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An elephant gun is a large caliber gun, rifled or otherwise, so named because they were originally developed for use by big-game hunters for elephants and other large dangerous game.

Contents 1 Bore guns, circa 1850 2 Features 3 World War I 4 Media 5 External links 6 See also

Traditionally, these were very large caliber black powder muzzle-loading smoothbores and later became breech-loading firearms with rifling (c.1880). Calibre was measured in bore or gauge such as 10, 8 and 6 or even 4-gauge and projectiles were lead roundballs or short conical slugs. Due to the velocity limitations of blackpowder and lead (usually around 1500 feet per second) the only way to increase penetration was to make a larger gun. The largest bore rifles such as the 4 bore using 2000grain (4.25 ounce) slugs still suffered penetration issues on the toughest target of all, the bone mass for a frontal brainshot on elephant. Thus dangerous game hunting in the 1800s was as much a test of the gunbearer's ability to relay guns to the hunter, and his skill on horseback in some cases to evade charges long enough to reload. It was not until the parallel developments of jacketed projectiles closely followed by smokeless powders in the late 1800s that dangerous game could be taken with 100% certainty.

The Nitro Express line (c.1900), so named because the composition of the early smokeless powders such as axite and cordite is nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin, were the first of the new order of elephant guns. With smaller metal jacketed projectiles ranging from .400 to .620 and velocities around 2000 feet per second they possessed vastly increased trajectory and penetration over their blackpowder forebearers. The safari heyday of the early 1900s records much literature on such calibres as the .577 Nitro Express, .375 H&H Magnum, .416 Rigby, 404 jeffery and the .470 Nitro Express. These rifles came out in single shot, bolt action, and double rifle configuration and continued to be used up until ivory hunting died off in the mid 20th century. Here they largely switched roles to tools for game wardens and as back-up firearms for professional hunters guiding international hunters.

The American gun market produced several famous dangerous game cartridges around this time, such as the 458 Winchester magnum and 378 and 460 weatherby magnums and many of these were 'wildcatted' (to modify an existing case and rifle to fire a different caliber bullet). The rest of the old Nitro express calibers were to fade almost to obscurity until a recent resurgence in safari hunting came about in the 1970s and 1980s. This prompted a new boom in elephant gun development and calibers such as the 416 Weatherby and 416 Remington arrived in factory offerings. The late 1980s and 1990s produced the .700 Nitro Express and the new brass manufacturers allowed even more powerful elephant guns such as the .585 Nyati, .577 Tyrannosaur and .585 Gehringer to be made by wildcatters. Hundreds more are listed on the internet's gun forums. The .600 Overkill made by Rob Garnick represents at this moment the greatest power available from a standard hunting action^{[citation needed]}.

Whether double rifle, single shot, or bolt action the concept of the elephant gun is the same: to provide enough stopping power to prevent harm to the hunter in the case of charging game. The necessities for the gun are not only extreme power, since in that case the 50BMG or 20mm cannons would be the order of the day, but that it can be carried for long periods, shot from any position or angle, and be well balanced enough to track on rapidly moving animals. In essence it is no more than a large hunting rifle with the same capability of use as any hunting rifle.

There is a continuing interest in such firearms especially with the increased hunting opportunities being made for the average wage earner to travel to Africa. Such hunting is relatively expensive though and on a strict licensing system by game departments to allow sustainability of game.

During World War I both the British and Germans deployed elephant guns obtained from their African colonies in an attempt to break the stalemate in the trenches. The British would use elephant guns as a means of countering the German tactic of having their snipers advance towards Allied lines under the cover of a large metal plate. Though normal small arms would be ineffective against the plate, the elephant gun would have enough force to punch through it. Likewise, the Germans deployed a specialized, mass-produced weapon called the Tankgewehr to knock out lightly armored British tanks.

An elephant gun of unnamed make is featured in the 1989 film 'Tremors'. It is instrumental in killing one of the 'graboids' that breaks into an underground weapons bunker. In the 1995 film 'Jumanji' the Hunter, named Van Pelt, carries an elephant gun which he later replaces with a modern high powered sniper rifle.

• Youtube - A video showing the immense recoil strength of a .577 rifle.
• Youtube - A second video on .577 recoil.

• Shotgun
• Express rifle
• Howdah pistol