.375 H&H Mag for deer ... mule and whitetail?

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MCMXI

MCMXI

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From everything I've read about .375 H&H Mag and based on comments by forum experts such as H&Hhunter I'm aware that it's a great cartridge for elk but I'm curious if anyone here uses it as an elk and deer cartridge. Maybe it'd be a compromise to use the .375 H&H for both animals but I would think that as a hand loader I could work up two loads or is that over-complicating things? Bottom line, if you're hunting elk and deer with no idea as to which you might encounter on any given day, is the .375 H&H still a great choice?

Thanks.
 
I've used it for African Wildcat on the small side to Blue Wildebeast on the big side so deer & Elk should be no problem. Pick a 270 or 300 grain bullet & you'll be good for everything. You don't need to bother with 2 different loads.
 
Think of a .375H&H as a bigger .30-06. It has about he same trajectory as compared to an 06 with similar sectional density bullets. It does about the same amount of meat damage on all game, as in very mild meat damage. The only difference in terminal performance is that the .375 gives much deeper straight line penetration and it has a lot more momentum so it gives more bone breaking ability on heavy game.

I've killed deer and smaller game such as impala, inyala even reed buck with a .375H&H it pumps a hole through them kills them just fine and it does very minimal meat damage even on very small light game. Is a .375H&H needed for deer sized game? No it isn't, but it is perfectly suitable for use on a deer if that is what you have in your hands at the time.

It's one of these scenarios, if I am Cape buffalo hunting with my .375 and I see a great impala I want to shoot, it is absolutely not an issue. If I am impala hunting with my .30-06 and I see a Cape buffalo bull I want to shoot it is a problem. Same goes for elk vs deer except obviously an 06 is pretty fair elk round.

If you'd feel comfortable hunting deer with a .338 there is no reason in the world you shouldn't feel just as comfortable doing it with a .375. The "unwashed masses" in this country will give you some chaff about it as the .375 is considered exotic and different but they have no idea what they are talking about. The .375 has a reputation in this country as being a heavy rifle that is best used on super heavy game. When in fact it is a medium bore that happens to be the minimum that is considered to be just adequate on the super heavies and just about perfect for just about anything else. As my good friend in Africa once said "There might be better choices for some hunting but the .375 is never the wrong choice."
 
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H&Hhunter, thanks once again for your expertise and thanks to Grumulkin too. I'm excited to hear that the .375 H&H won't destroy much meat, particularly when used on deer. I'll take my Talkeetna on the elk/deer hunt this October and will be working up a load this summer/fall using a Barnes bullet (TTSX or TSX FB) and VV540 powder. Hopefully I'll be able to share some good pictures in the hunting forum in a few months.
 
1858

I've been trying to get my hands on some Vihtavuori as the data looks great. I can't get it down here. How are the real world numbers with VV540?
 
H&Hhunter, I bought 5lb of VV540 late last year from powdervalley but haven't put together a single round yet. I chose it because Tim J at Barnes highly recommended that powder with their bullets. I'll let you know how it works in a month or so. I'm closing on a 20 acre property on 7/15 and will have a private range again so plan on doing a lot more shooting and load development in the very near future.
 
Seeing as how I can't manage the word "comfortable" into the same sentence with anything that has to do with .338 Magnum, I have the same lack of facility using that word in the same sentence with .375 Magnum.

If you could line up in a row every deer for a 10 mile radius, I would expect the .375 Magnum to kill each of them with a single shot.

Man, if you don't mind the recoil, the rifle will do its part I'm sure.
 
I've not fired one, but I've heard the .375 H&H isn't that bad as far as recoil goes. A friend of mine shot one and compares it to a 12-gauge with a magnum buckshot or slug load.

I know that isn't exactly light, but it is less than a lot of big bores.
 
W.E.G. said:
Man, if you don't mind the recoil, the rifle will do its part I'm sure.
Click to expand...

I've shot many, many rifles over the years and my Talkeetna in .375 H&H is nowhere near the worst in terms of felt recoil. It's an 8lb rifle without the scope and the kevlar/carbon fiber stock does a great job of mitigating felt recoil. It really is a joy to shoot.


Arkansas Paul said:
A friend of mine shot one and compares it to a 12-gauge with a magnum buckshot or slug load.
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I'd much rather shoot my Talkeetna than a slug or magnum buckshot through one of my 870s. I find slugs and an 870 to be fairly brutal.
 
If you could line up in a row every deer for a 10 mile radius, I would expect the .375 Magnum to kill each of them with a single shot.
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Once again the .375H&H simply isn't that much of a fire breathing beast. It will definitely poke a hole through a deer but it isn't a meat exploding thunder boomer like some folks try to make it out to be. I find the recoil somewhat pleasent and often shoot multiple rounds from the bench with a hot loaded .375H&H. The .375H&H is considered one of the best DG capable rifles for women and children due to the ease of shoot-ability and lack of recoil for a DG capable rifle. Of course any rifle is going to be uncomfortable given improper stock fit and shape.
 
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a cz 550 in .375 h&h killed this large zebra with a 105yd frontal shot with a 260gr accubond at 2650fps stone dead. other calibures may be better ,but the 375 h&h will not let you down. eastbank.
 

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Robert said:
My Winchester M70 Safari Express is one of the easiest to shoot rifles I own. I'd rather shoot three boxes of 375 than a box of magnum 12ga rounds. It can be a bit stout off the bench but off hand it is a pussy cat.
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I concur. Mine was sweet and almost MOA in a Remington 700 with a heavy barrel. Shot about a fat silver dollar sized group with my full-bore handloads. I still have about half-a-box of Hornady some-things. I'll check later and see what they weighed.
 
