Hello All,

I'm just getting started on reloading for the .375 H&H and was wondering if there were any specific tips & tricks to the old H&H.

From what I've read, IMR 4350 (and H4350) are "go-to" powders.

For African game, the answer is either an A-Frame or the TSX.

But, what about for American game? Anyone got a general analysis on the common cup & core bullets? Yes, I do intend to shoot cup & core's for practice and for common American game such as deer and hogs.

Any thoughts on the following bullets?

Speer 235?
Speer 270?
Sierra SGK 300?
Hornady oftpoint 300?

Any powders I shouldn't even bother to try?

What about primers? Seems to be all about the Federal 215 Mag Primers? And, is this a case to use mag primers all the time?

Crimp or not to crimp? Or, crimp when available? Std. Roll crimp or taper? Or Lee FCD?

Any tips on the .375 much appreciated!



(PS: I reload for .223, .257, .30-06, .35 Rem, .350 RMag, and a half dozen pistol cartridges. So, the concept of reloading isn't new. I'm just trying to figure out if the H&H has any idiosyncrasies to know about. Thanks!)

For pigs and deer the 220 Hornady FP, the Speer 235, and the 250 Speer with 60 to 64gr of IMR 3031 works great.

For all round use on everything the 300gr Nosler Partition is hard to beat.

For a 3/4 to 7/8ths power load Federal factory 250 Trophy Bonded Bearclaw is excellent.

For long range on game elk sized and down the Federal 260gr Accubond.

For really BIG stuff the Remington 300gr Swift A Frame, Federal 300gr Trophy Bonded Bearclaw, or the PMC 270gr Barnes X [the blue coated ones] have all shot good for me.

For me, it's RL-15 and Federal 215M primers.

African animals don't require a magic bullet. For my first trip there, I used plain old Speer 270 gr. cup and core bullets and used them to take 2 warthogs, a zebra, a blue wildebeest, and impala and a blesbok all with one shot. I tried various other bullets including Barnes and the Speers gave me the best accuracy.

My current favorite load is with the same primer and bullets but using 300 gr. Hornady BTSP and RN solids. They both shoot to the same place at 100 yards. The solids come in handy if I want t shoot something smaller without doing too much meat/hide damage. You really don't need to change anything for U.S.A. hunting.

A common misconception is that you should use lighter bullets for lighter game. That just isn't true. A heavier bullet will kill just as well and will do less damage to the hide and meat than a faster lighter one.

As for crimping, if you're shooting a single shot, you don't need to; if shooting a magazine rifle, you had better. I'm not an all things Lee fan but I think their FCD is great and that's what I use.

The "blue coated ones" from Barnes, a.k.a., their XLC bullets, unfortunately are no longer being made.

One last thing; the long tapered 375 H&H Mag. case tends to stretch a lot. Take a wire with the tip bent to 90 degrees down the inside of the case starting at the second reload to check for a groove forming near the head that is a sign a case head separation will be forthcoming.

You may want to consider the Lee collet dies; they will certainly extend the case life.

quote:

A common misconception is that you should use lighter bullets for lighter game. That just isn't true. A heavier bullet will kill just as well and will do less damage to the hide and meat than a faster lighter one.

And the trade off for increased velocity with the lighter bullet is lost because the shorter bullets are much less efficient and shed the increased velocity very quickly. There's little point to anything less than 270 grain bullets in the .375H&H. (Except maybe the 260 Accubond or the 250 TBBC.) You won't be ready for the big stuff and the perceived benefit isn't real. And I can say from experience that 270 and 300 grain Barnes work quite well on whitetail deer.

Other than that RL15!

LWD

quote:

Originally posted by LWD:

quote:

A common misconception is that you should use lighter bullets for lighter game. That just isn't true. A heavier bullet will kill just as well and will do less damage to the hide and meat than a faster lighter one.

And the trade off for increased velocity with the lighter bullet is lost because the shorter bullets are much less efficient and shed the increased velocity very quickly. There's little point to anything less than 270 grain bullets in the .375H&H. (Except maybe the 260 Accubond or the 250 TBBC.) You won't be ready for the big stuff and the perceived benefit isn't real. And I can say from experience that 270 and 300 grain Barnes work quite well on whitetail deer.

Other than that RL15!

LWD

Last but not least, the trade-off for shooting lighter bullets faster is increased recoil velocity which in a medium weight rile can be more uncomfortable to shoot that increased recoil energy at lower velociities. Whew, I hope that reads correctly!

For general NA hunting or plinking the 270 gr cup and core bullet of your choice is the gold standard. Next step up is the 260 gr Accubond and from there, the premium of your choice.

Guys, great info! Really, thanks for the tips on the 270gr. bullets and also about the bent paperclip idea. I hadn't thought of that!

I have about 80 or so of the 235gr. Speers - I'll blast them off getting used to the gun and then will settle on the 270/300gr. bullets.

Huge thanks again!

PS: RL15 is sold out where I'm at - and I'm fresh out of it. It's my go-to powder for my .350RM...

R,

The H or IMR 4350's work just fine,there's plenty of good powders around for this cartridge. Everyone has their favorites but those two are hard to beat both for accuracy & velocity.

