What calibers and scopes would you choose?

[YancyW]

22-250 4-16ish
30-06 2-10ish
300wm 3-18ish
375 H&H 1-6ish

Swaro scopes, clearly.

From Armadillo to Elephant, you could make it work pretty well. That bore me to tears, but it would that would cover the bases.

 

[bowjijohn]

I guess I would choose the two calibres I have on my existing R8

.22LR with iron sights
6.5 x 55 with Swarovski Z8i 2 - 16 x 50 which I swap between the 6.5 and the .22LR

Now it gets difficult

9.3 x 62 or .375 H&H with irons and Swarovski Z8i 1-8 x 20

and since they don't do my beloved 404 Jeff then ...

458 Lott with irons and/or red dot

Hard to ignore the 30 06 though

Oh and might throw in the next gen thermion thermal when it comes out - my existing one is pretty good but 'could do better'

 

[Hunter-Habib]

@Hunter-Habib
For many of us, on the forum, hunting in Kenya is a dream. It is place where modern safari started, more then 100 years ago.

We can not go hunting there any more.

Can you share some hunting story from your Kenya experience, once you have time and opportunity to share with us?

@mark-hunter , I shared a lot of photos on this forum . You’ll find them on my media . Basically , it was a mixed bag safari with a lion and a Cape buffalo being the dangerous game . I used a BSA Majestic in .243 Winchester ( loaded with 100 Gr Winchester Power Points ) for the Tiny Ten , a BRNO ZKK600 in .30-06 Springfield ( loaded with 180 & 220 Gr Remington Core Lokt soft points ) for the plains game , a BRNO ZKK602 in .375 Holland & Holland Magnum ( loaded with 300 Gr RWS TUG soft points ) for the lion , a BSA Majestic in .458 Winchester Magnum ( loaded with 500 Gr Winchester copper jacketed FMJ solids ) for the Cape buffalo ( which my white hunter had to finish off ) and a BSA 12 Gauge ( 3 “ ) Boxlock Non Ejector ( loaded with Eley Alphamax 36 Gram #6 ) for wing shooting ( mostly guinea fowl ) . All these were provided by my white hunter . Based on what I’d previously read in “ Outdoor Life “ magazines , ornate English double rifles were the gold standard of African hunting . Reality , however was much more mundane . Most of the white hunters in 1970s era Kenya , had either BSA and / or BRNO firearms in their camp .

That safari helped shape a lot of my tastes in firearms for hunting in Africa . I soon came to the conclusion that if you were a client hunter , you only really needed two calibers for all round African hunting : A .30-06 Springfield and a .375 Holland & Holland Magnum . And if your white hunter had one , a .243 Winchester is a fun little surgeon’s tool for the Tiny Ten . Otherwise , using solids in the .375 Holland & Holland Magnum was the way to go . Or a 12 Gauge loaded with either AAA buckshot or 3 “ # 4 buckshot ( depending on range ) . I also realized how much I loved the BRNO ZKK line of rifles , and how much I hated muzzle brakes .

Yeah , Kenya was the stuff of dreams before the antis got their way in 1977 . Today , it’s turned into a poacher’s paradise and should serve as a warning as to what happens when Western politicians have their say in African wildlife policies . It’s a farce .

Should I send you my album of the 1974 Kenya safari photos once again ?

 

[mark-hunter]

Should I send you my album of the 1974 Kenya safari photos once again ?

Let me first check If I can find!

 

[mark-hunter]

I found the media! Quite set of trophies! Great bygone era hunt! Congrats!

 

[Tundra Tiger]

I'

Please excuse me from this game as I am already fully armed with Winchesters and do not need or want a Blaser.
If you give me one, I would sell it to fund ammo and hunts.

I'm with CRS, in part anyway. I am not fully armed in Winchesters but if I woke up and found a Blaser and 4 barrels under my Christmas tree, I'd have them listed on here in short order and you fine folks would be helping me chip away at my bucket list... which does have a few Winchesters on it.

 

[Dickie]

Just to be a little different .243 small game & pests, 6.5 CM for a bit of range fun, 7mm BM for bigger game & antelope and a .375 BM for the big stuff.

 

[IvW]

If they where availible

7x57mm 1-6
300 H&H 2.5-15
375 H&H 1-6
500 Jeff none

 

[Rell]

223 - 5-25x50mm
6.5 Creedmore - 5-15x44mm
300 Win Mag - 1.7-13.4x42mm
375H&H - 1-8x20mm
416 REM Mag - .75-5x20mm (5th barrel)

All Swarovski Z8 or Z6 Illuminated.