Seems to me, if one is out looking for Elk and deer at the same time, one needs to have the appropriate weapon for the largest species he may encounter. While a 300 gr bullet outta a .375 H&H mag rifle may be a tad bit overkill for the average white-tail or Muley, it is certainly appropriate for elk. Come fall Turkey season, my shotgun is loaded with 3'' #5s. If a grouse happens to flush in front of me, I let it get out there a ways.......:uhoh:
 
I have a Winchester Model 70 Safari Express in both 375 H&H as well as 416 Rem Mag. The 375 H&H is not unpleasant to shoot. It is amazingly accurate, but the only thing that I have shot with it so far have been wild hogs, which never took another step. I would say that it will probably be fine for deer with less meat damage than a high velocity projectile. If I get the opportunity, I will update this post.
 
I find the recoil somewhat pleasent and often shoot multiple rounds from the bench with a hot loaded .375H&H.
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Speaking from the experience of shooting with H&HHunter (while diagnosing a wandering rear sight on a pre-war iron sighted Model 70 in 375H&H), after putting nearly 50 rounds down range over the space of an hour from the bench with full-house loads, I was nearly at my limit. However, the first 30 or so were by no means unpleasant, and from off-hand or off sticks this is one of the truly joyous rifles to fire. (I have from time to time wondered at H&HHunter's capacity for practical jokes, nonetheless.)

The great wonder of the .375H&H is its marvelous accuracy, straight-line penetration, and true flexibility for the reloader. I have loaded 180, 200, 250, 270, 300, and 350 grain bullets, with velocities as low as 900fps using IMR4759 all the way up to 2950fps using RL15. My wife enjoys shooting the low-velocity loads (as do I!) for general plinking and practicing snap-shooting; to the other extreme, while having watched the effects of hip-to-shoulder transection on elk in the company of the esteemed H&HHunter in years past I am likewise assured that there is not an animal on this continent (nor most others) that would be the equal of this fine cartridge.

That this queen of 1911 is once again rising to prominence through the use of modern powders and bullet construction should bring a warm smile to any rifleman. Indeed, its relative disuse on this continent is a travesty in its own right.

The first shot was called a little low. The remaining were true:
IMG_0002-1.jpg
 
If that`s all you have...........it will certainly do the job.

For me, on the deer side, it would be more than I`d need/use. Plus the weight.

That`s why said, if that`s all you have.
 
I concur 100% with H&Hhunter's comments. I have hunted extensively over the last 25+ years throughout Africa and shot many of all the same animals mentioned above. I have owned and hunted with many rifles in calibers ranging from 243, 270, 308 and larger and without a doubt the 375H&H became my favorite go-to. Much less meat damage than a 270/30-06 on whitetail deer sized game, great penetration, less susceptible to deflection in thick brush, surprisingly flat shootng with ligher weight bullets. Overall just an extremely versatile caliber.
 
@Gaiudo - totally agree. I found it pleasant to shoot off bench, off-hand, from sticks and very often from prone position as well and for 20 to 30 rounds or so i never experienced it becoming uncomfortable. But then, I have seldom that much at one time with it, primarily because i use for hunting.

@Sav.250 - yup, it will certainly donthe job for anything you can possibly run into, regardless if whether it is all you have or not. Again, as mentioned in my first post, it does mot waste as much as you would think but i do agree it is usually heaver than a standard short action rifle. In A stand that is irrelevant to me. I have not yet hunted in the west and mountains but have done many many miles in Africa hiking and stalking (my 375 is a Winchester mod70 Safari Express) and it is heavy but not unbearable. My 270 is much lighter but i always seem to reach for the 375 first.
 
1858 said:
From everything I've read about .375 H&H Mag and based on comments by forum experts such as H&Hhunter I'm aware that it's a great cartridge for elk but I'm curious if anyone here uses it as an elk and deer cartridge. Maybe it'd be a compromise to use the .375 H&H for both animals but I would think that as a hand loader I could work up two loads or is that over-complicating things? Bottom line, if you're hunting elk and deer with no idea as to which you might encounter on any given day, is the .375 H&H still a great choice?

Thanks.
Click to expand...
I'll take my Iron sight Sako Kodiak .375H&H, or if i'm feeling extra strong, my scoped
Win. M70 .375H&H Safari , hunting in MT., especially being in Grizz country.
Elk,Moose & Deer...and whatever may challenge me for my trophy!
 
Too much cartridge for anything in North America. Big bears included. So is any magnum. They just aren't required.
I wouldn't consider working up two loads though. Even though it's fun. One load, for the biggest thing you could come by, will do nicely.
 
I've not hunted with the 375 but I have with some of the 338's and have taken deer without them being blown in half.
Take a lot of the dreaded "magnum destruction" warnings with a grain of salt, good shot placement and bullets mean a great deal and pretty much any high velocity bullet hitting bone and dense tissue is going to make a mess.
 
Sunray said:
Too much cartridge for anything in North America. Big bears included. So is any magnum. They just aren't required.
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I've always wondered what people mean by 'too much cartridge'. I guess this is my opportunity to press on clarifying what is generally an obscure but oft repeated phrase.... By this do you mean:

'Too much meat damage'. Surely not, as my 270, 7mm and even my 243 easily do more damage to usable meat than my .375 when loaded properly.

'Too much recoil'. Subjective, of course, but certainly no more than any of the winmags, wethmags, etc.

'Too much penetration'. Never understood this. The ability to take a fully quartered hip to shoulder second shot, while not a desired, result, is a great insurance policy.

'Too expensive'. I would have a hard time paying retail prices for 375 cartridges. But one of the main reasons I own it is for the reloading flexibility this cartridge provides.


For you, what does 'too much cartridge' actually mean?
 
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