308 for plains game?

Will 308 suffice for plains game? Kudu and Warthog in particular?

I'm looking to buy a nice deer gun and was looking at a 243 but will bump it up to 308 if I could use that on a future Africa hunt as well.

Sure. I took a Blesbok, Blue Wildebeest, Kudu, Bushbuck, and Zebra with my .308 shooting 168gr Bergers and they were all 1-shot kills except the Zebra where my initial shot was a little too far back and required a second shot to prevent a long track.

My daughter took a Blesbok, Impala, Nyala, and Hartebeest with her .270 shooting 150gr Fusion and all clean kills.

None of these animals, except the Zebra, went very far after shot.


That being said, there are other caliber choices as well that fit the bill - .300WSM comes to mind.

I like the .308 because if the low recoil, long distance capability, and wide range is ammo.

Should work just fine.

Same experience with me. Used a .308 with 163gr Barnes TSX on this guy plus 4 other animals. One shot kills. If you jump up to dangerous game, then you need a .375 or better.

Definitely.


and that's an awesome Kudu above.

Uh what?

I'd rock a 257wby, and scream that's for you Roy!!!!! Every time the rifle cracked and lighting came from above and struck the critter dead

Can't wait to go in June......

Pretty funny he's comparing the mass killings of 1,000's of buffalo to a regulated hunt in Africa where nothing is wasted......

I kill wild game to eat but not to just say " I killed a zebra, or elephant or a lion". Why do you people kill animals just for the fun of shooting something? Cant you see that is so wrong? Have you ever heard of the buffalo ?

judgmental,cant you see that is wrong?

Thanks a lot for the info guys.

I like the 308 for the reasons John Humbert mentioned.

I used a .30-06 and a .300 win mag. They're all good. I'm not a real caliber snob.

I used a 300 mag. I personally would feel a little undergunned with a 308. But if that is what your comfortable with it will work. Hope you have a great time. Hunting Africa is a fantastic experience.

Varmints at least are smart, trolls just stupid and annoying.......Get the point?

Yes I do. You have no sense and probably a 3rd grade IQ, and are perfectly willing to kill game just for the fun of it until they are all gone.

Meat goes to the locals as well as what you spend there generally goes into the local economy

Money from the hunters riding the railroad to kill off the buffalo went to the local economy too. Does that make you feel better ?

Would you feel a lot better if you spent money to help save the africa wildlife rather than kill them off to extinction ? And hunt game that you will eat.

Look a what we have done to the world already. climate change, droughts, worst winter in years. Our generation burnt the candle at both ends . Its time we take a good look at what we've done and maybe make a better world to pass on.

boy you are just looking for things to be self righteous about aren't you. you believe in obamacare to?

Somebody has had way too much Kool-Aid.

10pointdoe your the troll. Sport hunting did not kill off the buffalo herds. A decision was made to destroy the economy of the Plains Indians by destroying the buffalo herds. It was was an political/economic decision. In Africa today most of the game is on ranches where the combination of money from hunting and the meat sustain an economy where wildlife habitat is preserved. Remove hunting from the equation and the land will be managed for domestic livestock doing great damage to the habitat. Once the habitat is gone the game is gone. Mother nature doesn't care about an individual animal it cares about the survival of the species.

These are managed hunts and serve to sustain the overall health of the herds. I'm not an African hunter, but to compare hunting in Africa to the unregulated killing of the buffalo is just ignorant. How is you killing for food for yourself and your family any different from someone killing to provide for many other families?

Sounds like Al Gore gone undercover!

thought Al Gore was Global Warming. 10pointdoe makes some valuable points.

Kill a cow save a deer

Moron alert..... full moon coming



I used a 300 for plains game. Reason... Every time I put the gun to my shoulder I knew it was meat in the pot. Some eaten by me some shared with my fellow man.

Open Hunting Discussion says it best. Great plains Indians used the buffalo for suvival. very little waste. technolagy whiped out buffalo. Little Big Horn every one called it a massicure yet History proves it was technolagy. today technolagy is replacing jobs.

.243 100gr good for deer round here, but Africa, its a jungle out thar. 308 would be safer bet, your Guide should have your back. Safe hunting

Bring back the candles, rebuild the outhouse, put out the rain bucket.... Technology is killing you only if you sit on the sideline and watch.

Daughter will be shooting her 7/08 in Africa and is taking Eland with it as well.

Have a safe and fun trip. Shot placement always works best. Hope you share some photos of the huge eland.

Will post up all her pics when we go and get back

That is exactly the cartridge I would suggest. It's the modern corollary to the old 7x57 Mauser that did so well in Africa on plains game. With good bullet selection and good shot placement, you can take any non-dangerous game with it.

be Thankful u have a job.

^^these^^

never been on an African Safari hunt. seen on T.V. were they have added alot of technology to the huts that the hunters stay in, ya, i know they leave alot of the comforts their used too. & i'm sure they are Thankful ta get back ta their homes. the WMA that hunt has a sugjeston box, an during draw hunts if ya drive down thar, u'll see one of them thar high-tech port-a-potties. ya they see on t.v. commercial of a bar using charmin. an they call people like me cavemen, cuse whin i goes ta make a deposit, i drops me draws, get shot at bye some city clicker that shoots at any thing white thinking its a white tail, have ta admit them thar shots ricorshayimg all around helps on them thar days that i bez alittle constipated, have been know ta grab some ivey on the run ta do the paper work, but pay the price. all aside. am all for Technology for the better. if not for technology, would not have had the oppertunity ta get your view side note have hunted with some of them thar city-slickers have shared the woods with many & enjoy hunting with em

X2

I look at his location and the that answers my "WTF" question.

I read that the cartridge that has probably taken the most African game is the British .303. I think .308 is very close or even surpasses .303 British in performance. Shot placement is the key to everything.

The 308 is plenty with the right cartridge and shot selection.... but the elephant may need a little more umph...

Just take some cyanide, the poachers are wiping out the elephant population by poisoning the waterholes, and while they are at it they are killing a lot of the other animals.