Now I'm not talking about all-out elephant guns but I tend to that "larger side" of guns for day-to-day hunting/woods gun use (please no .50 Desert Eagles for CCW)

I'm starting to realize I'm that way,my first real hunting only use rifle was a Ruger #1 in .338 mag,my reasoning was if I hunt I don't want to worry about "a gun for bears,a gun for deers,a gun for mountain sheep" Etc. I want one that can do most all of it.
The .338 was nice but being blue didn't help matters as I'm a bit hard on my kit,so the gun went away and I nabbed a Marlin 1895 45/70.
It was ok but most off the shelf rounds for this gun are rather low level and I was having a time with the loading gate (the one thing about levers I dislike,sorry I cut my teeth on a Mauser) so I started reading up on LARGER bolt-action rounds over the .338,something that had power to spare with factory ammo and was easy enough to get out of most gunshops.

My local shop had a .375 H&H that no one would touch so I wound trading for it and I'm infamously happy with it-after I lopped the break off,and wound up with an 18 1/2 carbine.

Now I have the .460 ES and just LOVE the thing,and it occurs to me I have a liking for short,overpowered,almost-cannons

So,any one else? any other S&W forum guys have a taste for the big stuff for everyday hunting/woods use? or am I the only one?

Mind I still grab a .223 to shoot a possum,but if I go off in the woods it's likely I'll have the new .460 under my shirt

I have a 35X300 Win. Mag., one of the last built by Ackley. It's on a Remington 700 action with premium Fajen stock and just a bit more powerful than a 358 Norma Magnum. Most expensive rifle I have and it just puts bullet after bullet on top of each other. I used it for all kinds of large game from deer on up but, since my shoulder surgery I cut back to a Remington 7600 in 30-06. Big old rifle just sits in the safe nowadays. Kind of sad actually.

I used to have a Winchester 70 in .458 Lott, but I traded it off for an engine rebuild. I wish I still had it.

Maybe one day I can afford one of those Pedersoli double shotguns in 12 gauge with both barrels rifled.

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Lost it all in a boat accident

Why yes, yes I do! Been fighting off the urge to buy a big one so for the moment Im happy with my Marlin 1895 CB in 45-70.

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Stay safe people!

I went through a phase some years back where I used big guns for elk and occasionally for mule deer - had a couple of 375 H&H's, a couple of .338's and a .458 Win. They all worked well enough though the premium bullets tended to pencil on through deer. I had to shoot one smallish mulie three times with a .338 to finally get it on the ground. The bullets were just too hard. They worked fine on elk, though, and the .375 in particular was a real honey.

I finally went back to the 30-06-size cartridges. Guess I got tired of getting kicked around by the big guys and the smaller ones work just about as well. I have to admit, though, it was a lot of fun to play with the big stuff. I only have one really big rifle now - a 50 BMG bolt rifle, but at 29 pounds its a bit heavy to pack around the game fields!

Andy if there's one gun I've run into that I really can say I find unpleasant to lite off it's a plain-vanilla-everybody-has-one 12GA,try taking one and single loading a 2 3/4 high base mag shell,say a turkey load,and firing it.....if your brain doesn't feel like it's come unattached from your skull and is rattling around in your head there's something wrong with you!

And that's not taking into account the 3 inch mags or those single barrel or double barrel jobs~I had a "coach gun" 12 for a bit,had to ditch it as it was giving me a headache with low base trap loads!

And Bob? succumb to it! go get a .375 H&H! they're as powerful as you're likely to need,and they are fun as hell! not good for charging elephant,but with a scope and a careful shot it'll do the job.

I like just about anything that is good quality and goes bang. Be it big or small. Below are some pretty powerful rifles. They rarely see any serious use. Just get shot occasionally for fun. But I have used the Browning and Weatherby hunting a few times.
People often ask me what I use the .458 for. I tell em it works great for rabbit hunting. Just aim in front of the rabbit, blow a big hole in the ground, the rabbit falls in the hole and you have got him.

Weatherby Mark V Deluxe in .300 Weatherby Mag with 3.5x10 Vari-x 3



Browning BAR in .338 Win Mag with 3x9 Pro Staff



Ruger No. 1 Tropical in .375 H&H with 2.5 Pentax



An old FN Mauser sporterized into a real eliphant gun. .458 Winchester Mag

I sure would love to buy that Weatherby from you. Those are great guns and I have one but mine does not look as nice as yours.

I have a brace of 500 S&Ws, love them both.

