Handgun Hunting Afield

I recently had the privilege of taking part in my first Safari traveling to South Africa with my wife and a group of hand gunners in pursuit of plains game. We traveled from our home in central MN by way of Atlanta, Johannesburg, and Polokwane before arriving at our lodge overlooking the Limpopo River after a long, rough, drive through the red dirt roads of northern Limpopo province.

The Gear

This area of Limpopo is known for thick acacia and mopane scrub which harbors excellent game populations and limits shot distances. Knowing this, I decided long before the trip to only bring wheel guns and my S&W Performance Center in .460 S&W along with a Ruger Super Redhawk in .44 Reminton magnum got the nod.

Both guns were topped with optics from Ultradot USA and used handloaded ammunition firing Cutting Edge Bullets HG Raptors loaded in Starline’s excellent brass.

Ultradot

Ultradot optics have a long history of proven performance, offering a blend of simplicity, durability, and accuracy. The big 460 was topped with an Ultradot Gen 2 30 mm which had proven itself through firing of many rounds during load development and practice with this powerful X-frame along with punishment from hundreds of rounds of 475 Linebaugh and 480 Ruger from other wheel guns.

The Super Redhawk was topped with an Ultradot Gen 2 25 mm which was chosen after my long serving Weaver Classic handgun scope failed a month or so before this hunt after surviving many thousands of top end .44 magnum loads. I’ve recently outlined the ruggedness of the Gen 2 25 mm in a recent article for the blog https://handgunhuntingafield.blog/2025/08/03/ultradot-gen-2-25mm-a-handgun-hunters-workhorse-by-jake-kitzmann/.

Guns and PH

 Many head of game were taken during this outing and both guns, their optics and ammunition performed admirably. The outfit we’d chosen has been operating in Limpopo since the mid-nineties but had nearly zero experience guiding handgun hunters.

The afternoon before hunting commenced, we verified the zero of our guns and the Professional Hunters were quite taken back by my big X-frame but were unsure about the range limits of the guns when topped with dot style optics. They were also intrigued by the fracturing design of the Gutting Edge HG Raptors and I will focus on the performance of these bullets in the .460 S&W in this article as several slugs were able to be retrieved. 

We spent much of the hunt over water holes or driving and glassing then following up on foot. This was nice, as I was able to have both guns close at hand and able to choose the right one based upon the game which presented themselves and I was excited to put the X-frame to work. Late in the morning on the 3rd day, the big S&W got its first opportunity when a blue wildebeest came in for a drink.

Our hide was perfectly blended into the surrounding vegetation and the bull came in at a mere 25 yards presenting its right shoulder for a shot quartering slighty to me. I fired off hand and the 240 gr HG Raptor moving at 1,850 f.p.s. struck hard on the shoulder.

The bull lurched forward taking two large bounds into the water hole obviously impacted by the big, fast, bullet before reversing course and retreating back the way it came. I watched through my binoculars until the bull fell in the scrub about 70 yards away.

Recovered Cutting Edge Bullet

After much adulation of the harvest, I noted a large lump under the very thick skin on the offside of the ribcage where the bullet had come to rest.  The bullet had penetrated about 18” breaking the shoulder blade and ribs on both sides before stopping.

I retrieved the bullet and upon weighing it at home, it had shed almost exactly 55 grs of weight when it’s three copper petals broke off as designed causing massive internal wounding while allowing the lighter shank to penetrate deep and straight into the tough animal.

The .460 was put to use again on the 5th day while sitting in the same location. It was a slow, cool, day in the blind. Hours passed listening to the manic cackle of guinea fowl, the continuous twitter of finches and the grumbling chorus of grey go away birds before the afternoon brought some four-legged activity to our haunt. Several water buck, impala and duiker visited for some reprieve from the arid conditions of wintertime in the veld. As the sun plunged toward the horizon and the light faded, my wife caught a glimpse of something moving down the bank to our right.

At the water hole.

My PH and I couldn’t see anything at first but after a couple tense minutes, a second wildebeest descended the steep bank and lowered its head for a drink at about 45 yards. I steadied the red dot squarely on it’s leading shoulder for the quartering shot and let it fly. At the report, the bull lunged forward with its obviously wounded front leg held high charging through the water hole.

  My PH urged a quick follow up shot and I anchored the animal on the far-side of the water hole with a quartering away shot which entered just behind the left rib cage, the 240 gr HG Raptor delivering a quick end.

Consistant Results

Back at this skinning shed, our skinner, George, was able to retrieve the two slugs from the carcass. The fist had performed similarly to that from the last wildebeest breaking one shoulder and ribs on both sides before stopping under the skin.

The second slug, which entered behind the ribs, traveled about 24” before hanging up behind the shoulder blade on the offside. Both performed exactly as expected, their three petals fractured off the shank after short penetration shedding some weight and allowing the shank to drive deep and straight. As with the slug from the first wildebeest, both shed almost exactly 55 grains with the intact shanks weighing about 185 grs.

On the 9th day of our Safari we hunted a group of trophy Gemsbok we’d seen from a blind several days prior. We were following up Zebra along a small trail when the group of Gemsbok bulls came into view.

They busted us and moved off, so we circled downwind before spotting them again through the scrub. They got nervous and a small bull began to move off as a very nice one stepped into a clearing at 80 yards. I steadied my red dot and a high shoulder shot planted the Gemsbok in its tracks.

I ran forward and delivered an unnecessary follow up shot to bring the end more quickly. Upon skinning the animal, the bullet had broken ribs and shoulders on both sides and again was stopped just under the offside skin. The retained weight of the 240 gr slug was also nearly identical to the other three.

16 Animals Taken

All told, 16 animals were harvested during this trip, none traveled more than 75 yards after the shot and many fell in their tracks. The animals covered in this article were the largest taken and the only ones where a full pass through of the bullet didn’t occur with either the .460 or .44 mag. In all instances the Cutting Edge HG Raptors performed as one would hope, consistently providing excellent penetration, wide wounding, and fast humane kills.

The Ultradot optics used on both guns allowed me to adjust to changing light conditions on the fly and provided for accurate shooting in all kinds of conditions. 

I believe that the marksmanship and sportsmanship displayed by the devoted hand gunners in our group did much to allay any concerns which may have existed with the PH’s regarding the efficacy of handguns on game.

Equipping myself with nothing but revolvers on my first Safari was a humbling experience that added to my elation as I stood in quiet reverence for the dark continent after each harvest.