Is Bigger Always Better?

[ndumo HUNTING SAFARIS]

I thought this group may enjoy this article I wrote in the latest African Gazette.
A link to that particular issue (of which Divan Labuschagne, one of our great PHs, also took the cover picture):

Let me know your thoughts....

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

Very informative, thanks!

 

[Hogpatrol]

Interesting read. Thanks for posting.

 

[IvW]

Great read factual and very relevant to all hunting not only buffalo....

 

[Tra3]

Thank you for the article. This makes perfect sense.

 

[typilotguy]

I thought this group may enjoy this article I wrote in the latest African Gazette.
A link to that particular issue (of which Divan Labuschagne, one of our great PHs, also took the cover picture): https://cloud.3dissue.net/28329/28290/29334/42342/index.html?48419

Let me know your thoughts....
View attachment 378659View attachment 378660View attachment 378661

I very much appreciated this article, sir. You did very well at articulating what I tend to think of as common sense, but you backed it up with hard evidence. Well done, and an interesting and informative read!

 

[jasyblood]

Great article Karl! Thanks for sharing!!

 

[Red Leg]

Well written factual analysis. Rifle weight is an issue that is often overlooked - particular if a client, in trying to be "African," is not using the sling with which he is accustomed at home. I enjoyed reading it when my copy arrived and again today. Thanks!

 

[BeeMaa]

Thank you for the article.

Excellent reminder to reinforce the basics of riflery.
Shooting is a skill, more precisely a perishable skill.
Continuing practice is needed to maintain proficiency.
Especially if one is looking to move above the .375/9.3mm.

"A man has got to know his limitations." Harry Calahan.

 

[sgt_zim]

Completely agree, and I've been preaching this same thing for years.

An example (on a much smaller animal, a white tail deer).

I shot a single-horned spike from about 50 or 60 yards, slight quartering to to my right, with 165 gr Grand Slam out of my 30-06, MV was about 2750 as I recall. The buck didn't bleat or jump or even run off. It casually walked away as I sat there, dumbfounded, believing I had missed. I had my youngest son with me, he was about 7 or 8 at the time. Anyway, I finally said "let's go look for blood."

The blood trail was so patent that the boy was able to easily track it. The buck had wandered maybe 75 yards into a privet thicket, laid down, and died. I rolled the body over and found that bullet. The bullet went in the right shoulder, and was found under the skin about 3-4 inches behind the left shoulder.

Near perfect shot placement, and under the "energy dumping" theory, that buck should have died like he was hit with a magical death ray.

More on the math. An 1800# cape buffalo has more than (1800lbs * 7000 gr/lb/(500 gr)) 25,000X the mass of even a 500 gr bullet.

That 150# buck had about 6300X more mass than the 165 gr bullet that killed it.

If the energy transfer theory had merit, we should have certainly seen it play out on my 1-horned spike

No amount of KE or V is going to overcome that kind of mass delta.

 

[gesch]

Thank you for sharing this article. As a relatively new rifle hunter I really appreciate the way you walked me through the analysis. Also the thought occurred to me that if I had realized the amount of physics that is a part of hunting and shooting I might have enjoyed my science classes more in school (It might also have helped if I had studied!). Thanks again. Excellent article. Your friend, Brian

 

[mikecatt13]

Great article, I think that last sentence sums it up best, not that all the other details arent interesting and appreciated for sure!

 

[PaulT]

Excellent article Karl, very well articulated.

Your experiences mirror my own whilst i was guiding on buffalo in Australia.
Most hunters armed with .375's, when loaded with premium projectiles, attained quicker, and fewer shots per buff, kills than most of those armed with .40+ cals.

The main difference between what i read in your article and what I observed/did was that our hunters were always instructed to place the first shot square on to the scapula/shoulder bone on side-on presentations. Those that were successful with that shot placement invariably always put the animal down where it was standing.
Sometimes an additional shot or two may have been required to ensure a quick, humane death but the very first shot, when placed on the shoulder bone, would almost always result in the buff going down instantly.

In most circumstances, shots behind the shoulder almost always resulted in the animal taking of, for a variable distance, and almost always requiring further shots.

Again, excellent article and well articulated, thanks Karl.

 

[Tanks]

So basically, looking at the data, one should either use 9.3/.375 H&H or go real big to .500 or greater to be efficient.

 

[shootist~]

Thanks for the article. Very informative and an enjoyable read.
And thanks to Mr. Labuschagne for the stunning bushbuck photo.

 

[CAustin]

I very much enjoyed reading the article. Thank you for sharing it.

 

[steve white]

I was reading in the book, "White Hunter" about the death of Bill Judd. He was out after a trophy just for himself, perhaps even his last safari. He and his son tracked a real jumbo, and Bill Judd put two shots into it from his heavy double. The elephant charged without making a single sound. Experienced at reloading two extra shells held in his left hand fingers, he got in two more shots as it charged. His son Jack added a shot from his 350. The bull still caught him, thrashed him on the ground, then placed him on a tusk only to rip his body off it. It then kneeled on what was left of him until the second shot from Jack collapsed it. Jack never hunted again.
So yeah...in a DG hunt SIZE DOES MATTER! That said, straight shooting matters more!

 

[DWB]

Man I better hope none of my 375 embossed buddies read this....

I will most likely never hear the end of it....

 

[Longwalker]

Ha! I didn't realize that the .450-400 3" NE that I used last October in the Caprivi was not technically legal for Buffalo! Of course it worked well, but this article makes a good point. Smaller, more accurately shot rifles may be superior to bigger less accurately aimed / shot rifles. Nice to see such carefully compiled and well explained statistics to back up the theory!

 

[Neil Molendyk]

Great article Karl. One thing that isn't measured and I don't know how it could be, is the ability of the hunter to shoot under pressure, to keep composure and make the first shot count (buck fever). Over compensation by going to a larger caliber perhaps. I know of numerous shooters that can punch paper with great accuracy but when it comes to make an accurate shot on a live animal, well its a different story. The hunting and shooting experience of the client can be occasionally inaccurate as well. But these factors are not measurable. It is after all hunting and I'm sure you've seen it all.