In the rifle realm, back when I was just out of the Army in the early '70s I bought a Winchester M70 in 375H&H and shot it extensively for a decade, it was my only hunting rifle and I used it on everything from plinking at rocks to gophers to elk. In fact, I shot the barrel out of that gun and sent it back to Winchester for rebarreling. Fortunately for the sake of my wallet, 99% of the rounds I fired through that gun were handloads. While off being rebarreled (it seemed like it took forever) I bought a Ruger No. 1 Tropical in 458 Winchester.

Since that time I've sold both of those guns. I developed some tendonitis in my right shoulder, perhaps as a result of shooting them or possibly it was from some other cause, I do not know, but I've become a bit recoil shy where it comes to rifles (not handguns, I love hard kicking handguns.....well, except for the 340PD with magnum loads, that one is no fun) and so most of my shooting anymore is limited to 308/30-06 level, although I did pick up a No. 1 in 9.3x74R a little over a year ago and carry that when I think I might encounter an elk. I like big caliber rifles too.

Big bores are an affection of mine, when I was a kid I used to read about the power of the ol' English elephant guns. this followed me into adulthood, most of the rifles that I have are on the larger side for their entended purpose.

My favorite is my Weatherby Mark V in 416, while some may argue where a "big bore" calibers starts. There are many that do not consider the 375 a big bore. Some African countries require something over 400 to hunt the big five. However the H&H has more than proven itself on larger game.

My personal preference has always been for large cases such as the Rigby and Weatherby. Many large caliber rifle cartridges have been developed off of both of these cases, it really boils down to whether or not you want a belted cartridge. Both of these cases have been used to span calibers from 300 to over 500.

Here are a couple of pics of my Weatherby, it seems evey time I post these Chad isn't far behind, LOL!!





There are still a couple of "big bores" that are on my wish list: A 375 Weatherby since it was reintroduced. This seems to me to be the best balance for a 375 to me plus it's commercially loaded. While I have shot the 378 and I don't find recoil unmanagable it seems to be too much of a good thing for some. Some find the 378 recoil to be a bit much, if you listen to some of the Internet lore you will think the 378 is the worst recoiling rifle on the planet.

Another on the wish list is a 500 based on the Weatherby case, ie. 500A2. While it isn't really classified as a hunting rifle, it's a stopping rifle, I'd still like to add one to the battery.

Some people just go nuts for really big guns, the above are really the limit that I have interest in. If you want to read about some of the really big ones, ie. 700 Nitro, 600 Overkill, 577 Trex, etc. take a look at the Accurate Reloading forum. It is one of the most knowledgable forums for rifles that I have found.

Yeah I have an affection for the big bores, they are great fun but can be a detriment to your finances.

Cheers,
Sam

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Beware the man with one gun...

As I got older my fondness for the big boomers diminished. They hurt too much to enjoy!

That Weatherby was a true bargin. Started bidding on it at an auction without having any real intent to buy it. Figured it would bring a bundle.
To my surprise I got it for $750 with the scope. Most of the time at auctions things bring half again what they are worth, but every now and then you get lucky.
It was like new except for a couple of small handling marks. Doubt it had more than two boxes of ammo fired in it. Since then I doubt I`ve fired more than 60 or 70 rounds through it.

I dunno, is this big enough?

Until recently my biggest rifle was a 300 Wby, but just recently I picked up a Marlin 1895 GBL 45-70.

Lead cannon.

I have a few big ones; for some reason I have no less than three 50-70s. Great fun to shoot.

I grabbed one of the remmy 798 in .375 that CDNN was clearencing off not too long ago but I haven't gotten to shoot it yet. My biggest complaint is that the front sling swivel is in the wood and I would rather have a barrel band. But until I get home long enough to get it to my smith I'll just live with it for now.

i own a .458 win mag made by brno, that goes well with my '95 marlin 45/70. i also bought a couple of .577 enfield snider rifles, but they were kind of a disapointment being black powder and all. i hunt deer with a model 70 in .300 weatherby mag. so yeah i get ya.

Hi, Steve here. My first hunting rifle was a 7MM Mag. Have toned down to 7MM-08. Now with that said, i mostly shoot 44Mag. until i shot my 500S&W Mag. Wife said the grin on my face was still there hours after i got home . I now have a 460XVR,getting a 2X7 Burris mounted on it. soon on this one.

I lika beeg guns! I love my Ruger .45-70. I wish I had one of the old classic big game calibers, even if I couldn't stand to shoot it much. An old .450 BPE would be great, and being black powder, maybe wouldn't punish me too much.

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Wayne
Torn & Frayed

For more than 50 years I have wanted a 375 H&H Mag.
This year I picked up a Winchester M70 that a forum members
father had bought while living in Alaska. It's a great shooter!
Thanks Gregory & Helen:

Here are a few other big bore guns. But these are not all that powerful.

