Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Ruger 375

I'm going to Africa in 2013 and found a nice deal on the subject gun. I looked up the recoil with a 270 grain bullet and it says 41 lbs. which seems a little high. Can you tell me about your experience with recoil while shooting this gun? Thanks.

shoot a 375 H&H and you'll have the idea.

Bluefish--not too many 375 H&H's where I live, I did shoot a Remington 375 H&H that was Mag-na-ported years ago and it didn't kick at all. Thanks.

Shoot a lightweight 12 ga shotgun and you will know

I have the Alaskan model and have shot it from the bench. It's stout but I look forward to shooting it again. +1 on what Phil says. If you have shot, or can get to shoot some three inch loads in a 12 guage, that will put you in the right neighborhood.

...but as in most things in this life, theres really nothing like the real thing.

I have one and would say this about right; my rifle with a 4x Leupold weighs 8.5 lbs which I also think is just right for the recoi. It's not bad at all IMO.

Borrow a single shot 12 ga and launch a Brenneke slug from it, aimed fire. This will probably exceed the recoil of the 375. Light muzzleloaders, heavy loads in shotguns are all about the same. Mine is a Howa with a SOOFT recoil pad, about 8.5# and its fine to shoot off the bench for a half dozen rounds. Part of the secret to dealing with recoil(take it from a wuss who knows)is to not over do any session. Another asset is a "standing bench" for sight in and load workup.

pussycat///

FWIW, has anyone ever felt recoil under field conditions? there you have it NJ. i load 220 gr Hornady FPs in mine to about 2250 fps for practice loads and with those or the 225 SPs you could hunt lots of critters though the 250 TBBCs I have loaded for big game leave one with the feeling they have quite the wand in their hand. then of course there are the plethora of 300 gr loadings upon which this ancient round's bona fides rest.

the 375 ruger will do all you want it to. good luck.

The Ruger Hawkeye African, which I assume is the rifle you reference, is a relative lightweight compared to other .375's, mostly H&H cals.
At 7 3/4 pounds, it is a good pound or two lighter than its competitors, which translates to more recoil.

The Ruger .375 is also loaded to higher velocities than standard .375 H&H rounds, as much as 100-200 fps higher. This also translates to more recoil.

I have a recently acquired Hawkeye African, and all up with scope, mounts, and a mag full of ammo, goes around 9 lb. From the bench, this is not a particularly pleasant shooter, but once sighted in, and a load or two is developed for it, it's not getting shot from the bench much anymore until it's time to go hunting. Field practice from sticks, sitting, kneeling, etc. is the next order of business.

I plan on developing a 300 gr. handload, with Barnes TSX bullets, at around 2600 fps MV., for use on Asiatic water buffalo in Argentina.
For a rifle that gets carried much more than shot, I kinda look forward to the 'deer rifle' weight of the Hawkeye. It's gonna have a few ft lbs more recoil than, say, a 10 lb. H&H, but everything's a tradeoff. I will say that its recoil is WAY less than my .416 Weatherby, unbraked and downloaded.

If you are worried about recoil in .375, about the only solutions are: more rifle weight, muzzle brakes, or downloading to reduce muzzle velocity, all of which have their drawbacks.

Since the minimum caliber for most African countries for dangerous game is .375, you're kinda stuck with either the H&H or Ruger. If, on the other hand, your safari is strictly for plains game, there are a lot of smaller calibers which handle the job very nicely.

THE original Holland & Holland 375 rifles were quite slim and lightweight and ran around 8 1/2 pounds and some were even lighter.



The 375 certainly kicks more than a 30-30 or 30-06 but is not so bad that anyone truly interested in learning to use one will have any problem

My daughter weighs 110 pounds and her 375 Ruger weighs 7# 4oz

Good thread. I'm also looking at the Ruger 375, and the 416. Is there much recoil difference between the Ruger 375 and 416, Phil? I know you have both in boat stocks. I'm shooting 180 gr loads in 30/06 now, for comparison.

Eric

There is a definite difference in felt recoil between the .375 and .416, but still manageable IMHO/IME

A healthy person of ordinary stature should not be troubled by the recoil of a .375, providing the rifle fits them. Zero it from the bench and spend the rest of your time shooting it from the sticks and offhand. Perceived recoil from the sticks and offhand is much less than bench shooting. You will hardly notice the recoil when shooting at game.

