Acquisition of a Double Rifle

[Wheels]

Red Leg touched on this.

What happens when your best opportunity at the buff of a lifetime is 125 yards away. What happens when he is 75 yards away but in deep shadow on an overcast day. Is the desire to hunt with a double going to pressure you to take a shot you may not be completely comfortable with.

If you buy a double, take the 458 Lott with you. Have a tracker carry it. Take a decent scope. Preferably one with an illuminated dot for dark shadows. It may increase your chances/opportunities significantly.

 

[Tanks]

A new Chapuis is probably in the $8K range.

 

[Surgeon1]

Red Leg touched on this.

What happens when your best opportunity at the buff of a lifetime is 125 yards away. What happens when he is 75 yards away but in deep shadow on an overcast day. Is the desire to hunt with a double going to pressure you to take a shot you may not be completely comfortable with.

If you buy a double, take the 458 Lott with you. Have a tracker carry it. Take a decent scope. Preferably one with an illuminated dot for dark shadows. It may increase your chances/opportunities significantly.

My plan exactly, 416 Rigby Dakota Traveler with S&B 1-6 and my Heym 88 in 470NE

 

[Tanks]

Red Leg touched on this.

What happens when your best opportunity at the buff of a lifetime is 125 yards away. What happens when he is 75 yards away but in deep shadow on an overcast day. Is the desire to hunt with a double going to pressure you to take a shot you may not be completely comfortable with.

If you buy a double, take the 458 Lott with you. Have a tracker carry it. Take a decent scope. Preferably one with an illuminated dot for dark shadows. It may increase your chances/opportunities significantly.

My view on this is to make a commitment to the type of hunting one wishes to make. A double rifle hunt, then make sure the shot is there and the PH can get you to the shot with your double. A 125 yard DG hunt is shooting, not hunting regardless of the firearm anyway.

 

[JPmbogo]

Hallowell & Co. currently has listed a Krieghoff Classic Big Five in 500 NE at just under 10K.
I have dealt with him over the years and have always found him very reliable.

 

[Happy Myles]

The clients primary role is to shoot straight on that first shot. He can do this most efficiently at various ranges with a scope sighted bolt action rifle of sufficient caliber.Your 458 Lott will do this well. Double rifles are regulated for a certain range. one of the PHs roles is to shoot quickly to sort things out when the client screws up and an angry animal is blowing snot and blood at close range. The double is great for this Role. trackers do not have health insurance. Having said this, I am sure when I have my 500 Nitro Express double rifle on my shoulder, barrels grasped pointed downward and squint up at the sun, I must look like Stewart Granger or Clark Gable. Kindest Regards

 

[Backyardsniper]

I will likely shoot my lott on this hunt but I will most likely shoot it with iron sights. I'll be bringing 2 CZ 550. In in 375 and one in 458 Lott. I'll have at least one optic in QD rings with me and possibly 2. I did order a Peep and partridge sight to see how that works with the 458. I had my 375 consistently on steel plates at 400yds the other day with the express sights. I couldn't believe it. Running the 235gr speer with 80gr of CFE it is a laser and the 300yd leaf is actually on at about 330yd and the 200 is closer.to 250. The 100yd covers me easily out to 200 with this load. To put a little perspective on things, I live about 10 min from a 400yd rifle range and I get to practice A LOT!. With the addition of it being a bit of a "good old boy" range that I have been a member of for about 10years I get a little extra freedom of movement when I'm the only one there so I can do various shooting drills and run sprints up and down the range and shoot and such shenanigans as that. Now I have never stood 40yds from a cape buffalo so I may totally shit myself when the time comes, but my PH whomever it may be now that Phil has passed away, can bet that I will be one of the most well prepared clients he has ever had. Plus having been in some tight spots before when the quarry was shooting back at you helps to steady the nerves somewhat. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast! Words to LIVE by I assure you!

 

[Thumper Mcgee]

My view on this is to make a commitment to the type of hunting one wishes to make. A double rifle hunt, then make sure the shot is there and the PH can get you to the shot with your double. A 125 yard DG hunt is shooting, not hunting regardless of the firearm anyway.

Amen

 

[Cam Moon]

@Backyardsniper Very impressive. Now, not only will you be incredibly prepared, you can make back the money you paid for your hunt by teaching us to shoot like that!!!

 

[JPmbogo]

Hallowell & Co. currently has listed a Krieghoff Classic Big Five in 500 NE at just under 10K.
I have dealt with him over the years and have always found him very reliable.

I just learned that he has the same in 470 as well - same price.

 

[JPmbogo]

Amen

Agree absolutely. If the gentleman wishes to buy a double rifle and take it to Africa to hunt, so be it. Remember this is all about fun and games, anyway!

 

[Backyardsniper]

I'm a big believer in the whole train like you fight thing. If you want to shoot with irons, like I plan to, or with a double or if you want to hit one in the head with a ball peen hammer that's fine but you better practice and practice what you are going to be doing. I'm very lucky to have a facility close by where I can burn all the powder I desire but a lot can be accomplished at home with dry fire and PT. Lay down in the floor and have the wife lay a dime on top of the barrel of your rifle and practice breaking the trigger on command without knocking the dime off the barrel. That's a good example of a drill you can do at home. Now it would obviously be cheating If you used your double rifle for that drill. Ha ha. There is a lot of real estate to lay that dime on.
Another drill I use for self defense and big game hunting that is very useful but requires a partner. For the hunting version stand 20yrd from target. Your partner will stand 7yd to your right or left. At your partners discretion he will sprint towards you and attempt to run behind you and tap you on the shoulder before you can place a well aimed shot into a 6" circle in the target 20yrd's in front if you. It's hard to replicate actual battlefield stress but with a little effort you can induce enough stress to see how you will react under pressure.

