Hey tradewinds. Yep, you can cast your own, or buy cast bullets for them. My personal experience is with the 416 RMag using XMP5744, GM215M's, and 350 Cast/GC's from Western Bullet Mfg (I don't cast my own), with excellent results.

I always crimp, especially since the case mouth must be "belled" to get the bullet started without shaving lead off the side. I use an RCBS expander die - they make different inserts so you can use the same die for belling a variety of calibers.

In addition to the cost savings, lots of guys get their critter every year with cast bullets - until the late 1890's that was all that was available, after all, and quite a few big critters were laid low with them.

Over in the Cast Bullets forum are some really dedicated casters who will offer mucho advice.

R-WEST

I have never loaded for either Caliber and had a few questions. Do you have to crimp these calipers? I hear people talking about cheaper Cast Bullets in Big Boars, Can I get cast bullets for these calipers? Any tips or loads would be appreciated. I currently have .300 gr Nosler and .300 gr Trophy Bonded for the .375.

Thanks again,

When I first started shooting the 375 and later the 416 Taylor I stuck with the loading manuals and worked up slowly from there. I also started with much less expensive bullets- Speer and Sierra until I felt comfortable with the rifles. I don't know how much experience you have with the big rifles but it is a lot less expensive to work up to the premium bullets.
I am not familiar with cast bullets in these calibers.
I definitely crimp them both.
Good luck,
Frank

I download the 375 H&H and it can be a joy to play with. The 200 to 230 grain bullets or HARD cast lead ( if kept below 1,750 to avoid leading your barrel ) are pleasurable to shoot. IMR-SR4759 and Accurate XMP-5744 are your two best powders for this. Large cases and lighter loads can be quite safe with either of these two powders. Accuracy is good if kept under 100 yards. I have shot 100 rounds of 375 H&H during a single trip to the range; had a blast and not a single bruise; stiff shoulder; flinch or Magnum headache. You can't say you can truthfully do that with a 30-06 and full house loads. The 416 will have a much more limited bullet selection but the same applies here. Keep to the lighest bullets; and 1,500 fps is plenty fast for fun shooting. Enjoy your bigger bores. The Lyman Cast bullet and the Accurate Reloading Manuals are two good places to start.

There are a lot of misconceptions out there about cast rifle bullets.

You are NOT limited to sub-2000-fps loads. My .416 Rigby performs very well (if I want to take the abuse) with my self-cast 365-grain RCBS bullets loaded to 2600-plus fps, with NO LEADING WHATEVER. This is a full-power load, and no mistake! They also work well at 2000 fps, where I seem to do most of my practice and 'fun' shooting with this rifle, and even slower if I want. My .404 Jeffery likewise works perfectly with cast bullets at full power.....and also with zero leading.

The "cost" is ridiculous...full-power Rigbys cost me about $5.00 per 20, and almost all of this is for the 100-grain powder charges. 2000-fps loads run about $2.00 per 20. (XMP 5744 definitely does do very well at this level.) The bullets are made from recycled (free) wheelweights, and only need gaschecks and lube...about two cents per bullet. At prices like this, I'm still amazed that more folks don't cast their own bullets. It's really rather simple, and the tooling, especially in calibers like .375 and .416, gets paid-off VERY quickly by the difference in bullet costs. How many .416 bullets will $100.00 buy? Not very danged many! That same $100.00 can get you well-started in casting, and will assure a lifetime supply of inexpensive bullets. Of course, it only makes sense if one intends to SHOOT a lot, not just fire a few rounds now-and-then.

Yes, I am indeed a cast-bullet junky...

Regards from BruceB (aka Bren Mk1)

While I haven't loaded for either round, I have done a bit of cast shooting in rifles, most recently my 350 Rigby, essentially a necked down beltless 375, though the Rigby was introduced a few years earlier.

Anyhow, with a properly sized for your barrel/throat gas check bullet, you should have no problem driving them to 2400 fps, though I personally prefer ~ 2000 fps. With my 350, I'm driving a nominally 280 gr bullet ~ 2000 fps using 44 gr of RL 15 and 5 shot moa accuracy. No reason why a similar load wouldn't do the same thing for a 300 gr in the 375 H&H, nor 400 gr in the 416 (assuming Rem).

The biggest problem you'll have is finding quality cast bullets in rifle calibers at reasonable price locally. There aren't that many cast bullet manufacturers offering rifle pills, and shipping can add alot to the cost.

While you probably aren't considering taking the plunge into casting your own bullets, for the rifle shooter, it really is the best option. A Lee production put, a couple of molds, 5 gallon bucket of wheelweights, some lube, gas checks and a sizer will have you producing many quality bullets at pennies a piece.