Of the following which do you guys think would be the better Grizzly bear rifle/bullet combo? I will also be using it on caribou on the same hunt.

I will be up in the Brooks Range unit 26 in September 2009 and I am obsessing on which one of these to bring.

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm .

Weatherby Euromark wood stock blued barrel 300 Weatherby Mag 180 grain Barnes X fixed Leupold VXlll 4.5x14x40mm

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 375 H&H 300 grain Nosler Partition Talley detachable mounts VXlll 1.5x5x20mm and backup scope Leupold VXlll 1.75x6x32mm

Here's my choice. Don't think there's any need for the .375

quote:

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm

joedjr

I live in the brooks and am a "meat" hunter, been around the bend and beyond kind of thing. I like the .30 cal. magnum round , it can deliver for you in the vast opens of tundra and or huge hillside hunting with less weight than the .375 HH.

choose a premium bullet to do all for both Caribou and/or grizz-min. bullet weight and good overall is the 180grn. You are not going to encounter the likes of a coastal bear but some of them hillside bruins look to be the size of one-it is "aim small-hit small" kind of thing.

good hunting

i am with alasken on this. i would use the 200 gr. n.p.

good luck.

This would be my choice and will get the job done with proper bullet placement. I love my 375 H&H but i'm not going to carry that heavy thing across the tundra looking for 'bou.

quote:

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm

Joe,

I was up on the north side of the Brooks this fall for my second sheep hunt there and had a heck of a time maintaining the finish on my blued 30-06.

Ok, I lied there, I was un able to maintain the finish on my blued 30-06. It rained, snowed fogged, snowed, fogged, rained, the entire time I was there.

I was succesful in knocking down a bear with the '06, and I used the 165g TSX as advised to do so by Mark Young from these Forums.

I also own a .375, and can't imagine taking it there for any reason. The bears and caribou can very successfully be hunted with the 30 cal.

Yall are haveing one of them touchy feely 30 cal, groups..

quote:

Yall are haveing one of them touchy feely 30 cal, groups..

seeing hows most aren't in shape to the grueling lifestyle we live gummy we just have to vote for the standard caliber that has done it all-dada daaaaa the .30 caliber of course!

joedgr
I am going on a Grizzly bear hunt near Nome where I have a chance at a wolf and maybe a wolverine. I plan on using a 300 Win Mag Blaser R 93 as my primary rifle.

I will be using Federal factory 200gr Trophybonded Bearclaws.

As ikt is a bonded bullet it will hold together on a close shot, yet still expand at longish range. Also as a bonded bullet it should be a little easier on the pelt of the smaller animals than other bullets.

its intresting to hear the number of comments that the 375 h&h is to heavey to lug around!....thus the 375 RUGER....i think this is one cartridge/rifle combinaton which has got a lot going for it
my self i would take the old work horse , the 06 with 200 noslers @2700
Daniel

I wouldn't lug my 375 around on the tundra but anywhere else I would. Walking across tundra isn't like walking down an old riverbed or forest trail.

Go with the 300 and 200g Partitions

quote:

Originally posted by joedjr:
Of the following which do you guys think would be the better Grizzly bear rifle/bullet combo? I will also be using it on caribou on the same hunt.

I will be up in the Brooks Range unit 26 in September 2009 and I am obsessing on which one of these to bring.

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm .

Weatherby Euromark wood stock blued barrel 300 Weatherby Mag 180 grain Barnes X fixed Leupold VXlll 4.5x14x40mm

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 375 H&H 300 grain Nosler Partition Talley detachable mounts VXlll 1.5x5x20mm and backup scope Leupold VXlll 1.75x6x32mm

.....................................The 300 isn,t enough lighter than the 375 to make all that much difference....... Is there a reason these loads are set in stone .......The 375 H&H Fed High Energy 300 gr Trophy Bonded load does a full 2700 fps from a 23 1/2 " barrel ..... When sighted in at 200 yrds will hit only about 6" lower @ 400 yrds than te 300 Win and about 7" with the 300 Whby......Cutting the barrel back to 22" will not sustantially change that and if long range dangerous game shooting is your thing the 3.5-10 x scope will do just fine on the 375.....A hand load with the 270 gr Speer boat tail @ 2750 fps will work great also...........Haveing had , shot and hunted with quite a few of both calibers ... I would never give up the greatly enhanced ,consistent , proformance on game of the 375 for any 30 cal ..........I don,t know any one who can shoot better with thier 300 win or whbys than they could with thier 375 ,s unless they just chose to .....

quote:

Originally posted by gumboot458:

quote:

Originally posted by joedjr:
Of the following which do you guys think would be the better Grizzly bear rifle/bullet combo? I will also be using it on caribou on the same hunt.

I will be up in the Brooks Range unit 26 in September 2009 and I am obsessing on which one of these to bring.

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm .

