Charles Loots’s* Shooting the Sweet Spot

The .300 Holland and Holland Magnum: An African Classic

Thousands of articles have been written extolling the attributes and virtues of different calibres; similar tomes of ballistic data comparison have also been generated over the years. As new cartridges make their appearance, perhaps it’s time to reflect on what has been effective and desirable by old-time PHs.

While having a beer with long-time friend and mentor Don Lindsay (ex-president of PHASA (Professional Hunters Association South Africa) and IPHA (International Professional Hunters Association) the conversation turned to a recent hunt near Wolmaranstad, South Africa. The terrain was a mix of open plain and thicker thorn bush areas, and a variety of close and long shots were called for. I asked Don, who had hunted extensively in Botswana and around the world, what he thought was the ideal medium all-round rifle for sport trophy hunters in Africa. I agreed with him completely when he said the .300 H&H.

Choosing a rifle and calibre is subjective, but occasionally one uses a cartridge that is wonderfully balanced and consistently dependable in a variety of situations. The first .300 H&H I ever fired was a rifle made by Holland and Holland belonging to Zimbabwean pioneer outfitter, professional hunter, and game rancher Ian Henderson. The rifle was marvellous, and it performed on everything I hunted, from warthog to eland. Much of what I relate here I must credit Ian with.

‘Hitting the sweet spot’ in shooting means firing a rifle that embodies three essential components:

Firstly, and arguably most importantly, is that the calibre holds a place of psychological confidence in the mind of its user. It’s essential that a hunter believes in the bullet he uses, and isn’t scared of it.

Secondly, the rifle must fit the user properly. A common fault is ensuring proper stock length, particularly with over-the-counter rifles.

Thirdly, the bullet the rifle fires should be well balanced. By well balanced I mean an optimal (not necessarily maximum) combination of velocity, recoil, and available bullet types and weights, sectional density, and penetration performance.

The .300 H&H was developed in 1925 and was originally called ‘Holland’s Super 30,’ and it certainly has been super for many hunters ever since its inception. Its popularity increased after it was used to win the famous Wimbledon 1000-yard match in 1935.  While it remains popular today, its following hardly does it justice with respect to its versatility and performance. 

The .300 H&H Magnum is essentially a tapered and necked down .375 H&H Magnum.  It can fire a variety of bullets, both hard and soft nose, and it has been my experience that the 220-grain provides good sectional density and thus excellent penetration at respectable velocities. I’ve found that in heavy bush, when hunting larger plains game, it’s often a good idea to load a magazine of solids with a soft-nose round on top. After the first shot, if follow-up shots are needed, solids provide better performance through brush at an animal that’s almost always quartering away from the hunter. Long, round-nosed solids provide the direction and penetration that’s so often needed on follow-up shooting.

Less experienced hunters often fall prey to the marketing gimmicks and theories that faster and more powerful is always better. This is absolutely not so.  In fact, there is almost always a direct correlation between the size of the calibre and the level of inaccuracy. Invariably people shoot more accurately with the smaller calibres. It’s true that flat shooting cartridges are useful, and the .300 H&H (particularly with lighter bullets such as the 180-grain) shoots flat indeed. However, it’s important to remember that as soon as a bullet exits an animal, anything that happens thereafter is simply wasted energy, for which the shooter is punished during its generation.

Flinch is something that can easily creep into even the most experienced hunter’s level of accuracy. It’s often sub-conscious, and in general not enough attention is given to this phenomenon. The .300 H&H has a performance that, in general, far exceeds its recoil; obviously, to some degree, recoil characteristics of any cartridge depend on the weight, balance and fit of the rifle. The tapered cartridge seems to deliver more of a ‘push’ or ‘rock’ rather than the sharp ‘crack’ so often accompanied with the steep-shouldered magnums.

There may be no scientific evidence behind my next observation, but it has been my experience that steep-shouldered cartridges seem to ‘crack’ far more than those with a more tapered design and less of a shoulder.