As stated in previous posts, magnaporting will reduce muzzle jump and hence, reduce perceived recoil. For various reasons, I don't like muzzle brakes.

I have no personal experience with the .375 Ruger, but much experience with the .375 H&H. The .375 Ruger has been around for about 5 or 6 years, the H&H for about 100 years. Ammunition for the H&H is available in most safari camps.

If you are hunting plains game only, consider something less powerful, such as a .30/06, .300 Winchester, .338 Winchester, 35 Whelen or 9.3x62 Mauser. They will all do the job with less recoil. For plains game, I would suggest any .30 caliber or above that you shoot really well using premium bullets. Shot placement is more important than the power of a cartridge (within reason). If leopard is on the menu, anything from the .30/06 to the 9.3x62 will do you just fine.

If you are hunting lion or buffalo, the .375 H&H should be considered the practical minimum, though many lion (where legal) have been killed by much less, given good bullet placement.

Pick a rifle that fits you well in a cartridge that doesn't punish you and practice, practice, practice. Many people err by using a scope that has too much magnification. For most bushveldt shooting, a 1.5-6 or 1.7 -10 is all you need and you should keep it towards the low end of the magnification range unless some compelling reason requires you to crank it up. An illuminated reticle is a help.

I have no experience with the .416 Ruger, but a .416 Rigby (backed up by my .470) is my primary hunting rifle. Recoil is noticeably heavier than a .375, but still is quite manageable in a rifle of adequate weight that fits well.

If you are only hunting plains game, I emphasize again that you do not "need" either a .375 or a .416 UNLESS your concession has elephant and buffalo as well. Then carry a minimum of a .375 with a soft up and solids in the magazine. You can always eject the soft and chamber a solid in case Jumbo or Nyati unexpectedly come up on you.

Guys, thanks for all the info, keep it coming. Let me explain a few things. I'll be hunting plains game including kudu and gemsbok. Eventually I plan on going after eland and grizzly so I thought I should purchase this gun while I could. I shoot heavy shotgun loads (3 1/2") all the time while goose and turkey hunting (Browning Gold). I have a 300 Weatherby with a brake that kicks like a 270, when I take the brake off it kicks hard off the bench. I have developed a slight flinch from shooting 3 1/2" Mag Blend turkey loads off the bench while patterning my gun. I have other rifles that I could use in Africa, I just like the Ruger. I'd hate to buy the gun and then find out I can't handle the recoil.

Bob

I have a thing for the 375, either the H&H or Ruger version, which are essentially ballistic twins of each other. The laws of physics seemed to have converged on a very handy compromise of bullet weight, velocity, recoil (and thus not requiring an ungainly or overly heavy platform) suitable for making venison from whitetails to eland, taking bears from black to brown and everything in-between without being ridiculous at either extreme.

I don't think you'd find either 375 will kick off the bench more than the 3.5" 12 ga. It's very subjective, I know, and depends on other factors too. I also find the big 30's and .338s (I used a 340 B for about 18 years) to be generally more obnoxious or as much so as the 375 H&H or the Ruger version. I'll even throw in the 375 Mashburn here which is an "improved" H&H. This may be meaningless to anybody but me but IMO the big, fast magnums snap you, while the more moderate cased bigger bores push you.

I have never had the chance to shoot a 375 anything but have put several rounds of heavy LE/tactical slugs and buckshot down range through short light guns. Given the comparisons a 375 shouldn't bother me too much???

I would say, "no". The 375 H&H seems to have the reputation of a vicious kicker here maybe because of it's history as an African classic. IMO it's not at all--vigorous maybe.

Bob - a couple of years ago I happened on a nice used Ruger Number One in .375 H&H. Was pleasantly surprised on the first trip to the range to find that it didn't recoil harshly at all. The recoil was more like a big push. I even shoot it from prone with no problems.

The .375's tend to be accurate too. I was impressed with the groups I was getting downrange, and the bear 300 yards distant was very much impressed when the Nosler struck him dead.

I think you're going to enjoy that .375 Ruger. The African is a particularly appealing rifle.

Guy

Don't know about the .375 Ruger, never shot one. But what GuyM said above is right about the 375 H&H. Great cartridge, very accurate, and not that much recoil.


maddog