I would like to build soon a 375 H&H. About 90% sure it won't be a 375 Wby but who knows. Not taking into consideration brush and handling in the field, how much more performance will a 26" barrel get over a 24" or 22" for that matter? My old model 70 375 has a 25" barrel. I think Saeed's 375/404 has a 26" tube. So just for performance sake alone, is a 25 or 26 inch barrel worth the extra velocity?

I like a 26" tube in or out of the brush, long barrels have never been a problem for me or for Saeed in the thick stuff..For that matter a 18 inch tube can be a problem in brush if the brush is in the right spot!! sooooo?

Most of all I like the way a 26" barrel hangs on off hand shots and on running game off hand..

As to the balistic advantage the 26" tube gets you quite a bit more velocity, but I doubt that its enough to make a bit of difference one way or the other in killing effect or in trajectory, those things are always overrated on these boards...

Bottom line is usually a compromise with most and they settle on 24...I still like the long tubes on my rifles, but just for the above stated reasons, not for the reasons you ask about...

If balistic performance was my only criterior then I's cut the tube off at 20 inches. In fact I have shot some nice Buffalo with Pierre van Tonders bull barrel 20" pre war M-70..and it did them in quite well....

I like the longer barrels from a cosmetic standpoint and have never had trouble with them in the field. They do have a better balance in my hands although I have never shot at running game to know if it helps any. There has been so much discussion lately about 2700 fps with a 300 gr. bullet like Saeed's 375/404 or a 375 Wby and how it seems to be an excellent combination for those that want a bit more punch but don't want to go up to .40 caliber or more. So I thought why not build a 375 with a longer throat and 26" tube, and maybe with the right load be able to shoot 2700fps with a std. 375 H&H. Still retaining the great feeding characteristics, standard chambering, and great reputation of the 375. Winchester settled on a 25" barrel around 1941 for their 375s.

I prefer a 26" barrel on everything. That is what Dennis Olson is putting on my .375.

Prewar70,

quote:

About 90% sure it won't be a 375 Wby but who knows.

Why not go with the Weatherby version? It gives you everything the H&H does plus the added velocity and performance. As far as how long the barrel should be, I wouldn't go any less than 25". Lawdog

See my above post. I was wondering if I could achieve 2700 fps with a 300 grainer safely and reliably in a std. 375 H&H.

According to Dakota Arms, their .375Dakota has a velocity change for each 1 inch barrel lenght as 20f/s. That would be pretty much the same with the H&H and Weaterby. So the difference between 22" and 26" is 80f/s.

I don't think you will see much of a vel. gain in going from say a 24'-26"bbl. If you are on the tall side, a 25" or 26" will fit you well. If you are on the short side, maybe a 23" or 24". Get what YOU like.

Msrs. Holland and Holland made it in 26" and i think they knew what they were doing. Charlie

I reckon the longer barrels do hang well for off hand shots.......................I seem to shoot well with the length of the cz 550 safari barrels which is 25 1/2" long.

25-26 inches is my favorite. I really dislike muzzle blast.

In a .375 H&H a 22 incher versus a 26 incher will amount to about 100 fps.

I like anything from 23" to 26" and prefer the longer side of that.

My .375/.338 WinMag is only 21.5" but it will still easily exceed 2400 fps with 300 grainers. The apprentice gunsmith that did that one ringed my chamber and his master had to whack off the threads and redo.

Saeed has two .375/404's that are in the 23" to 26" range, one a couple of inches shorter than the other.

My .375's:

.375/.338WM: 21.5"
.375 H&H: 24"
.375 H&H: 24"
.375 Wby: 24"
.375 Wby: 24"
.375 Wby: 25"
.375 RUM: 23"
.375 RUM: 26"
.378 Wby: 25"
.375 Lapua: 26" (work in progress)

I definitely tend toward 25" or 26" barrels on any .375 if I have my druthers nowadays. And BTW, every one of them is a 12" twist.

