Hello, advise, please a good bullet in .375 for hunting for a brown bear (grizzly).

Are A-Square Dead Tough, Barnes X-Bullet and Triple Shock, CT Fail Safe and Partition Gold, Federal/Speer Trophy Bonded, Nosler Partition, Speer African Grand Slam, Swift A-Frame, Woodleigh Weldcore, Barnes X-Bullet, Hornady InterBond good enough?

I have tried RWS TUG, but there was bad expantion.

All of the bullets mentioned have good reputations on D.G. possibly excepting the Hornady. I am partial to the Swift A-Frame in .375 after seeing its performance on Cape Buffalo last year.

First choice-in my opinion: Woodleigh-300grn.SN
Second choice: Hornady 300grn. SN (NOT Interbond, but the old style, they are for sale again, Midway-etc.)
Thats all I would contemplate using in the .375 for brown bear.
I'm not downing the others mentioned, it's just that I have no experience with them, so I can't testify for them. Simply stating, these I mentioned are the ones I would use.
So, your probably going to get a whole heck of a lot of different opinions than this after me.
I know what it's like with too many choices, and the .375 bore has a lot of them.

The best bullet that you did'nt mention!!!

NORTHFORK


Steve

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Lefforge:
The best bullet that you did'nt mention!!!

NORTHFORK


Steve

Yes....and FWIW IMO the A-Frame and TBBC are the equal of the Northfork.....use the one that is most accurate in your gun!

You should get good results with 17,6gm ABC from Hirtenberger. They make pretty good mortar round too!

300 gr. A Frame.

.......Alot of Alaskan Master Guides have recomended the 270 gr bullet in the 375 H&H and it,s improved off spring ... It is important to remember that BROWN BEARS are not ELEPHANTS .,., A 250 gr Barnes X bullet or Triple Shock is an execellent bullet but the 270 is a good compromise.......Often the 270 gr X bullet out penetrates the 300 gr Swift A Frame ..And it makes a plenty big enough hole thru the bear.....If you can order bullets from South Africa you might try G S Custom ,s H V bullet ....About a tecknologically advanced a bullet as there is ... Or mayby Lutz Moelers Cavatator bullets .....,., Good Luck..

Thanks a lot, Ñolleagues!

vapodog, "FWIW IMO the A-Frame and TBBC" what does it mean?

My choice would be the 300grn Swift A frame or 350grn Woodleigh Protected Point.
FWIW is short for "for what its worth" and IMO is "in my opinion"
Cheers,
ozhunter

quote:

FWIW is short for "for what its worth" and IMO is "in my opinion"

and "TBBC"?

TBBC = Trophy Bonded Bear Claw.
I have heard too many complaints about this Bullet and would not use it .
I also would not use the standard 300grn Woodleigh round nose soft at standard 375 velocity on big game. Not a problem if slowed down a bit.
Regards,
ozhunter

Thank you, ozhunter.

Another vote for North Fork Bullets. They are just outstanding for what you're hunting and most other stuff too.

Roman BGH ----- I have been to Alaska several times and have taken a 91/2 ft. Brown Bear using a 200 Grain Nosler Partition with a .300 Winny. I have also hunted extensively since then using every bullet produced in this country from Alaska to Canada to our Western states to Africa. If I were you there would be NO DOUBT which bullet I would shoot if it shot well in my rifle and that is the NORTH FORK. I have used them on many Elk, and each of the following, Impala, Kongoni, Zebra and Cape Buffalo. Think Sierra Matchking accuracy with the toughest bullet you can buy, yet it still gives that perfect mushroom. My .02 for what it is worth. Good shooting.

Not sure which bullets they make now but My favorite for big game was the 270 Barnes X bullet. I no longer have a 375 but whatever bullet weight in that range in the newer TXS should be as good as it gets.

Last year I used a 300g Barnes TSX on moose and although the meat damage was non existant the vital organs looked like red egg salad. I'd certainly feel comfortable using the same bullet on bear.

I edit to note that I don't think I need to use that heavy a bullet on either species, I just wanted to.

The 270gr TSX or failsafe would be my first choice.

I'd like to have the 270 grain TSX as well.

You already have a lot of good information here. My 2 cents worth is that I have personaly seen 37 brown bears taken with everything under the sun. They have all worked well because most people will use enough gun when hunting big bears.

Of the ones I have personly shot two were taken with 250 gr. sierra .338 game kings. One with 300 gr. .375 game king and one with a 270 gr. Hornady .375 spire point. 3 one shot kills and one took 2.

