Guns on a Budget?!?

I wonder if you guys can help me, I live in Johannesburg South Africa, I have been shooting (not hunting) for 2 years and have a love for the outdoor stuff Flyfishing is more of a passion than a hobby or sport. I am 18 years old and starting to get interested in hunting the problem is I'm on a bit of tight budget and don't really have any experience with hunting. do you think it is worth my while to buy a small cheap rifle eg .22 and start off small and work my way up or try get a bit of experience and save up for a 303 or 308. I only have about R3000.00 to my name which works out to about $300.00 and don't want to buy something that I won't enjoy. My targets would be plains game springbok gazelle and animals as large as wildebeest and sable antelope. Any recommendations will be greatly apprexiated

Gavin, Plenty of marksmanship practice is a good thing, but unless you have a convenient place to shoot a .22, perhaps a good air rifle would be a better choice? Last time I thumbed through the South Africa gun magazine (Magnum?) I recall that the CZ or Brno rifles were the best buy in modern rifles in the RSA. I have a CZ 452 Lux .22 with which I am quite pleased, and Schalk Van Heerden, our host and PH at Bush Africa Safaris <http://www.business.lantic.net/bushasaf/> uses a well worn CZ in .30'06 as his light rifle. Have you given any thought to hunting with a bow? It is fine sport, and learning the traditional longbow or recurve is at least as challenging as fly fishing. A better bow - compound or traditional - will cost you as much as a good rifle but you can practice in town and hunt small game and large with the same one, instead of needing both a trainer and a game rifle. Good hunting! Michael

Well, a .22 won't do any of the plainsgame you mentioned.. I'm not going to give any specific advice for Africa, but a very good place to ask your questions would be here: http://www.serveroptions.com/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ ultimatebb.cgi

happy hunting!! btw, how is flyfishing in RSA? What species are there?

Hi, Gavin. You need both a .22 and a large bore. You are going to have to do some serious shopping to find rifles within your budget.

First, look for a used but mechanically sound .22 single shot for about R500. You are not going to be hunting dangerous game with a .22, and shooting a single shot rifle instills excellent hunting habits. You have to make the first shot. A .22LR is adequate for small game up to a maximum of 15 or 20 kg., and the cheap ammunition means you can afford to fire several thousand rounds learning to shoot accurately. Good marksmanship is a complex skill that requires training and many hours of practice.

While you are getting started with the .22, you can shop for a large bore rifle. If appearance is important to you, you will have to save quite a bit more money. If function is more important, you can probably afford a gun that is close to your needs right now. The key to buying used guns is patience. There is no 'inventory.' Your best bet is to find a gun club and spend a lot of time there practicing with your .22. Put up a notice about your requirements, and change it regularly. Most hunters will have a backup rifle, or an older rifle they aren't using any more. Besides .303 and .308, consider an 8mm Mauser, particularly if it has been fitted with a sport stock.

If I properly understand the terrain in South Africa, you will need a scope. Glass from Leupold or Nikon will cost nearly as much as a new gun. Look for an older used scope of quality manufacture, but with a fixed magnification. The modern passion is for variable power scopes, but the old fixed magnification scopes worked just fine.

Rifle defects that don't affect performance are things like a damaged or cracked stock. Many stocks crack right where they mount to the receiver. You can remove the stock, squirt some high tech glue in there, clamp the crack closed for 3 days, and a defect that reduced the value of the rifle by 1/3 will vanish. Exterior patches of rust can be polished out and the rifle re-blued. If the barrel is bright, the rifling is sharp and the action is clean and tight, that is all you need.

Think of buying used guns as an investment. If you buy carefully and well, you will always be able to get your money back, or perhaps even make a profit. Take your time, and shop carefully.

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A good shotgun would also be a good idea. Old single shot break action hammer guns are all over the place, and cheap. They don't have to be pretty, just safe to shoot. One that is ugly but a good shooter probably won't cost you much. With a shotgun you could extend your hunting to birds and upland game.