Which DGR (dangerous game rifle)

[wwbirds]

A recent thread about shooting elk through the shoulder reminded me of my grandmother who hunted big game for over 60 years in northern Ontario. We discussed shoulder shots sometimes and she only used it on bears. Her primary targets were usually deer or moose which she shot through the ribs into the boiler room with a 303 Lee enfield. Bears she said you could always kill them with the second shot if you anchored them with the first to the shoulders.

My DGR is a Brno ZKK 602 in 375 H & H which is favored by many PH in Africa for several reasons. The "Emporer" as the 375 is known is considered a versatile "medium" bore rifle capable of taking anything from Antelope to elephants with clean one shot kills. The heavy weight of over 10 pounds if the 25 inch barrel is left intact is helpful in taming recoil to the extent that many women can manage it. The Professional hunters also favor the 1 in the chamber 5 in the magazine capacity for DG as well as the Control feed rather than the push feed which if short stroked can cause concern for the hunter if black death is closing in trying to turn him into red dirt. The 3 leaf express open sights are quite accurate from 100 to 300 yards as considering the size of the projectile (300 grain for dangerous game) the 375 trajectory is very similar to the 30-06 out to 300 yards. Mine has a fixed four power Leupold with the Warne repeatable quick detach rings which allow removal to use the open sights with out having to re zero the scope each time.

I have heard of guys using them for deer and elk size animals by loading them down to 235 or 250 grain bullets but I cannot see myself walking into the Whaleback at 6 AM during elk and walking out 12 hours later with a 12+ pound rifle so suspect it would be left in a tree somewhere rather than carry the thing out again.

What do you have? Weight, push feed or control feed and any bad experiences with either.
I have the dies and would like to see it come out of the safe more often but the weight is a killer but necessary to soften the recoil. How did you fix it for utilization or are they all pretty much safe queens if you are not hunting Africa or coastal grizzlies?

[elkdump]

1 round in the chamber and 5 more in the magazine,,,,

Anything that is going to hurt your will be within 50 yards and coming at you doing at least 50 kmph ,,,,

So please do tell how many deadly accurate rounds you can put in a target careening at you at that speed ?

It will take the killer about 2 to 3 seconds to reach you from 50 yards when you decide its time to defend yourself ,,,?

Who is going to take the unused 5 rounds from your magazine of your rifle ? hmm

[wwbirds]

Dont know about you but I am not going to wait until a lion or cape buffalo is within 50 yards to shoot. Most often you shoot at a longer distance and the animal has no idea you are there. having said that bad shots do occur so if you fire 2 or 3 before dangerous game dials into your location and makes a beeline for you it cannot hurt at all to have more shells rather than be empty planning to club them with the rifle when they get close. Saw two videos in the past 5 years and one was a leopard and the other a big male lion that died 10 or so feet from the hunter on his 5th shot. Most PH are not hunting themselves but rather carrying the back up rifle for assisting the clients should they need to. If dangerous game is charging the hunter or the PH the other person can still use as many shots as it takes to stop the animal.

[Jeron Kahyar]

Originally Posted by elkdump

It will take the killer about 2 to 3 seconds to reach you from 50 yards when you decide its time to defend yourself ,,,?


Who is going to take the unused 5 rounds from your magazine of your rifle ? hmm

Who says you are the one in your party needing saved from said animal?

[southernman]

I have a husky 9.3x62, iron and peep sight, seven lbs even with four down, it will do for anything I am likely to need in North America,
I think I would rather, a well balanced double, in a heavier cal, say .470 for truly dangerous game, like lion, buffalo etc.

[Salavee]

Originally Posted by wwbirds

A recent thread about shooting elk through the shoulder reminded me of my grandmother who hunted big game for over 60 years in northern Ontario. We discussed shoulder shots sometimes and she only used it on bears. Her primary targets were usually deer or moose which she shot through the ribs into the boiler room with a 303 Lee enfield. Bears she said you could always kill them with the second shot if you anchored them with the first to the shoulders.

