North fork cup point solids on buffalo?

[1dirthawker]

hey all,

i would like to hear from any one here that has experience with north fork cup point solids on cape buffalo. i recently booked a hunt to south Africa for cape buffalo.
i will be taking my 450-400 zoli, o/u double. i intend to use north fork 400 gr softs, i think they are an excellent bullet, and use them on brown bears with this rifle.
my question is: would i be better served with a actual solid for a back up shot, or a charging /frontal shot, or would a cup point solid give me plenty of penetration for a back up shot and still give excellent wound channel?
just wondering if anyone has shot buffalo with the cup point solids and their opinions about the penetration they got. thanks,

don

 

[Mike70560]

I have used the cup points in my 470 Nitro on buffalo with very good results. While I am a fan of solids you probably would be better off with 2 cup points for buffalo. A cup point with a flat nose solid will also work just fine.

The cup points expand, penetrate, leave a nice wound channel, and will shoot through buffalo broadside with no problem.

 

[IvW]

You may want to check with your PH/outfitter with regards to what he prefers. In some instances it is better to load 2 softs first up especially if you will be hunting a buffalo in a group/herd. Solids will exit and that may become a costly exercise if you wound a second one. I would load two softs to start with and then depending on the follow up either softs or solids.

Many argue that they prefer only solids for back up but I believe especially for the client that this is not always the best. A second shot if required from a soft on a running buff will cause more damage than a solid with much less possibility of an exit and above mentioned second wounded buff. If there are any buff behind the one you shot you will not be able to take the second shot until all is clear, not always easy for clients to contain themselves in the heat of the moment though. With a second soft you can shoot no problem(as long as you hit the buff you first shot of course).

I always ask "If you cannot hit the vital triangle with a broadside shot on your first shot, where will you aim if using a solid on a departing buffalo in order to reach the vitals from the back?" For me a very effective shot on a running away shot is to shoot for the spine(just above the root of the tail or one of the hip bones with a premium soft nosed bullet, this will pull up the buffs parking brake instantly and allow you to finish him off. If the second shot is standing or running side-on and you can hit him, you are safe with a soft, with a solid you have to clear what is behind the buff first before you can shoot. In the excitement and adrenaline rush just after the first shot this is not so easy to do, especially for a client. With two softs up you can concentrate on shooting and hitting the buff with both shots if needed without the additional worry of exiting solid bullets.

Personally I use only Rhino softs on buff for back-up, but this is in a 500 Jeff. Premium grade soft in a big enough caliber switches the lights of a lot quicker than a solid. With a solid you need to hit the brain or spine to stop him, soft gives a bigger margin for error especially for a first time buff hunter.

Great buffalo caliber choice you have made.

 

[1dirthawker]

IVW,
good advice all around. i was just thinking about an opportunity where solids are typically used, would the cup point solid give me plenty of penetration to git it done? i am positive it will create more damage to the beast.

i think your advice on two softs to start is a great idea, no over penetration. a pretty big deal especially in a herd or group of buffalo. i was wondering about follow ups that most folks start looking at putting solids in their guns. the cup point seems a good choice for penetration and pretty serious damage.

i was speaking to my PH about hunting in general, DG in particular. i have almost 20 years of guiding brown bear hunters and a bit of backup shooting experience. my comments to izak were, "dangerous game hunting is not too dangerous if you shoot well". he smiled at me and replied "You are correct don" in his charming south african style.

 

[IvW]

Izak Kirsten?

 

[IvW]

I have only used flat point/meplat solids with great results and never felt the need to change.
Round nosed copper jacket fmj are not very good.
Cannot comment on the cup points as I have not used then yet.

 

[1dirthawker]

yes, Izak Kirsten.

hunted with WOW africa before, had a great time hunting with him. his family is great and his camp is awesome. we caught tiger fish, etc. he made every effort to accommodate what we wanted to do.

 

[fourfive8]

Sorry, a little late to the party but yes… I've used 370 gr NF Cup Point Solids out of a 416 Rem loaded to 2350 fps on several animals- cape buffalo, eland, impala and water buck. Needless to say they didn't stay in the impala or water buck but I recovered 2 from the buffalo and 1 from the eland. They are one of the most accurate bullets out of my 416 R. All three bullets recovered looked identical to the ones I recovered from testing in media-- perfect small flat "rivet" at the nose. All in all… an excellent hunting bullet IMO.

 

[fourfive8]

Here's a pic of some 416 370 gr NF CPS bullets. Left to right- #1&2 unfired, #3 eland 90 yds, #4&5 cape buffalo 50 yds, #6 test media impact velocity adjusted to 50 yds. All penetrated in a straight line with plenty of depth. Probably not quite as much as a flat point solid but very close.

 

[1dirthawker]

great info. thank you for taking the time to post these.

 

[crs]

In case you have not seen this elsewhere, my .405 WCF killed a large water buff cow (nick named the Mad Cow because of her bad attitude) at 45 yards with one 300 grain NF CPS at 2250 MV and shot through right foreleg, heart, left leg and was found under the off side skin. She was dead before hitting the ground, neck limp and head bounced. No idea what else that CPS tore up on the way through the cow's chest.
Tough old gal, but delicious after two days marinating and a good smoking.