.308 Win in Africa - fan or foe?

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

What animals are you planning to take? Eland and zebra might be pushing it. I don't pay.much attention to those that say the chosen cartridge doesn't matter, and shot placement is the only consideration. Sjot.placement is, of course, the most.important thing, but it is.not the only thing. Some animals have big, tough shoulder bones that need to be broken and penetrated. I also !like a bullet that upsets drastically and exits. On my last safari I took a .300 WM with 200 grain AccuBonds. I found it to be superior to the .30-06 with 180 grain Partitions as the effect on game animals was much more dramatic. In NA, I I have used this combination to take a black bear and a bull moose. Except for the moose everything died at the shot. The moose wss.running st 165 yards and the guide was yelling at me to shoot him. I hit the bull in the hind leg with the first shot and he needed another which brings me to my next point. In the field game animals tend not to stand politely while you line up the perfect shot. Any hunter that says he has nevr.made a less than perfect shot is lying. Why use a less than ample cartridge?

If you do decide to take the .308, I opt for the 180 grain A"frames.

@Doug Hamilton
My son found the humble 308 more than adequate for zebra. Our PH told us he has had clients successfully take eland with one shot out of a 308 on numerous occasions.
Yes bigger may be better and give a bigger hit but inside 150 yards the 08 with the right bullet would be fine in my book.
Countless numbers have been killed with the 06, 7mm Mauser and 303brit in the past so I can't see why the 08 won't do the same job
But hey that's just my opinion .
Bob

 

[MontanaPat]

Does anyone know if Botswana allows the use of a 308? I seem to recall they consider it a “military cartridge” and banned visitors from bringing one.

I took my Win model 70 in .308 to Botswana last summer and had no issues with importing it and getting a permit upon arrival in Maun

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

The only thing wrong with the .308 is that it is as common as muck.
I have one and will always have one but it is nice to aspire to having something else but honestly the .308 is pretty versatile

@CBH Australia
The only thing I see wrong with the 308 is some brain dead Muppet necked it down to 24 cal the convinced people the new cartridge was actually good. They LIED.
Yest the 08 may be boring but it gets the job done
Bob

 

[Doug Hamilton]

@doug, poor shooting or poor shot decisions - shooting running game when one is not well practiced doing so (which includes most hunters) - doesn’t matter what caliber or bullet is used - results will be poor or inconsistent.
I agree with you that shot placement “is Not the only thing” But it is by Far the Most Important…maybe 80%-90% of whats needed followed by bullet construction (doesn’t mean a .308 = Elephant gun). There is No meaningful killing difference between a well placed .308 & .300wm ——in the Vitals. On a bad angle - hard quartering away or Texas heart shot “maybe” a couple inches more penetration over 250 yrds? If you were plugging to use a .375 H&H then I’d have to agree there is a signifiant difference.
Just my opinion and possibly others that have extensively used .308, .30-06 and other Non Magnum rounds with good success.

The big bull waterbuck thabull saw all week shot st at about 50 yards was 3/4 toward me. I placed the bullet just to the right of center and the bullet exited just forward of the opposite hip. He took about two steps, then rolled into the bottom of the dry river bed. I doubt that I would have seen that kind of penetration with my .30-06 and 180 grain bullets. Maybe I shouldn't have taken the shot at the moose, but as it turned out it was the only bull that I saw all week. Now regardless of the reasons, everyone makes a bad shot at one time or another, and a heavier bullet at higher velocity is going to work a little better. A shot in the right place with a bigger cartridge works better than a shot in the same place with a lighter, slower bullet. I killed several animals on my first safari with my .30-06 and 180 grain bullets. A ..30-06 or 308 is just not as decisive as a.300 Magnum. You might as well say that a .243 or even a .223 would work as well as a .308. I have enough experience in the game fields to know that is just not true.

 

[HuntingGold]

I just... as in moments ago... received 500 pieces of once fired Federal brass in the mail from Northeast Target and Shooting Supply. I'll be reloading my .308 up for a three day training event at Thunder Ranch. Very much looking forward to this.

