Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting .375 H&H for elk

I bought a Remington 798 (Mauser action) in 375 H&H several years ago from a gentleman in Washington. It was in excellent condition and he had used it for elk and bear. Killed several with this rifle before selling it to me. He used Nosler bullets.
So yesterday I went to Whitaker’s to buy up some 375 bullets to reload. To my amazement they had zero Nosler or Barnes or Hornady. All they had was the Sierra Spitzer BT 300 grains.
So I bought a box and went home and loaded up 20 rounds that are in the 2450-2500 FPS range.
I have yet to mount a scope so I shot it from 20 -75yds with iron sights.
Wow what a pleasant shooting rifle. Recoil was mild and it shot everything I aimed at.
So I would like to create a conversation for shooting a 375 out to say 600 yards with a dial up scope.
First has anyone done this? If so what was the bullet, FPS and scope you used? What eye relief would one need to use?
I’m thinking this could be a dandy elk rifle for timber or shooting across drainages.
I did a little research on the Sierra 300 grain Spitzer Gameking bullet and it appears to be a decent bullet.
What your thoughts or experience on the 375 H&H for shooting mid range?
Thanks

My buddy has a nice old ZKK 602 set up to shoot out to 400 yards with 260 grain Noslers. Should be a heck of an elk rifle.

I would look at the 300gr NAB and 270gr Barnes LRX for serious long distance work.

The 375 has almost the same trajectory as a 30-06 with a 180 grain bullet, so hits out to 600 yards are really not much of a problem.

I am on the 2nd barrel in my Mauser 375, and I have shot it quite a lot at longer ranges with that rifle, mostly for fun. I have killed a LOT of rock-chucks with it out to around 600-6540. (yeah I know, it's over-kill, but I didn't care. I had a lot of fun doing it, and really leaned to shoot it well)

My rifle has only a 1X-4X Leupold on it and with some practice I found hitting chucks at 400 was easy, and at 600 was something I could do a bit more then half the time when shooting over a good soft rest from prone. It must be remembered that a Rock Chuck at 600 yards through a 4X scope looks like one at 150 with iron sights. It's not near as hard as you might think.

You just need to give it a serious try and learn from the MISSES.
Log everything ------------- and in a few hundred rounds you'll find you hit more then you miss.

I load the 260 Nosler Partitions for my FN/Sako in 375 Mby and sight in for 300 yards. At about 350 it starts droping like a rock; it's not a great long range bullet, but it's a good bullet.

The 260 AccuBond is a pretty good longer range performer with a good ballistic coefficient of .473. If I were still using my 375s I would load this bullet, hands down.

Thanks guys! What scope in the 4-14 power range do you think has enough eye relief for this caliber?
I’ll get some Nosler bullets on order.
Does someone make a picatinny rail 20 moa for a Mauser action ? The 20 moa rail might come in handy for those longer shots.

I'm curious regarding to your desire for a 4-14 powered scope for a .375.

Mine wears a 1.5-6x42 Zeiss Victory. That's a lot of scope, sorta expensive, but I got it right. ER is great, 6X is all the power I'll ever need for a .375.

Lot of people use the Leupold 1.5-5x20, which is much lighter than the Victory, the Victory being better in low light.

DF

My .375 is a great rifle in a great chambering but there's no way I'd hump it up and down the mountains for an elk. Successful hunting is much more about the rifle than the chambering. I'm all about doing what works for you, let us know how it goes.

I would happily use my pre-64 375 with 300gr partitions at 2680 and a 1.5-5 leupold out to 400 yards for elk, a little more glass and some of the newer sleeker bullets will get you a bit more range if you think you'd need it.

This.

While the H&H isn't the best choice for true long-range shooting, it will do an honest 2,700 fps with 270-grain bullets so there's no reason to think of it as strictly a mid-range proposition.


Okie John

I have 2 scopes, with warne QR rings, for my 375 H&H (24" model 70 classic stainless). One is the leupold 2.5-8, sighted in for 300 gr. swift aframes. The other is a leupold 6x42, with the long range duplex reticle. This one is sighted in with 260 gr accubonds at 2800 fps.

With the accubonds sighted +2.25" high at 100, it's zeroed at 220, first dot is 310, second dot is 402, and the top of the post is 497. This trajectory has been verified, at the range, and a proven elk and deer killer.

The warne QR rings are very repeatable and keep the poi within a 1/2" at 100, swapping loads and scopes. One or two clicks, and I'm good to go.

