Guns for africa

[Steve Franks]

Before I went to Africa, I was lucky enough to send many days with my outfitter/professional hunter in the States talking hunting, guns, and ammunition. I told him what rifles and asked what was the "perfect" rifle for a plains game rifle, and I mentioned the .375, he said, "three seven five". Well I kept mentioning calibers and he said again, "three seven five". Well I am hard of hearing, but I'm not stupid, I took the "three seven five" (they don't call it a "three seventy five") and now I know why. The largest animal we hunted was an eland which is as big or bigger than an Alaskan moose, but in Africa you just don't know what you might bump into (use your imagination). You have to shoot through screening brush that would break up a lighter bullet and even is it turns the bullet side ways, the .375 has the momentum to penetrate the vital of an animal. My rifle of choice was a CZ 550 Safari Magnum with a Bavarian (hog back stock). This stock works perfect with either scope or iron sights, something American stocks fail miserably at, since we have long since lost the need for iron sights on our rifles. This rifle also holds six rounds in the magazine and one in the barrel, a real benefit in a dangerous game rifle.

I'm going back next July for buffalo and sable and I asked him what rifle to bring. He said, .416 and a .458. One with a scope and one with iron sights or he said have quick detach mounts on the one rifle and have it zero'd with the iron sights. Ammo, solids, solids, and solids. The .416 is a .416 Rigby CZ. 4 in the magazine and one in the barrel, a point the ph thinks is a real plus when it comes to buffalo hunting.