375 H&H FOR PLAINS GAME

[BARTFRNCS]

Tell me your experiance with the 375 H&H on plains game.

 

[sestoppelman]

Like most adequate rounds, if you hit them right with a good bullet they go down. Hit them so-so, takes more than one bullet. I hit a sable bull with a 300gr Nosler Partition at under 100 yards, not quite right. Four hits later finally down. Of course sable are tough to be sure, but the first shot was just off a bit. On the other hand the same rifle using a Hornady solid bullet dumped my second buffalo bull with one shot and he never wiggled, from 140 yards. First shot placement is everything. Nice to have the extra oomph for the larger critters like eland etc, but not really needed for most animals from kudu on down. I have taken 3 kudu: using the .375, a .338 winnie and the 9.3x62. Quickest kill was the .375, DRT! The other two ran a ways, about 50 yards from the 9.3 and about 75 with the .338. All of which proves nothing of course. I love the .375 but likely wont use mine again because when next I go for buffalo I will use my .404 and it just aint needed for PG when I have the 9.3x62.

 

[Frederik]

Loaded with 270gr premium bullets its a combo hard to beat just practise so that you can shoot it as good as say your 308 as an example otherwise all that extra power doesnt help.

 

[DOC-404]

I use 250gr Sierra GameKings,loaded to about 2700 fps, in my CZ .375. It's an excellent combination,for me,on all plains game and the big cats.

 

[Mark H. Young]

There's no reason to not take your 375 on PG hunt. As Fredrick said with a premium 270 gr. bullet it is up to any task. Throw in some solids for the little guys and your set for eland through duikers.

 

[Stocky]

I just returned from Northwest South Africa, having collected 12 different plains species using my Model 70 in 375 H&H. For this trip I used handloads consisting of 75 gr of N150 under the 260 grain Nosler partition. To say it performed superbly be an understatement.

I found that combination offered complete penetration on broadside shots. Two animals, a black wildebeest and a 52 inch kudu, were standing quartering towards me, the shot went into the point of the shoulder and was recovered in typical expanded partition fashion, under the far hide.

Most of the shots were between 150 and 250 yards, and I dropped a sable in his tracks at about 300, much to the professional hunter's amazement. I say amazement because of a prior conversation where he expressed the fact that sable are very tough animals.

The list of one-shot skills include two species of blesbok, black and blue wildebeest, zebra, red hartebeest, gemsbok and a very unlucky jackal. I gave the cape eland an extra one for insurance, although it probably wasn't necessary since he was heart shot, but was trying to get back up so better safe than sorry.
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The first shot on my springbok went a bit lower than I would have liked as I underestimated the range, so I put him down with a second shot also.

The loads chronograph at 2800 FPS and the rifle sighted in at 200, per PH request, putting it about 9 inches low at 300. If I were going to use that rifle again under the same circumstances I would sight it 3 inches high at a hundred, thereby giving me a slightly better point-blank range of 300 yds especially on the bigger critters.

By the way, I was using a Leupold VX3 4.5 X 14 - 40mm scope with the Boone & Crockett reticle. My next trip is to Zimbabwe after Buffalo this will be replaced with a 1X6 VX6, I was sure glad to have the extra power on the open plains and found the lowest setting (actually 4.9x if you read the specs) to be little handicap on a "snapshot kudu" facing me just 10 yards away in the bushveldt.

Based on that experience I found this to be a great set up for a one rifle hunt on a variety of game to 1600 pounds in weight. That been said, if I knew for a fact there was going to be nothing dangerous in the mix, I might be inclined to take a 300 mag next time. I simply decided to err on the safe side for my first trip, combined with the fact that we could potentially have one across very good Buffalo and I wanted to take plenty of gun just in case.

Another interesting note is that when I built this rifle I used the new 26" Mullerworks barrel with a VAIS muzzle break. Perceived recoil is about a 3006 level or less with the McMillan Hunter stock, and I was actually watching the shoulder dust fly thru the scope under recoil. Really tames that 375 well, and velocities are at the high-end of what I chronographed on past 375s with similar loads and no unusual pressure signs. In fact I could probably upped velocity a bit to 2900 or so but elected not to as it was printing nice little clovers at 100.

 

[bluey]

congratulations stocky it sounds like a successful trip with some great shooting mate .
sounds like you did your homework with the ballistics aswell
thanks for sharing

 

[DOC-404]

Excellent feedback, thanks Stocky.