Weatherby Euromark wood stock blued barrel 300 Weatherby Mag 180 grain Barnes X fixed Leupold VXlll 4.5x14x40mm

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 375 H&H 300 grain Nosler Partition Talley detachable mounts VXlll 1.5x5x20mm and backup scope Leupold VXlll 1.75x6x32mm

.....................................The 300 isn,t enough lighter than the 375 to make all that much difference....... Is there a reason these loads are set in stone .......The 375 H&H Fed High Energy 300 gr Trophy Bonded load does a full 2700 fps from a 23 1/2 " barrel ..... When sighted in at 200 yrds will hit only about 6" lower @ 400 yrds than te 300 Win and about 7" with the 300 Whby......Cutting the barrel back to 22" will not sustantially change that and if long range dangerous game shooting is your thing the 3.5-10 x scope will do just fine on the 375.....A hand load with the 270 gr Speer boat tail @ 2750 fps will work great also...........Haveing had , shot and hunted with quite a few of both calibers ... I would never give up the greatly enhanced ,consistent , proformance on game of the 375 for any 30 cal ..........I don,t know any one who can shoot better with thier 300 win or whbys than they could with thier 375 ,s unless they just chose to .....

Heck gumboot, If he would have listed a 10lb 458 as his choice, you'd have picked that . My choice...300 and 200gr. Dead is dead. Heavy is not light though.

,.,.,.,.No ,. I would say it would be interesting ...possibly challenging ,and very doable.....But someone asked for opinions and I presented some often done options........One other option would be to rebarrel the Wetherby to 340 Whby, trade the wood stock for one of the fibermark synthetic stocks ...The 340 is just superior to the 30,s .. But the 375 is not much steeper in trajectory than either....

Bottom line is that eather of the .300's are lighter than the .375 will shoot flater and have more than ample power for the job.
My choice would be the stainless winchester

OK, I'll settle this! I'm takin' my Ruger 338WM with 225 Gr. A-Frames......

quote:

Originally posted by akpls:
OK, I'll settle this! I'm takin' my Ruger 338WM with 225 Gr. A-Frames......

There you go. That's all you need.

I would take my .338WM with .225-grain Triple-Shock for everything, or loaded with 250 grainers of the same kind for bear alone.

,,,Execellent choice.........

Thank You to all that replied so far. I guess I'm going with the 300 Win Mag even though I would feel better in a bad situation with an agressive bear with the 375. I'll probably use this as a good excuse to pick up another gun anyway. Thinking about adding one more. Maybe 340 wthby mag. Also thinking about seeing a Shrink to help me from obsessing about a hunt that is 900 days away. I count down every day

quote:

Originally posted by joedjr:
....... Also thinking about seeing a Shrink to help me from obsessing about a hunt that is 900 days away. I count down every day

It won't help.......you've got The Fever!

quote:

Originally posted by joedjr:
Thank You to all that replied so far. I guess I'm going with the 300 Win Mag even though I would feel better in a bad situation with an agressive bear with the 375. I'll probably use this as a good excuse to pick up another gun anyway. Thinking about adding one more. Maybe 340 wthby mag. Also thinking about seeing a Shrink to help me from obsessing about a hunt that is 900 days away. I count down every day

GOOD LUCK!!

Go with the 375HH.Both mod.70's are close enough in weight to make no noticeable difference. Bring some 235 grain 375HH ammo for long shots if you like.If the caribou is far enough away to matter,then you will have plenty of time to put 235s in the mag if you want. It is a great feeling carrying your stainless Mod.70 375HH in Alaska.If you stumble up close across a grizzly,it feels good having 300 gr. Noslers to depend on.I also like your switch scope idea,but leave the extra one in camp. If you kept your open sights on the 375, all the better.I assume you are not a wimp,a few ounces more gun won't hurt you.

Longshots: I did keep the open sights on. I felt I should for a scope malfunction or getting into some thick bush I would rather shoot with open sights.

One idea on the 375HH is to sight in with 235 gr bullets approx. 2.5" high and learn the drop figures out to at least 400yds. Then without resighting in, shoot some of your 300 grainers and note where they hit at 100yds. If possible also see where they hit at 200 yds.When carrying your rifle carry with the 300gr. As I said earlier, if you plan on shooting at a caribou out to 300 yds. or beyond,it is easy to single feed 235s or even load the mag with them.You will easily be able to shoot a grizz. or caribou out to 200 yds. with the 300s.I have hunted plenty of tundra with my Mod. 70.My personal preference is to shoot Barnes 270 gr. TSX for everything. I use a progran to generate drops ,I tape a small cheat sheet to my synthetic stock.I have a differnt lightweight 375HH that I may load with Barnes 210 x's for my fall goat hunt.I know you can hunt all of Alaska with a beater 30-06, but it is fun to have that 375hh stainless up here. I doubt you would regret it.

If I hunted big griz I'd get a custom Hawk Rifle from http://www.z-hat.com that doesn't use a belted case.

