The Great 1800 Era Weltevreden Black Powder Rifle Hunting Expedition

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

Great idea.
I congratulate the idea.
Witold

 

[Gert Odendaal]

I really want to thank Brickburn again for assisting in copying the article ...it really is much appreciated..I promise to post the next expedition directly on your forum...please excuse me for not doing it this time..time was not on my side...in August Willie Barnard who assist me in compiling this hunt/expedition , he is partner/owner of the cattle farm we hunted on..it is a cattle farm with an abundance of game like kudu, impala , warthog, leopard, hyena( spotted/brown), baboon , mountain rhebuck, duiker , bush-buck , Nyala and every kind of bird you can imagine...the Rifle festival takes place on Willie Barnard`s own farm in Ellisras...it really is a great gathering of hunters/shooter whom come together to shoot all kinds of rifles, ....I will upload a detailed report about this rifle festival...

 

[Velo Dog]

It seems very remarkable to me that every man does not wish to own and shoot well made rifles, especially historically significant designs or at least reasonable copies of same, such as the Model 98 Mauser, Farquarson, Martini and rolling block Single Shots as well as various double barrel and drilling types, just to name some of the main ones.
Sadly, so many are guilty of a wasted life in front of the television, worshiping some sports celebrity or movie star, whom they will never even meet.
"Slaves may own equipment for playing ball games, free men may own firearms for protection, hunting and target shooting".

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Velo Dog, I really agree with you...it is unbelievable to shoot these old black powder rifles...I am really fond of shooting these old stalwarts....I am using a Martini Henry carbine for next year...I am starting to shoot the Martini Henry shortly...I do have difficulties to obtain brass for my Martini..if anyone have extra available , I really would appreciate it immensely if I can purchase some brass from such a person....
I have a brother in law staying in America that is visiting in August if possible he can bring the items through...

 

[Velo Dog]

Velo Dog, I really agree with you...it is unbelievable to shoot these old black powder rifles...I am really fond of shooting these old stalwarts....I am using a Martini Henry carbine for next year...I am starting to shoot the Martini Henry shortly...I do have difficulties to obtain brass for my Martini..if anyone have extra available , I really would appreciate it immensely if I can purchase some brass from such a person....
I have a brother in law staying in America that is visiting in August if possible he can bring the items through...

Hallo Gert,

I too am very fond of antiques (especially firearms and fly fishing tackle) as well as reasonable copies of antiques.
The buffalo in my avatar I shot with an approximately 100 year old .450 No2 NE double with "outside" hammers and Jones under lever.

It was marked "Army & Navy Cooperative Society, London England" but I have seen an otherwise identical rifle in every way except in .470 NE and marked "J. Manton" etc., etc.
So, mine was probably made by Manton (reportedly old John "Pondoro" Taylor's favorite maker).
It was as accurate as any double I have ever fired and with it I also took plains game.
These days I hang my head in shame that my only double rifle is a 1980's vintage Heym in .458 Winchester.

Once at local rifle range, I had fired an original Martini in 577/450 and it was shockingly accurate.
Someday perhaps I will have the chance to own one.

For the brass you need, perhaps AkMike will know where your relative can get it for you in the US.
Mike has some real expertise on most old time rifles and calibers from around the world.

For muzzle loaders I only have replicas - a .36 caliber cap lock "squirrel rifle", rifled slow for patched round ball, such as the early 1800's N. American pioneers and homesteaders used East of the Mississippi River commonly used.
Also a half stocked .58 rifled capper rifled 1 turn in 48" for conical or Minie style bullet, suitable for 1 ton animals and a Ruger "Old Army" revolver marked ".44" but actually uses .457 diameter ball.
All three are very accurate and well made firearms but only the squirrel rifle is true to history in all of its design and looks (the .58 is essentially a sporterized Mississippi Army Rifle of the 1830's except those were actually .54 and slow rifled for patched round ball and mine is .58 and faster pitch rifling for conical bullets.

I used to have a better selection of muzzle loaders, including a shotgun but alas, today my collection is quite modest.
Some day I plan to have another ML shotgun, as the grouse hunting here can be pretty good sometimes and I enjoy that very much.

If I lived in Africa, I would from time to time hunt with black powder firearms, both ML and cartridge type but, as a tourist, I probably will just stick with smokeless powder rifles for my next African hunt.

Admittedly, I am a bit envious of the primitive hunt you described in your excellent post recently, not just the hunting but also the earth oven baked bread and all the rest of it.
Looked like it was a huge amount of fun.

Kind Regards,
Paul Ard (Velo Dog)
Anchorage, Alaska.

