Hunting with an Air Rifle

[Eventually_Africa_Again]

Hello to you all!

As you know the internet is full of interesting things. Earlier this week I saw a discussion about hunting with a 30/30 and another about hunting with a 10mm! Today I saw a video of a gentleman successfully hunting a Cape Buffalo with an air rifle! I was wondering, has anyone here hunted anything in Africa with an air rifle and, if so, what were your experiences like? Always eager to learn something new, doubly so if it has to do with African hunting! (skip forward to about 17:30 for the shot).

 

[Wheels]

A number of years ago one of my employees used to make pneumatic spear-guns. I even made one with his tutelage. At either 3,000 or 3,600 psi they would send a dow rod out of sight. Not sure how much energy they produced but it had to be on par with most cross or compound bows. Since it fired a bolt/spear, I am not sure if I would call it an air rifle though. It would have had the power to duplicate what this guy in the video did. I am not sure I would hunt a buffalo with one however.

 

[Shootist43]

Hunting air rifles have been around for a long time. Lewis and Clark took one with them on their expedition in 1804.

 

[BRICKBURN]

The guys in the UK have produced a few videos of plains game stalking hunts in the Eastern Cape.
Pretty impressive actually.
I'll keep my powder burners though.

 

[BenKK]

Not really an air rifle hunt, though. That machine used a charge of air to launch an arrow.

 

[PeteG]

Not really an air rifle hunt, though. That machine used a charge of air to launch an arrow.

Thats what i was thinking, in a traditional sense i was wondering what kind of pellet that thing was launching...
Its more like an air powered crossbow...

 

[BenKK]

In theory, it must be possible to create a machine that uses a charge of air to propel a big solid down a rifled barrel at a speed that would puncture a buffalo nearby.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

A bit too bulky for carrying in the field, but this is a serious airgun.

 

[CEO]

If Keith Warren lives long enough to see a time machine built he will use it to go back and kill a T-Rex with that gun....after he sprays down with Scent Killer.