HUNTING Elephant

[AfricaHunting.com]

Related thread: Scope or Open Sights for Elephant: http://www.africahunting.com/threads/scope-or-open-sights-for-elephant.29427/.

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

Charging Elephant!

 

[stug]

How to shoot an Elephant by Kevin Robertson
Found this, looks good

 

[Foxi]

And you can see, why you should use a bigger caliber for them,than for a "small" buffalo.
Foxi

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

 

[autofire]

Hunting Elephant Distances

Hunting Elephant Distances

Post your questions, comments or pictures relating to hunting shot placement.

Hunting Elephant

Hunting Elephant

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[IvW]

Charging Elephant!

I would not be overly concerned if this elephant was walking towards me...

 

[IvW]

I have issues with some of the frontal placements on the elephants as indicated....

 

[spoonieduck]

In this particular quartering front view position and posture, this Elephant would be a much better candidate for a brain shot. The brain level (green line) is an imaginary line representing the location of the brain however the height of the bullet placement when targeting the brain changes depending on the distance between the hunter and the Elephant as you can see from the example in the picture below. In this case I chose to hit just beneath the brain level (green line) in order to compensate for the distance and the angle of the shot.

The quartering heart front view shot placement on an Elephant can be a good shot to take, however in this instance his left tusk is much in the way as well as his left leg which is fully extended forward.

 

[Inline6]

I have issues with some of the frontal placements on the elephants as indicated....

Low?

 

[spoonieduck]

Excellent post but, with extremely limited experience myself, I hesitate to add anything but will. I used a 375 HH to make a side brain shot on a bull years ago. The range was sixty yards and he was walking slowly forward. I fired immediately above the maxilla a little closer to the ear than the eyes. He died instantly, front legs held out rigid. So far so good but I wanted to see extactly where the bullet struck the brain. It absolutely bisected the brain--dead center--and ended up in the cancellous bone on the far side. I removed the brain. It was considerably larger than depicted. As I recall It, it weighed in at 13 lbs and no doubt lost some weight from the bullet strike. A human brain is a great; deal smaller than an African elephant's brain. I believe the pics show a brain not much bigger, and maybe smaller, than a human brain.. Neither is it "round". It is shaped more like a loaf of bread.

The only other bull I saw shot was shot using my 416 Weatherby as the hunter balanced himself in a tree trying to see the animal feeding on bamboo that was blocking my friend's vision. He said he saw the trunck reaching up from the elephant grass, tearing off leaves. He could also see the back rising immediately above the grass. Using these markers, he says he estimated the location of the chest and fired into the bamboo, hoping to hit heart or lungs. The elephant took off but we found him dead after a 2 mile follow up. He bled out. He'd stomped out a lot of jungle foliage as he staggered around trying to stay on his feet. The shot hit him low, rear--gut shot--but killed him. I didn't have time to do a post mortem but it might have clipped a kidney or the femoral artery or maybe it was just massive trauma to intestinal blood vessels-- which I regard as a small miracle but a testimony to the power and lethality of Mr. Weatherby's .416..

 

[IvW]

Low?

Yip.....dots on pictures don't do it for me.....unless if using a caliber and bullet that will make it to the neck vertebrae or spine they are not in the right place for a frontal brain shot in the shown positions.....my practical experience sais.......

 

[fourfive8]

Agreed, some of the dots, particularly on the elephants, don't look right. Elephants have a strangely shaped skull to complicate things and a large gap in the center where the trunk enters. That makes it deceptive as to where the bullet must enter to get to the brain on the frontal shot. That gap also has an entry contact face with severe angles of bone on its surfaces that the bullet must go through in a straight line to get to the brain. Of course all this is complicated by the real possibility of shooting at an up angle at close range where the "target" may be well above the shooter and if the elephant is holding its head up or down. WDM Bell went to great effort in learning the exact location, shape and size of the brain and how to get there. Plus, many camps in elephant country have elephant skulls so hunters can study them first hand.

Here's a couple of pics of Bell's hand drawn notes on the subject. He had his guys cut one in half so he could study the locations and angles in detail.

 

[VertigoBE]

How to shoot an Elephant by Kevin Robertson
Found this, looks good

this is excellent!

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

Frontal brain shot on an Elephant bull.
Caliber .416 Remington Magnum with 400 grain Woodleigh Hydro solid.

Frontal brain shot on an Elephant bull

• AfricaHunting.com
• Jul 12, 2021
• 2

Caliber .416 Remington Magnum with 400 grain Woodleigh Hydro solid.

 

[IvW]

Excellent placement.....if you draw an x from left ear to right eye and vise versa you are on the money......

 

[Rule 303]

Frontal brain shot on an Elephant bull.
Caliber .416 Remington Magnum with 400 grain Woodleigh Hydro solid.

Frontal brain shot on an Elephant bull

• AfricaHunting.com
• Jul 12, 2021
• 2

Caliber .416 Remington Magnum with 400 grain Woodleigh Hydro solid.

Top shot. The impact is clearly visible so good camera work as well.

 

[Tanks]

I have issues with some of the frontal placements on the elephants as indicated....

IMO, too low if one uses the method of a broom handle going from one ear hole to the other and aiming to get to the center of it.

 

[observe]

........old Elephant poaching drop spear........

 

[VertigoBE]

........old Elephant poaching drop spear........

View attachment 434177

thanks for sharing @observe. Didn't know a gravity assisted heavy pole would have killed an elephant. Or was it more used like a harpoon, to fix the elephant in place?