 

[gillettehunter]

Good for you. What a fun experience. Trips like this are less common than what you would think. I would say that everyone had a great time. Thanks for all of the pics. Looks like the bread came out well. Please include "us" in your ongoing black powder adventures. Bruce

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Members, Paul ( you really had a lot of historical rifles in your time) , regarding fly fishing rods..I have an old Indian split cane rod age about one hundred years of age...it can only throw an old level line and is a six weight....something not seen these days..., Gillette Hunter, it really is nice to hear from you guys and to see how you guys appreciate this hunt almost as much as we do...we will try to include more activities of our Boer fore fathers ...making "leather veldskoene" shoes and plaiting whips will definitely feature more prominently in next year`s gathering....two oxen, a Scotch car is going with as well...I really am contemplating taking my horse with to hunt....so there are really a few more things to come...

Gert

 

[Gert Odendaal]

When I got to the wagon, I learnt that Max had shot a young warthog, with the Westley Richards Monkeytail. It was already in camp, so my companions were available and eager to help carry my impala to camp. We also took a bucket along to be able to retrieve the impala's guts, to be used as "worsderms" later.

Max's warthog, and my impala must have been the first animals in about a century to be shot with a WR monkeytail and a Muzzle loader, on this farm!
The next day, I skinned my impala and cut biltong on the wild olive and leather table.

After cutting the strips of meat, I mixed it with salt, vinegar, ground pepper and coriander, and then packed it in the raw impala skin to cure.
The next morning we hung the biltong on a riem stretched between two trees.

On Wednesday, I was attending to some farming matters, when I heard a loud, deep BOOM! in the area that max and MC was hunting. Because of the close shots taken with an antique fire-arm, it is impossible to tell from the sound if a shot was a hit or a miss.

I was curious to hear the result of their hunt, so I wandered in their direction, careful not to disturb a possible stalk in progress. I was met by a very happy MC showing off his big impala ram shot with his Bobbejaanboud flintlock over about 20 yards distance.

This was a real achievement! I hurried back to camp to fetch the carry team, and the carry pole.

Meet the members of the "Jachtexpeditie":

Johan, with a bobbejaanboud. He became separated from the wagons on a hunting trip, and spent six months living off the veld. Note the elandskin coat he made himself. Also note the wild look in his eyes.

Gert, with his .72 Pedersoli double barrel he bought at great cost from a travelling "smous " . Gert is also keen with this new fangled invention called a camera.

Max: He farms near Bloemfontein, and shoots with a Westley Richards monkeytail. He dresses quite smart, as the smous regularly visit his farm, and he can always acquire decent clothes.

MC also from Bloemfontein, where the farmers dress smart, but prefers to hunt with his Bobbejaanboud. And as you heard his story, he can hunt!

Herman, wagonbuilder from the Waterberg. He shoots a six bore flintlock, that he built himself. He also believes that when a photographer visit your camp, you should wear your very best clothes.

A wandering hunter from the Waterberg. He cannot afford a tailor made jacket, so his wife made him a jacket out of waterbuck skin, and a kudu skin he tanned with the roots of Elandsboontjie. Note the bone "dolosse" she used for buttons. He hunts with a .50 percussion muzzle loader. He also carries a buffalo horn powder horn.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Amazing team.
Thanks for sharing.

 

[AfricaHunting.com]

Gert, I enjoyed your adventure and pictures tremendously, thank you for sharing!

 

[Velo Dog]

Gert,

Another outstanding chapter in your living history of; "Boers Out Biltong Hunting".

I've never met Johan but judging only by this photo, I would agree that he has evidently gone feral.

The cap lock carbine that Max is holding is pretty close to identical to my .58 caliber "Buffalo Hunter", imported from Italy by Navy Arms - described by me in this thread (one of my earlier replies to the beginning of your excellent story) as a "sporterized Mississippi Rifle" except mine is .58 with moderately fast twist rifling, instead of the true to Mississippi Rifle history .54 with slow twist rifling.

The furniture, tools, clothing and misc. accoutrements all you fellows are sporting really are quite excellent as the proper show case for those splendid rifles.

Some of us are really enjoying your posts and pictures on this topic, thank you for sharing, I know it is a lot of work to organize everything into an on-going story for our entertainment.

Totsiens,
Velohond.

 

[Christina Nyczepir]

When I got to the wagon, I learnt that Max had shot a young warthog, with the Westley Richards Monkeytail. It was already in camp, so my companions were available and eager to help carry my impala to camp. We also took a bucket along to be able to retrieve the impala's guts, to be used as "worsderms" later.

