When European settlers first arrived in Africa, they brought with them trusty muzzleloaders that, though they may have served them well in the old country, proved far too anemic to dispatch the thick-skinned, heavy-boned dangerous game native to their new home. After a few close calls with cantankerous critters the size of pickup trucks, they
Big-game hunter John “Pondoro” Taylor developed a formula he claimed codified the “knockout” power of rifle cartridges. Is it a reliable measure of a round’s efficacy, or an antiquated theory with dubious origins? The study of ballistics has filled numerous textbooks through the ages and remains a contentious topic full of conflicting theories and mathematical
