Hi all

Here is a photo of my restocked 1968 vintage Brno .375 H&H.



I love this rifle and it has great sentimental value to me - but it is sooo heavy! It weighs 10.5lb empty! I've thought of turning it into a big bore but I already have a cz 550 .416Rig in the pipeline and don't really want anything bigger.

How much weight do you think I would shed by turning the barrel down or rebarreling with a slimmer barrel and having it 24" long rather than the factory length?

If I could get it down to about 9.5lb with a full mag I would be a very happy chappy!!

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

GG

[ 01-30-2003, 08:31: Message edited by: GG375 ]

GG,
With a scope, you are pretty much fixed at 9.5 as a minimum. Your 375 shoudl weigh in at 9.2 before scope, and the 18oz of glass is adding the rest. I would suggest taking the glass to a lighter model, or no glass.

I shot a mid 80s in 458 the other day, and it was about 9, nekkid, and too light for duty. My PERSONAL preference is about 10.5 for a rifle, said and done. Rebarreling will NOT buy you a thing, as the 602 and 550 barrels are pretty light for caliber.

I doubt the whole stock weighs 2 lbs btw, so even throwing it away for a kevlar is going to be pretty risky.

in short, if you rebarrel, send me the old one, but i would just keep it going like it is

nice stallion
jeffe

GG375,
I know what you mean. I much prefer the 375 H&H in a Win. M70. I turned a rifle like yours into a 500 A-Square clone. I turned a CZ 550 in 375 H&H into a super duper 378 Weatherby. Another CZ 550 action became a 375 RUM.

The CZ 550 in 416 Rigby is the one you want. that is where the CZ 550 comes into its own. About 9 pounds bare (sometimes 8.75 lbs), and perfect when scoped and loaded. That barrel contour is the minimum for a 416 Rigby. Enjoy!

375,
This may sound weird, but did you buy your rifle new? I have the same model rifle, and it was too light for me, and I had to add weight to it to get it up to 10.5#. Just wonder if someone added some weight to yours, if you did not get it new.

Most of my scoped rifles end up in the 10.5 to 11# weight because of long barrels and scopes. There are some techniques for reducing weight: drill holes in the magazine, hollowing out the bolt, using ultra light rings and mounts, and using a compact, fixed power scope. All of this might save you a half-three-quarters of a pound. I don't think you will save much by re-contouring the rifle barrel. You would save a bit by taking off two inches. In a 375HH this would probably not be really critical to performance, but will change the balance. You will have to re-install or replace the barrel banded from sight which is one of the nice little features of this rifle. Ku-dude

At that weight recoil would be nothing, I have a cz 550 in .375 and I love the way it feels and balances. You can palm it off to me if you do not want it