I think I know the answer to this question but would like a few opinions on this from those of you who are more experienced at chasing Wapati in the woods. I recently relocated from Alaska, where I used my .375 for everything, to New Mexico where I'm not sure I want to lug the big boy around. Anyone care to opine? Bullet recommendations are most appreciated.

Too Many Tools,

The 375 is not too big. I use a 416 Rigby myself. I cannot help you with bullet selection however as I do not shoot the 375.

Todd E

Heck no, the .375 H&H is not at all too big for elk. Some .375 H&H rifles, however, are simply built too heavy for mountain hunting purposes.

That's why cartridges like the .338 Winchester and .300 Winchester make for more ideal elk rifles. They kill well, shoot flat, and the rifles they're chambered for are built lighter as a general rule. They give up nothing in the way of practical killing power to the .375 H&H. So while I have hunted elk with the .375 (I did last season, in fact) before, I really prefer these other calibers.

AD

TMT; though I own a 375 H&H, I haven't used it on elk yet. I certainly don't see it as "too much" for elk. It's only downside is that the rifles chambered for it are generally heavy. I like my elk rifles under 8.75 lbs. I Had my stainless Model 70's bbl. chopped to 22" and the front sight reinstalled. I plan on putting a 2.5 Leupold scope on it in Weaver mounts and stocking it in Kevlar. "All-up" weight should come in at 8.5 lbs. That would suit me fine.

Brad

I'd agree with the previous posts, the caliber is fine but the rifles are generally too heavy. Serious elk rifles don't need to weigh over 8.5 pounds, and most 375s do.

The 375 H&H is THE PERFECT ELK RIFLE, if, as John S pointed out, you make it weigh 8.5 lbs. field ready. Here is my recipe for just that:

Pre-64 Winchester Model 70 action.
Douglas #3 sporter contour stainless barrel, 24".
Brown Precision "Pounder" stock with Pachmayr pad.
Wrinkle paint stock finish.
NECG Masterpiece banded front sight ramp with hood.
Lyman receiver sight.
Warne rings and bases, or Leupold QRW, or Talley, or even the old standard Weaver rings (lightest of all, and good, but ugly).
Leupold 2.5-8X Vari-X III scope, matte black with standard duplex reticle.
Light weight 1" nylon sling and Uncle Mikes Super Swivels, attached to the toe end and forend tip.

I would use a full case of ReLoder 15 pushing a bullet of 250 to 300 grains at max safe pressure. The bullets I might use would include:

GS Custom 265 grain HV
Barnes X 270 to 300 grains
Nosler 260 to 300 grain Partition
Swift 250 to 300 grain A-Frame
Sierra 300 grain GameKing
Hornady 270 to 300 grain spitzers
Speer 285 grain Grand Slam

There are more...lots of choices, IMHO.

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Good huntin', shootin', and spear chuckin',
RAB

We hunt the Vermijo in northern New Mexico and all shooting is done with Braked 300 Win mags or 300 Weatherbys. Our guides use a 270 many time to finish a poorly placed magnum shot. One of us uses a 257 Weatherby but offers good shot placement (neck 2" below the nape). Go with a rifle you can shoot well and is accurate and do you work to get your animal in a good position to execute the kill.

I used my M70 with 300 Sierras for a few seasons and it worked great. Shot a spike at 90 yds,1 shot and down. Then two raghorn bulls both at the edge of 300 yds. The 300 Sierras come apart maybe half the time, but they kill fine. I may have killed one with 300 partitions but don't recollect.
For in the dark timber when all one may have is a patch of hair to shoot at and you need 4 foot of penetration theres few other rifles I would long for....other than maybe Todd's .416 Rigby and a 400 grain.

They can be heavy but a heck of an elk killer.

Frank N.

If the weight is right, like my Sako TRG-S, then the .375 is just fine for elk. I have used 250 grain Sierras, which worked fine, but would load 260 grain Nosler Partitions given the choice.

With either of these bullets in the 2800 FPS range, you give up nothing in long range ability, but there will be a price to pay at the shoulder.

