Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Are there practical reasons to own a .300 H&H?

This thread is a derivative of the classic "which cartridge is the best?". And, by definition, a rifle looney cannot be practical.

Cartridges are not judged solely on their shoulder angle, name, case capacity or killing power. If that was the case, no one would have bothered developing anything after the 300 H&H. There was no practical need, according to some. What one man considers practical, another considers frivolous. I think 25 calibre cartridges are a waste, but I must defer to the needs of others. The practicality is there. It just doesn't fit my version of it.

This is an excerpt of an article that was written by freelance writer Beth Goldowitz. I have edited it. Consider that attracting buyers and convincing them to buy a 300 H&H rifle meant catching their eye and appealing to their need. There was no Internet or fancy colour magazines. That 300 H&H had to catch your eye, and encourage you to ask about the capabilities of the cartridge with the shop owner or gunsmith. Anyone who examined an 300 H&H was concerned with the actual use of the cartridge. The esthetics of the design were clear.

This continues today. The medium may be different, but cartridges still need to get noticed. One might argue this is more important today because of the number of cartridges available in a crowded marketplace.

Here's what Beth says.

Is there any practical purpose to art?

Art communicates. The stone carvers who worked on Notre Dame could have made simple waterspouts, but instead they carved elaborate and fanciful gargoyles, to communicate the horrors of hell and encourage people to turn to god for salvation. Is that practical? It is if you’re a member of the clergy, who relies on your position in society to be clothed, fed and housed through the donations of wealthy patrons and poor parishioners alike. It is if you’re one of the hundreds of craftsmen working on the cathedral, because that money pays your wages and feeds your family. It is if you live in the town where the cathedral is built, because cathedrals draw pilgrims, and pilgrims need to eat. They need roofs over their heads. They need places to stable their horses. They need food and supplies for their continuing journey. As anyone who lives in a popular tourist town knows, tourists are good for the economy. That’s practical.

It communicates through time, so we can look at 18th century paintings and figure out how people cooked in the time period. It communicates personality, so we can look at Velasquez’ Portrait of Juan de Pereja and see the relationship between the painter and the slave he would manumit soon after painting his portrait. We can look at quilts made by slaves that illustrate stories from the bible for people who were forbidden to learn how to read. Some people think slave quilts communicated information about the Underground Railroad, but we don’t know for sure.
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Old cartridges, inlaid and carved wooden stocks, unusual, old metal gun sights, trigger guards, or engraved side plates are communicating through time. Once, they attracted buyers who spent money and bumped up the economy. They still do today. They are also of value to historians, collectors or anyone who is interested in hunting and firearms.

The 300 H&H is practical, if it satisfies your needs.