I just returned home from a week long Big Game/Varmint Hunt. I actually camped on the edge of a Prairie Dog Town.
The lone Hunter that camped next to us had made up a nifty Elk/Bear Hunting Rifle on a Remington Model 7 action!
He called the caliber of this new cartridge a 375 Serengeti!
This new cartridge was made on a 325 WSM (Winchester Short Magnum) case! He was firing a 260 gr. 375 caliber bullet at 2,600 FPS as I recall him telling us.
He killed an Elk with the cool looking Rifle and cartridge while we were there.
Anyway his custom (he did the re-barrelling and chambering) Model 7 Remington was a very light weight and good looking Rifle! I thought it would surely make a nifty spring Black Bear Rifle!
His rig was built on the stainless Model 7 action and the magazine follower for the short stubby 325 WSM was easily swapped out for another caliber (I forget which!) that is avalible from parts houses or Remington.
This fellow is also designing (ordering a reamer for!) a 40 caliber cartridge based on the 325 WSM case!
His reloading and testing so far with his 375 Serengeti yielded very consistent "extreme spread" chronograph readings. Case life was good and powder charges were in the 60 grain area as I recall him telling!
Anyway one Elk has now been harvested with this new cartridge!
Good luck to him with his new Rifle!
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I just saw pictures of a .416 cal wildcat based on the .325 WSM case. I believe the name mentioned was ".416 Kodiak", or some such thing.

Velocity cited seemed very useable - somewhere around 2400 fps for a 350 grs bullet. That is not too far below a .416 Rem. This was attributed to the WSM case, which, although short, holds a fair amount of powder and the efficiency of the short powder column. If the velocities cited are realistic, I could certainly see an application for a rifle like this - for brown bear, moose or even DG in Africa...

Apparently, the short bolt throw made cycling this cartridge sweet as honey. No feeding problems straight out of a factory WSM box in a M1999 SA. Recoil was said not to be bad in an 8lbs rifle - although I'm somewhat sceptical about that claim...

Funnily enough, it was also a guy from MT working with this wildcat, although I don't know if he is the original inventor??

- mike

MHO: I wonder if this is the same person? This fellow was from Kalispell, Montana and as I and my partner listened to him and his experiments I may have misunderstood and the 40 caliber thing is already online!
What caught my attention with the 375 Serengeti is that in my last several years of spring Black Bear Hunting we are coming across more and more Grizzly sign and sightings.
Its one thing to harvest a Black Bear but another thing altogether with the Grizzly especially if one was up close.
I am notoriously recoil shy but with todays new recoil pads and recoil reducing muzzle brakes I am getting more and more interested in this 375 Serengeti for my month and a half long spring Bear Hunting season!
Last year a Grizzly killed and partially ate a succesful cow Elk Hunter not far from my home here in Montana! Apparently the Grizzly snuck up on the Hunter as he was cleaning his Elk!
My largest, in service Big Game Rifle right now is a 7mm Remington Magnum and to tell the truth every time I see the Grizzly tracks when I am out with it I wish it had more oomph for a close encounter.
I am trying to remember the 375 Serengeti guys name and have a call in to my Hunting partner who also talked with him.
More later
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

WOW!!!!! that's cool! keep me informed!

quote:

Originally posted by VarmintGuy:
MHO: I wonder if this is the same person? This fellow was from Kalispell, Montana and as I and my partner listened to him and his experiments I may have misunderstood and the 40 caliber thing is already online!
What caught my attention with the 375 Serengeti is that in my last several years of spring Black Bear Hunting we are coming across more and more Grizzly sign and sightings.
Its one thing to harvest a Black Bear but another thing altogether with the Grizzly especially if one was up close.
I am notoriously recoil shy but with todays new recoil pads and recoil reducing muzzle brakes I am getting more and more interested in this 375 Serengeti for my month and a half long spring Bear Hunting season!
Last year a Grizzly killed and partially ate a succesful cow Elk Hunter not far from my home here in Montana! Apparently the Grizzly snuck up on the Hunter as he was cleaning his Elk!
My largest, in service Big Game Rifle right now is a 7mm Remington Magnum and to tell the truth every time I see the Grizzly tracks when I am out with it I wish it had more oomph for a close encounter.
I am trying to remember the 375 Serengeti guys name and have a call in to my Hunting partner who also talked with him.
More later
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Dale, that is almost bound to be the same guy - most likely Rod Rogers from Serengeti Rifles , or (alternatively) his partner Larry Tahler. Pictures on this page.

Rod is an inveterate tinkerer, no wildcat comes his way without having to be tested . But he is also an extremely experienced and knowledgable handloader. He sent me this picture of the .416 Kodiak. Please note, there are no guarantees with respect to the velocities listed. If you decide to try this out, use careful loading techniques, and work up from below.



You can contact Serengeti Rifles via: larryt@serengetirifles.com

- mike

MHO: My partner is still out Elk chasing and has not returned my call as yet.
It must be the same fellow or a partner.
Thanks for the picture and the link I have earmarked them for future reference.
Thanks again!
Yeah its an amazingly intriguing and fascinating world - of wildcats and new factory cartridges!
It seems there is a never ending search for the perfect cartridge for a specific use - both Hunting useages and competition use!
Great sport and great fun we all have with this hobby!
More later & thanks again.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

The hunter in question with the .375 Serengeti is Doug Reid. A couple of years back he and I talked about developing a line of heavy hitters on the WSM case as we believed Winchester was going the wrong way in bore size. So we put a 325, 350, 375, and a 416 on the drawing board. USRAC has since done the 325, but I'll bet we were at least a year ahead of them. Shortage of premium bullets in 8mm made us opt for 338 instead of 8mm, but we do have a reamer kicking around.

375 was the next caliber to get the nod. And it turned out just super. Think of it as just a touch below an H&H in a short handy rifle.

Almost immediately, I started the .416 reamer with some facets taken from my many, many years of working with 416rem. We're in load testing now and the results look very promising. 416 is an exceptionally efficient bore size and you get a lot velocity for the pressure. So far, the 416 Serengeti appears to be as much over a 375H&H as the 375 is below it. The bigger the bullet, the better it gets. Unlike 416rem, you can seat out, especially in a long-for-size mag box like that found in the M1999 action. The powder volume approaches parity with 416rem, where the bullet intrudes deeply. And so does velocity. More on all this later.

Rod Rogers: Thanks for getting this minor question regarding the mystery Hunter and your cool new cartridges answered!
Best of luck with your now 1 year old endeavours!
I am looking for a short action 700 or Model 7 to get my new 375 Serengeti Rifle rolling on!
Thanks again.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy