A fun dilemma...African style

[Anonymous]

After a lot of hemming, hawing, dreaming and reading... my wife and I finally plunked down the deposit and booked a 17 day safari in Namibia for our 20th anniversary.

I'm pretty excited, as I'm new to this type of thing. The bag is 7 animals running from dim-dik, impala, wildebeest and kudu to zebra and eland.

The rub is that we're sharing the bag so my obvious rifle choice of my .300WSM isn't so obvious with the wife and kid sharing the rifle.

What about a .270 or .308 (my other available choices_- probably a great choice for stuff like warthog and impala, but seems a bit light for zebra and certainly for eland.

Any input appreciated.

 

[Oldtrader3]

A.270 should be fine for warthog and smaller antelope. Congratulations on the trip, it should be a ball for both of you!

 

[gerry]

I would go with the 270 Win as well with a 150 or 160 gr Partition.

 

[russ808]

Partitions and a-bonds
Russ

 

[Rigbymauser]

This is what I would do:

Take the .300 at anytime. Your wife/son can shoot light loads that duplicate a .270Win with 160grain ballistic for impalas and downwards, where you can shoot maxed heavy bullets for eland and zebra. You all should be able to see the difference by a simple visual...whos ammo is what etc. Exploit the versatillity the .300WSM do have the .270Win doesn´t own.

Happy hunt!.

 

[DrMike]

That is great! I should think that the 270 will serve you well as a complement to the 300WSM. You should be well prepared for this safari. Congratulations; and best wishes to your family on this trip.

 

[Charlie-NY]

My buddy had a successful plains game hunt a few years ago. He did not hunt eland. While I thought his choice of a .308 w/ 180 Partitions was a bit light, he said that the combo was quite effective with no game animals lost.

 

[SJB358]

I would go with the 270 Win as well with a 150 or 160 gr Partition.

I am with Gerry here.

I think it would be a cool way to get some use outta that pretty Ruger you have.. Loaded with some 160 PT's I can't see much holding onto them at decent ranges.

Congratulations on such a cool hunt! Looking forward to these pictures!

 

[Idahotrophyhunter]

.270 will handle any African plains game out there. My good buddy shot impala, kudu, gemsbok, zebra, and the mighty wildebeest with a .270 a couple years ago. He used 150 nosler partitions.

When I go to Africa (hopefully next year or two) I will take my .270 loaded with noslers and my .375 ruger as back up!

 

[JD338]

I also agree that the 270 Win loaded up with 150 gr PT's would work very well in Africa. The key is shot placement.
I am sure Aleena will chime in shortly and she will be able to give you some great advice from her first hand knowledge and experience.

Congratulations to you and your bride on your upcoming safari.

JD338

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks everybody! Just to clarify- probably will take only one rifle to share. We've got a pretty long trip and a relatively small bag compared to what I see advertised commonly.

As much as I'd like to drag several along- probably just not going to do it.

 

[JD338]

What about using your 300 WSM loaded up with the 168 gr E-Tip.

JD338

 

[Vince]

A suggestion:

Put a Graco Recoil Reducer in the stock. It works wonders on the magnums, short mags, and other hard kicking/hitting rifles without the noise of a muzzle brake.

 

[Polaris]

You're dropping that kind of cash on a safari, how about a new rifle to top it all off.

I'm thinking anything reasonably light and accurate in .280 rem, 7mm Rem or short mag or 30-06.

Any of these will have more reach than the .308 and more oompa than the .270. Although the .270 will sling a 160 Partition, it doesn't use this weight nearly as efficiently as either of the 7mms will and with the 7mags you can efficiently sling a big beefy 175 gr. The 7 short mag should download easier than the long magnums if you want some 7mm-08 level loads for the wife. You could also easily download the .300 short to shoot like a .308.

If you do your shopping, you should find something acceptable with glass for under 1000, especially in 30-06 or 7mmRem Mag. I think you could get into a Tikka T3 or Ruger/Win/Rem in that price range. Definately a savage.

 

[wildgene]

...I'd stick w/ the .300 WSM. I'm pretty sure w/ a little "trial & error" you could come up w/ a "reduced recoil load" using 125-150gr. bullets & a faster powder that would shoot pretty close to POI of a heavier (165-180gr.) hunting load. Maybe throw in one of these...

http://www.battenfeldtechnologies.com/p ... ber=360000

...while the reduced loads would work fine for the smaller antelope, I'd use 'em to build your wife's confidence she could handle a heavier load. I wouldn't put her thru sighting-in 2 or 3 boxes of "MAGNUM' loads, but 2-3 rounds from a free recoil position, w/ a good cheek weld & plenty of eye relief (lower power on the scope) would probably convince her she can handle your .300 WSM...

 

[FOTIS]

I would go with the 270 Win as well with a 150 or 160 gr Partition.

That does make a lot of sense!

 

[bbearhntr]

Maybe the good folks at Nosler could get you a few boxes of the new .30cal 125 AccuBond to try out on your safari??? Get a nice light load for the wife and boy using them and stick to your current load that you are used to in your 300 WSM.

 

[Idahotrophyhunter]

.270 with 150 grain nosler partitions has accounted for more big bull elk (imho toughest pound for pound animal out there) than we can list, yet it's not going to work for kudu, zebra sized game???

 

[Rigbymauser]

I have shot gemsbok with Nosler 150grain Partition in .270wea. Dropped like rock.

 

[pre6422hornet]

.270 with 150 grain nosler partitions has accounted for more big bull elk (imho toughest pound for pound animal out there) than we can list, yet it's not going to work for kudu, zebra sized game???

Exactly. 150gr Partitions will do a stellar job.