As long as your shooting a .375 most anything will work.

NORTHFORK!!!!
IF IT'S GREAT FOR CAPE BUFF, IT WILL BE GREAT ON ANYTHING

Did anyone mention Kodiaks ? They fit right in with this group of bullets. There is not a "bad" one among the list
I have used virtually all of them and certainly seen big bears killed with all of them. However picking which is "best" is like argueing over which beer is best.
If I absolutely had to choose only one bullet to use in the 375 for the rest of my life - and hopefully that will include a lot more big bears - I would choose the 270 gr TSX. I'll not argue that it is the best - it's just my choice.

My choice for bear with a .375 would be the 300 gr. Northfork, or the 350 gr. Woodleigh..I think the 350 Woodleigh is the best SN bullet for bear and about anything where a soft is the order of the day..I really love that big bullet, it opens up to the size of a quarter, with those ragged edges and rips and tears, leave a lot of blood on the ground, and I like that when following one up. That is my problem with the Swift, its too smooth and round and doesn't do the damage the Woodleighs do.

Ray, I plan on loading up some of the 350 Woodleigh bullets in the 375 ruger for my use during this next season. If I get chewed on I'm going to give you a call.

Mr. Shoemaker:
WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR 458?

Also, what's wrong with Hawk's?

GS

He's probably still got it. He likes to experiment with rifles and loads every season.

Thanks a lot, colleagues! It was very helpful.

There is absolutely NOTHING wring with my 458. However I have been using the new Ruger 375 Alaskan and it comes pretty close to duplicating my 458. I was thinking that if this thing existed twenty five years ago, with today's bullets, I might be using it instead. Anyway, I dicided to give it a try this year as it appears to be an excellent factory rifle and caliber.

quote:

Originally posted by 458Win:
There is not a "bad" one among the list
I have used virtually all of them and certainly seen big bears killed with all of them. However picking which is "best" is like argueing over which beer is best.

I'll go beer for beer with you, as we try to solve that perplexing dilemma!

Id drink to that. Microbrew or store-bought?

First, in my opine, Hawks are way too soft for hunting about anything. I had a 175 gr. 7x57 come apart on a spike deer, I had a bunch of 338 225 gr. Hawks, come apart on a plinsgame hunt. I posted all of them some years back here or on Hunt America.

Phil,
If you get et, I will come and finish out your clients for you. Feed your family and educate your young'uns, but considering the number of bear you have killed with a 180 gr. Nosler in your 30-06, I think I'm fairly safe..

Ozhunter,
I think I would opt for the softer RN 350 Woodleigh on bear, Bear are a lot softer than Cape Buffalo or Water Buffalo and that big RN is a slightly softer bullet, but very capable of breaking shoulders on bear and making big ugly holes in them..Have not tried it on bear, but have shot a lot of buffalo with both the RN and the SP in the 375 350 gr. and the 416 Rem with 450 gr. SP and RN. I tested those bullets in Africa for Geoff before they were introduced to the public...They are a GREAT bullet IMO..

I am anxious to hear how Phil does with them on the big bears..

quote:

Originally posted by 458Win:
There is absolutely NOTHING wring with my 458. However I have been using the new Ruger 375 Alaskan and it comes pretty close to duplicating my 458. I was thinking that if this thing existed twenty five years ago, with today's bullets, I might be using it instead. Anyway, I dicided to give it a try this year as it appears to be an excellent factory rifle and caliber.

It's ok, Mr. S. A LOT of old people, like Ray, decide they don't need the pounding of the 458s, and go back to the 375, or even 9.3.

Here's me with my FAVORITE ever 9.3, that I wish I'd been able to buy at the time:


The jug attacked quickly, but, the rifle had little recoil, and, the second shot could be got off, with practice, in under a second...

GS

A lot of us tend to get either smarter- or softer- as age makes itself known. I am sort of fond of 9.3's as well.
I agree with Ray about hawks being soft. So are Woodleighs in my opinion but with the SD of the 350's in the 375 they still should do very well on big bears.

quote:

Originally posted by 458Win:
A lot of us tend to get either smarter- or softer- as age makes itself known. I am sort of fond of 9.3's as well.
I agree with Ray about hawks being soft. So are Woodleighs in my opinion but with the SD of the 350's in the 375 they still should do very well on big bears.

