Which BIG bore?

[Eddie P]

As with all things firearms related. I may have been misinformed. But they were happy so, so was I.

 

[Jimbob]

I was told the same as Eddie. If it is on your license you're good to go. In my case I would have an action only slot and a rifle slot. My FLO would prefer my RFD to sign each on though which is fine.

 

[Eddie P]

If you sign your own on it avoids proof too.

 

[Jimbob]

It does indeed. Anything I built would go through proof anyway being honest

 

[GorgonStare]

Digging this one up from the grave, but was there ever an outcome on this build? Lots of good discussion in this thread.

 

[rookhawk]

Digging this one up from the grave, but was there ever an outcome on this build? Lots of good discussion in this thread.

I remember reading this OP when it was new. This isn't a fact-based judgment, just a hunch when these sorts of things come up. It seemed a bit of a sensational post or a desire to have the biggest weapon ever made, not a type of post that leads to commitment, investment, and hunting reality.

Even in the hands of professionals with 200 days a year in the bush, the largest practical rifles they use for stopping are .577NEs and that tiny micro-minority that have 577/600 REWA and 600NE double rifles. No one, at least no very frequent safari client or a professional uses a single shot weapon of that size due to its slowness to reload and its lesser accuracy.

These are the types of project guns you see occasionally on gunbroker, usually built on a Ruger #1 by someone that never took it to Africa. Its a conversation piece for the old guys at the range until the novelty wears off.

Even in videos of guys lugging 26lb four-bore double rifles around Africa with gun bearers there was no video of it actually getting used to kill elephant, just ooohs and ahhs at camp and a very tired pair of gun bearers on the hunt.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

I used a Heym Jumbo .600 Nitro Express sidelock ejector to hunt a hippopotamus on land (you can see the photo on these forums). One barrel was loaded with a LFB (Labor Fur Ballistik) 900Gr copper jacketed soft point. The other barrel was loaded with a copper jacketed FMJ solid of the same brand and weight. Velocity was 1985fps. Absolutely devastating terminal effect. Rifle weighed a handy 13.5 LB and had 26” barrels.

I now own an August Schuler clamshell action .600 Nitro Express boxlock ejector and am getting ready to take it out on my next African Safari. One of my future challenges will be getting a 900Gr Cutting Edge Bullets Monolithic Solid and an 825Gr Cutting Edge Bullets Raptor to regulate to the same point of impact from my .600. I expect the difference in the two bullet weights to pose a challenge in regulation. If I don’t succeed, then I’ll just use the LFB factory loaded product.

I highly recommend this caliber (bearing in mind that it’s not for everyone), although the recoil does take some practice to counteract properly. But I must stipulate that the velocity of your ammunition should be between 1950-2000fps. And the bullets must be premium grade.

I don‘t consider the .700 Nitro Express to be anything more than a mere toy. A novelty. It achieves very poor penetration on frontal brain shots on elephant bulls.

I would hesitate to use an 8 bore or 4 bore black powder rifle on an elephant. In my experience, they charge the smoke produced by the black powder.