The .375 H&H is too much gun for white tail hunting.

that is not a problem i think.

in Europe we used a lot the 9.3x62 on roe deer (even smaller than whitetail) and the meat was not destroyed depending of course bullet placement. i ve seen more meat destroyed by 300 win mag that any other calibers.
 
I took 2 bear and a buck this year with my 375ruger.
300g sierras.

more damage with my 30-06 and 165s

the coyote on the other hand,....... not so much
 
jjohnwm said:
I've taken deer with .375H&H, .416Rigby, and of course .45-70. All of them showed far less tissue destruction (i.e. bloodshot, inedible meat) than the ones that have fallen to .300WinMag and .270.

Why do people get all twisted out of shape about the idea of "overkill" and being "overgunned"? Many of them wring their hands about it without ever having even tried one of the bigger bores, but they "know" how terrible the destruction will be because of threads like this one. There isn't even a question being asked here...the title simply tells us the "fact" that the .375 is too big for deer...case closed. Ridiculous.
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Anything bigger than a .22 magnum or a pointy stick is overkill for deer hunting in my opinion but I'm not the one who makes the rules, as for there not being a question asked in this thread I will refer you back to the first post by me in the thread where I asked for advice clearly and to the point if you would take the time to read it instead of forming an opinion by the thread title and implying I'm trying to sully the reputation of such a fine cartridge... Many times on this forum people have touted the .375 as the best "all around" or "the one cartridge to do it all"...

I see the potential in the .375 and am trying to work with the cartridge but as stated I am not happy with damage caused by the bullet I used and that was instantly corroborated by another poster with experience with the same bullet on various different animals with varying inconsistent results and even a 3rd poster reported having a good result with the same ammunition just tempering my opinion that it is infact not the projectile of choice for me...

I have shot game with most common calibers up to 45-70 and when meat is lost I blame only poor shot placement and bullet construction NOT A CARTRIDGE as it only denotes an approximate velocity and diameter.


BTW... No meat was lost to being blood shot, the damage I found while cleaning it suggested to me the bullet over expanded.
 
Shot a few deer with 375 H&H and 375 Ruger. Close and a few hundred yards out.

The TSX bullets worked the best, for reasons mentioned. I used to use 300 gr NP in my H&H, and they made much more of a mess.

Seems somewhat counter intuitive that a bullet designed for big dangerous game is the most suitable for deer. :)
 
Hotwheels81 said:
I sent a 270gr federal thru a doe this evening at 50 paces... The wound channel was beyond impressive if you are hunting bison or velociraptor... However it is possibly a bit much for a white tail deer to have a 2" entry hole and a 4" exit hole (granted you "could" eat rite up to the edge)...

Any advice on something a bit less destructive?
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Try a different bullet or as was suggested , a very tough bullet loaded down a tad.:redface:
Cat
 
The lungs aren't eaten so shoot them through the lungs.Doesn't matter what caliber IMO. A 50 BMG with 750 A Max on a buddies elk had a fist sized hole through the ribs with no meat loss..........Harold
 
Hotwheels81 said:
...I will refer you back to the first post by me in the thread where I asked for advice clearly and to the point if you would take the time to read it instead of forming an opinion by the thread title and implying I'm trying to sully the reputation of such a fine cartridge... Many times on this forum people have touted the .375 as the best "all around" or "the one cartridge to do it all"...I have shot game with most common calibers up to 45-70 and when meat is lost I blame only poor shot placement and bullet construction NOT A CARTRIDGE as it only denotes an approximate velocity and diameter.
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My apologies if I misunderstood your post. To me, it "clearly and to the point" stated that the H&H was "too much gun for whitetail hunting" and asked for alternate ideas. I thought you were asking for other cartridge choices.

I think that describing a cartridge using phrases such as "best all around" and other similar terms leads many people to assume that it is perfect for everything. Obviously, nothing can be perfect for all purposes, and describing the H&H as a do-it-all cartridge simply means that it can be used effectively for any type of hunting. Of course it is going to be marginal or merely adequate for the largest game, and more powerful than necessary for the smallest, but it will hit hard enough for the elephants and still shoot flat enough for the antelope.

If the damage to which you were referring wasn't bloodshot meat, then how bad was it? I use 300gr bullets for everything in the .375, and even the softest, cheapest slugs don't cause damage that I consider excessive. We are shooting at these critters with the intention of killing them by poking holes in them with bullets. I just don't think it's essential that those holes and the damage they create absolutely must be the bare minimum that will kill the animal. The entire idea smacks of the silly debate that was so popular years ago in the gun rags, where many writers insisted that a bullet that exited an animal was "overkill", because it didn't expend all its energy inside the body.
 
Hotwheels81 said:
I sent a 270gr federal thru a doe this evening at 50 paces... The wound channel was beyond impressive if you are hunting bison or velociraptor... However it is possibly a bit much for a white tail deer to have a 2" entry hole and a 4" exit hole (granted you "could" eat rite up to the edge)...

Any advice on something a bit less destructive?
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Is the 375 the only BG rifle you own?
 
jjohnwm said:
My apologies if I misunderstood your post. To me, it "clearly and to the point" stated that the H&H was "too much gun for whitetail hunting" and asked for alternate ideas. I thought you were asking for other cartridge choices.

