Gearing Up For Hunting Seasons – Good Tips From Albert At The Rasch Outdoor Chronicles
My friend, Albert Rasch, is over in Afghanistan doing some kind of silly, dangerous stuff right now, but he’s keeping his blog, The Rasch Outdoor Chronicles alive with occasional updates and reposts of some of his older, “classic” posts. I happened to pop over there yesterday, and saw that he’s reposted a 2008 treatise on selecting the best caliber for boar hunting.
Personally, I think Albert tends toward the bigger end of the caliber spectrum due to an innate drive toward self-destruction, because he really favors guns that kill on both ends when it comes to killing hogs. I’ll generally trade the recoil of a monster like the .338 or .375 for the milder .30cals (30-06, .300winmag, etc.), and feel that’s plenty of killing power for any hog on earth. But I also feel, and quite strongly, that there’s no such thing as “too dead”, especially when you’re dealing with an animal that can come back and make hamburger out of you PDQ. (And I must admit to a certain masochistic thrill at shooting those big bores myself.)
So anyway, I strongly recommend that you go over and have a look… especially if you’re debating what to do for a new hog rifle. Here’s how it begins:
Robert Ruark said “Use Enough Gun.” Peter Capstick said, “Use enough gun, but not more than you can handle.” To which I add, “Use enough gun, but not more than you can handle, and make sure you can shoot it.”
When it comes to hogs, I’m going to say something that will land me in a heap of trouble with certain parties that I run with. You can take them with anything, so long as you do it right. That’s correct, anything from the lowly 22 short to a 557NE. The catch is knowing where to put your shot. I suppose it’s the same with all game. It all boils down to three things: Shot placement, shot placement, shot placement.
In terms of practicality though, there are upper limits on the size of a hog with relation to each caliber selection. There are basically six categories; the 22s-24s, the 24s-25s, the 26s-28s, the 30-338, the 35s- 375 and the over 40 crowd. Using commercially available ammunition as our standard, the 24s and 25s should be limited to small sub 70 lbs hogs. The 26s through 28s should be kept to the 150s and lower. The thirties and 338s are good for up to 300lbs and less while the 35s, 40s and bigger can handle just about anything. These are arbitrary numbers of course and I’m sure that arguments to the contrary can be sighted ad-nausea, but these are recommendations based on actual hog taken by myself and others, and for the sake of starting arguments.
All the preceding is assumes that you are using good quality bullets constructed to take the kind of abuse intended for big game. Hunting pig can be as easy as picking flowers, to a worse case scenario that might degenerate into hand to hand combat where the odds are definitely not in your favor. Spending a few dollars more for premium bullets is mighty cheap insurance. Just ask Cliff McClure of McClure Farms here in Parrish Florida. He has a twenty-three stitch memento from a Thanksgiving Day hunt that went awry.
You can read the rest right here.
I really enjoyed Albert’s comments there. If I were able, I’d split the difference between calibers that can kill a pig and calibers that will kill a pig and maybe you, too: .45-70
Albert’s point about big bores (that a .45 makes the same hole going in that a .30 cal makes coming out) made sense to me. At the same time, I want to be able to shoot my gun, and love shooting it. I think a .45-70 gives me both options, especially because I’m not a distance shooter.
July 7th, 2010 at 9:13 am
Josh, the 45-70 is a great caliber in the hands of a competent hunter.
The problem with guns like that one (and the underrated 30-30) is that folks insist on exceeding the capabilities of the round. At proper ranges, with good bullets and accurate shooting, they’ll kill cleanly every time. However, when people start to buy the marketing hype and try to shoot 200 yards or more with these antique calibers, they complain when they don’t get good, terminal performance.
July 7th, 2010 at 9:51 am
Amen. I’ve seen the ballistics charts for the .45-70, and it makes me chuckle uncontrollably. It’s like a shot-putter.
July 7th, 2010 at 10:31 am
With the 45-70, you’ll also want to look at the “hot” loads from Cor-Bon, or reload for your own rifle. Standard, factory-loaded .45-70 Govt. rounds are loaded fairly light because they’re often used in antique rifles. These loads are not “inadequate”, but they’re just not all that they could be. A hotter load provides better velocity, a little more range, and better terminal performance…especially with the copper bullets.
The modern 45-70 rifles from folks like Marlin, Puma, and Winchester are capable of handling much hotter loads, which really gives you an opportunity to up the killing power.
July 7th, 2010 at 11:38 am
The light for caliber projectiles for the 45-70 certainly make it a quicker getter of game in the deer and caribou class and connecting on longish shots an easier. And the Adjustable semi-buckhorn folding rear, ramp front sight with brass bead and Wide-Scan™ hood. Solid top receiver tapped for scope mount; offset hammer spur (right or left hand) for scope use. The experience of .40-70gov was really great.
July 11th, 2010 at 10:53 pm