Got a call last night from a young man that works with me.
He has been invited with a group of people to hunt Nailgi.
They will be sitting in assigned stands since they will only be allowed on a specific area of the ranch.
His biggest caliber gun is a 270 win and he just bought it this past year. Hasnt really had the opportunity to shoot it and I'm not sure what if any scope he has on it or even sigted in.

I have several guns that are probably more appropriate. Out of them I offered to let him take any of the following......
Couple of 300 win mags
7mm ultramag
Couple of 7mm rem mags
30-06
couple of 45-70's
ar-450 bushmaster pistol

Which of these SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED?

Also, from what I read on these animals the other night, they are just plain tough and the hide will usually seal up after bullet entry (or so I have read)

WHAT IS THE BEST SHOT PLACEMENT?
ANY IDEA ON SHOT DISTANCES?

Any help for him is appreciated.

AR pistol should not be considered.

.45-70 would greatly limit range and should not be considered IMO unless he is fine with that limitation. Any of the others on your list should be fine with well constructed bullets at any reasonable hunting distance (for me that is 300). Closer is always better.

I'll leave it to others more familiar with Nilgai anatomy to weigh in on shot placement.

I agree with NP.
Shot placement is everything, best to bust both shoulders an spine with one shot.

id stay stick to 30 cals. the 7 mags will do it, but to me they are a bit small. of the 2 options id say 300 win mag. nilgai are very tough, but a well placed shot will put one down. the 45-70 will do it but your range will be limited. nilgai dont stand around long and usually over 150 yds away. unless they sit at water hole, most shots will be closer to 200 yds. the biggest bull i ever killed took 3 338 RUM bullets in the lungs before he went down.

Never hunted them but given the chance I would go by the rule of you can't be over gunned. I have heard they are extremely tough animals. Hunted a place in Mills that adjoined a high fence ranch. One year we got 12" of rain in an hour and a portion of the fence along a creek got taken out. The following year one of the hunters had a world class Ibex show up in his area. Took 4 shots from a 270 just to knock him off his feet. Took a 5th to finally finish him off. I was at camp when he brought it in and all shot placements were good and I would consider lethal on a Texas whitetail. 300 winny or 30-06 would get my vote of those listed

ta the young man. best wishes ta u sir for helpen out

agree the .300 would be the ideal weapon for the animal. Being that he shoots the .270, the most comparable (recoil wise) would be the .30-06. People have killed Nailgi with the .270, but it would be considered on the small side IMHO. Center on the shoulder and a quick follow up shot if presented.

All are good calibers, I would let him shoot a few and see how he reacts to the recoil.

I agree as well, 30 caliber would definitely be the right direction. I would also tell him to keep shooting until he is out of ammo.

I have had the chance to shoot several large cows with my 45-70 using the Hornady Leverevolution 325g ammo and they have both went down with the first shot.

Good Luck.

At the end of the day, good shooting with good bullets is king. Why not help him find a .270 load with 150 grain premium bullets that shoots well in his rifle? If his rifle and scope are suspect, the .30-06, as others have suggested, is the most natural choice.

7mm ultra mag with bonded 160's or 300 with 165 and up bonded bullets. Learn anatomy of Nilgai the practice, practice, practice to 400 yards....don't forget to make sure you know where gun shoots at 50 as sometimes you can get a surprisingly close shot but not likely.

I'm going to be hunting a bull in late 2015 and plan on using my 270 wsm with 150 gr Nosler Partitions. The outfitters and people that hunt them regularly told me to find an anatomy pic of a Kudu and that would be real close to Nilgai. They aren't any harder to kill than Elk, but alot of guides chase them in High rack trucks and shoot them on the run.....which leads to bad shots and people thinking you need a cannon to kill one. Use a heavy for caliber bullet that is bonded and put that bullet in the pump station or high shoulder. Typical behind the shoulder shots like on Whitetail won't cut it. A shot from low chest, straight up the leg all the way up to the hump is a kill shot.



I found this pic. The white circle is your typical WT heart/lungs shot and the red dot(maybe slightly higher) is the heart on a Nilgai. They have huge lungs that skirt the top edge of the white circle going to the rear. Happy hunting!

Here is my experience that might be helpful. Shot placement key and I agree 30 cal is a better way to go. If I had to go again, I would probably still use the 30-06, but go with a heavier bullet weight like 185gr or 220gr


Nailgaihuntlink

A game warden captain down south is a buddy of mine. He has taken many and he shoots a 300 saum with Barnes 165's. Put it through the shoulder was his advice.

With all due respect, an elk couldn't live thru a nilgai's bad afternoon. Have you ever shot one? If one gets into the South Texas brush, most likely you won't find it. Take more gun than you need.
I like the spine shot. Find the withers, the tallest point on the back(shoulders), come down 10". There is a very large bone cluster there, part of the spine. One shot there, they will never take another step.

With all due respect, an elk couldn't live thru a nilgai's bad afternoon.





Now that is a truly funny statment. I'm guessing you have never spent anytime in the Rocky Mountains in the winter!!!!

Nogales, "closer is always better" !!! You're kidding right? I thought everybody shot everything at 500 yards +.

If he is in fact hunting the King, he might want to check with them. I think they have a minimum caliber requirement. When I hunted there(albeit on a corporate lease) they almost wouldn't let me hunt with my STW, but hey finally gave in. Now, I don't know if that was the company's rule, or the King's rule, but you should check with them on the .270 if in fact that is what he wants to take. My guide told me to aim low, around the area that the elbow comes up on the body.
I hit him with a 160gr AB around 175 yards, and he crumbled. FWIW.

For lunch today I had some Nailgi summer sausage that was given to me this weekend. It was good !!!