I used @KMG Hunting Safaris .308 on my first trip to RSA for several critters up to kudu. Marius had that rifle set up with GS Custom bullets (130 grain, if I remember correctly) and it worked great. He had very high praises for the cartridge and his loads.

Marius, what are you loading now?

 

[Andrew62]

I've taken nearly 100 animals in Africa with my .308, a lot of which were blue wildebeests and zebras. For years I used Barnes 168 grain, then this last year I took 180 grain Swift Aframes, took an eland with one shot. Either of those ammo selections will do great, .308 works wonderfully well in Africa.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

@Doug Hamilton
My son found the humble 308 more than adequate for zebra. Our PH told us he has had clients successfully take eland with one shot out of a 308 on numerous occasions.
Yes bigger may be better and give a bigger hit but inside 150 yards the 08 with the right bullet would be fine in my book.
Countless numbers have been killed with the 06, 7mm Mauser and 303brit in the past so I can't see why the 08 won't do the same job
But hey that's just my opinion .
Bob

@Doug Hamilton
My son found the humble 308 more than adequate for zebra. Our PH told us he has had clients successfully take eland with one shot out of a 308 on numerous occasions.
Yes bigger may be better and give a bigger hit but inside 150 yards the 08 with the right bullet would be fine in my book.
Countless numbers have been killed with the 06, 7mm Mauser and 303brit in the past so I can't see why the 08 won't do the same job
But hey that's just my opinion .
Bob

Of course, you can use a .308 to take plains game. It just wouldn't b wss my first choice. Isn't a .308 just a .243 with a bigger mouth? ;-).

 

[KMG Hunting Safaris]

I just... as in moments ago... received 500 pieces of once fired Federal brass in the mail from Northeast Target and Shooting Supply. I'll be reloading my .308 up for a three day training event at Thunder Ranch. Very much looking forward to this.

I used @KMG Hunting Safaris .308 on my first trip to RSA for several critters up to kudu. Marius had that rifle set up with GS Custom bullets (130 grain, if I remember correctly) and it worked great. He had very high praises for the cartridge and his loads.

Marius, what are you loading now?

Still loading the 130gr GS Custom. Not sure if they are still in production to be honest. My rental rifle these days is. 300Win Mag loaded with Sierra Game Kings.
The 308 I now use for specific critters.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Of course, you can use a .308 to take plains game. It just wouldn't b wss my first choice. Isn't a .308 just a .243 with a bigger mouth? ;-).

@Doug Hamilton fortunately you got it backwards mate.
The 308 is actually useful and when loaded with a healthy dose of CFE223comes even closer to the ought six. 2,950 fps with a 150 grainers ain't to shabby when compared to the 06 with the same bullet at 3,000fps.

The bastard offspring the 243 should have been strangled at birth. No use for anything more than paper punching.
Bob

 

[Sabre]

The big bull waterbuck thabull saw all week shot st at about 50 yards was 3/4 toward me. I placed the bullet just to the right of center and the bullet exited just forward of the opposite hip. He took about two steps, then rolled into the bottom of the dry river bed. I doubt that I would have seen that kind of penetration with my .30-06 and 180 grain bullets. Maybe I shouldn't have taken the shot at the moose, but as it turned out it was the only bull that I saw all week. Now regardless of the reasons, everyone makes a bad shot at one time or another, and a heavier bullet at higher velocity is going to work a little better. A shot in the right place with a bigger cartridge works better than a shot in the same place with a lighter, slower bullet. I killed several animals on my first safari with my .30-06 and 180 grain bullets. A ..30-06 or 308 is just not as decisive as a.300 Magnum. You might as well say that a .243 or even a .223 would work as well as a .308. I have enough experience in the game fields to know that is just not true.

To some degree, I agree with you, but there is diminishing returns. Yes, if you shoot an eland with a .22 there is certainly more chance of losing the animal. But if you "try" to shoot it with a very large caliber that you can't control, your odds of losing the animal also increases.

There is a certain point of diminishing returns where larger caliber doesn't equal "more dead" and generally just leads to more flinching and poor shots.