 

[Cam Moon]

Want to increase the stress level from there? Rather than tapping you on the shoulder, have your Buddy use a cattle prod or stun gun.

 

[Backyardsniper]

Ha ha. That's not a bad idea that's really upping the anty

 

[Tanks]

Lay down in the floor and have the wife lay a dime on top of the barrel of your rifle and practice breaking the trigger on command without knocking the dime off the barrel. That's a good example of a drill you can do at home. Now it would obviously be cheating If you used your double rifle for that drill. Ha ha. There is a lot of real estate to lay that dime on.

Couple of things, first you would never shoot a big bore double rifle prone.

Secondly, none of the manufacturers recommend dry firing a double rifle and it would get old with snap caps as they'd fly out as you opened the action to re-cock. If you stopped them, then you are building bad muscle memory that can hurt you in the field.

 

[IvW]

I will likely shoot my lott on this hunt but I will most likely shoot it with iron sights. I'll be bringing 2 CZ 550. In in 375 and one in 458 Lott. I'll have at least one optic in QD rings with me and possibly 2. I did order a Peep and partridge sight to see how that works with the 458. I had my 375 consistently on steel plates at 400yds the other day with the express sights. I couldn't believe it. Running the 235gr speer with 80gr of CFE it is a laser and the 300yd leaf is actually on at about 330yd and the 200 is closer.to 250. The 100yd covers me easily out to 200 with this load. To put a little perspective on things, I live about 10 min from a 400yd rifle range and I get to practice A LOT!. With the addition of it being a bit of a "good old boy" range that I have been a member of for about 10years I get a little extra freedom of movement when I'm the only one there so I can do various shooting drills and run sprints up and down the range and shoot and such shenanigans as that. Now I have never stood 40yds from a cape buffalo so I may totally shit myself when the time comes, but my PH whomever it may be now that Phil has passed away, can bet that I will be one of the most well prepared clients he has ever had. Plus having been in some tight spots before when the quarry was shooting back at you helps to steady the nerves somewhat. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast! Words to LIVE by I assure you!

A peep sight is for long range or target shooting, you want a ghost ring for the 458, the one with the biggest hole...

 

[Backyardsniper]

Yeah I plan to get the large apperature. I actually ordered the sight the other day but I'm not sure which size peep it comes with. They make a large ghost ring one though and I plan to get one of them

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

I'm a big believer in the whole train like you fight thing. If you want to shoot with irons, like I plan to, or with a double or if you want to hit one in the head with a ball peen hammer that's fine but you better practice and practice what you are going to be doing. I'm very lucky to have a facility close by where I can burn all the powder I desire but a lot can be accomplished at home with dry fire and PT. Lay down in the floor and have the wife lay a dime on top of the barrel of your rifle and practice breaking the trigger on command without knocking the dime off the barrel. That's a good example of a drill you can do at home. Now it would obviously be cheating If you used your double rifle for that drill. Ha ha. There is a lot of real estate to lay that dime on.
Another drill I use for self defense and big game hunting that is very useful but requires a partner. For the hunting version stand 20yrd from target. Your partner will stand 7yd to your right or left. At your partners discretion he will sprint towards you and attempt to run behind you and tap you on the shoulder before you can place a well aimed shot into a 6" circle in the target 20yrd's in front if you. It's hard to replicate actual battlefield stress but with a little effort you can induce enough stress to see how you will react under pressure.

At our range we train for DG with the charging lion target, i dont know how fast it comes, but it is the standard. It is really meant for doubles I guess. Anyway, you start with your rifle unshouldered and once the lion passes the first tyre you can shoulder and fire, then fire the second barrel before it is on you. That second shot seems quite controlled and I am pretty sure that is where the inner bulls come from. So it is just paper, right, so easier to be controlled? Next up is a bit more real. You cradle your rifle and bend over looking at the ground. The lion comes, but now you can only come up and shoot when the trainer taps your shoulder. You literally have maybe two seconds to shoot and leap out of the way before the heavy frame runs over you - now you kak yourself! These shots are always surprisingly accurate.

 

[Backyardsniper]

It is rather amazing when a person has to shoot from instinct how accurate they often are. Your brain will do the work if you let it. Like throwing a football, you don't look where the receiver is going to be, you're looking at the receiver the whole time but your brain will calculate where to throw the ball. I would love to come and shoot at an actual dangerous game course. I bet that is all manner of fun.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

It is rather amazing when a person has to shoot from instinct how accurate they often are. Your brain will do the work if you let it. Like throwing a football, you don't look where the receiver is going to be, you're looking at the receiver the whole time but your brain will calculate where to throw the ball. I would love to come and shoot at an actual dangerous game course. I bet that is all manner of fun.

You must see the learner PH's doing the hippo test, they sit in an actual canoe floating on a little puddle. The 'hippo' attacks from behind and they have to swive and shoot it. Most go for a swim.