I think that describing a cartridge using phrases such as "best all around" and other similar terms leads many people to assume that it is perfect for everything. Obviously, nothing can be perfect for all purposes, and describing the H&H as a do-it-all cartridge simply means that it can be used effectively for any type of hunting. Of course it is going to be marginal or merely adequate for the largest game, and more powerful than necessary for the smallest, but it will hit hard enough for the elephants and still shoot flat enough for the antelope.

If the damage to which you were referring wasn't bloodshot meat, then how bad was it? I use 300gr bullets for everything in the .375, and even the softest, cheapest slugs don't cause damage that I consider excessive. We are shooting at these critters with the intention of killing them by poking holes in them with bullets. I just don't think it's essential that those holes and the damage they create absolutely must be the bare minimum that will kill the animal. The entire idea smacks of the silly debate that was so popular years ago in the gun rags, where many writers insisted that a bullet that exited an animal was "overkill", because it didn't expend all its energy inside the body.
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Oh don't be too hard on yourself, the 50 BMG fan's throw the 'good for everything' term around too. "Puff, puff....pass, ....'ere!"
Yeah sure...
 
SuperCub said:
Is the 375 the only BG rifle you own?
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Yeah, that is what I was wondering. If it is all you have, you can set a nail to hang a picture with a sledge hammer, or you can shingle a roof with a tack hammer. I don't see any reason to do either except desperation. I have many different tools for different jobs. The fact that something will actually do the job is not proof that it is the right tool.
 
I used only a .375 for a long time on enough species I lost count, the sledge hammer and tack hammer analogies don't really fit .375s vs standard cartridges. The problem is .375s just really aren't that big, hold a cartridge, shoot the rifle, and most are startled to find it's really just one step up from .30-06. With a tough bullet, you cannot tell the difference between a .375 and an -06 wound except for penetration, trajectory is the same, and recoil isn't anything special or scary either. It will always outperform it's old friend the -06, as with all rifles bigger is better if the shooter can handle it. With the properly constructed bullet, what this thread is about finding, you certainly don't face any disadvantages choosing a medium bore.
 
Ardent said:
I used only a .375 for a long time on enough species I lost count, the sledge hammer and tack hammer analogies don't really fit .375s vs standard cartridges. The problem is .375s just really aren't that big, hold a cartridge, shoot the rifle, and most are startled to find it's really just one step up from .30-06. With a tough bullet, you cannot tell the difference between a .375 and an -06 wound except for penetration, trajectory is the same, and recoil isn't anything special or scary either. It will always outperform it's old friend the -06, as with all rifles bigger is better if the shooter can handle it. With the properly constructed bullet, what this thread is about finding, you certainly don't face any disadvantages choosing a medium bore.
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Well said...the choice of bullet is the variable here...not the size of the calibre but it's shocking how few people realize that.
 
The only thing I don't like about deer hunting with a 375 is carrying the extra weight. My deer rifle is about 2lbs lighter than my 375.
 
sheephunter said:
Well said...the choice of bullet is the variable here...not the size of the calibre but it's shocking how few people realize that.
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The choice of the bullet is ALWAYS the variable. If bullet choice becomes "awkward" in any way, maybe the cartridge is an awkward choice from the start. If bullet choice for the game involved is "pretty easy", you likely have a good cartridge for the job. If the cartridge is not really appropriate, you will end up in these threads where people try to rationalize irrational choices.

How many good deer bullets are there for the .308? How many good deer bullets are there for the .375? How many good Eland bullets are there for the .308? That's all I'm saying. Of course it will work, if you pick the right bullet and make the right shot, but there are far better tool choices for deer hunting than the .375. I'm not arguing that it (or anything else) is "too much", just that it is an awkward and unnecessary choice.

There are lots of inappropriate choices that will kill deer quite well, but are just difficult to "control" in that use. Using a .30-378 on deer, for example, is even more awkward than the .375 in my opinion because the velocity makes it so very destructive that finding a good bullet is quite difficult. The .22 center fires are another example. Bullet choice is always used as a caveat to make them more appropriate too, but that just supports my suggestion that you are better off with a cartridge for which bullet choice is "easy", and the balance between cartridge/game is more reasonable.
 
I've never had any issue choosing appropriate bullets for the 375, for deer or eland...in fact there are several excellent suggestions in this thread. I fail to see how the 375 is an awkward choice. Choose the right bullet and kill a deer just as you would with a 243 or a 308. I fail to see how it is anymore awkward than a 308 or 30-06. Trajectory is similar and it makes a slightly larger hole.
 
sheephunter said:
I've never had any issue choosing appropriate bullets for the 375, for deer or eland...in fact there are several excellent suggestions in this thread. I fail to see how the 375 is an awkward choice. Choose the right bullet and kill a deer just as you would with a 243 or a 308. I fail to see how it is anymore awkward than a 308 or 30-06. Trajectory is similar and it makes a slightly larger hole.
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Well, we're up to 60 posts discussing/trying to disprove it's not awkward. I tend to think that is proof it actually is.
 
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