Andy3

I used a Mod 700 BDL SS .375 with Leupold 2.5x8 scope. I loaded the 300 Sierra to 2600. I shot a cow elk right at 200yds and it blew a 6 inch exit. I used WW 760 in WW cases. I then went to the 270gr Failsafe in the factory load as I was out of time before a hunting trip to South Africa. It was Steller.

I used my .375 H&H with 260 AccuBonds to take two very large bull elk during my 2006 and 2007 Colorado hunts. Both animals died where they stood, although one stood around long enough to take a second shot that wasn't really needed. A few months later I took it to Namibia on my first trip and used the same rifle/bullet combination to take all of my plains game, from impala to eland, all one-shot kills.

If I still had the rifle, I wouldn't hesitate to use it for elk again.

Thanks again guys!
Dirtfarmer I just threw those numbers out in regards to a scope. However if I’m going to buy a new scope why handcuff my rifle. I look at it like this. I shoot in local PRS matches on a regular basis. Most ranges around here are out to 500-600 yards. My precision rifle has a 5-25x56 scope on it. I set the power between 10-14 power for all stages except the KYL rack which I dial the scope to 20 power.
So I shoot 90% of the targets with the scope on 10 power.
So I was thinking why not buy a scope 4-14 or so for the 375. As with all my other rifles I set the scope on the lowest power and if something steps out at 450 yards I turn the power up some.
So I was thinking if I could find a variable scope with good eye relief why not on the 375.

As far as elk-guns" go, my 375 has been used more than any other firearm I ever used on elk.

I have used the 300 grain Sierra, but that's one bullet I never killed an elk with. I did kill a moose with one. The core and jacket came apart, but I can't say it was all that bad. The core exited and hit the water in the pond the moose was standing in front of. I found the rear of the jacket in it's ribs on the off side. Failure of a bullet becomes less and less important as the bullets gets bigger. A "failed" 300 grain .375 bullet still does a lot of damage and goes deep, unlike a failed 130 or 140 grain .264" bullet . Shear size can overcome lack of bullet integrity to some extent.

I would not choose one that I know comes apart just because there are so many other ones that don't come apart, but I have killed a number of elk with 270 grain Hornady SPs and they also come apart quite a lot, yet no animal I ever hit with one went far, and most just dropped. No animal I ever shot with one needed a 2nd shot either.

For elk I have used 270 grain Hornadys in both spire point and round nose.(The RN is a lot better) I have used 235 grain Speers. I have used 300 grain Winchester Silvertips (made in the 50s) and 300 grain Nosler Partitions,(old screw machine made ones) 300 grain Hornady solids and also 270 grain Winchester Power Points.

The two I'd rate the best of them all have been the Nosler Partitions and the old WW Power Points. Both made large diameter wounds the went clear through no matter the angle, or if they hit large bones or not. Just a large hole clear through in a straight line.

It can't get better then that.

But with a 375H&H, about any bullet (that's not made for the 375 Winchester) is going to be fine for elk I am sure. Some may be a bit better than others, but I don't think any will let your elk run off if you cna shoot well enough to place your shots. The beauty of the 375H&H is that it lacks nothing for about any use in America, and is still good for about 99% of all hunting even in Africa.

The "super-stoppers" are all just fine, but in modern hunting for American who do not live in an African nation, the chances of needing to stop a "blood-eyed charge" of an elephant is nearly non-existent, because the pro is there and has that covered. (at least he's supposed to.)

I have owned several rifles larger than my 375 and I still own one, a 404 Jeffery. But I have sold all my 458s, all my 416s, my 460s and my 505 Gibbs. Why? The 375 is a better rifle than any of them for the hunting I do. Yes, I said better. Power is not everything.

The 375 is slimmer, lighter, shoots flatter, is super accurate so I can use it at long ranges if I feel the need, doesn't kick much, so an accurate fast 2nd shot is ..... well.......faster.
So far I have NEVER needed a 2nd shot with my 375 on any animal, but I have another round chambered within a 1/2 second and am back on target in 1-1.3 seconds which is faster than I could do with any other more powerful rifle I had. So if ever I do need it, I like having round #2 in the chamber and back on target faster. That may be more mental masturbation then "real-world", but having shot against the timer with all my big rifles I can say the 375 and my 9.3X62 are as fast for me to make a 2nd hit on metal and paper targets as my 30-06 or 270. The kick of the 375 doesn't slow my recovery time at all, where my 416s, 404, 458s, 460s and 505 all did.

