Factory ammo for Africa trip?

[Oklahomabassin]

I agree with the others that they are easy kills. I would assume the PH will carry a big gun when needed for protection.
I am surprised they don't have ammo for their rifles.

I am jealous! It sounds like a great time.

 

[BillM]

I agree with the others that they are easy kills. I would assume the PH will carry a big gun when needed for protection.
I am surprised they don't have ammo for their rifles.

I am jealous! It sounds like a great time.

I was trying not to say that!

 

[Rez Exelon]

I agree with the others that they are easy kills. I would assume the PH will carry a big gun when needed for protection.
I am surprised they don't have ammo for their rifles.

I am jealous! It sounds like a great time.

I'm seeing lots of chatter on other boards that the PH's are very appreciative of extra ammo behind left behind as tips because it is indeed hard to find in many countries. But also to what @TheDoubleD said --- some places get grumpy if you bring something in without a rifle, and others get grumpy if the headstamps don't specifically match the rifle you bring. For instance, if I wanted to go with a 416 Taylor, I couldn't use reloaded that were formed from 458 Win brass because the stamp wouldn't match.

That said, I would still hope that if they are renting guns, they'd have some on hand, or know the details to assist importing specific to their country/area.

 

[dieseltech09]

When I hunted in South Africa last August our rifles didn't get loaded on the plane leaving Atlanta so the first day of my hunt I had to use a rental rifle from the outfitter but they had ammo for it. Then we had to make the 8 hour round trip back to Jo Burg on day two to pick up our rifles.

As for ammo for my rifle I used Federal Premium with Swift Scirocco II bullets.

 

[turkeyrun]

When I hunted in South Africa last August our rifles didn't get loaded on the plane leaving Atlanta so the first day of my hunt I had to use a rental rifle from the outfitter but they had ammo for it. Then we had to make the 8 hour round trip back to Jo Burg on day two to pick up our rifles.

As for ammo for my rifle I used Federal Premium with Swift Scirocco II bullets.

The Houston Customs guys were good with returning hunters. When we lived south of Houston, I went to church with a safari booking agent. He made 3-4 trips every year and booked many more.
He was friendly with Customs office and made sure things went smoothly.

He retired several years back. I heard his son had took over the business, but I don't know for sure.

As to ammo, ask the PH what they use and how to get there. .30-06 would be preferable and is good for all but, zebra and blue wildebeest, use 180gr. Any premium ammo / bullet will do, but see what the PH prefers and (like previously said) leave a couple boxes. Prices are $4+ / round and hard to get.

 

[Ryan500L]

My friend is going in July and is taking a .300 Weatherby and a .416 Weatherby both loaded with Swift A-Frame and Swift Breakaway bullets.

 

[Kangaroo1]

I kind of feel like I've never heard 308 or 30/06 mentioned as African PG calibers personally. But if the PH is saying it's doable then I suppose that's fine and I'd hope they do have ammo available. I've never done it, but from what I hear taking a rifle out of the country is a real pain on paperwork, and ammo is the same. I don't know if taking ammo out without a matching rifle would be more or less difficult to be honest. Each country has different levels of PITA on these topics, so definitely coordinate with the PH to be covered.

Actually, .270, 308 and 30-06 are probably the most common used.

 

[Rez Exelon]

Actually, .270, 308 and 30-06 are probably the most common used.

Interesting --- I can't really say I doubt that, I just haven't seen a whole lot of talk about those as PG options. Rifles for DG (and the bigger the better lol) occupy most of the threads that I've read about hunting in Africa over the years.

 

[dieseltech09]

Actually, .270, 308 and 30-06 are probably the most common used.

I shot my Blesbok using my PHs .270 and dropped him in his tracks at 330 yards on the first day of my hunt while waiting on my rifle to show up from Atlanta. We had two PHs with us and the other one carried a 308.

 

[patrickcudd]

When I went, we had the choice of a .375 and a .308. The PHs provided all the ammo. I opted for the .375... It worked well on the Zebra, dropping him with one shot. The Oryx required three with two of the bullets recovered. It was definitely overkill for the Springbok, but it dropped it. I would rather have overkill out there than loose a trophy!