Remington Rolling Block in 50-70



Marlin 1895 in 45-70



Marlin 336 Cowboy in 38-55



Winchester Black Shadow in .444 Marlin

My 416 Rigby.



My 9.3x62.



My 35 Whelen's.





And my largest big bore handgun.



So, yes, I do like the larger bores.

Very nice collection Boxhead, everyone should have a 416 somethin!!

Cheers,
Sam

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Beware the man with one gun...

My Barrett is my biggest rifle. I have several S&W 500's and a few 'killer' barrels for my old Contender.....375 JDJ, .309 JDJ, and a 12" and 14" .45-70 set. Oops....also have a .475 Wildey in 10".

"If big is better, then too much is 'just' enough" eh?

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John

Glad to see I have some compatriots in my little insane love of the big stuff!

Yes,indeed,overkill is never bad.

Biggest rifles around here are:
Winchester Model 70 .375 H&H Mangum
Winchester Model 1895 .405 WCF
Springfield M1884 .45-70
Winchester Model 1886 .45-90

Gee, until now, I've never felt undergunned with my .300 Weatherby.

Here's a Weatherby Custom Shop Mark V Deluxe in .460 Wby Mag. I got it for a song about six years ago.

Some fatcat had booked a safari and just had to have a .460 Wby. He took delivery, went outside to the range, put two rounds of the 500-gr solid downrange and promptly came back in and put it on the consignment rack. I came in two days later. Came with five boxes of Wby factory ammo, too.




The brake and wrench:


In full recoil:



Look close -- there was a five-lb bucket of frozen lard hanging off that tree a second ago. You can see the turquoise lid flying to the left of the tree, globs in the air and lots of greasy vapor:


Not a great photo. That's a .460 Wby next to a .30-06:

My friend I've heard of that one...it's viscous on both ends! and that bucket~oy!

I think I'd just go ahead and get a .50 BMG if I was looking at one of those

The 375 thread got me thinking about the big bores, went back and found this thread...some beautiful rifles here. I know we have some other members that need to post pics. I'm a little surprised we havn't seen a pic of 450 No. 2's nice double.

Havn't seen the pics from Dash, everyone should experience 90 ft lbs of recoil in one of the big Weatherbys. A friend has a 378 that we took to the range not long ago, I hear a lot of people say it's the worst but I didn't feel it was that bad. The 378 was Magna Ported; it was a little sharper than my 416 but by no means was it unmanagable. It just takes a little schoolin to learn to shoot the big boomers, you can't shoot them like your 270 that's for sure.

Cheers,
Sam

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Beware the man with one gun...

yes i like the biggun

My Dad bought me a 300 H&H Magnum when I was 14. I shot a 5 point bull elk with it a month later.

Never seemed to need anything bigger.

I have also taken game with a Trapdoor 45-70.

I've got others, but those two seem to cover my needs right now.

I own a couple of "Big Boomers", I just had to have a .416 Rigby and .375 H&H after reading some material on safaris when I was a young en.

I also have a .458 CZ I had reamed out to .460.
I have a couple of .45-70s and .450 Marlin but I don't consider these "Boomers"

J. Rigby .500 x 3" BPE SxS Hammer Double Rifle. Jones underlever action.
Fun to plink with. Need to load a few more, They seem to all get shot when ever the gun goes to the range. Oak & leather case too.

J Tolley 470NE double rifle. This one needs a new stock and a restoration so it hasn't been shot yet. Don't know where it's been, but it wasn't cared for very well!
Waiting a turn on the bench,,,a project gun like so many others.
Came with 7 or 8 boxes of Kynoch ammo, both solids and soft nose. I'm all set for what ever sets foot in the yard.

Sauer 9.3x74R SxS double rifle. Fun to shoot. Has an early German scope on it in claw mounts. I'm not fond of scopes so the glass doesn't see much(any!) use. Been shooting old DWM ammo in it. Have dies, brass, etc to load,,just haven't found the time. This one needs a new pad to replace the old fossilized one on it. A thin leather covered pad seems about right. Maybe this winter..
I have the locks out of it and apart right now for a quick maint. Not much shooting done with the heavy kickers in the cold temps for me. At just under 7#,,it does turn you around a bit.

Steyr New Model (Model 1902) bolt rifle in 9.3x62. Light rifle, heavy kicker. Not really a big bore though.

A couple of others but they're project guns also.

My favorite little toy.... put it in the back of the pickup and you won't have any tailgaters.

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A closed mouth gathers no foot

My only Big Gun at the moment is a Marlin Guide Gun in .45/70, but I gotta tell ya that I always had a thing for those old double rifles! Wonder if you can still get a H&H in .500 Nitro Express?