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:


My .375's:

.375/.338WM: 21.5"
.375 H&H: 24"
.375 H&H: 24"
.375 Wby: 24"
.375 Wby: 24"
.375 Wby: 25"
.375 RUM: 23"
.375 RUM: 26"
.378 Wby: 25"
.375 Lapua: 26" (work in progress)

If any of them are sans hillbilly carvings in the stock, please post pics!

500lies,
None of them have carvings. Sorry to disappoint you. Go suck your thumb.

BTW, you know the .470 Mbogo has epoxy "inlays" on a laminated stock.

The .404 Jeffery has an epoxy "inlay" of a map of Africa on the Brown Precision stock.

That is the extent of my creativity in all my stocks.

No wood carvings at all. Just a start at you beginning to twist the facts? Trying to get another lie worked out, Dan?

Liar liar liar ... 500 lies.

RIP,

That's a lot of 375s! The 12" twist sounds like it works even with the bigger bullets. If it ain't broke...

Prewar70,
That is 20 years of .375's. I also have a couple of 22" .378 Wby barrels that I could switch back onto the current .378 CZ 550 and a Mark V that was rebarreled to .30-378.

But a 22" barreled .378 Wby is just a little bit underwhelming, even for me.

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:

The .404 Jeffery has an epoxy "inlay" of a map of Africa on the Brown Precision stock.

That will be helpful if you get lost.

quote:

Originally posted by 500grains:

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:

The .404 Jeffery has an epoxy "inlay" of a map of Africa on the Brown Precision stock.

That will be helpful if you get lost.

Oh yes, for sure. And I wasn't even hiding anything under the epoxy. Just did it for the heck of it on the 8 pounder. It is precious and perfected as a stainless/synthetic .404 Jeffery can be. Even has an H&H Moon Bead front sight and no rear sight except a detachable peep. A fun gun, the African Sheep Rifle.

Now 500lies, what have you been sucking on lately besides your thumb?

Personally, I go for balance and comfort. On a Rem Classic Safari (very light rifle) the factory 24" barrel hangs well. On a Rem BDL in 375H&H, cut to 22" with its heavier contour it was also was perfect. Never chronographed the shorter barrel but the same 300gr loads shot identically out to 200m, so I never really worried.
Cheers...
Con

I have one with a 65 cm. barrel (25.6 in.) that I like very much and am about to have another built with a 25 in. barrel.

I like longer barrels on all my rifles and generally never go shorter than 24 in. except in a purpose-built carbine, of which I own a couple.

I am definitely going with a 26" tube when I build. I'm sure I'll like it and if I don't, can always cut her back. The consensus from this thread at least is a preference towards a 25-26" barrel on a 375 H&H which surprised me a bit.

The Pre-64 M70 in 375H&H has a 25" barrel. I love mine, and I think Winchester got it right with this model.

Tim

Gee 500grains by chance do you have a fondness for .375s? hehe

I like my bolt guns to be no more than 24" (22" to 24" is what I prefer) but that's just personal preference. I like my overall length to not exceed about 44" generally. But alot just depends on what you like. A 26" bbl will definitely max out your velocity potential with loads though I have to say that - probably 50fps over a 24" tube.

Make the barrel length to your liking and not someone else's.....I personally like the 21" barrel on my last .375 and wouldn't give a second thought to the velocity lost...it's not so much that a cape buffalo will know the difference.

I've had a few 375 with bbls from 22-26" and I think my favorite was a 22" on a kimber 89. My current dakota has a 23" and it might be my imagination, but I think the 22" is a lot handier in the brush than the longer one

Gentlemen,

Your post made me think of a .375 H&H Sako Carbine I have tucked away in a closet. Just pulled it out along with the Bell and Carlson stock I used to use when I lived in Homer, AK. In the composite stock it weights 7 lbs-13 Oz with a 2-7 Leopold compact and has a 19"+/- barrel. It took 2 Blacktails and a Caribou, but mostly it rode in boats or airplanes on fishing trips as bear protection. Never needed it, but what a GREAT gun!! The stock still has Alaska mud on it.....