My DGR is a Brno ZKK 602 in 375 H & H which is favored by many PH in Africa for several reasons. The "Emporer" as the 375 is known is considered a versatile "medium" bore rifle capable of taking anything from Antelope to elephants with clean one shot kills. The heavy weight of over 10 pounds if the 25 inch barrel is left intact is helpful in taming recoil to the extent that many women can manage it. The Professional hunters also favor the 1 in the chamber 5 in the magazine capacity for DG as well as the Control feed rather than the push feed which if short stroked can cause concern for the hunter if black death is closing in trying to turn him into red dirt. The 3 leaf express open sights are quite accurate from 100 to 300 yards as considering the size of the projectile (300 grain for dangerous game) the 375 trajectory is very similar to the 30-06 out to 300 yards. Mine has a fixed four power Leupold with the Warne repeatable quick detach rings which allow removal to use the open sights with out having to re zero the scope each time.

I have heard of guys using them for deer and elk size animals by loading them down to 235 or 250 grain bullets but I cannot see myself walking into the Whaleback at 6 AM during elk and walking out 12 hours later with a 12+ pound rifle so suspect it would be left in a tree somewhere rather than carry the thing out again.

What do you have? Weight, push feed or control feed and any bad experiences with either.
I have the dies and would like to see it come out of the safe more often but the weight is a killer but necessary to soften the recoil. How did you fix it for utilization or are they all pretty much safe queens if you are not hunting Africa or coastal grizzlies?

In my case the choice of a particular caliber and cartridge depends on what, where and how I choose to hunt. After experiencing most calibers and cartridges over the years I finally settled on the mid-bores for all my Big Game hunting. Having three options, -.338-06. .35 whelen ai and 9.3x62 and having used all three on Game, I'm comfortable with taking either of them when hunting anything from Whitetails to Elk and Moose. Where a DG situation is a good possibility, the 9.3 or the.35 Whelen would get the call. On smaller game, even with heavy loads, meat damage is seldom a factor as the animal is usually quite dead and you can literally eat right up to the hole in most cases.
None of these cartridges are uncomfortable to shoot in any situation. I find the recoil to be more of a push than the sharp smack that is usually associated with some of the larger Magnums, all are accurate and bullet selection is outstanding throughout their caliber ranges. None are not a burden to carry any where I am inclined to walk... no extreme distances, and certainly no mountains involved.

These rifles are all based on M98 Commercial CRF Mausers, and the average weight is about 10.5 lbs. All have 25" barrels. The heaviest is the 9.3x62 at 11.8 lbs ,all up. To pick only one of the three, I lean a bit towards the .35 Whelen, but it's a tough call. All are great performers for any situation I am likely to find myself in... as would be a .375 H&H.
Gotta Luv the mid-bores, as I see it anyway.

[bcpappy]

A model 70 safari express in 375 h&h, factory weight, open sights sighted for 50 yards. It has a leupold vx3 2.5-8×36 on it. I hand load 300 grain accubonds, I have taken it moose hunting but haven't knocked anything over with it yet. I think I will take it spring bear hunting this year. Heavy to pack around but fun to shoot.

[birds eye]

I AM DOING UP A 338RUM,BUT UNTILL I FIND THAT certain round,i use my 378 wbyand 260gr accubonds.its fun to see the expression on fellow hunters when i pack this rig around

[JohnB]

I also have a 602. Been thinking of selling as I don't use it that much. Have taken elk and moose with it, I'm shooting 300 gr A-frames. Don't think I will do Africa but you never know. I had a custom stock put on and had Corlanes Teflon the metal. You are right it is a heavy rifle to pack through the woods. I picked up 673 in 350 RM recently and sure like the weight of it compared to the 602.

[stob]

finally settled on a 9.3 x 62 in a Sako BB ... does everything the 375 ouch-and-ouch does out to 320gr ... more efficient and effective and user friendly ... had 3 different ouch&ouch's and 5 different 9.3's to compare ... and a 416 rigby, but that is a different story ... left to one DG rifle it would be my RED RYDER throwing monolithic steel core BB's

[traderal]

I have a 378 Wthby, Ruger 416, and Brno 375. For ease of carry in the bush I choose the 416.

