.375 should be banned from buffalo hunts!

[farmer_john]

Something.

The discussion mainly concerns shooting African dangerous game and especially buffalo. I have also shot enough other game species to know that the caliber and bullet choice does not play the same role for such game as for heavy dangerous game.

Id agree you do need enough mass for the job. But I will deffer to your experience.

 

[double rifle newbie]

I would agree with your assessment generally that 375 is bare minimum and possibly even inadequate for buffalo, then I see buffalo dead as yesterday, by a few other caliber
Like 9.3 , 45-70 , 35whelen, I even have a pansy ass bow hunting buddy who killed one with his bow and arrow.
I lean toward a .416 or a.404 Jeffrey on shoulder shooting buffalo , but alas my 375Ruger with 300gr TSX @ 2625fps will have to make do till then!
I know shot placement is absolutely crucial and wouldn’t feel naked at all standing against a buffalo with a 9.3x62 especially if the person’s more recoil sensitive,
1st shot counts the most !

totally agree as the 9.3x62 and its cousin the 9.3x74r have put many buff in the salt. just hit em where u should. its that simple.

 

[Doug3006]

24 pages!? For this?

 

[Mountaineer]

Sitting around the campfire after our group had killed 3 buffalo with 458 win mags and asked our PH what happens if we would have shot these buffalo with our 375’s. He says “the same thing that just happened with the 458”.

 

[Surgeon1]

I agree with 24 pages of this Bull Shit is enough! I've shot several cape buffalo, Savana buffalo, 4 Water Buffalo and too many to count beef cattle. I've shot a couple buffalo with a 375 H&H and the majority with bigger calibers (most with a double) and most of the Beef cattle with 22LR brain shots.
Shot a Buffalo with a 300 Mag and 200gr A-frame at a hundred yards right between the eyes out of necessity for village meat and he was as dead instantly as a 1400# Angus with a 22LR at 5 feet. The only one of the many animals I ever had to track was the second Cape Buffalo I ever shot and with a 470NE at 20yds. with 2 solid hits he was double lunged and a broken shoulder. He went down but was back up and running before I could reload or my PH could get a shot off. The trackers were able to stay right on him and almost 2 miles and 2hrs later he tried to stand up and 2 more 470NE then one to the spine finished the deal.
Lesson learned for me was NO SOLIDS on buffalo initial shots, and actually I've never shot another Buff with a solid. Only keep a couple in the culling belt if Elephants could be an issue.

 

[grand veneur]

Sitting around the campfire after our group had killed 3 buffalo with 458 win mags and asked our PH what happens if we would have shot these buffalo with our 375’s. He says “the same thing that just happened with the 458”.

There is a lot of talk around the campfire in the evenings, especially when a bit of alcohol is involved. I was hunting regularly in Africa for over 30 years, in my prime even several times a year, and I have heard very different opinions from the hunting community in Africa regarding caliber and bullet selection for hunting DG. Ultimately, the best is the individual personal experience, as far as one has such experience and does not just repeat what others have said or written.

 

[grand veneur]

I agree with 24 pages of this Bull Shit is enough! I've shot several cape buffalo, Savana buffalo, 4 Water Buffalo and too many to count beef cattle. I've shot a couple buffalo with a 375 H&H and the majority with bigger calibers (most with a double) and most of the Beef cattle with 22LR brain shots.
Shot a Buffalo with a 300 Mag and 200gr A-frame at a hundred yards right between the eyes out of necessity for village meat and he was as dead instantly as a 1400# Angus with a 22LR at 5 feet. The only one of the many animals I ever had to track was the second Cape Buffalo I ever shot and with a 470NE at 20yds. with 2 solid hits he was double lunged and a broken shoulder. He went down but was back up and running before I could reload or my PH could get a shot off. The trackers were able to stay right on him and almost 2 miles and 2hrs later he tried to stand up and 2 more 470NE then one to the spine finished the deal.
Lesson learned for me was NO SOLIDS on buffalo initial shots, and actually I've never shot another Buff with a solid. Only keep a couple in the culling belt if Elephants could be an issue.

I believe all of that, even though my experience is somewhat different. I have seen buffalo going down with one shot of a FMJ bullet, even with the cartridge 9,3x74R, as well as quite a few with classic soft-point bullets of various calibers. Since I have shot almost all of the buffalo with larger caliber cartridges, I have not had to track any of them over a longer distance, but I have had to search for two, one of which I only found after 24 hours, and another I never found. I had to manage this problems alone, no PH for backup in this country. Despite everything, I trust above all cartridges larger calibers for hunting heavy DG like buffalo and elephants.

 

[Ray B]

Okay!! 24 pages of comments- WHAT I WANT TO KNOW is did anyone change their mind regarding the suitability of the 375 H&H for use on Water or Cape Buffalo?

 

[pilar]

Okay!! 24 pages of comments- WHAT I WANT TO KNOW is did anyone change their mind regarding the suitability of the 375 H&H for use on Water or Cape Buffalo?

No my 375ruger with barns TSX is plenty adequate, after safari season was over
And hearing about different people’s experiences with 9.3x62 on buffalo and other game my only concern with it is the same as 375 ruger lack of factory ammunition.

 

[RichD]

I went on a hunt in SA with Bushman's Quiver at the end of September to early October. Cow cape buffalo was in the package. Using the PH's 375H&H with 275gr bullet, 1 shot at 75 yards, the cow ran a tight circle for 8-10 seconds and we heard the death bellows. I can't attach the video because not the "right format", but here's what's left of the bullet.

 

[grand veneur]

I went on a hunt in SA with Bushman's Quiver at the end of September to early October. Cow cape buffalo was in the package. Using the PH's 375H&H with 275gr bullet, 1 shot at 75 yards, the cow ran a tight circle for 8-10 seconds and we heard the death bellows. I can't attach the video because not the "right format", but here's what's left of the bullet.

Sure, it's possible. I killed many years ago my first buffalo with one shot caliber 9,3x74R and that with a FMJ bullet, a bullet that most people here on the Forum consider completely unsuitable for buffalo hunting. But I already knew back then that things would not continue that way. After several dozen buffalo hunts, I understood what all can happen and why it is much better to go to work with larger calibers.