The Gun Counter

I want one. Got one for sale? Anyone?
My buddy has one in .375 H & H Magnum, the Alaskan, beautiful, just perfect. I’d like the Rem Mag so we could take them to Africa in three years for buffalo and some plains game.
Other than Gunbroker, Cabellas and the like is there any place else to look?
Now I said the Win 70, a Montana rifle has a similar action, so that could work, too.
Or, if need be, I’d be up for rebarreling a P 17 action.
Thank you for your thoughts.

http://cz-usa.com/product-category/rifles/safari/
These are fairly easy to source.

You dont want the rem mag for africa, too high an operating pressure with factory ammo, unless you plan on handloading?

The 375 is good enough loaded with high end bullets for virtually everything in africa, and is far easier to source ammo for in country, i will stipulate that ii is a little light for dealing with the likes of a chageing bulll elephant, or cape buff, other than that though? Its pretty much the ideal African rifle.

Read Col. Cooper's works on African hunting rifles, too. Can't remember which book I saw it in. You probably won't end up with one like his but I seem to recall he discusses a lot of calibers and actions in explaining why he chose what he chose.

ETA: also try armslist.com

ETA^2: http://www.armslist.com/posts/8283425/p ... n--375-h-h

I've read a couple of times of people wanting the .4 and larger bolt action rifles that had no desire to go hunting in Africa or even Alaska. They wanted something that could penetrate "light" armor or very heavy cover.

HTRN wrote:The 375 is good enough loaded with high end bullets for virtually everything in africa, and is far easier to source ammo for in country... Its pretty much the ideal African rifle.

Craig Boddington polled African PHs about 20 years ago. Three-quarters of them recommended .375 H&H as a client's heavy rifle.

toad wrote:I've read a couple of times of people wanting the .4 and larger bolt action rifles that had no desire to go hunting in Africa or even Alaska. They wanted something that could penetrate "light" armor or very heavy cover.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcsLaSBWG9k

Mike OTDP wrote:Craig Boddington polled African PHs about 20 years ago. Three-quarters of them recommended .375 H&H as a client's heavy rifle.

Yup, its one of the most vesatile hunting cartridges ever designed, right behind 338-06 and 30-06. Like i said, the only time I'd want something bigger is buff and bull elephants.

HTRN wrote:

Mike OTDP wrote:Craig Boddington polled African PHs about 20 years ago. Three-quarters of them recommended .375 H&H as a client's heavy rifle.

Yup, its one of the most vesatile hunting cartridges ever designed, right behind 338-06 and 30-06. Like i said, the only time I'd want something bigger is buff and bull elephants.

Netpackrat wrote:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcsLaSBWG9k

Fun fact, that "elephant gun" is actually a belgisn made William Moore 8 gauge shotgun, they broke the stock in one of scenes when it was tossed onto a rock. If you want an actual monster double, i think Butch Searcy still will make a 4 bore SxS for something like 80 grand.

<Edit:>It seems Butch doesn't offer the 4 bor option anymore, he does have a 600 nitro for upwards of 60k...

I have a Winchester Model 70 in .416 Rem Mag. It performed flawlessly on my buff a few years ago. I've upgraded to a double rifle in .450 NE so that one sits in the gun safe. Send me a PM.

I think the concerns of higher pressure than .416 Rigby are from the bad-old-days of colonial Africa when you could still hunt in the tropical areas of Africa. I know old guys (in their 80s and 90s) who talk about hunting in Gabon, Camaroon and Congo in 1950s and 1960s. Those are real tropical climates.

Furthermore, the .416 Rem can operate in a standard Mauser action, while the .416 Rigby needs a long action. The longer throw doesn't seem like an issue until you try racking the action with the rifle still on your shoulder; good practice for fast follow-up shots. That long bolt ends up on your nose.

I was in RSA, which is much more temperate, so I experienced no issues. Both Swift A-Frame bullets mushroomed perfectly and were caught by the thick hide on the opposite side of the buff.

Someone mentioned CZ-550. They can be had cheaper than the Winchester Model 70s. I also have one of those in .375H&H (long action, hence my experience with the sore nose). They are a bit clunkier than the Winchester Model 70, but rock-solid rifles. I prefer the simple trigger of the older Winchester Model 70 vs. the set-trigger of the CZ-550.

Beware of the newer Winchester Model 70s with the "improved" trigger. The new trigger design trades significantly more complexity for a slightly better trigger. That may be OK for a deer rifle, which is what 99% of Winchester Model 70s are sold for, but not so good for a Dangerous Game rifle. My rifle pre-dates the "improved" Winchester trigger.

Oh yeah, .416 Rem vs. .375 H&H. I love the .375 H&H. Very versatile. I've taken everything from plains game to elk with my .375 H&H. I can shoot a .375 H&H all day. I've gone through 2 or 3 boxes of shells in a sitting. It's not a .416 Rem.

Full disclosure. I'm over 6 feet and on the high side of 180 lbs. I'm fairly used to recoil. I'm done shooting after 3 or 4 rounds of .416 Rem. I practice with that rifle at the end of a shooting session because I'm not even any good with a .22 after shooting either my .416 Rem or my .450 NE.

If a .375 H&H is too much for you, forget about a .416 Rem Mag.