Mr. S:

Doesn't a LOT of that have to do with what jacket thickness you pick? Gil Van Horn is no idiot, and, he loved their bullets...

GS

PS:
If my local crack, errrr, gunstore guy hadn't given me such a great deal on an FA 83, I would have already converted my 30-06 to 9.3 x 62. 286 grain bullet, @ 2400 fps will kill everything, with little recoil, and quick second shots...Ask Reeder.

Gil was no idiot and he was a great gun builder as well and he wasn't the only one who liked Hawks but every one I have tried has proven a lot softer than I prefer. They basically are built like the old Barnes with a soft copper jacket and un-bonded lead core which is prone to seperate. I've had many completely shed their jackets in the 375 Scovill and H&H. I've heard form a lot of other serious users who have had the same experiences. As long as you keep the velocities down to acceptable levels they should work fine on most game but on dangerous game I want something stouter.

Last I heard, my friend talks regularly to Gil Van Horn, and, he's still around.

Mr. S, I'll trust your bullet judgment. Are Brown bears really as easy to kill as Ray makes out?

Two big bears taken from guys in this area both took 11 rounds of 375, and, ran around 1200 plus pounds.
Pretty sure they came from Alaska. Somehow I just never thought of a brown bear as 'easy' to kill, even when compared to cape buffalo. Something that has a very slow heart beat, and, eats EVERYTHING, and runs faster then a race horse, seems to be a bit tougher then most.

Also the entire, "let's go swimming in water, for hours, that kills people in 10 minutes, or less', makes me think that fur, and fat, and skin might be pretty hard to punch a bullet hole through.

GS
PS
I'm REAL intrested in Hawk bullets as 'hunting-self-defense loads". My thought is a 1200-1400 fps 450 grain Hawk bullet, .510 bullet, in my max, with a thin skin. .025" IIRC, would open up nicely on the FAR more likely bad guy, rather then bad bear. Plus, with that much bullet weight, it still might go 3' through a bear...

Also, I get all warm and fuzzy thinking about the 400 grain, 1350 fps, .475 Linebaugh factory loads in my FA 83. Favorite gun, favorite load.

Mr. S: How about a 2400 fps, 500 grain soft point, or Barnes X bullet, out of a 450 Ackley??? Hawk bullet out of your 458?

Actually, doesn't a 500 grain solid, or sp, at 2150 fps, do in most bears?
Sure kills water jugs:::


This jug attacked Jack at about 35 miles an hour. However, the Nitro Express 450 500 grain solid did it in with pretty spectacular results:


By the way, I've watched Jack 'kill' two jugs, in under a second, maybe 15 yards apart, faster then I could take pictures...

Last I heard Gil was still around as well. I thought we were talking about how smart he USED to be.

Big bears and Cape Buffalo are about the same size and both are easy to kill - if you hit them in the right place. But both seem to be bullet proof with poor bullet placement - especially after their adrenalin starts flowing.
I suppose that a 500gr bullet at 2400fps -IF IT HELD TOGETHER - would work fine on about anything, including big bears. but it sure isn't needed and I don't know anyone who can shoot rifles that much recoil anywhere as well as one with lessor recoil. there comes a time when, no matter what you are shooting, you have to place the bullet in the right place and no amount of excess energy can compensate for that.
A 500 gr 458 bullet at 2100fps is enough for anything that walks.

Gentlemen
In the intrest of Science I must report that recovered from Cape Buffalo, and Eland, 480 Woodleigh Softs, and 500 gr Swift A Frames, fired from my 450 No2 at @2100 to 2150fps, both performed nearly identical in penetration and expansion.

I do feel that at higher velocity the Swift would hold together better.

I was surprised/pleased at how well the Swift did at the "lower" velocity of my 450 No2.

I will also say that I have had excellent results with 286 gr Woodleigh softs and 286 Nosler Partitions on all manner of game from beaver to cape buffalo in my 9,3x74R double rifle.

I firmly believe it is the bullet that does "all the work".

It is up to the hunter to pick the right one, and above all else, put it in the right place.

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
That is my problem with the Swift, its too smooth and round and doesn't do the damage the Woodleighs do.

I agree, the A frames do come out a bit too perfect smooth and all but they penetrate well as you know. The 375grn Woodleigh Protected point bullets with their extra weight are great for penetration and come out a bit more jagged so should be great. I just love the A frames as I have not seen a failure with them where as with the Woodleigh round nose softs I have seen too many break up when pushed too fast or when heavey bone is hit.
ozhunter