I posted these pics in the Big Bore forum earlier this week! I shot this 9 footer at less than 8 yards and in full charge with a Weatherby chambered in .300 Wty, shooting 200 gr Nosler Partition handloads... I usually use Barnes X for bear, but was moose hunting at the time and was packing my Nosler's. We saw a Black Bear and my Brother-in-law wanted it so we stalked it but got charged by the Brown Bear on the way up....


You can see the entrance hole about 1 1/2" to the left of the left eye, on the snout. Apparently the bullet fragmented and a piece exited under the left eye. But the bear's scull was crushed like a watermelon smashed by Galliger's Sledge-O-Matic....


The bear was coming down mountain toward me like a freight train. When I shot it, it rolled so close I could have poked it with my rifle barrel! My Dad was at the bottom of the mountain watching the Black Bear we were stalking when he heard the shots. I got 2 off and my Brother-in-law got off 1. When he heard the shots he said it sounded like an automatic....bam bam bam!


So I said all that to say this. Bring what you shoot good! Bears are not envincible, but they are tuff! Make your first shot count and follow up with more well placed shots until the bear stops moving...... Oh, and good luck!

- Clint

...........I agree with Akcajun ....shoot your rifle well.....In my experience a 375 is as easy to shoot well as a 300 mag....And there is no reason to have a real heavy 375 .Where ever you will use it ,, A heavy 375 is pretty much unwelcome....A friend of mine had a nice Interarm Alaskan 375 H&H .. He shot it well and hunted with it ... He wanted a stainless rifle and so sold it and got the stainless model 70 375 H&H....It is heavier , doesn,t shoulder as well, had mechanical problems , and genrally was a disapointment for him.....All the problems are easily fixed . but he went back to his man wounder.......Great lack of imagination in the rifle setup dept for him..

quote:

Winchester Model 70 synthetic stainless 300 Win Mag 180 or 200 grain Nosler Partition fixed Leupold VXlll 3.5x10x40mm

I would take the .300 listed above with 200 grain Partitions, TSX's, North Forks or A-Frames....or any other premium bullet that shoots well in your rifle.

If you are going to buy a new rifle, you are smart to consider a .338 or .340. It would be the perfect compromise between the .300 and .375....but it is really not necessary for caribou or Brooks Range grizzlies.

I bought myself another .338 that I will be using for moose, caribou and brown bear this Fall. It is a Kimber 8400 Montana. Its is a really nice rifle for a factory gun...stainless steel, good quality synthetic stock (not Tupperware), controlled round feed. With Talley lightweight one piece mounts and a Leupold 3.5x10x40 scope it weighs 7.5 pounds loaded with 4 rounds in the magazine.

I plan on having the rifle teflon coated and the barrel cut to 24"....after which I think I will have a really good all around Alaskan big game rifle.

Chet

.375 H&H with 260 grain Accubond.

I have a Great Alaskan rifle for sale in the classified section...a new Rem 700 Titanium in .416 and with 300-325-350 barnes X bullets,it will shoot very flat (27-2900fps) and it is very light for the long treks through the Alaskan Mountains...Thanks for looking!

Model 70 and the most consistant of the two bullets in that rifle. Are there other hunters in your group and what are they using? Is it possible to take the stainless 375 for a back-up secondary rifle and leave it at camp in the event something happens to the 300win ? If there are two or more in your group it might not be a bad idea to have one spare rifle. Or what about a bigbore revolver for emergency use up close. 300win and back-up revolver. R.

This is a good problem to have. More good rifles than time to use them. Take the one you shoot the best or like the most.

I have the 338 RUM and thats the one I would use on Grizzly shooting 300 RN bullets.

To each his own.I really like the 7600 Remington pump in 30-06 or 35 Whelen. I can shoot these guns well and fast. Either the 30-06 with 200 grain Partitions or the 35 Whelen with 225 or 250 grain bullets has always done a good job for me.

This said, I also have a 45-70 Marlin and a Ruger 416 Rem Mag. I bought the 416 for Big bears but so far I have not used it for that.

joedgr
Even though I did not get a beat on my hunt, the 300 Mag was the best choice for the area/game I was hunting.

If your hunting with a guide to back you up go 300 wm. If alone,375

I've been to Alaska many times, (Nome) hunting Bears, Moose and Caribou. I don't know anybody that uses a 375. It's just not needed. Grizzlies aren't Brown Bears, but can be close to the same size in rare cases.

This bear was killed by my brother last week with a 300 Weatherby, 200 gr Nosler handload. He was hunting alone.

7' 6" BC interior grizzly, killed this weekend by a friend of mine, with one shot from a 300 Win Mag....



Cheers,
Canuck

" I thoroughly dislike .30 calibers for grizzly or any big bear." -- Elmer Kieth

That's good enough for me. I figure my next big hunt is Alaskan brown bear. I'll probably carry my .375 H&H. My .338 RUM is another possibility. My .458 Lott is the wildcard.