I'm looking to buy a 375 H&H. I have found a Ruger RSM and a Whitworth that are priced comparably. I love the wood on the Ruger and the 1/4 rib rear sight, but the barrel band has the sling stud coming out of the forearm and there is no cheek piece on the Rugers. The Whitworth has a nice 3 leaf island rear sight, but doesn't have the 1/4 rib. It does however have a proper front barrel band for the sling and a nice cheek piece. The wood is O.K.

Which rifle would you reccommend and if anyone knows, what is the comparative recoil between the two? This will be my first bigbore.

SBT,

I went the Whitworth route in both .375 H&H and .416 Rem and I have to say that I'm very pleased with both rifles. The Ruger doesn't seem to fit me well, physically while the Whitworth does. It's probably simply preference. Is the Ruger control feed? The Whitworth is, which is something to take into consideration. Now the downside: The Whitworth is pretty light and consequently even in .375 apt to beat you up a bit on the bench. My .416 (converted .375) at 8 lbs 11 oz. is brutal on the bench. But, the weight is a good thing if you are lugging it around in the field. But, they are both very acurate once you get the express sights where you want them. Hope this helps.
Whitorth

If price isn't a consideration, I would just order a new Ruger Express instead. It would have all the features as noted in your post. I have several Rugers and just plain love them. All mine seem to come in very nice wood (coming from the factory) and have very nice triggers out of the box (3#-3 1/4#).

Whitworth,

I have a 416 Taylor built on the Whitworth. Like you say it came in a little on the light side. From the bench it got your attention. What I did was cut a channel in the bottom of the forearm and a cavity in the buttstock. Then played with adding lead to both. Not only was I able to increase the weight I improved the balance more to my liking. Total weight with scope is now 10.5#

SBT,

If they both feed and shoot, function isnt't an issue, although the front swivel on the Ruger may bite you on recoil. Aesthetically, I like the Whitworth. '98 Mauser, classic lines. I think the weight is just right, particularly if you have to carry it all day. I've carried my .375 Whitworth lots of miles in Africa and I wouldn't take for it.