Every experienced hunter acknowledges shot placement over cartridge size, within reason. When hunting dangerous game, a smaller bullet in the right place is far better than a big one in the wrong place.

Don recounted how, years ago, countless buffalo and some elephant were taken with the likes of the .30-06 Springfield and .300 H&H loaded with good, heavy (220-grain) solids. Good penetration and shot placement were almost always the order of the day.  Better the safari client exchanged an enormous calibre he was frightened of for a rifle he could shoot confidently and accurately.

These days, in some African countries, the .375 H&H is the legal minimum for hunting dangerous game. The .375 H&H is the big brother of the .300 H&H; in the right rifle, it is a pleasure to use, and rightfully has an outstanding reputation. Anyone who has reservations about the .375 H&H, or .30-06 for that matter, would be well advised to pick up the book Kambaku by professional ivory hunter Harry Manners, one of Africa’s all-time greatest hunters. It’s a brilliant and exciting read for any hunting enthusiast.

The .30-06 is another cartridge that performs in the field beyond the ballistic data behind it. It’s an old faithful and must surely rank somewhere in the top five cartridges with respect to numbers of animals taken over the years. Despite the negative comments I’ve so often heard along the lines of ‘rainbow trajectory’ and shooting ‘low and slow,’ in practice it’s an absolute winner. There’s simply no substitute for zeroing the rifle correctly and knowing the cartridge.

Away from the theoretical side of cartridge statistics, many curveballs are thrown at a hunter in the field.  These include wind, bullet deflection, animals standing at unusual angles.  Therefore, it’s important that hunters not be overly mesmerized by tables of ballistic data.  Better to balance this by investigating the cartridges that have proven themselves time and time again and have demonstrated a capacity to absorb, and simply effectively deal with some of the ‘curveball’ component.

Indeed, many of the people who demand velocity at any cost are often part of the fraternity that prefers 24x-power scopes and ‘close-in’ shots at 400 yards. My comment is: ‘Different strokes for different folks.’ Hunt in the way that you enjoy most – as long as it’s ethical and there’s some element of fair chase.

Personally, the challenge in hunting isn’t purely a measure of marksmanship but also the way I adapt to my surroundings in executing a good, stealthy and well-planned stalk. For me, closer is always better and more rewarding. It certainly ups the stakes as the risk of animals becoming aware of your presence usually increases the closer you get to them.

There certainly are other medium cartridges that will deliver more velocity, such as the .300 Winchester Magnum and .300 Weatherby Magnum.  But the H&H delivers more than is usually needed and does it in a most pleasant way. The tapered cartridge feeds beautifully and isn’t prone to jamming.

I guess there is also some element of nostalgic fantasy, knowing one is using a classic for the African environment. This is why some people who fly-fish use carefully tied and selected flies rather than a throw net. An element of hunting that is too often forgotten is that the ‘getting’ should be every bit as important as the ‘having.’ These days too much emphasis is placed on trophy size rather than on the experience of the hunt itself.

It’s sad that the variety of .300 H&H factory ammo isn’t what it used to be. While hand- loaders are at liberty to exploit the full versatility of the round, those dependent on factory ammunition have but a few brands and bullet combinations to choose from.

Despite this, if you’re after a medium cartridge that’s fantastically versatile, and especially if you’re having a custom rifle built, find a way to fire a few rounds through a .300 H&H.  You may just find that it’s ideal in every respect and a delight to use.  

Although he never practised as such, Charles is a qualified PH and has hunted extensively in Africa, predominantly in Zimbabwe and South Africa. He is also a private pilot and flies aerobatics regularly in the Yak-52 he owns with his father. He particularly enjoys flying Tiger Moths. He is also a SCUBA instructor and has dived around the world. Charles began his career with AngloGold in a remote part of Mali, living and working there for three years before moving to Johannesburg, where he was the Community Development Manager for Africa Open Pit Mining. He is currently the Environmental and Community Development Manager for PB Africa.