Blain

By that I mean does anyone here hunt any big game animals of the Americas with an excessively large magnum caliber? Such as a .50 BMG rifle, .577 Tyrannosaur, any of the Nitro Express double rifles (Elephant guns). Or any weapon with over 4,000+ ft/lbs of energy?

I'm not even sure if such magnum rifles are legal, or which ones are legal to hunt with. Though I would assume for game such as big Kodiaks that there is no maximum caliber. If anyone does hunt with one of these super guns, please tell us what gun it is, what load (with the energy in ft/lbs of the round if you know it), why you hunt big game with such a powerful weapon, and most important of all, how much of a difference you see between animals hit by your shoulder cannon and those hit by guns designed for mere mortals.

Can you imagine anyone hunting Giant Bears with a .50 BMG, Double Rifle, or Tyrannosaur? I'm sure though, it must happen. Or at least, some must carry said magnum guns around for bear defense if not outright hunting. Let us know who you are and what your artillery pieces can do and have done, and will do.


From Squirrel to Elephant, the Shotgun is your gun.

wyote

I always thought it was illegal to hunt with anything over 50 cal center fire. Correct me if I'm wrong.

liv2hunt69

I have sissy gun's,300 mag, 7mm mag, 444 guide gun. I prefer to carry my bow.

tussey mountain hunter

I hunt with a .300 weatherby magnum. It just barely fits your criteria, as it does exceed 4000 foot pouds with some loads. I generally use the 220 grain bullets, which have a velocity of 2905 f.p.s. and an evergy of 4122 foot-pounds. I can assure you that, even with the sorbothane recoil pad, the recoil is substancial and I would not want to hunt with a heavier gun unless it was necessary. That won't be necessary, however, because the .300 can drop a kodiak in it's tracks. It is important, however, to remember that where you place your bullet on the animal is more important than rifle power.

tussey mountain hunter

Forgot one thing: I hunt with it because it is very versetile, and can take just about anything on this planet short of elephant, cape buffalo, and other large, african plug uglies.

ArcticBowMan

Last I checked there were no caliber restrictions in Alaska. Several years ago I was talking with a work acquantance and he told me about his moose hunt that he had just gone on. He purchesed a 50 caliber for the hunt and shot a cow moose on the shore from 400 yards. Lets just say it was effective in killing the cow, on the spot.
I don't see the need for calibers like that for hunting, but I'm not about to tell that to somebody toting one around the woods! <img src=icon_smile_shock.gif border=0 align=middle>

tussey mountain hunter

ABM, a .50 caliber for hunting? I would have thought that the rifle would have been so heavy as to make long range walking impossible.

Blain

Well it would be very heavy but still doable. An M-60 weighs around the same as a 1982A1 10 shot .50 BMG, and troops hauled those things around for miles. And though I agree that shot placement is important, I also imagine that the larger the bore the less important the placement becomes I would just love to see someone walking around Kodiak with a .600 NE Double Rifle.

From Squirrel to Elephant, the Shotgun is your gun.

stubblejumper

Two of my rifles have muzzle energy's above 4000ftlbs but I don't consider them big bores although they certainly are big enough for any game in north america.My 300 ultra comes in at around 4600ftlbs and my 338x8mmremmag at about 4500ftlbs.

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