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"Long live the S&W 3rd. Gen.!"

I always wanted to shoot a .416 Rigby, and then I saw the price of the ammo. So far the biggest caliber modern rifle I ever fired has been the .45-70. One in a Marlin 1895 and the other was a Pedersoli 1885 failling block. I also owned a Mauser 98 conversion that was in .338-06 Improved. But if I keep a rifle around now it will be in .30-30. (AR-15's never have suited me, doubt they ever will). For an all around gun, get what works, a 12 gauge pump. You've got buckshot, you've got slugs. For a handgun, either a .44 Magnum in a 4-inch or a .41 Magnum in a 4-inch is the best thing. I always believe in something I can shoot comfortably vs getting my shoulder wrenched or my wrist sore by a handcannon I never needed in the first place. The only thing I use that is the really big bore is muzzleloading. While everyone else uses .45 and .50 caliber guns (with rare exception), I take to the woods with my 1853 Enfield Musketoon in .577 caliber. It does the job, and looks good while doing it. Who wants to chase the deer when you don't have to?

My woods carry gun, Smith 57 .41 Magnum.



A Model 29-2 I used to own, this would be the ideal gun



The 1853 Enfield Musketoon in .577. With 55-60 grains of powder and a 475 grain Minie ball, this gun is very accurate out to 100 yards and beyond despite the short barrel.



And here it is with a doe dropped with a shot to the neck at 100 yards. The deer never went anywhere.

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Vaya con Dios

I can't believe that no one has a classic double rifle elephant gun in something like 500 nitro express. I DON"T have one, but I would like to see one!

medxam

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Doc Garrett
Dead Man's Doctor

That's because the cheapest you can get is $2,000+ and that is for a used one (think,haven't looked for awhile) I know a few years back new ones were $5,000+ for a new one....and when I was a kid I vaguely remember some I looked at in old gun books were $50,000~$60,000 yes,that's right fifty to sixty thousand!!!!

Never mind that the last I checked the shells were going for $200+ for a box of twenty of the Nitro Express calibers.

There are those of who'd rather put such sums into vehicles,property and the like.

Good Evening, All,

For myself, my Marlin 1895SS .45-70 is all the rifle I need for most situations. Reloading for it, I've found a nice 300 grain load that will fall into a milk jug at 300 yards almost every shot. It arrives on target with plenty of punch left, and is all the big bore rifle that I need.

As for pistols, I have a Freedom Arms Field Grade .454 Casull, that is the finest pistol I've ever shot, bar none! From a rest, it will place all five of it's big bore rounds into the same ragged hole at 25 yards, all day long! With the right loads, it will shoot, stem to stern, through most any brown bear you might run across up in Alaska, and that's more than enough power for me. Others may choose to go for more horse-power, but as for me, the .45-70. and the .454 Casull will do ANYTHING that I might want to do with a firearm, period!! Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

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Honor God, above all.

Well, I am getting old enough that I don't want to trail Bambi or Bambina through the honeysuckle and saw briars we have in the south,
I started out with a .338 win mag and that dropped them dead with a Barnes 180 gr XTB but I had to explore this further and recently used a 9.3X62 that was awesome.. DRT.
My 460 S&W also resulted in a DRT but a lot of entry wound damage. So now I will take a 350 Rem Mag to see what it will do. I try to work smarter not harder...

Krull, I've never seen a double DGR for anything less than around $8,000...this for a used one. Butch Searcy will sell you a new one for around $12,000 and up depending on embellishments you would like, B. Searcy & Company. Searcy rifles are some of the best values out there IMO.

The $200.00 a box is for 10 rounds in the ol' nitros and many other DG rounds. Boxes of 20 are generally for commericial cartridges. According to A Square you can purchase 10 600 NE cartridges for roughly $200, A-Square Ammunition Price List


You can indeed purchase a new H&H in cartridges up to 700 Nitro Express, this includes all of the ol' British classic DG cartridges but hang on to your pocketbook!! Holland & Holland.

Cheers,
Sam

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Beware the man with one gun...

Like I said....been awhile since I looked into it~kinda wanted one until I saw the prices,holy majoly!

I've owned a bunch during my "Rifle" stage. I had three 375H&H, a 416 Rigby, a 416 Rem, a 458Win, two 45-70's, a 350 Rem Classic, a Clowers 35 Whelen Improved, three 338's, two 300 Wby's. Traded all for S&W revolvers. For elk and bear hunting in Oregon though, I'd really like to get another Ruger 77 in 338. Just like the gun. My last 338 SS Ruger is up in Alaska somewhere, left by my best friend at his son's house. It has shot several moose already in two years. Probably won't see it again. The kid did give me a Glock 35 though. I traded it for a Smith.

