Okay group a question,I have just come into a browning repo of the winchester 1895 lever action in 30-40 krag,have been talking via e-mail with JD at SSK,about having it rebarreled and chamber for either his 375JDJ or the 416 JDJ.

What do you think? which one would you go with?
I would think that either one would work for close in plains game, say no more than 200 yards and in.

You may want to consider Z-Hat and Fred Zeglin's line of Hawk cartridges. Performance seem to be a bit better as the Hawk line is based on the '06 case and the JDJ, for the most part, is based on the 444. Zeglin offers his own version of the Whelen Imp's, from the 240 Hawk all the way up to the 411. The 338, 358 and 375's are the '06 case with reduced taper and the shoulder moved forward. You can check his site at http://www.z-hat.com/HawkContents.htm

I'm no expert on either of the cartridge families, but a friend of mine considered both for a couple of years, then decided on the Hawk family for his 1895 (which was originally a 270). I know a couple of guys up here that use 1895's that Zeglin has rechambered or otherwise worked on, and every one is really pleased with the outcome. All shoot very well and workmanship is A++.

Lots of folks have put it down for not having much of a shoulder, but the guys I know that have one have never had a problem. Most is speculation from guys that don't have one or have never shot one. 200 yards and under, I would think anything in the 338 or above would work just fine on American or African plains game up to moose size anyway. Take it for what it's worth...

[ 11-29-2003, 01:09: Message edited by: DPhillips ]

I second Yukon Jack's recommendation. I have four rifles chambered in the Hawk lineup. My 1895 is in a 375 Hawk. It will safely take 300gr Hornadys to 2300fps and the 270 to near 2500. For deer/elk-sized game, the 235 speer can reach 2700fps. Recoil is a real issue in the 1895/hawk combination so you will want a good recoil pad.

Hawks are basicall an 06 case with nearly all body taper removed and the shoulder moved forward about .1 inch. The brass is commercially available from quality carridges so you don't have to for brass if you don't want to. But it's easy to form yourself and a lot cheaper.

The dies Fred makes are really good too. I really like his seating dies. You only need one for all calibers and a $10 insert of each caliber you want to load.

Good luck and let us know what yo decide...

[ 10-20-2002, 04:30: Message edited by: cgdavid ]

Dave,

The .375JDJ is a very effective round (LOTS of people have used it on African game in handguns; I imagine that it would be even more formidable in a rifle).

JD has done LOTS of my gunsmithing over the years, and every job has been done VERY satisfactorily. SSK does very good work.

George

yukon and cgdavid,have talked to Fred,real nice fellow he will do the 35 Winchester or 405,have both already in the original don't want to duplicate,can't go to the Z series bolt face is different,need the rim.
GeorgeS,I am leaning toward the 375 have the Contender already and its a hoot on big bores and black bear.But the 416 realy gets my attention

Dave,

The .416 is a handful! If the additional cost for .416 bullets is not a deterrent, then by all means, go for it!

It will do very well on plains game (what .416 wouldn't?).

George

Go with an original chambering, the .405 Winchester. It will effectively kill anything in North America, and IMHO is "THE" classic bigbore round for the '95.