Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa 375 H&H vs 9.3 x 62

Does the 375-06 Improved fit into this conversation ?

Welcome to the club!

You will soon have a new favorite rifle. Pleasant to shoot, and everything you pull the trigger on seems to go down without a fuss. I find my other rifles suffer from neglect, as the 9.3 gets first consideration for Elk, moose, and more than a causal thought for deer. That is above and beyond African PG, buff, leopard, and God willing, someday lion.

When yours arrives, I'll share my handloading recipes with you.

It's here, but a good friend of mine wants it so I'm going to play with it for a while rig a scope for him. Yeah, send me the loads and who knows, might have to keep one for myself eventually! jorge

I have a .375 Scovill that will turn 2435 fps. with 300 gr. bullets. I suppose that it is adequate for some small jobs. Anybody else have one.

For novelty it is in a Rem. 760 pump. Works as a great close cover gun.

I knew it was too good to be true. Still waiting on your .416? We will convert you to the Dark Side one of these days. You'll need to rebarrel something soon, and then we'll have you!

Im STILL waiting for my 450 Dakota. Now it's a 1 July delivery...jorge

In my limited experience I have had the good fortune to have killed four buffalo in Tanzania.

The first was taken with a 416 Rigby with 410 Woodleigh solids.

The next three were done in with 9,3X74R with 286 Woodleigh solids. The game scout made a few extra dollars, and the PH had no objections to my using the round. I believe the game scout thought it was a 375 FM, but realy didn't care one way or the other.

No buffalo ran less than 100 yards before going down. None ran farther than 200 yards. The first buff took a face-on quartering shot and a raking shot that paralled the first. As I was using a combo gun to take the other three with the 9,3, all were one shot kills...the PH didn't fire. Shots were one quartering toward, and two broadside. No buffalo was closer than 20 yards or farther than 40-50 yards, estimated. All ran the other way after the first shot.

I have to say that the 416 rocked the buffalo and seemed to "shock" it considerably more than the 9,3. As the 375 falls about equa-distance between the two, I would expect it to have a greater marked effect on impact than the 9,3. Had things gone sideways I firmly believe that one of my 375s would have been only slightly more effective in a fray than the 9,3, and the 416 much better than either. This opinion is from only limited experience, but I am convinced that bigger is better, and deader is better.

My next (and last) buffalo will fall to either my 12ga-9,3X74R drilling or one of my 9,3X62s. The reason for using a 9,3...because I want to...

It seems to me that when you put the 9.3 or 375 bullet on the right spot the game drops dead soon after, all this is, is mental masturbation. Good grief I would like a 9.3 and blaser makes barrels, but I have a very nice 602 ZKK with a pop up peep sight in 375. So its a moot point. I had this rifle for sale but no takers.

I've got no dog in the fight, but I did handle a 9.3 full stock CZ at a shop in Riverton today. Much trimmer and better feeling than other CZ's I've seen. Neat rifle.

In the end of the day it all comes down to bullet placement take whatever you can place the best the 375 or 9.3 both have proven their worth in Africa the 375 as the advantage however when your talking range otherwise just place the shot in the right spot.

I doubt the animal is going to ask you if he was shot with a 9.3 or a 375 and react different.

It seems to me, that there are apples and there are oranges, and there is no way that one is equal to the other in all respects. The 9.3 x 62, .338-06, .338 Sabi, and .35 Whelen should be ballistically close to each when similarly constructed bullets of similar weight are used. I would think that these should be a sort of related fruits. The .375 H&H is a different kind of fruit.

But then, I can't even dream of the experience relating to hunting and shooting all of you have. I know nothing compared to you, but common sense tells me that if a 9.3 x 62 with the right bullet is a good as a .375H&H, then the rest of the 9.3x62 family of fruits, should also be as good as the .375H&H.

What would anybody want a .375 H&H for? Please, please, would you donate your .375H&H rifle to me?

I consider the 9.3x62 a minimum Cape Buffalo caliber to recomend to clients..It certainly kills them well on broadside shots..I have used it and seen it used many times. I used the 320 gr. Woodleighs, the Northfork cup points and FN solids and the GS Customs HPs, all worked well IMO. Its a good caliber for buffalo and it works if your careful, and one should always be careful..Animals are not Sherman tanks, they die when the heart and lungs are destroyed and when the brain or spine is hit.

I probably prefer the .375 H&H over the 9.23x62 or 64 as it has a slight advantage, at least on paper so I suppose its a better choice in that respect. I like the 350 gr. Woodleigh PP in the .375 H&H on Buffalo for broadside shots, but at any difficult angle one should probably use a Northfork cup point or a flat nose solid by Northfork or GS Customs with either caliber.

By the same token, I would and have used a 30-06 and lighter calibers on buffalo and they also worked, but given my choices I will always opt for the 416 Rem., 404 Jefferys, even the 10.75x68 as the bigger bores seem to effect them more and they make me feel better and more confident, but only if you can handle the recoil and I mean handle it not just get by with it....and if you can handle more recoil then the big 45s and 50s are not out of line, and are even a better choice...

Well the 9.3 CZ arrived yesterday, it's presently at the gunsmith getting bedded & the action cleaned up & smoothed. jorge

If you shoot it, you'll keep it!

Maybe so, and I'm trying real hard to justify having one, but between my 338 Win, 340 Weatherby & 375 H&H where does the 9.3 fit in for me? I'm not recoil sensitive (well until I get up to 458 Lott & up!) and with a 270gr TSX in the 375 where's the angle for the 9.3? I had a 35 Wheelen for a while, indeed I took my best bear with it, but I just never grew to love the caliber. On the plus side, I've always liked full stocked rifles and maybe i'll find a niche for it as a good black bear round? Come on guys, work with me here! jorge

Justification? You're a gun nut. No need for justification. If it was all about logic, you wouldn't have a 338, and a 340.

Sadly, your range sessions alone probably won't hook you. It is in the field where the terminal performance seems far above what the numbers say and what the recoil to you shoulder tells you.

If you don't keep this one (you just might), I'll let you take one of mine on your next trip to Zim after your Hein is birthed. I do worry that it will remain in Florida for an extended stay afterwards! I'm sure the Hein will zap the buff, but who wants to shoot a fire breather at everything?

jorgeI,

Consider it an investment in the future. I've noticed that some people, myself among them, enjoy recoil less and less as we put more hours on our airframes, possibly it's because we see less and less advantage to the biggenboomers. The 9.3x62 will allow you a good, capable medium bore that you're likely to shoot much longer than the larger thumpers. OTOH, if you retain your recoil tolerance, consider the brag factor - "Yeah, it was there for when I needed it, but I never did need it."

Wow, that was quick lads! I didn't pay too much for the rifle (about 570 wholesale) and I figure it needs a couple of hundred bucks worth of work to make me happy. Oh I have to order some mounts for it. Suggestions? jorge

Jorge,
I have fixed Talleys on my 9.3x62 CZ and I like them!

Reasons you will like your 9.3X62:

1) It is probably lighter than your .375.
2) Of all my rifles, my CZ 9.3X62 has been the easiest to develope reliable, accurate loads for.
3) I know recoil is not a big factor for you, but there is a certain satisfaction in a rifle that delivers substantial thump on target but only moderate thump on the shoulder.

My only problem is finding a hunt, that I can afford, for something big enough to justify a medium bore. I like my Warnes, but Quick release Talleys would be nice also.

I