For North America the 375H&H is in my opinion the best "big rifle" in the case you had just one rifle. For most hunters that's not realistic either, but the point still stands.

Even in those cases where you owned only 1 rifle, the 30-06 probably is going to be just as good for all the real hunts (not the hunts we sometimes have in our minds) but if you want a big rifle to cover everything from small deer to moose to buffalo and big bears, and if recoil in not something that bothers you much, I think the 375 "set the bar" over 100 years ago for versatility better than anything else made since that time. The one that I have seen that is probably the closest to a tie is the old 9.3X62.

If we tell the un-embellished truth, for the large majority of American hunters a good 30-30, 243, 25-06, 6.5CM, 260 Rem will cover every hunting need they will ever see in their life. Most American big game hunters (like 89%, if I recall US Fish and Wildlife's statistic correctly) hunt deer and nothing larger. The remaining 11% hunts everything else, from black bear, hogs, elk, caribou, moose, bison and Brown/Grizzly/Kodiak bears.

I personally take the stand of "so what'? I like shooting my big rifles and I have killed a lot of rabbits and rock-chucks with them. It's good practice. I like my big rifles. But I do not try to convince myself or others of any need for most of them, because for the most part I don't NEED them. I want....therefore I need. A slave is allowed what he needs. A free man gets what he wants.

I have made, owned and used many of the newer and more modern cartridges, and from my experience I have come to the conclusion (somewhat grudgingly at first) that the "new stuff" is not better, and in most cases not as good.

Sure, some are more powerful, faster, and look "modern", with slimmer bullets and higher BCs, but none have shown me any true advantage for killing game, and I base this opinion on about 40+ years of experience and killing a lot of game myself, as well as seeing a lot more killed with many other guns and bullets than I have shot myself. This especially true for elk having hunted and guided and packed for other hunters now for nearly 50 years.

The 375 is just outstanding. Load it up and use it. You'll find it meets or exceeds your wishes for all the tasks you'll ask it to do.

I can line up on stuff a lot smaller than elk at 450 yards with 6x.

Some years ago I picked up this nice Ruger Number One in 375 H&H and fell hard for the cartridge & rifle. As others have said, the recoil was far less than I'd anticipated, and I truly enjoy shooting the rifle. Mine is topped with the 1.5-5x Leupold, which has worked well. I've only hunted with the 260 gr Nosler Accubonds, a terrific bullet for my purposes. I've shot a lot of different bullets for practice though.

Have shot three black bears with this rifle and the 260 gr Nosler Accubonds. First one was at 306 yards, one and done. Followed a bear wounded by another hunter into the brush and finished it at about 15 feet. That was pretty intense. Shot another at about 150 yards. I've carried it for elk, but haven't taken a shot at elk with it yet.

I keep mine zeroed at 200 yards, and have no problems ringing the 300 yard gong time after time at the gun club.


Could the 375 make a good mid-distance elk rifle? I certainly think so! The 375 certainly isn't needed, but it's fun to use.

And no - I have no idea which more powerful scope would work best for you. I have considered using a 6x scope on this rifle, but haven't done so. I have tried a few other scopes on it, the most powerful being a 2-7x which worked well.

Enjoy that 375, it's a great cartridge and I think you've got a good rifle for it as well.

Regards, Guy

I personally think the 2.5-8 VX3 is the perfect scope for the .375. I have a buddy who has a long range .375 that's topped with a Nightforce 2.5-10. He's deadly with it out to 600 yards.

The smaller scopes with the 20mm objectives suck at light gathering. If it's bright out and you have an animal standing in the shadows, you'll have a hard time seeing it.

Great write up Szinh & Cascade. There is just something about the 375, provenance, nostalgia, performance or just plain mojo.

I have not shot Elk with mine but other similar size plains game. The Elk never cooperated when I had the 375. One friend uses the 300 Sierra for everything and I believe it was a favorite of Craig Boddington's and John R Sundra's. I am with Szinh on them and only use them for load work up as they match up well with the TSX. Not sure I have a favorite bullet. The 235 Speer perform out of their pay grade and are good enough for cow elk. The 260 Accubond is a good all a rounder for NA and shoots close to the 300 Sierra. Partitions are always good. Grand Slam's are good but haven't shot anything larger than a 350 lb hog with them. If I really wanted to push the range I think I would load the sleekest Hammer bullet that the rifle will shoot. This will help with windage some.

Wow! Lots of passionate words for the 375 H&H. Love it! Thanks for taking the time and responding. There is a lot of experience speaking on this topic and I Thank you.