375 Ruger with 300 Grain Sierra Gameking

[clearwater]

Finally got the courage to shoot some full powder loads thru my 375 Ruger.

It's a Mossberg Patriot plastic fantastic and weighs less than 7 lbs scoped. With Staball and 300 grain Sierra Gamekings, (and a small sandbag between my shoulder and the stock) it did okay. I have been shooting a lot of cast loads with it.

At 50 yards, 4 out of 5 shots went under a inch. One outlier is flinch- I was anticipating it would hurt, tho with the sandbag it did not.

 

[salmonchaser]

Under 7 for a 375 is asking to get hit. Regardless that is a fine group from the second best 375

 

[Guy Miner]

Impressive!

That's a mighty light rifle for that much power... Enjoy!

I haven't been shooting my 375 enough. Hmmm...

Guy

 

[JD338]

I put a dozen rounds through my 375 H&H Mag the other day. I did 3 shots with 4 different bullets-
Nosler 260 gr E-Tip
Speer 270 gr SPBT
Hornady 270 gr Spire Point
Barnes 250 gr TTSX
1 shot each at 100, 200 and 250 yards.
POI was pretty close at all distances.
I really like my 375!

JD338

 

[clearwater]

Yup,I will need to add some weight if I use these loads for hunting. Right now it shoots cast very well, and a starting load with 235 grain speer hot core has tolerable recoil. Similar to 30-06.

Being inexpensive and durable I bring it to deer hunting camp as a backup. The heavier cast loads have a point blank range of 200 yards and energy of 1300 ft/lbs at that distance. Where the terrain is steep and weather is miserable snain with fog, this is the rifle I carry. If it gets wet or I drop it, it matters less than the ones with Grandad's hand made stocks.

I paid $200+ for it at Sportsmans. Bout the same as 2 or 3 boxes of factory ammo. I wouldn't recommend this caliber if you don't reload. Even then, the brass has been unavailable since Covid. Shooting cast keeps it cheap and the brass lasts a long time. I buy the cast bullets. It has a nice trigger and a smooth bolt. The stock is a little long for use with thick winter clothes.

 

[salmonchaser]

I actually think it's one of the best new cartridges. Only reason I don't have one is being well set up with375H&H.
As most who own them know the 375 is inherently very accurate.

 

[PJGunner]

I haven't shotmy Ruger #1 in .375 H&H in a long time. I'd have to dig deep to een find my data for my cast bullet load. Trying to go from memory, the powder was H4350 and the bullet the RCBS #375-250-FN which casts a 270 fr. flat nose bullet at roughly 2000 to 200 FOS based on the data I have. Recoil in the #1 was about like a stiff 220 gr. load from a 30-06 or close to factory .300 H%H 150 gr, loads. Grass life was mosre than excellent as I've gotten 20 reloads from that one box of brass. Primer pockets are still reasonably snug and necks were annealed before each fifth reloading.

The only other .375 I own is a Ruger M77 Tang safety in .386 Taylor, AKA .375 Chatfield-Taylor by its designer Robert Chatfield Taylor although the barrel is stamper .375/338 Mag. Handloaded using stanraed .375 270 and 300 gr. bullets one can easily duplicate the older .375 H&H Magnum. Rifle sits in a Ramline stock and total weight is around 7.5 pounds. You do notice it when you pull trigger. I built the rifle for use in an elk hunt that was supposed to be in Idaho in steep dark timber country and maybe do another up in Washington state on the Olympic Penninsula. The rifle has an early all steel Weaver K4 scope with a post and crosshair reticle. That second hunt fell through when they banned logging in the area to save "the owl". The only thing that rifle needed to make it all weather was some kind of metal finish like Cerakote.

I usually don't name my rifles but one day at the range I was done sighting in and just shootin in various position when a fellow shooter came up and asked about the rifle. After answering a few questions he said he'd light to try it out so I load one of the rounds with the 300 gr. Hornady round nose and said to keep it real snug against you should as it comes back rather snappy. He shot it and said that rifle hits like a hammer at both ends and thus, the rifle now holds the name of , "The Hammer." He tanked me for letting him shoot the rifle aand went back to his bencj rubbing his shoulder. I design the rifle to to shoot the round nose Hornady for the hint than never came about. The person up in idaho who was running the hunt for us passed away and his reletive said no to the hunt. These days, taking my age into consideration and that rifle's kick, I'm not taking any chances of a possible detached retina. I did find that H4350 worked the best in that rifle and was very accurate. ES spreads between 270 gr. bullets and thr 300 gr. bullets eas 5 FPS for one and 4 FPS for the other. I just don't remember which was which. Brass is Winchester .348 Mag run through the .375/338 sizing die and loaded to full power. Shoots just fine that way and no different after being fire formed. It's one of the easiest cartridges I've ever worked with.
Paul B.

 

[RL338]

It's a Mossberg Patriot plastic fantastic and weighs less than 7 lbs scoped.

Yes that will get your attention as well as testing your scope mounts
My 375 Wby is braked and is a pleasure to shoot. With cast powder coated bullets Blue Dot is my go to powder.