375 Rifle Weight

[Silent Sam]

I'm looking for some input from those experienced with 375 caliber rifles and up on optimum bolt action rifle weight for hunting. I am specifically interested in the various 375 chamberings and what you feel the ideal weight would be for each power level. To further refine the question, I am not planning on carrying it in the high country, nor will I have a gun bearer. Assume the stock fits and the rifle balances and handles well. What say you?

 

[Thebear_78]

"Gravity is constant, recoil is fleeting"

I'm usually on the lighter side of rifles. They get carried far more often than shot most of the time.

My first 375 was a Winchester 70 classic. In its original configuration with a heavy scope and hogue stock it weighed in at over 11 pounds. Halfway thru the first hunt with it I was just about ready to leave it in the woods. After I got back I took it to extreme rifle works and told him to make it as light as possible. After I got it back my 375 h&h weighed right st 6lbs 4oz. It was a dream to carry and recoil wasn't as bad as you'd think. It also shot very well. Sadly I had to sell it along with several other custom rifles to pay for hospital bills when my daughter was born.

My current 375 is a 375 RUM. In its original form it weighted 7lbs 10oz all up with scope and sling. It was a really good weight, recoil was brisk but manageable.

After the lightweight stock cracked I went back to a nice plain wood stock. It increased the weight to 8lbs 6oz. A little heavier than I like to carry but when running 270gr at over 3000fps a little extra weight soaks up some recoil.

Personally I wouldn't want to go any heavier than 8.5 pounds.


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[IdahoCTD]

I'd want to be between 9 and 10lbs all up if it was me. If your building it I would use #5 contour barrel at a minimum. Barrel blanks get quite a bit lighter than advertised with a .375" hole in them. My .375 is a .375-358STA and it has a straight taper hunter contour barrel which is a bit heavy. The muzzle diameter is good at .750" but the straight taper ads a bunch of weight compared to a sporter type taper. It's probably 12+lbs. I use to hike that thing all over in my early 30's. I don't think I'd want to now but my normal guns run 10+lbs now even.

 

[JD338]

I think it depends on which 375 chambering you go with. The 375 H&H is a shove where the
375 RUM is a hard fast jab. I think if you were to stay around 8-8.5 lbs. you would be fine,
even with a 375 RUM. A muzzle brake would defiantly help on the upper end but you will need
hearing protection while hunting.

JD338

 

[FOTIS]

Anything over 8 is ok

 

[preacher]

In factory rifles, I have found three I can recommend. From lightest to heaviest- The Remington 700 in either the Classic or the BDL SS. The Interarms Whitworth Express and the Winchester Mod 70 Classic SS ( heavy but not too terribly so, it worked great in and out of a pick up in South Africa but was fast enough to handle accurately). Of the three, the Mod 700s are my first choice with the Whitworth second. In fairness, that has been awhile ago, there are probably more options now, especially if one goes semi-custom. Good luck to you.

 

[Silent Sam]

Thanks for the inputs so far. Not interested in using a brake under any circumstances. Not even looking for rifle/build recommendations. Just looking for preferred weight for the range of 375 cartridges. H&H, Ruger, 375 Weatherby, Rum, 378 Weatherby. (There is method in my madness :mrgreen

 

[Anonymous]

I've had a number of .375s...oddly, the heaviest kicked the worst- it was an old USFS contract M70 Winchester that had a stock that looked like it was hewn from a 2x10 with a dull hatchet and finished with the best plastic buttplate money could buy. It would cross your eyes every time you pulled the trigger despite weighing over 10 pounds.

A couple of .375 Ruger Alaskans presented no issue to shoot in the 9 pound range in their squishy Hogue stocks.

My favorite was a Kimber Talkeetna- just a pleasure to carry and shoot at 8.5# scoped.

 

[preacher]

For me the Mod 700 BDL SS w/Leupold 2.5x8 handled and recoiled like a 30-06! The classic required a brake and the Whitworth was just fine, just not as "lively between the hands" as the BDL SS.

 

[maverick2]

I've got a .375 H&H that weighs 8.5# bare, so is probably a little under 10# with scope, rings, and ammo. This rifle and stock configuration fits me extremely well, but I don't think I'd want it much lighter for how I shoot. (If I were to drop some weight off it, I wouldn't want to lose more than 1/2 pound.) When I shoot it, I very rarely shoot less than 5 rounds in a sitting (sometimes closer to 10) and I want the rifle to be heavy enough that it's not unpleasant to shoot. As is, it's about right -- heavy enough that I'm not dreading the recoil as I squeeze the trigger on the 6th shot, but still light enough that with a good sling system, I'm not counting the seconds to be done carrying the rifle for the day.

