African Rifles and Cartridges

Book excerpt: 2014 Reprint of 1948 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. John Howard 'Pondoro' Taylor (1904 - 1969) was a big-game hunter of Irish descent. In Africa he experimented extensively using different types of rifles and calibers, which made him an expert in big game rifles. He is credited with developing the 'Taylor KO Factor' and wrote several now classic books. As a professional ivory hunter with some thirty years of continuous living in the African bush, John Taylor used and tested all the various calibers of British, American and German rifles, and with them killed many species of big game found on the continent of Africa. Taylor's discussion on the practical application of ballistics includes doubles, magazines, and single-shots; the practical value of steel-jacketed bullets versus those covered with cupronickel; the faults of copper-tubed bullets; the actual effects of softpoint bullets with varying degrees of lead exposure; the necessity of modern bullets that will really stand up to the requirements when fired into heavy animals; and many other valuable tips and explanations about cartridges and rifles. Remains a classic work.