 

[mark-hunter]

I Agree with IvW, with following optional:

7x57mm 1-6 (or 7x64)
300 H&H 2.5-15 (or 300 win mag)
375 H&H 1-6 (no substitute for 375 H&H)

 

[Tra3]

I answered this question last year for my son and I. As a NA hunter we needed to have home and abroad covered. I went with:
.22 LR and a 3x9
6.5 CM 2.5-15 z6
.270 win 3-18 z6
7 mm rem mag 3-18 z6
.300 win mag 3-18 z6
.375 H&H 1.25-4 swaro and 2.5-15 z6

the .22LR is a MUST, since you can practice a lot with that caliber.
the .375 covers everything. I kept that barrel on my R8 for the entire 24 day hunt this June/July. It worked for everything from a guinea fowl head shot to elephant.
I brought the 7 mag barrel for PG, but never bothered to put it on in Africa. That is my favorite elk caliber.
The .270 was chosen for my son (and then daughter!) to use in Africa and NA. They took steenbok all the way up to eland and giraffe with the .270 win. That is my favorite mule deer/pronghorn caliber.
The 6.5 CM was initially the recoil limit for accurate shooting with my son when he was 12-14. Then he grew. My daughter will likely use it now. At 110 lbs and a non-hunter prior to this trip, she has picked up the R8 and shot it with ease. She wants to hunt a hippo on our next trip so now she is practicing with the .375!!
.300 win mag is perfect for everything in africa, i shot two elk with it last year. But I’m partial to the 7 mag.

 

[dchamp]

.223 Swarovski 3-10x42 Habicht ( for Vermen & Small Game )
.257Wby Swarovski Z5i 3.5-18x44 (preferably in a K95) (Lt. - Medium Game)
8x68s Swarovski Z8i 1.7-13.3x42 (because I like it more than a .300WM) ( Big Game)
.416 Rem Mag Swarovski Z8i 1-8x24 & a Aimpoint Micro H1 Dangerous Game

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

@Bob Nelson 35Whelen is gonna LOVE you!!!

@BeeMaa
As Meatloaf said mate 2 out of three ain't bad.
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I can already imagine what our harsh ( but good natured ) friend will say , right now .
“ The .243 Winchester can’t even kill a hare “ . One sometimes has to wonder EXACTLY WHAT DID THE .243 WINCHESTER DO , to earn his hatred so much . I’ve only been on this forum for three weeks . But he seems like a very reasonable guy and competent hunter .

The .243 Winchester is my favorite caliber for Africa’s Tiny Ten . I absolutely fell in love with it , when I used one in Kenya in 1974 . My white hunter had a BSA Majestic in this caliber lying around in the camp . The rifle was incredibly accurate . But you’re left wondering : What company in their right mind decided to fit an integral muzzle brake on a .243 Winchester ?

@Hunter-Habib
I feel sorry for you for being inflicted with not one but 2 of the world's most vile inventions. The Bezza majestic with that muzzle brake. It turned a beautiful rifle into an abomination. It's no wonder people took to it with a hacksaw to rid it of the muzzle brake. The other one is the 243, a cartridge that failed to live up to all the advertising hype of Winchester. The little 250 Savage does everything the 243 does and more and had been doing for years. Winchester killed off the 25s with advertising bullshit that people believed. Some people like it some hate it, I fall into the latter camp.
Bob

 

[K95]

It takes 30 seconds to change bolt heads so I don’t see it worth while not to have a caliber you want for a small inconvenience.
My four would be
5.6 x 57
270 wea
340 wea
375 wea
and no I’m not a Weatherby nut, it just that I find there in between the standard cartridges and the big ultra mags. Eg my 340 uses 15% less powder than my 338 Rum for the same velocity. It’s the same with the 270 wea and the 270 Nosler which has a 50 fps advantage.
Ken

 

[358 Norma]

To keep things simple;
7mm Wby mag 2-10 Leupold VX V
300 Wby mag 2-10 Leupold VX V
375 H&H 1.5-5 Leupold
458 Lott 1.5-5 Leupold
With that combination everything I hunt is covered!

 

[K95]

It takes 30 seconds to change bolt heads so I don’t see it worth while not to have a caliber you want for a small inconvenience.
My four would be
5.6 x 57
270 wea
340 wea
375 wea
and no I’m not a Weatherby nut, it just that I find there in between the standard cartridges and the big ultra mags. Eg my 340 uses 15% less powder than my 338 Rum for the same velocity. It’s the same with the 270 wea and the 270 Nosler which has a 50 fps advantage.
Ken Oh the scopes 1.7-10 x 42 Z6i Swarvoski ‘s on them all.

 

[CombatEngineer]

.223 Swarovski 3-10x42 Habicht ( for Vermen & Small Game )
.257Wby Swarovski Z5i 3.5-18x44 (preferably in a K95) (Lt. - Medium Game)
8x68s Swarovski Z8i 1.7-13.3x42 (because I like it more than a .300WM) ( Big Game)
.416 Rem Mag Swarovski Z8i 1-8x24 & a Aimpoint Micro H1 Dangerous Game

DCHAMP, if you could pick only one, do you like the Z8i 1.7-13.3 or the Z8i 1-8 better? Does the 1.7x make quite a difference compared to 1x on close shots?

Thanks much!

Jeff

 

[K95]

I ordered the 1-8 Z8 for my 9.3x64 Breneke and a 1.7- 13.3 turned up in the mail by mistake. I found this scope to be the ultimate all round magnification, if you want to save a little money the Z6i 1.7-10 is also brilliant. I have 6 of these on a variety gif calibers and never wanting for anything else.

 

[Vinootz]

Here is a question that might create a discussion.
If you were going to purchase a new Blaser R8 and could afford 4 barrels and scopes, to do all your hunting with, what calibers and scopes would you choose?

A good quality 3x9 if you don’t plan on shooting beyond 300. Maybe even to 400 if you know what you are doing. Mine all have Leupolds VX3(one a VX2 and one a Zeiss).
They are all fine for 300 yards.