I'm just curious. Doing some research.

Given that the .375 H&H has felled Elephants, Lions, Cape Buffalo, Rhino's, leopards and chipmunks (*backed up by a .470NE double), it's safe to say that that the .375 will be equally effective on Big Browns...

I've killed one penninsula brown bear with a 375 H&H using 270 Gr. Barnes X bullets. Good performance, quick death, no problems.Good luck,John C.

The 375 H&H is THE Alaskan cartridge! Winchester, Colt Sauer, et al, have named rifle models chambered for the 375 H&H the "Alaskan." Lou

You would be hard pressed to find a more suitable caliber for all around use in Alaska. The 416's do a bang up job on the biggest bears, but not so good on smaller game.

John

.375 is aweful nice!!! With TSX outstanding!!!

Brett

It is more gun than I can shoot with absolute focus & not have the recoil gremlin whispering in my ear. That having been said, I have taken 3 bears in SE Alaska with my Ruger .338 stainless. I shoot 2 or 3 of my rifles at least weekly and I know my limit. I would rather place my shot well with a gun I am comfortable with, than make a little bigger hole with a .375. My 250 grain Swift A Frame has a muzzle energy of almost 4,000 ft lbs; that is 2 tons. Dead is Dead. Just my humble opinion. Hope this helps/ Chaz

375 is great for coastal critters and the cartridge of choice for me, I'd also be very comfortable with my second choice being a 338 with 250 grain bullets.

quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Lou:
The 375 H&H is THE Alaskan cartridge! Winchester, Colt Sauer, et al, have named rifle models chambered for the 375 H&H the "Alaskan." Lou

X-2

Hits hard enough to knock them down and shoots flat enough not to worry about traqectory at hunting distances.

quote:

"Despite an expensive and lengthy education I still can't spell!"

Brett, spelling looks fine, but you could use a comma after education. Also, this sentence is passive instead of active. But who cares? I know I've made a few typos in my time.

I'm the last person on earth to comment on anyone's spelling.

I can comment on a .375 H&H for big bear.

I have personally taken 2 brown bear with my 2 .375's. One with 300 gr. Sierra game kings and the other with 270 gr. Hornady's.

I have guided and backed up many hunters with there .375's. They work just great. If your looking for something that will knock a bear off his feet first shot everytime with a good body shot then the .375 might disapoint you. But then a big brown bear isn't that kind of animal.

I have had clients shoot bears with 416's and .458 lott. I have noticed faster kills with the bigger guns but I still prefer the .375 or .338.

I hunt mostly in open country, part of the reason that I find bears shot with most rifles require follow up shots is because these bears can't step into brush a few feet away.

I think that we're just not giving them a chance to die with the first shot. I don't belive in shooting once and waiting to see what happens just because you think it was a good shot.

Both of the bears that I shot with a .375 were one shot kills. This is the exception for me but both of these bears did run into brush after the first shot wich is also the exception for me.

I've seen bears shot with 416's and .458's that just dropped on the spot. This is a great combination of good shot placement and raw power but in the open country I hunt in you can choose your first shot. If things don't go well after the first shot then you want a rifle with the range to take those follow up shots at longer ranges.

I've used a .375 quite a bit but nowdays my go to bear guiding rifle is a .338. I've also used a .300 win and 30-06 at some point.

AKshooter, how did the 300 gr Sierra perform for you on your bear and other large critters, i.e., did it hold together, shed its jacket, etc.? I have used them a few times on elk and pigs with great success - the two I recovered had mushroomed perfectly.

Lou

The Sierra broke the front sholder passed throiugh the the body cavity and lodged under the skin of his off side hind quarter. I don't remember if it broke the back leg or not that was 23 years ago. The bullet took a beating and only retained about half its origonal weight but thats what I wanted it to do.

I really like game kings and I use them in a lot of my rifles - 30-06 , .338 , .35 whelen , .375.

I've backed up a few of my hunter's useing that bullet and had the same good results. The same is true for the 250 gr. game king I shoot in my .338. I've shot or backed up half dozen or so with it as well and I have no plan on changing bullets. I had trouble getting them the last couple of years but found 5 boxes and should be stocked up for a while.