Max's warthog, and my impala must have been the first animals in about a century to be shot with a WR monkeytail and a Muzzle loader, on this farm!
The next day, I skinned my impala and cut biltong on the wild olive and leather table.

View attachment 43282

After cutting the strips of meat, I mixed it with salt, vinegar, ground pepper and coriander, and then packed it in the raw impala skin to cure.
The next morning we hung the biltong on a riem stretched between two trees.

On Wednesday, I was attending to some farming matters, when I heard a loud, deep BOOM! in the area that max and MC was hunting. Because of the close shots taken with an antique fire-arm, it is impossible to tell from the sound if a shot was a hit or a miss.

I was curious to hear the result of their hunt, so I wandered in their direction, careful not to disturb a possible stalk in progress. I was met by a very happy MC showing off his big impala ram shot with his Bobbejaanboud flintlock over about 20 yards distance.
View attachment 43283

This was a real achievement! I hurried back to camp to fetch the carry team, and the carry pole.

View attachment 43284

Meet the members of the "Jachtexpeditie":

Johan, with a bobbejaanboud. He became separated from the wagons on a hunting trip, and spent six months living off the veld. Note the elandskin coat he made himself. Also note the wild look in his eyes.

View attachment 43285

Gert, with his .72 Pedersoli double barrel he bought at great cost from a travelling "smous " . Gert is also keen with this new fangled invention called a camera.

View attachment 43286

Max: He farms near Bloemfontein, and shoots with a Westley Richards monkeytail. He dresses quite smart, as the smous regularly visit his farm, and he can always acquire decent clothes.

View attachment 43287

MC also from Bloemfontein, where the farmers dress smart, but prefers to hunt with his Bobbejaanboud. And as you heard his story, he can hunt!

View attachment 43288

Herman, wagonbuilder from the Waterberg. He shoots a six bore flintlock, that he built himself. He also believes that when a photographer visit your camp, you should wear your very best clothes.

View attachment 43289

A wandering hunter from the Waterberg. He cannot afford a tailor made jacket, so his wife made him a jacket out of waterbuck skin, and a kudu skin he tanned with the roots of Elandsboontjie. Note the bone "dolosse" she used for buttons. He hunts with a .50 percussion muzzle loader. He also carries a buffalo horn powder horn.

View attachment 43290

Best male fashion show I've seen in a long time. Cough. Or, ever! But I am truly impressed. Loving this post.

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Members, please note the last part and other parts of this thread was done by Willie Barnard, our expedition leader and not only by me...it would not be ethical to take all the credit for this great hunt..as indicated in remarks , this was a great team effort by all participants...my fellow hunters are great people and I am privileged to have participate in this hunt....praise are due to them as well...and thank you again members for the positive and well meant opinions/replies it really is much, much appreciated...

regards

Gert

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

I watched old pictures from Africa Gert?
Thanks for sharing. Excellent work. Cograts.
Witold

 

[AZDAVE]

Gentlemen I salute you! Job well done

 

[Gert Odendaal]

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Lets try again... Some of the photos me and Max took:

Typical Bushveld view:

Camp views:

On the very first morning Max bagged a young porker with the Monkey Tail:

On the way back, carrying Max’s pig, this Free Stater learned to respect the Bushveld’s camel thorns…

Max and me at our favourite resting spot at the base of the hill:

My impala ram, shot on he Wednesday morning after a 30-40 minute stalk after we spotted him for the first time. The ram was hiding in a bush, which helped us to get close. When he finally noticed us we were about 25m away and I had to take a quick shot - something not that easy with a smoothbore flintlock! The shot was not great, but it brought him down and we could cut his throat. Judging from the spoor and flattened vegetation around the bush he was hiding in, we suspect he got hurt the previous evening during a fight with another ram, which would explain why he was not walking around grazing as they normally do that time of the morning.

Inspecting he old pioneer house ruins:

After a long, hot, tiring stalk through the bush:

Bushveld biltong making:

Bushveld Master Chef Gert doing his thing:

Johan made us some ginger beer, aka bee soup…

Taking a breather at a majestic old wild olive on the last day of the hunt:

Posed camp shots:

Max’s “I slept in an oxwagon” selfie…or did he hear the leopard outside….

 

[sestoppelman]

What fun! I bet everybody slept well at night!

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

I like "old hunting pictures" from Africa. Congrats , great fun.
Witold

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Please note , this part of the thread was posted by MC Heunis( the hunter with the thorn in his foot..even the hand made "velskoene " can not withstand a Sekelbos thorn...it punchers even a tractor tyre..).. ...it is great to see a good story from different perspectives...