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beaver

I use to shoot in an annual competition called the Ernest Hemingway Memorial Shoot. This was a high class affair requiring hat and tie, entry fee was $3.00 and a bottle of wine. Minimum calibers allowed were .375 or 9.3X74R. It consisted of 9 stages most of which were scenarios that various folk had actually experienced in Africa, target were mostly dangerous game animal target with some steel thrown in. The "Charge of the Rogue Elephant" was done using a mover set up for Action Pistol and put you in the path of a charging elephant for example. Moving at 10 feet per sec you had about 3 seconds to mount your gun and hit the brain twice. This was always followed by "The Bloodbath", a one gallon jug of red dye suspended from the same overhead mover cable. As you can imagine it did a lot of bobbing and weaving when the motor jerked it into motion. It would come straight at you at 10 fps and if you missed it while it was moving you have to shoot it at point blank range...hence the name of the stage.

I started shooting this with a Model 70 in 375H&H and did very well for several years with a couple second places and one first but the match was really set up for the speed a double rifle gives. Dad bought a Tikka 412 in 9.3X74R but I decided on a different direction and had a Browning 71 built up into a 450 Alaskan. This will launch a 500 grain at 2100fps and was designed for big browns in Alaska. Armed with Boomer I won the match the next year.







This worked great but Dad and I decided a semi-auto would not only be faster but unlike the double rifle would hold more than two rounds. After talking things over with our gunsmith he decided he would take on the challenge of making a Browning BAR Safari into a dangerous game rifle. The result was a 375/338 that easily duplicated the 375H&H ballistics in a rapid fire rifle.





Sadly the Hemingway is no more but I still enjoy shooting the big bores. Of late I have been loading the 450 Alaskan with a case full of Trail Boss and a 400 grain bullet...makes a very nice shoot all day plinking load that still hits very hard.

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Dum vivimus, vivamus!

Excellent rifles Detonics, I like the idea of the 375/338. Autoloading rifles in large calibers are very interesting. Vigilance Rifles makes one in 505 Gibbs that has to be seen to be believed but at 17 lbs. it wouldn't be my ideal hunting rifle.

Many members of Accurate Reloading's Big Bore forum often get together and have what they call a Hoot n' Shoot at various places around the country, this is similar to your Hemingway Shoot. One of the mods lives near Houston and they have two a year. There is another member in AZ that has something very close to the Hemingway Shoot at a club in AZ. You can see some pictures here: Arizona Rifleshooting.com

I haven't made it to one of these yet but it's definately on my to do list.

Cheers,
Sam

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Beware the man with one gun...

I also love big guns. My biggest handgun is a S&W 500 Mag
I shoot both the 300 and 440 grain bullets.
In long guns I have a 375 H&H, a 300 Weatherby, and a few 45-70 rifles. Don

Welcome new member! A nice section of heavy boomers for sure.

I see you resurrected an old but good thread .Business on the forum will be a little light today due to the holiday, but keep checking and I think you will get some more posting.

Afraid my biggest boomers is a couple of M 29s and a few conventional hunting rifles but I have enjoyed shooting a .460 Weatherbee at my club in the past!

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14 S&W Revs none with locks!

I've had them all at one time or the other, the largest bore I have
now is a old JM Marlin 45/70. Less than a year ago I started the
process of thinning out my rifle rack. It is really hard to part with
a gun you have had for 50 yrs. Anyway I started in selling off the
big bore & magnums.For some reason the 375 H&H was the one
that was hardest to get rid of. Every time I go in gun room and
see the row of 375 shell boxes, I could kick myself for offing it.
I will probably get another one even if I have no further use for
a 375.

Well, since this thread is back in business...

Seems strange for recoil sensitive guy like like me to have big caliber rifles but I do have a couple. Mostly I do not enjoy shooting them. I never said that I made sense.

Had a 460 Jeffrey built on a Remington Model 30 action 30 years ago. A couple years back the same smith built a companion rifle on another M30 in 300 H&H. The cool factor on matching rifles is off the chart.




Stylish...brutal recoil.




Not a Magnum but in this lightweight carbine it rattles the teeth. With 250 grain 45 Colt slugs loaded to 1200 FPS a fun plinker.




Much heavier than the Trapdoor so recoil is tamed a bit, but still delivers a stout kick. This is maybe the most accurate rifle I own. Cuts cloverleaf groups at 50 yards.




Are we including 375s? If so I have a BRNO 602.




And a 375 double.

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No life story has happy end.