I was thinking about puting together a Contender with a 21" .375 JDJ barrel and now I think I will spend my money on something else and use the old Sako with some light loads instead. Thanks for reminding me!!

I agree that barrel length has little to do with performance of a big bore, at least for the most part, I like the long 26" tubes because I can shoot better off hand and at running game with them, no other reason,

If you like a long or short tube then let that be your choice, who cares what the rest of us like, your the one thats hunting with it......

I've owned several from 21" to 24" and now strongly prefer nothing less than 24".

mine is 24". Personally, I would want one from 22-24". It is a Ford vs. Chevy thing, and this is what I prefer. No right or wrong answer.

I don't know how much barrel length hurts/improves performance, but I do know that with a slightly longer barrel (in the 24" range), I find the recoil more manageable than with the shorter barrel (21").

Apparently a few Rem 700s were made at 26" in .375 because I owned one, sorry I ever sold it. Now have a 25" pre 64 by Stegall. The very first pre 64s were 24" standard weight contour they kicked horribly so Winchester went to the straight taper target contour in 24", these were too heavy, either version is now precious to the collectors. Winchester finally settled on the 25".

I selected a 22" length for my custom on a Sako 61 and chose the 375 I. which I now call a 375 Weatherby. I figured that the blown out round would make up for the shorter barrel.

The rifle is still pretty heavy but at least it's not too long. Before that I had a 26" 378 Wby that was a clumsy gun and I still have a 25" pre 64 M70.

What did Finn Aaguard say about cutting his 375?

I have had 26,24,20, and 19 3/4" barrels. I liked them all. Especially the short barrels. I currently have a long barrel [heck I do not know if it is 24,25 or 26 inches], and a 19 3/4" Tracker barrel for my Blaser R 93. The Tracker bbl has "iron sights" [actually plastic]
and since I prefer "iron sights" on a rifle, even if it is primarialy a scoped gun it is my favorite of the two. I have shot both side by side to 200 yards on paper and the accuracy is equal.
I consider these Blaser barrels primarily North American barrels.
Were I to hunt Africa with a Blaser in 375 I would get the heavy iron sighted Safari 24" barrel.
I really do not think the length of the barrel on a 375 makes any big difference as long as the rifle handles/shoots well and YOU like it.

My M-70 stainless wears a 20" tube. I get pretty close to 2700FPS out of it with 270gr bullets. It's deadly accurate and nothing I've ever killed with it complains about the short barrel.

More than anything I made it short because back then I was flying bush in AK and it needed to fit into some pretty small spots. It is also real handy in and out of a pick up and carries on a horse real nice too.

I dearly love my .375H&H carbine and have killed literally hundreds of head of game with it. She has never let me down.

Looks like my Sako carbine, except I have a black stock and a blued barrel and action. Scope mounts are still as solid as hell and bet the Leopold hasn't moved since I last shot it. If I could only have one gun...and a 10/22!!

I like the long barrels 26" From my Buff shooting days in the NT of Australia Where 20+ shots a day were'nt uncommon .(It was a major step up from a .303& increased my life expectancy 10fold in the bargin) I never found the long barrel to be a problem in thick Bush & lower recoil than the shorter barrels some blokes were using was a bonus

quote:

Originally posted by Prewar70:
See my above post. I was wondering if I could achieve 2700 fps with a 300 grainer safely and reliably in a std. 375 H&H.

Not very likely!

Saeed
I think the odds are less than that. I have never gotten 2600 fps.

Prewar70,

If you need/want 2,700 fps. using 300 gr. bullets from a .375, SAFELY, then you need to move up the .375 Weatherby Magnum. A charge of 87.3 gr. of IMR-4350 will get you 2,713 fps.. Greatest part of using the .375 Weatherby is you can shoot factory .375 H&H ammo should the need arise. That is how I get my Weatherby brass for reloading. Lawdog