AK, thanks for the response. I forgot to mention that thus far I exclusively use the 225 in my 358 Win, also with much success. If I try another bullet it will be the 300 gr TSX, but I will not be in a hurry. Lou

quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Lou:
AK, thanks for the response. I forgot to mention that thus far I exclusively use the 225 in my 358 Win, also with much success. If I try another bullet it will be the 300 gr TSX, but I will not be in a hurry. Lou

Lou,

If I lived up in your neck of the woods, I'd be selecting a 358 as my first choice for a big game rifle, even over the fine old 375 H&H.

quote:

How is the .375 H&H on the biggest bears?

If you use it as a club, not so good.

Between the 375's (both H&H and the Ruger) I don't know of a better round for use on big bears.

458Win

What is your opinion of the 300gr Nosler Partition in the 375 H&H for big bears?

........ Well , it beats the ( hows the 06 for a bear round threads ),,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Maybe I should just stay quiet .... Seems yall have it well covered....

I infer from this discussion that my .376 Steyr with 270 gr. loads will do just fine. Any opinions to the contrary?

I really like the 375. i have used it in Africa with great results on all the plains game I shot. I used a 470 Rigby for the heavy stuff. I took a brown bear on Admiralty Island with a 340 Weatherby shooting 210 grain Noslers and the kill was instantaneous.

quote:

Originally posted by RREESE:
I infer from this discussion that my .376 Steyr with 270 gr. loads will do just fine. Any opinions to the contrary?

.
. Reese ; The round will do fine . when you shoot it , don,t pause to admire your shot , hit it again .. But the round is good .

The 300 Partition in the 375 is as good as it gets for big bears.

Hi
is it better to use 260 grain nosler Pt or accubond or swift at 250 gr at higher velocity or just using 300 grains which are usually used for big heavy african games ?
regards
yes

Hey AKshooter, just wondering, do you feel that the 225 gr. Swift A-frames are not adequate for the big browns? I know you mention 250 grainers alot.

My own self , I prefer the 270 gr bullet in 375 for bear , since Barnes saw fit to drop the 250 gr X and TSX , But 458 Win has the 375 experience with ALOT ALOT ALOT more bears than me so !!!
.
. If the Federal Premium Safari High Energy 375 H&H load with the 300 gr Trophy Bonded Bear claw was available , That would be my # 1 choice ... It really went the advertised 2700 fps ..
. I like that velocity , with my 375 Ruger Alaskan I get it with the 270 gr bullet so that is my choice ........
. For me it is a one load for everything round ....

killed all of mine with 375 & 300 gr partitions

FYI. Just got emaill from North Fork saying they have come out with a 350 gr line of bullets in the 375H&H. Should be a hammer for those big brownies.

Originally posted by Rae59

quote:

Hey AKshooter, just wondering, do you feel that the 225 gr. Swift A-frames are not adequate for the big browns? I know you mention 250 grainers alot.

I don't know. the 225 gr swift is a bullet I dont ever remember anyone useing. I would think it would be good but I don't have expieance with it that I remember.

quote:

Originally posted by muygrande:
FYI. Just got emaill from North Fork saying they have come out with a 350 gr line of bullets in the 375H&H. Should be a hammer for those big brownies.

*** GUMBOOT 458 SEZ , " . . . . DON'T PAUSE TO ADMIRE YOUR SHOT " . ***

That says it all , and answers the original question .

Yep , the .375's is fine medicine for the big ones , --- unless they're in a genuine , close-range charge .

Given that a very high percent of Brown charges ARE at close range , and given that the bare-ground bears are programmed by a million years of natural selection , . . . . to attack when feeling a little insecure .

And given that most of us don't have a lot of experience staying cucumber-cool with a 900 pounds of certain death galloping up on us .

A wise Nimrod might want to consider a good old African type stopping round , --- just for the bad times .

I'm not making any point here , --- I just like to throw that stuff in , . . . . . in case some inexperienced types are reading this type of thread , and planning on taking a little walk on the wild side .


-------- MMCOUGAR

At last count I had 54 guns. I use 3 for hunting but one of those is very specialized.
My cal's. of choice are 300 WM, 375 H&H, 470 NE. The 470 is specialized, the 375 is the one I almost always grab for hunting in Alaska (except for sheep)(thats the 300)and Africa.
I have shot everything from fox to bears in Alaska with the 375. I shoot it well and the cartridge is very accurate. The 375 isn't the best for everything, but it will do the job evertime if you do your's.
One world, one gun.

If I had to chose just one gun to hunt the world, it would be my 375 H&H. Lou