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  1. #51
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    Quote Originally Posted by knipmes View Post
    This debate or similar was dealt with before. There are many variables and circumstances that comes into play when you hunt. I can not claim to have all the experience of others such as T Stone but when I was still managing a game farm I would not have allowed a hunter to shoot a eland with a .308 The statistics I kept just showed that the wounding rate far outweighed the positive shots with .308 calibres on eland. As the old saying goes: Use enough gun. (and do not take head shots)
    I have to, respectfully, disagree with you here. I have personally shot more than 120 eland and have guided clients on more eland hunts than that. The majority of the eland I shot, was shot with the .300 win mag (a .308" caliber), only 5 were shot with a larger caliber (9.3x62). A .308 win with a monolithic expanding bullet or a partitioned bullet (Nosler Partition, Swift A-frame) will penetrate into the vitals of even a large eland bull from any sane angle and kill it cleanly. Bullet construction (as Messor explained in his post) is far more important than the caliber of the bullet or the case it was launched from.

    To illustrate my point, I have seen three consecutive 300gr Hornady interlock bullets fired from a .375 H&H fail to penetrate into the vitals of an eland bull, standing broadside on, because they disintegrated in the shoulder. The day before yesterday I shot two young bulls with my .300 win mag (180gr GMX), one at 300m and one at 350m, both went down within 50m. Two hours ago I shot a young bull with my 9.3x62 (230gr Peregrine) at 160m, he went down within 50m. All three the shots were at broadside animals, all were placed in the center of the vital triangle, all three bullets exited. The .300 win mag probably has less energy at 300 meters than the .308 win, with the same bullet, has at 200.

    So is the .300 win mag and the 9.3x62 better eland cartridges than the .375 H&H? Certainly not. Again, it is the bullet that kills the eland, not the cartridge it was fired from.

  2. #52

    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    Quote Originally Posted by Messor View Post
    Did you also keep statistics on the bullets used for each hunt?

    Many people confuse cartridges with killing power, where on big game bullet choice makes a much bigger difference. How many people have made the reference to a 375H&H with softpoints that could not penetrate to the vitals of an eland bull, I have read many such incidents. Nothing to do with the cartridge, surely the venerable 375H&H can take down an eland, right? Wrong, a cartridge cannot take down an eland, a cartridge and bullet combination can.

    I’ve said it many moons ago, we are not in the age of the cartridge anymore, we are in the age of the bullet. The little 308 with the right bullet can hunt any antelope safely, you load it with 180gr A-frames, 180gr Partitions, 165gr TTSX if you have a 1 in 10 twist, or 150gr TTSX for a 1 in 12.
    You do that and you have enough gun if you do your part, if you don’t do your part bigger guns seldom help people.
    The statistics I noted included the calibre, bullet, weight, etc If I remember correctly it was mostly ordinary bullets like Speer Grand Slam, Sierra, Remington, and some Nosler Partitions. I Remember one occasion where a Nosler P hit the shoulder bone and barely penetrated into the one lung. The eland ran for several hours and I finally got a chance to kill it with a 285 gr Norma bullet from my 9,3 X 62 rifle.
    I think one can debate the merits and demerits and have numerous different examples and opinions about this. This is just my view. Others are welcome to differ and use whatever they believe could do the job.

  3. #53
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    I would shoot an eland every day of the week with my 130gr TSX load in my 270.
    But, if we want to add value to the topic then a few things needs to be said.
    A hunter can only hunt with a rifle available to him, and his PH/land owner must decide if that is enough gun because it’s his property.

    Now regarding cartridge, I’ve said it before, if you go after big game take the biggest cartridge you can comfortably control. This is very important because not all people shoot big rifles very well. But let’s say a person shoots his 375 very well, why would he take the 308 if we assume he is using quality bullets in both? Example, I need to hunt a big eland on the plains, why would I take my 270 instead of my 338, I shoot both equally well, such a choice just would not make sense, the 338 is almost designed for exactly that.

    Our little quote must thus be amended.
    Use enough gun, the biggest you can shoot comfortably, and use enough bullet as well.

  4. #54
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    Shot placement - Bullet type then Caliber? Is that agreeable.

  5. #55
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    Shot placement and bullet quality are equally important in my opinion. An excellent bullet that is placed in the wrong spot will result in a wounded animal, so will a perfectly placed bullet that does not manage to penetrate deep enough to reach the vitals. Within reasonable limits, caliber is not very important. Short of giraffe, hippo, buffalo, rhino and elephant there is no African land animal that I will not happily hunt with any .308 caliber rifle from the .308 win to the .300 magnums.

  6. #56
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    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by TStone View Post
    Shot placement and bullet quality are equally important in my opinion. An excellent bullet that is placed in the wrong spot will result in a wounded animal, so will a perfectly placed bullet that does not manage to penetrate deep enough to reach the vitals. Within reasonable limits, caliber is not very important. Short of giraffe, hippo, buffalo, rhino and elephant there is no African land animal that I will not happily hunt with any .308 caliber rifle from the .308 win to the .300 magnums.
    I think we should ask the mods to edit this post, lest SAPS or our wives see it...

  7. #57
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pirate View Post
    I think we should ask the mods to edit this post, lest SAPS or our wives see it...
    😂😂

  8. #58
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    "Short of giraffe, hippo, buffalo, rhino and elephant there is no African land animal that I will not happily hunt with any .308 caliber rifle from the .308 win to the .300 magnums."

    This is also known as the inconvenient truth!!!

    Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

  9. #59
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    I need to be set straight here !.
    When we say .308, we mean .308 Win which is also a 30 cal
    When we say 30 cal we mean .308 and all the other .308 cal rifles lumped as 30 cal
    .............................Or what ?

  10. #60
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    Default Re: .308 kill an eland?

    You got it Treeman. Perfectly complicated in its simplicity.

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