I haven't seen half this thread

SStomcat said:

I can see two wound channels in the nose area, one slightly larger than the other. Am I correct in assuming these were what stopped the charge, or am I mistaken?

At 5 yards, with the buffalo’s head down, I’m wondering if these shots were taken while the buffalo was still approaching. Otherwise, I can’t quite fathom how it could have been hit in those spots.

Also, what calibres were the two PHs using? One appears to be a .375.

Just curious, I have a curious mind!

Click to expand...

The 458 using solids and a 375 HH. The 458 through nose and broke his spine. I was next inline behind them. I got one shot off into the neck with a round of 404 Jeffery since I was to the side of the charge.

I see almost all the rifles pictured with buffalo are scoped, also alot of stopped him at "10 yds or 5 yds".my question is why not use Iron sights for the 75 and under shots on buff. I did see Tanks used a double which I assume was Iron sights. TRYING to line up my first buff hunt but scheduling is hard this year. thanks in advance.

cwpayton said:

I see almost all the rifles pictured with buffalo are scoped, also alot of stopped him at "10 yds or 5 yds".my question is why not use Iron sights for the 75 and under shots on buff. I did see Tanks used a double which I assume was Iron sights. TRYING to line up my first buff hunt but scheduling is hard this year. thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

My 404 is mounted with 1-4x scope and quick detach rings so I can switch to iron sights should the situation require it. All bases are covered. I just shot my third buffalo at 110 meters. Would not have attempted the shot with iron sights.

cwpayton said:

I did see Tanks used a double which I assume was Iron sights.

Click to expand...

I use a 1 MOA red dot.

Good job getting it done! I keep shooting if they are moving and sometimes I get some fun poked at me for it but I don't care. Last Buff hunt I did was this past June, 19 shots for 3 bulls.

But I love shooting doubles and sending rounds down range. My routine for practice is in rounds of 6, first on the sticks, second off the sticks in the same location. Then reload and move fast 5-10 yards between the next 2 pairs. Just going for clay target accuracy from 20-50 yards. I suggest to always pull rounds from the belt or whatever preferred way you are going to use on the hunt. And let the brass fly!

Watched a recent hunt that was posted and the follow up shots were brutal. First shot looked good, but took a good 12-15 seconds before the gentleman could fire the second barrel. The buffalo was in full view the whole time moving maybe 30-50 yards. Then when it came to reloading he was pocketing the brass and the reload took probably 25-30 seconds before he got off the 3rd shot. The gentleman could shoot well, just needed more work in gun handling.