[sillyak]

The 602 or the newer 550 are both too heavy for the 375 H&H IMO. Their weight is suited to larger cartridges like the .416 Rigby or the .458 Lott, or even larger. A 8 lbs scoped .375 H&H is about perfect.

I would love a Martini build on a GMA or even a Heym-Martini, but my budget sure won't allow for it. I have owned a 375 and a .450 NE 3 1/4", but currently do not own a DG rifle.

[propliner]

I have a Blaser R8 in .500 Jeffery that I'm going to use this year for hunting. It's an even 10 lbs with Aimpoint. I've cast and loaded some 595gr spire-points at around 2000fps since I don't think I'll need Woodleighs at 8000ft-lbs around here. 6000ft-lbs of cast hardball will suffice.

So why use such a beast for hunting North-American game? Why not? It's nice and short, not too heavy and it's perfect medicine in big Grizzly country.

[kaleh01]

When I had a dream of going to Africa I bought a ruger m77 in 416 ruger. A stainless rifle which I had painted green that carries very nice open sights and a 1-4 trijicon scope with red triangle reticle. The scope is mounted in take off warne rings for ease of removal. I shoot a 400gr Barnes tsx bullet in front of TAC powder and it gives me 2300fps. I'm not a big guy but this rifle shoots amazing, my buddy who is much bigger still shoots his prone and hold sub MOA out past 400m. Africa trip died with the economy for my buddies so I bought a jetboat and dream of going one day for a buffalo. Meantime the rifle killed a cow bison 3 years ago with one shot DRT at 175m and was featured on wildtv. Coyote country was the name of the show. Love that rifle!

[Deer Hunter]

Cool gun and great pics kale, thanks for posting.
What does your Ruger weigh? I like the green on it.

[kaleh01]

I would guess it to be around 10lbs, and yes the armacoat green turned out amazing I think. Great all weather rifle I will never part with.

[Deer Hunter]

Yes no doubt, super cool.

[brendan's dad]

Just finished up the "grind to fit" recoil pad last night on my 9.3x62. I have settled on my load data, just need to do up a ladder test and get out to the range.

[Young Eldon]

My .375 H&H is a customized Interarms bolt action (better trigger, safety. bedded, added cross pin in stock, Leupold 1-4 scope). I have used it on deer, elk, moose and grizzly without any problems since 1983. It is a controlled feed Mauser action and cost about $700. Any larger cartridge is unnecessary and risks retinal damage to the shooter. The weight of it makes a horse or mule real handy for carrying it all day!

[elkhunter11]

A good article written by an African PH.

https://www.africahunting.com/thread...ncy-exam.2604/

[heybert]

So far, I have a T3 in a 9.3X62. Recently got a wood stock for it to make it a bit heavier. Still on the hunt for a 98 Husqvarna also in a 9.3X62. When I eventually get the chance to go to Africa, I'll probably use the 9.3 for most anything and have a 416 Rigby or a 458 Lott just in case.

[wwbirds]

But you would think a professional writer for firearms would know how to spell BRNO?

[Nyksta]

Originally Posted by wwbirds

But you would think a professional writer for firearms would know how to spell BRNO?

Maybe he is doing more things with his time than long hours on the net researching how to spell rifle names. Dont discredit someone for a lack of grammer.

[wwbirds]

Firearms writers should know that! In gun circles especially Africa it is a household name like Remingdone or Wingchester

[Pathfinder76]

Originally Posted by wwbirds

But you would think a professional writer for firearms would know how to spell BRNO?

Don was a Professional hunter who wrote. Much more qualified than the other way around.

[elkhunter11]

Originally Posted by chuck

Don was a Professional hunter who wrote. Much more qualified than the other way around.

Exactly! Unfortunately it's usually a case of writers that hunt, and their expertise is writing, not hunting.