375H&H Decision

The 375 is nice and it's brother the 375 ruger, they damage less meat then most think, kinda like the 45/70 if not loaded not the damage isn't much. Still has the power to drop and land animal in the world. I'm not the biggest fan of belted magnums I prefer the slick sided cases like the ruger. But the 375h&h is such a nice round I can live with that.

I'd like to pick up a cz there action is build on a real magnum action and not a 06 action hogged out.

If you're planning on hunting with it I'd go with a bolt action. Shots in the field aren't ideal and sometimes quick follow-up shots are necessary.

45-70 recoil is all over the place since loads for it vary considerably. As do the rifles it is shot in. I've only fired a 375 on one occasion and found recoil to be more manageable than 45-70 from a Marlin lever gun. Modern stocks do a lot better job of managing recoil than old school lever guns.

It certainly isn't needed for anything in North America. It might be comforting as a stopping round in case things go bad when hunting big bear. But at the same time it isn't unrealistic for any other big game in North America. Trajectory is not much different than 30-06 and it is capable of longer shots on even smaller deer.

If I were to buy a 375 I'd get the 375 Ruger. Performance wise it is a tiny bit better, but it fits in standard long action rifles. The 375 H&H is much longer and requires a long action that has been modified or a magnum action. Either option runs cost up considerably. The 375 has more panache, but when I can do the same thing with the Ruger for much less that is the way I'd go.

https://ruger.com/products/HawkeyeAfrican/specSheets/37186.html

or for my use probably this

https://ruger.com/products/HawkeyeAlaskan/specSheets/57100.html

I picked up a Mossberg Patriot in 375 Ruger for no particular reason early this year and I have been super impressed with both the cartridge and even the rifle. I have the "all weather" plastic and cerakote version but the Revere edition in Walnut and blued steel is quite attractive. Ruger do a very nice M77 in the 375 Ruger as well and if you have found one of those in LH, that's a great call. I have been shooting it with 270 grs Hornady Interlocks and Barnes at near full whack and it is not unbearable, but for deer, I have a cast bullet load at 375 Winchester velocities that is quite pleasant. Good luck.

mlankton said:

this reply actually may turn out to be really useful. I found a lefty version of the Ruger in 375 Ruger for less than the rifle I was trying to talk myself into. Thank you.

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ya I think I seen the same gun, sweet deal. If I had the money id buy it.

My dad used to call the 375h&h the 30-30 of Africa.

Nother .375 Ruger shooter. I run mine with 260 accubonds, and 270 speer btsp, both loaded to 2800-2850. Trajectory is useful to farther than I can shoot, recoil while heavy (8.25lb rig) is not brutal, and accuracy has been fantastic.

The 270 speers are soft, expand very rapidly at 2800+, and will be destructive. At least on the stuff I've shot with it. Id run them slower or keep bullets out of the eaty bits with those.
The accubonds should be tougher, but haven't shot anything with them yet.

I had the 375 bug but never pulled he trigger on one.

I've shot a couple 45-70 guide guns and found it very similar to a 12 gauge slug gun. No terrible, but not how you want to spend an afternoon either. For it's intended purpose probably go the bolt route for the follow-up capability and little extra weight. Of course you can also look at traditional 405 or 9.3 chamberings as well if you are still window shopping.

Can't go wrong with a .375

Another .375 fan, and I don't even hunt. I went M70 CRF .375 H&H, because I'm an incorrigible sucker for interesting cartridges, and I didn't have a M70.

I have the Ruger No 1 - in 375 and 458- they are heavy and don't recoil as much as you would expect- especially with moderate loads-
Nothing against the bolts...but I think the No 1s are elegant.....

The only 375 ive shot was a Ruger single shot. It had a peep sight. Recoil wasn’t as bad as I expected. If you are hunting the things 375 H&H was made for, I would get a bolt action.

Im kinda digging this set up.

Any chance you have researched the 375 Ruger?

Might open up some possibilities.

I've had several 375 H&H Magnums. My first was a Thompson/Center rifle. That's not a heavy gun and the stock is such you must be careful not to get a scope bite. I took an Impala, Wart Hog and Blesbok with it; all DRT. I also took a Blue Wildebeest, Zebra and another Wart Hog with it; they ran a bit but not too far and didn't need another shot.

I took a bolt action 375 H&H Magnum rifle to South Africa. It was my varmint gun there. I took a Black Backed Jackel and an African Wild Cat it; all DRT (LOL).

I also had a braked Encore pistol chambered for that cartridge. I never took anything with it but it would put three into about 1.5 inches at 200 yards off the bench.

The 375 H&H Magnum will work on anything from mice to elephants. I highly recommend it.

I’ve been hunting the last 2 years with my .375 Ruger and 260 gr Accubonds exclusively. It’s a monster on game. They are running about 2850 and as loon said of the speers the Accubonds open fast also but the ones I have recovered look just like the advertisements.

It's hard to argue against the .375 Ruger if you don't already have a .375 cal rifle. But for me, there's no way I'm giving up my Talkeetna in .375 H&H. It is my favorite hunting rifle that I've been "perfecting" over the past few years. I bedded the receiver and recoil lug a few months ago and it fits the stock like a glove. 250gr TTSX and 270gr LRX handloads work for me.

mlankton said:

I'm a lefty so they've got me covered
Hawkeye African

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In my opinion/imagination etc., the ultimate expression of the 20th Century big game rifle would be a pre 64 Model 70 in 375 H&H. That Ruger 77 may not be quite the same thing but it has all the class and cache at a slightly more affordable price tag.

When my brother got his first 375 H&H he told me it was called the queen of the big game rifles... Last I heard, he's got three of them. His are all used in furtherance of a full bore subsistence lifestyle up in Alaska where he takes caribou at a distance, and hunts moose up close on foot along heavy timbered hillsides where your moose might be a lot closer than you wanted... The main reason for the 375 though is that where he is (the MatSu area or within a hundred miles of it...) the interior bears have learned to associate a rifle shot with a feeding opportunity.. As he's pointed out, heavy willow thickets mean you can hear a bear coming but won't have a shot until the animal is a lot closer than you'd like.... Don't believe he's had to shoot one yet - in lot of years hunting but he does take black bear for roasts and stews (Alaskan black bears are a bit bigger than those in the lower 48..).

I'm not a hunter so I just take his word for it...