Hunter06FLKY
New member
- Joined
- Jun 20, 2023
- Messages
- 14
- Reaction score
- 24
- Location
- Innsbruck, Austria
- Member of
- Tiroler Jägerverband, Niederösterreichischer Jagdverband, Wild Sheep Foundation, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers
- Hunted
- USA, Austria, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Norway
Hi Everyone!
I am going to be going to Africa for the first time in 2025. For this hunt I will be focusing on plains game with the largest animals being hartbeast, eland, and oryx. I am consdering picking up a .375 H&H to have as a general purpose rifle for hunting in Africa, not only for this trip but for future trips (hopefully including buffalo). That means I need a reliable rifle that can use for many years in the future both in Africa and for big game hunting in the northern hemisphere.
I have come across a Winchester Model 70 Safari Express in .375 H&H that was manufactured in 1980 in New Haven (picture below). The rifle looks to be in more or less pristine condition and is priced at roughly $900 including shipping and registration. I understand that there was a bit of a quality drop after the design change in the 60's (which removed the controlled feed) and leading up to the shift of production to Portugal in the 90's.
My question - would this rifle from this time of production be a good and reliable option for years worth of hunting? Or should I try and find another option - such as a pre-64 Model 70? a newer production option? or a completely different make/model?
Just for information - I currently hunting primarily with a .30-06 but thought it would be interesting to have a "traditional" safari rifle. If this is an unnecessary idea, just let me know
Thanks in advance for the feedback!
I am going to be going to Africa for the first time in 2025. For this hunt I will be focusing on plains game with the largest animals being hartbeast, eland, and oryx. I am consdering picking up a .375 H&H to have as a general purpose rifle for hunting in Africa, not only for this trip but for future trips (hopefully including buffalo). That means I need a reliable rifle that can use for many years in the future both in Africa and for big game hunting in the northern hemisphere.
I have come across a Winchester Model 70 Safari Express in .375 H&H that was manufactured in 1980 in New Haven (picture below). The rifle looks to be in more or less pristine condition and is priced at roughly $900 including shipping and registration. I understand that there was a bit of a quality drop after the design change in the 60's (which removed the controlled feed) and leading up to the shift of production to Portugal in the 90's.
My question - would this rifle from this time of production be a good and reliable option for years worth of hunting? Or should I try and find another option - such as a pre-64 Model 70? a newer production option? or a completely different make/model?
Just for information - I currently hunting primarily with a .30-06 but thought it would be interesting to have a "traditional" safari rifle. If this is an unnecessary idea, just let me know
![Wink ;) ;)](https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/twitter/twemoji@14.0.2/assets/72x72/1f609.png)
Thanks in advance for the feedback!
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