Everyone likes to pretend they are hard core tough guys with zero flinch, and yet, when you see someone shooting a big bore and the rifle unexpectedly doesn't go off, what do you see? An awful lot of flinch.

So it is about finding that sweet spot where you can reduce recoil and thereby reduce flinch, and increase odds of quick ethical kill and retrieving the animal.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

I have a new .308 Win.
Testing 168gr TTSX and 180gr Swift A-Frames for Africa.
What say you?
Recomendations? suggestions?
Leave it here or take it?

Speak!

Yes with a calital “Y”. During the embargo years, the .308 Winchester gained a grained deal of popularity in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. I recall seeing it being used on all manner of game animals (albeit some which obviously required a larger caliber for a cleaner/more efficient dispatch).

Neutrally speaking, barring eland… it will serve you well on most African plains game. Where legal, I would definitely not hesitate to employ it against leopards over bait either.

 

[MS 9x56]

The rifle sported an Inexpensive 2.5x10x50 Nikon Prostaff, Later I was told that Nikons were junk, I guess ignorance is bliss.
My PH loved that little Carbine

Despite what some haters say I have found the older Nikons made in Japan to be very clear and reliable. I have them on several of my rifles. I too am an admirer of your little carbine.

 

[mark-hunter]

Recomendations? suggestions?

Fan or Foe?
Do you accept neutrality? (reservation)

After 4 safaris (3 x PG, 1 x DG), my view is that African starting caliber is 300 win mag for PG. Personally I used in Africa: 300 win mag, 300 H&H, 30-06, 375 H&H. (check number of species taken on my forum profile)

I have nothing against 308 win (I have it myself, among other calibers, and I am sure with quality bullet it will perform in Africa), but in a wonderful world of modern rifle cartridges there are better choices, with better effect.
So, you can use it of course, but you can do better then that.

 

[Kevin375]

My experience remains limited but I had the opportunity to borrow a Ruger 77 in .308 Winchester, topped with a Burris Eliminator, in 2015. Ammunitions were cheap Sellier & Bellot SP 180 gr, but accuracy was very good.
I didn't shoot a lot of animals with it : an impala, and a couple of hartebeests and wildebeests as well, but I have no complain. It did a good job in my hands and the owner told me he used it for everything. I won't have any doubt to use it again if the opportunity arise.
My oldest red hartebeest so far.

 

[HankBuck]

Of course, you can use a .308 to take plains game. It just wouldn't b wss my first choice. Isn't a .308 just a .243 with a bigger mouth? ;-).

@Doug Hamilton - Yes, just like the .300wm is “just a .308 with 35% more recoil and 8% more killing power”….or there abouts.

 

[Bandera]

The bastard offspring the 243 should have been strangled at birth. No use for anything more than paper punching.
Bob

Well to fair I do find that the “bastard offspring the 243” does a spectacular job on rodents. Prairie dog shooting, the 243 has spectacular results on the little hole digging buggers.
The down side to it is the barrel heats up real quick.

 

[Rob404]

Despite what some haters say I have found the older Nikons made in Japan to be very clear and reliable. I have them on several of my rifles. I too am an admirer of your little carbine.

I remember the first day hunting Lompopo Province I carried my 12.5Lb CZ550 in 375Mag by the end of the day it felt like I was carrying a Redwood tree so back in the case it went and I carried the Carbine for the rest of the week.
The little Carbine now graces my mantle (sans scope)along with the Kudu I shot

 

[Doubleplay]

Great caliber for plains game and widely available ammo everywhere in Africa.

 

[Andrew62]

I remember the first day hunting Lompopo Province I carried my 12.5Lb CZ550 in 375Mag by the end of the day it felt like I was carrying a Redwood tree so back in the case it went and I carried the Carbine for the rest of the week.
The little Carbine now graces my mantle (sans scope)along with the Kudu I shotView attachment 666936

You make a very good point, weight does matter, or at least to me it does. I want to carry the lightest rifle I can. My Kimber Mountain Ascent in .308, with a 4.5x14 Leupold scope weights 5lbs 15oz. That's an easy rig to carry around the bush!!