The .375 [H and H Magnum] on Elephant

The African Hunter ^ | Maybe 2003 | Brian Marsh

[RLK]

Elephants don't bother anybody. Elephants are among the top 5 man killers.

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Under what circumstances? If left alone the only aggressiveness they general show is to lions.

[WorkingClassFilth]

Sorry...

I meant to say that Karamojo Bell used a .275 and the widespread use of .30 cal. rifles among 'me-too' Europeans may have much to do with Bell and his use of lighter, high velocity ammo on heavy game like the elephants. The widespread availability of military ammo from the .303 to the 7.62 mm NATO and all of the Soviet stuff is what has driven choice among poorer locals hunting for the pot or insurgents looking for profit.

[jscd3]

Teddy used the .405 Winchester did he not?

On Zebra and Lion ("Model 1895, in .405, is the Medicine Gun for Lions"), but not elephant. The hides are too thick and the skulls are too massive.

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

Elephants are among the top 5 man killers.

But what "men" and why were they killed by elephants? Who was really at fault? When was the last time some elephant killed somebody in the U.S. or the Rep of Panama? I think it's common sense...I would no way get close to a tiger or a poisonous snake or shark, etc. as I would to an elephant…or let them get close to me. Just a thought.

[crz]

Shot both of them. The Holland and Holland is the nastiest one to shoot. Shot it three times and that was the last time I ever touched it. Friend of mine had it and used it for Alaska Brown Bear hunting in the 70s. Understand he has a trip planned to go to Siberia to hunt in a year or so, bears again.

[ibme]

Under what circumstances? If left alone the only aggressiveness they general show is to lions.

Wild elephants trample a lot of people to death ever year but I think it's more in places like India than Africa.

I saw a show cable...
I think this is the order they gave.

10) Bears
9) Sharks
8) Hyenas
7) Jellyfish
6) Big CATS
5) Elephants
4) Scorpions
3) CROCODILES
2) Bees and Wasps
1) SNAKES

[Squantos]

I have a .460 weatherby mag on a custom ruger number 1 tropical. Great little plinker.........:o)

.375 H&H down loaded for elk in the lower 48 is another fine tewl I've seen used properly. Some of the tropical / safari calibers can be used easily for all mule deer or larger size game IMO with custom handloads. Ain't dat right Texasproud !!

Why you say ??? When talking guns or calibers "why" is not an applicable word. "Because"....is always gonna be the answer per my experience when asking........."why" ??

Stay Safe TM !!

[VOA]

.470 Nitro Express

I'm amazed that some very savvy marketing expert hasn't marketed a high-performance
automobile as the "Nitro Express".

Thanks for posting...I grew up on a semi-regular diet of "Outdoor Life" magazine...

[Ford Fairlane]

While the .375 H&H is an excellent cartridge, the 6.5 Mannlicher - Schoenauer was the most popular cartridge among professional ivory hunters due to its low report & the high penetration & accuracy, because of the high sectional density of the projectile - most used 140 or 160 grain bullets, which are really long for the diameter

[Travis McGee]

I guess that Ruger #1 smarts a mite with full house loads?

[JavaTheHutt]

Please respect the rules of Free Republic. Language like that isn't really appropriate in this forum.
Admin Moderator, please edit or delete post #13 from this thread.

[Centurion2000]

bump ... interesting.

[yarddog]

The penetration of those 6.5 solids can be really surprising.

When I was 18 years old, I ordered a Swedish Mauser through the mail (yes we really could do that at one time) I also ordered some 160 grain fmj round nose military ammo.

Those bullets were extremely long. I had to pick up the gun and ammo at Railway Express because the post office would not deliver ammmo even back then.

I took the gun down to some land owned by my Uncle Buck and tried it out. I literally could not find a tree thick enough to stop one of those solids. Some of those trees probably had a diameter of four or five feet and those little 6.5"s would zip right through them.

I believe that is why Bell used the 6.5MS and 7MM Mauser to kill over 5000 elephants. He said what was needed was penetration. It obviously worked for him. The problem with all modern ammo is that none of it has those long, parallel sided bullets which penetrate like crazy but with the round nose are not ballistically efficient.

[Squantos]

Sadly with a sedate lifestyle due to back injuries I have a solid foundation (read big ass)....for now...:o) Not really that bad with factory ammo. It'll pop ya if ya don't pay attention to detail ..........but then I like my .500 linebaugh ruger bisley too so recoil is not a problem for me so far. As I get older and hopefully "thinner" it will probably become an issue but I'll just download and continue to enjoy the firearms as the fine well made guns that they are.

Stay Safe !

[templar]

Government hunters in Africa shoot poisoned ones out of necessity. They use a 30-06.

I hear the AK47 is widely used by ivory poachers. Full magazines at a time I would suspect.

[Lurker]

What do you like better? Africans or elephants?

Imagine a 2 ton rabbit in your garden, every day.

Elephants compete with humans for food.

I'll bet you wouldn't long tolerate a herd of them foraging in your backyard.

Regards,

L

[templar]

But what "men" and why were they killed by elephants?

An Elephant attacked a child in Denver last year for no apparent reason, and I was almost stepped on by one that just sort of carelessly shoved me aside in Larkspur Colorado last summer. The darned things are dangerous and don't mind squashinhg people at all. I can easily see them as man killers if they got mad for some reason.

[wardaddy]

Biggest gun I ever shot was in college. A sterno can hand cannon ...lobbed some beenie weenies cans out one dorm window and thru another one in a tower about 100 yards away...thru that guy's window and took out a big chunk of cinder block...missed his head by a foot or so.

Problem was...he was blind....The Roberspierre gang at my dorm threw me out. I was moved to another dorm and was elected dorm president.

The weapon was sort of like a hand held punt gun....I'd guess around 0 or 2 bore. I don't know if it'd penetrate an elephants hide but I bet it would knock the breath out of him.

Ignition was a bit tricky.

[Travis McGee]

Hmm, smashed in the head with a can, or dinged in the head with a .22..... Hmmm...

Some things I hope I never experience.

[Shooter 2.5]

He killed a rhino with one.

It was in the American Rifleman some months ago.