 

[Richracer1]

I have a 375RUM, it's the Remington LSS model (laminate stock, stainless). It is a tad heavy, not quite as much as my thumbhole stocked 300RUM, but I find it just as easy to shoot as my 300RUM. My 375RUM is pushing 260ABs at 2990 FPS.

 

[Guy Miner]

Huh. I suppose I ought to weigh mine someday.

Nah..

 

[Win-1]

I've weighed my 375ruger with leupold vx2, sling, and three cartridges---exactly nine pounds. That seems almost perfect to me, whether I'm shooting 300's, 260's, or 250's. This gun likes them all--the faster the better.

 

[SJB358]

So not a 375 but my 338 Alaskan goes about 9lbs on the nose scoped and with sling attached. I've carried it for a lot of miles and shot it a whole lot as well. For me, it's perfect as it settles down nicely when I'm hunting and laying it over my pack and it's not so danged heavy it pulls my shoulder outta joint after a long day. I think a 375 around the same weight would be about right as well. My 35 Newton is about the same as the 338 and it's also in the same ballpark as 375 powder charges and bullet weight and does well. I'd want a great stock on it and I'd bet it'd be a pleasure to carry and shoot.

 

[Guy Miner]

Yes - I have easily carried my .375 H&H Ruger Number One over some very rough terrain, bear hunting here in Washington for the past five years or so. I'm in my late 50's, and it's not out-of-line at all re weight. Of course the Ruger single shot carries easily.





Ruger claims a weight of 9.2 pounds, which seems appropriate, or a little heavy, for the rifle. It certainly shoots well. I've got a small scope on it, a 1.5-5x Leupold, so I'm thinking it's around 10 pounds total. Am sure my Model 70 .375 actually weighs a bit less, with that Douglas barrel. Haven't hunted with it yet though.

Guy

 

[SJB358]

Am sure my Model 70 .375 actually weighs a bit less, with that Douglas barrel. Haven't hunted with it yet though.

Guy

I hope you do. It's too danged nice not too!

 

[Guy Miner]

Me too Scotty - I figure it should be about perfect on grizzly/Alaskan brown bear or cape buffalo...

Not sure I am willing to write the check for either of those hunts though.

Guy

 

[Silent Sam]

Well here's my deal. I have a Ruger RSM in 375 H&H that is a beast. It weighs 10 lbs naked. It is however a very soft shooter. It fits me well, action is smooth and slick, and it is dead nuts reliable. There is no way practicable to make it lighter so what I have always thought is it would be advantageous to have more power & flatter trajectory and still have an easy shooter. Rebarreling is not a good option with this rifle so that leaves me with rechambering. My quandry is will I get enough gain to make it worthwhile with 250-300gr bullets. I currently get 2700fps w/ 250s and 2550 fps with 300s with excellent accuracy. These aren't warm loads by any means but i never pushed to see what the limit is either. I would need 200fps more to make it worthwhile in my mind. I just don't know if an 375AI or 375Weatherby would get me there.

 

[Thebear_78]

Cut it down to 20". Make it both lighter and handier. My buddy gets 270s @ 2850fps out of his 20" barreled 375 IMP. 375 weatherby and 375 IMP are about identical


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[preacher]

I had a Mod 700 BDL SS reamed out to the 375 Weatherby and put in a Harris Gunworks Safari ( 5 shot drop belly magazine style) synthetic. It 'easily" got 200fps and more with the 270X I used at the time. I won't print my loads as it would scare most folks, but they were safe in that rifle. It had only a little more recoil than the H&H in fact. The stock design helped. I traded that rifle to an Outfitter friend for my Aoudad hunt. He uses that 375W for clients who shoot Eland on a ranch in East Texas. Those Eland there are pretty wild and tough to get a standing shot on. He said that 270X load would 'chill their doo doo", ha. I liked reading of Hal Waughs experience using "Big Nan", his 375W, using a 270gr on brown bear. He wrote it really was an improvement on the H&H. I can see where the 375 RUM would work great too! ha