Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Ruger 375

My first .375 was bought for a Brown bear hunt, nearly 30 years ago. It was a Golden Eagle, kinda a Wby lookalike, but reasonable cost wise. It shot Win. Power Point 270 gr. ammo rather well, and it accounted for a monster Brownie which I entered into the B and C record book.

The hunt, on the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, was in wet and cold conditions. It took quite a toll on the blue/wood rifle, in spite of my efforts to keep it clean and oiled.

On return, I cleaned up the rust spots, and sold it.

Now, I own another 375, almost 30 years later, and wonder what took me so long......

I have experience with the 375 Ruger African. The rifle is a delight to carry and shoots well. The only drawback is the piece of red tire tread they use for a recoil pad. A Decelerator pad makes a huge difference.

I set one up for a friend of mine before he went on safari. He is recoil sensitive and we put the pad on before he fired it. He never had an issue with the recoil.

I mounted a scope on one for another friend and shot it with the original pad. Not ridiculous, but no fun.

Yes I have fired my Ruger375 African under field conditions, 270 gr barnes triple shock, 74 grains R15, with a limbsaver recoil pad,very mild recoil.

Very nice bear!!

OK..just for that bear pic you get the first ever low post count YOU SUCK!


( That's a compliment, BTW......)

I have an M70 375 H&H out of the old Winchester custom shop and it is a pleasure to shoot. In fact, next to my 7x57 it is my favorite rifle to shoot, bench, sticks, whatever. At 10 1/2 lbs scoped it is much more comfortable to shoot than my Sauer M90 in .300 Weatherby. That friggen rifle will jar your teeth loose or detach a retina!


Mike

If the recoil bothers you put it in a Hogue stock. The Hogue stock is the reason that the Alaskan Models feel like they have less recoil than the African Model, even with the shorter barrel. At least to me they do. I like the Hogue stocks, so I put one with the full length bedding block on my African and it really made a difference in felt recoil. They are also quiet and weatherproof.

Yes, houston, fellow Hawkeye, very nice bear and welcome to the fire.

Craig Boddington uses a .375 Ruger in Africa, and has written several interesting articles about the caliber and rifle.
He also mentions it in his book, 'Safari Rifles II', which is very well worth reading and owning if you have an interest in hunting Africa.

The difference between the 375 Ruger/H&H and the 416 Ruger/Rigby/Rem is the difference between fear and FLINCH to most shooters. Many flinch with a puny 300 magnum, so figure the odds.

Which Decelerator pad did you mount on the African? Will the pre-fit pad they list for the Ruger 77 MkII fit the Hawkeye African?

I had two 375 Africans that I eventually traded off. I liked the gun, but a GOOD pad would have made me LOVE the gun.

Nice bruin

Dober

Phil / 458Win,

How's the availability of .375 Ruger ammunition off the shelf in Alaska? I've read and heard that the .375 Ruger is quite popular in Alaska.

.375 Ruger availability appears to be virtually non-existent in Africa. The tried and true H&H would be a priudent choice in that local.

Some PHs I know have a supply of the 375 Ruger ammo already, left by clients.

The 375 Ruger is quite popular up here and ammo doesn't seem to be a problem.
As for Africa, how many folks take Weatherbys, Lazzeronis, Dakotas or wildcats like the 416 Taylor or 475 Turnbull, or even the 45-70 and never give a thought to ammo availability?

Exactly!

I've never known anyone who had an ammo problem when they got to the safari camp. Lost guns seem to be more of a problem.

I find that 300 grain bullets loaded to 2500 or 2550 fps do not recoil objectionably in my Model 70, a relatively heavy rifle. My .300 Weatherby UltraLightweight, .458 Winchester, and 12 gauge with saboted slugs all are a lot worse in the felt recoil department.

The ones that hurt me the most were several 338 Wins and two 416s...one a 416 Rem in a Mdl 70 Safari, and the other a 416 Rigby in a CZ hog back 550.

I took the Ruger 375 to South Africa in 2008. Recoil is a little stout if you are hunched over it at a bench, but don't practice like that for Africa! When we were there, 95% of our shots were taken off of shooting sticks. When you are standing and firing, recoil is waaay less. I took 12 animals with it ranging from eland to impala and never once even noticed the recoil. Don't forget to practice off of shooting sticks though!