Is the .375 necessary for elk? No. Is it useful for elk? Sure.

I would say that your chosen method of hunting would be the biggest factor in this decision.

For example, on evening hunts in gentle terrain or thick cover, a .375 would be hard to beat, heavy or not. Great power for a higher liklihood of a knockdown, and a better chance for a massive bloodtrail.

If you plan to haul your butt over a mountain and back on a full day hunt (or extended period of day hunts), then you may find that rifle weight is more important than raw power. I like my mountain guns to weight 7.5 lbs or less, but anything up to 8.5 is reasonable for extensive carrying.

Alternatively, though, you can follow RAB's recipe and "have your cake and eat it too"!

Canuck

I recall that Elmer Keith thought the .375 H&H was the MINIMUM for elk. You know how he always hated to be undergunned. I sold my Rem 700 .375 H&H when I left Alaska many years ago and still kick myself in the butt for doing so. I met a hunter over here in Arizona who thought that the .243 Win was a fine elk cartridge, although he had never shot an elk with it.

If I'm not mistaken, Remington still makes a couple of different custom shop 700's in .375 that weighs about 6.5 pounds. I think this would be plenty light to pack around after elk and, like all other posters so far, I believe the .375 to be a great elk calibre! I'm thinking the lighter Barnes X-Bullets would be the ticket!

JohnTheGreek

In dark, steep elk jungle or at 400 yards distance ... Whether coming, going or something in between, the .375 with quality 270 grain bullets is my idea of a trophy elk hunting rifle.

How could you go wrong with the .375 H&H on anything? It truly is a universal cartridge. That being said, I still prefer my 7mm RM (175 gr. partitions at 3000 fps) if the country is open or my .45-70 guide gun (350 gr. interlocks at 2100 fps or 405 gr. lazer-cast at 2000 fps) in the timber, which we have a lot of here in Oregon.

If you like the .375 keep it, you won't go wrong...

Joel Slate
Slate & Associates, LLC
The Safari Specialists
www.slatesafaris.com

I would agree with Slate If you shoot it well and you like the 375 H&H then you will do fine with it Good Hunting

Are you ready for this?

The .30-06 used on a whitetail or mule deer, 180 grain bullet, at 300 yards is good for a 414 pound animal.

The 375 H&H magnum, 270 grain bullet, at 300 yards is good for a 784 pound animal. *( A bull can go 1,100 pounds ).

This according to the *( gulp ) OGW! Optimum Game Weight Formula. Thus the .30-06 is over gunned and the .375 H&H is under gunned.

Put another way, is a .30-06 is a good deer rifle and an elk weighs 6 times more than a deer then to stay in the realm of adequacy the elk gun should be 6 times more than a .30-06!!!

Kendall Dace

I have used a 375 H&H on elk half a dozen times and it worked great. No observable difference between it and a 338 win mag.

Although certainly not necessary, nor is it my first choice, but it certainly will do a good job of killing elk...

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Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

The .375 makes a difference when striking an elk over the 270,06 etc. You can see the visual effects on the body better with a hit with the .375. I carried it for two seasons in the mountains, mine had a thicker barrel than factory and I opted to lighten things up a bit,later went to a custom 300 mag.

I have taken two bulls with the 375 H&H in my Remington KS Mountain Rifle. The rifle weighs a hair over 7 1/2 # scoped with a Leupold 2.5-8X and puts three 260 gr Partitions well inside an inch at a mild 2750 fps (it will reach near 2900 fps). It is a joy to carry and pleasant to shoot. Sure instills confidence when the shot ins't perfect. In the right rifle, it makes a fine elk round.

Toomany,

The 375 is perfect for Elk. Really puts them down. I have used both 260 and 300 Partitions in my M70. Pure elk poison. Since you're already used to carrying yours for everything, then weight obviously isn't a problem (frankly I don't get the whole weight argument myself), it's never been a problem for me and mine weighs over 10lbs loaded. You might try the GS line of bullets, too. I have been meaning to try them, impressive reports on this forum with those HV bullets.