I'm sure others will claim extra velocity with long-g-g barrels, etc. and I'm sure they're getting it too; just that I cut mine back to 20" and still get 2450 fps with a 300 gr. bullet. You'll require little else.

Depending on which brand of brass you are using you may find that some of the upper end loads using these two powders really fill the cases up; right up to the mouth. Using a drop tube and holding the case on a tumbler may settle the powder some but you may have to back off a little bit. As you may summize I'm also not into seriously compressed loads.

I've been to Africa 6 times and used about every conveivable combination of case, powder & new Whizz-Bang bullets and I found the 260 gr. TBBC's lacking in penetration (my experience & opinion) but keep coming back to one of the original loads - H-4350 with a Hornady 300 gr. RN crimped into the cannelure with a Lee Factory Crimp Die.

Craig Boddington wrote he thought this was the best .375 H&H non-premium bullet on the market with performance as good as a premium bullet. While Craig has huge credibility & experience I'm not a jump on the Bandwagon kinda Guy - although his experience & mine coincide. You'll have to be the judge yourself.

Have Fun with your New Boomer!

quote:

but keep coming back to one of the original loads - H-4350 with a Hornady 300 gr. RN crimped into the cannelure with a Lee Factory Crimp Die.

Craig Boddington wrote he thought this was the best .375 H&H non-premium bullet on the market with performance as good as a premium bullet. While Craig has huge credibility & experience I'm not a jump on the Bandwagon kinda Guy - although his experience & mine coincide. You'll have to be the judge yourself.

Which goes to another point. At H&H velocities (with 270 and 300 grain bullets anyway) you don't need super premium bullets to insure performance. The performance of quality cup and core bullets will be good. But if you are shooting bigger stuff, a better bullet isn't a bad idea, and I just love how TSXs work on critters.

Definitely try 4350. Several of us said RL15, and it's a great powder in the H&H, but the 4350s, 4064, W760, and W748 also work. Try what you've got.

LWD

With 270 Grain bullets, I like 81 Grains of IMR4350, velocities are in the mid 2700's. This load in my CZ550 shoots some 3 shot groups into one hole. Spitzer or round nose, makes no difference, at least at 100yds.

With heat treated gas checked lead bullets, I like IMR4064, as Ed Harris recommends in the NRA article, Cast Bullets in Africa.

Jerry

Hey All,

Any comments on the Primer question? Is this a "Mag Primer ONLY" round? Or are standard Large rifle ok for non-sphericals?

for my purposes; any cartridge that gets filled with more thn 60 grains of powder (rgardless of type) automatically gets a Magnum Primer and the .375 H&H meets that criteria easily.

My Ruger .357H&H is a laser beam with Nosler 260grain bullets and H414 powder.

quote:

Originally posted by rnovi:
Hey All,

Any comments on the Primer question? Is this a "Mag Primer ONLY" round? Or are standard Large rifle ok for non-sphericals?

I use 270 gr TSX over 74 gr RL-15 and standard WLR primers. An experienced reloader recommended a standard LR primer as being more accurate in his opinion. He also felt the non-mag primer was better for the heat in Africa.

quote:

Speer 235? Expands too fast, but was extremely accurate with IMR 3031 loads.

Speer 270? Expanded too slow. Just liked 300's better.

Sierra SGK 300? Expanded and penetrated well at 275 yards on a large Moose.

I prefer the IMR 4064 or Win 760 with 300 grain bullets.
IMR 4350 is a great powder though for this cartridge. Gerry is spot on about the 60 grains or greater powder charge and magnum rifle primers.

Hornady oftpoint 300?

Never used this bullet, but have found the old steel solids very accurate.

I have found 67 grains of IMR 4064 to be accurate with every 300 grain bullet I have used. Crimp when there is a cannelure. I use separate seaters for the softs and solids and a Lee crimp die when crimping. I keep 300 grain solids below 2400 fps to avoid over penetration and bullet failure.

Have had great luck with 270 and 300 gr TSXs. They kill piggies and plains game wonderfully well.

I kinda like the 300 gr TSX at 2600 fps.

Generally use RL-15 as a propellant with WRL magnum primers.

Have also used 235 Speers ... great on paper, but not good on game as they are way too soft. I understand that the 225 Hornady is much tougher.

I have had one rifle that required brass to be trimmed after every firing. The other .375 does not. Worth monitoring the case length.

sorry guys - could one of you give me a sentence or two on the primers?

which to use with the 375? are they readily available?

thanks.

I use Remington brass and Remington 9 1\2 magnum primers in my .375 H&H. I debur the flash holes, finding velocity variation is significantly reduced and cold weather performance enhanced. I use 67 grains of IMR 4064 with any 300 grain soft point, and 64 grains with a 300 grain solid. I use separate seaters for the bullets and crimp with a Lee factory crimp die.

The 2 primers that have been discussed in this thread are: The WLRM and the WLR primers, both refer to Winchester, LRM being Large Rifle Magnum and LR, large rifle. The 375 requires a large rifle primer for its case. If a magnun is used it is by the choice of the reloader, or a requirement of a particular load. Any standard or magnum large rifle primer is all that is necessary to load the 375.

Jerry