How big is too big in terms of caliber for hunting big game in Canada.

[alberta_outdoors]

Too big is when you are afraid to shoot it or you can't shoot it accurately because you're scared of recoil. I have a relative that is the total "big game = big gun" He truly believes that a .270 is not big enough to shoot at big game as in moose or elk. He does just fine with it but he doesn't shoot it much. I'm not a fan of recoil at all. I hunted most of my life with a 30-30 thus I never got used to much recoil. When I moved up here I had a 30-06 because of the longer shots I might be taking and didn't feel comfortable taking them with the 30-30. I could hit animals with the 30-06 but hated to shoot it. And really, most of my shooting is at targets during the summer. I got rid of the 30-06 and bought a 7mm-08. I absolutely love it and I'm shooting more and better now. I don't think there is too big of calibre for big game hunting withing reason (50BMG) I think you should shoot what you are comfortable shooting. I would probably shoot something bigger if I enjoyed it, not because I think bigger is better but because I just like shooting guns.

My dad was a guide for quite a few years of his life. He has seen all kinds of what people thought was the best calibre. I remember him telling me once that he had to track down a gut shot bear because the hunter was using a 338 and the guy didn't have a good vitals shot. He thought because his gun was so powerful that it would knock the bear off it's feet and he would have a second shot to kill it. Needless to say, the bear didn't drop right there. They did find it not too far from camp dead under a tree. Too many people rely on big guns to do the job. Other people take it too far the other way also. Shoot what you enjoy shooting. If you enjoy it, you'll shoot better. I'm definitely not what I would call an expert on calibres and there are a lot of people on this sight that have a lot more knowledge than I do but I do know that when it comes to shooting, if you're scared of the recoil, you're not going to hit what you're aiming at very often.

 

[ricksplace]

I haven't read all the responses, but I'll offer this. Buy the 375. If you can shoot it well enough to hit what you are aiming at consistently, hunt with it. It is an inherently accurate cartridge, and it is over 100 years old! Easy cartridge to handload. I load mine down with cast bullets for grouse too. Buy a lee loader and you are off to the races.
The 270 gr spitzers have the same trajectory as a 150 gr .270, a cartridge known for flat shooting. We often have 300 yard gong matches. (shoot offhand till you miss). I consistently win over guys shooting 270s, 300mags, .223 etc. If the recoil bothers you that much, get a muzzle brake. I know a lot of guys hate them. I'm retired and have shot so many hard kickers, I don't have to get bruised up anymore to prove anything to myself or anyone else. I have a 375, 416, and 458 with brakes on all of them. I can shoot them all day and come home with a smile on my face and no bruises. Are the braked rifles noisy? Unbelievably so. Be courteous at the range.

 

[Boomer]

I disagree that the 375 is "the most favorable all-around hunting round". For big game its a great round, but deer size and smaller I'd say not! There's no do it all caliber in my opinion. If you want it buy it. But realize you will be buying another caliber for other purposes which is why I love guns...I always find a reason to buy another

I disagree with your disagreement.

One oft overlooked aspect of terminal performance is target density. Mostly, .375 bullets are designed to provide optimum performance on African buffalo, because the .375 is the most common cartridge used on these guys, and bullet failure on buffalo will have immediate consequences for the hunter and prolonged consequences for the manufacturer of that bullet, once the word gets out. When used on light game, this same bullet opens less dramatically even though the impact velocity might be similar, so it produces ample damage to kill the lighter game, without the effects often associated with high velocity bullet impacts; thus began the idea that you could eat right up to the bullet hole. Thus the .375 is hands down the most versatile big game cartridge available.

 

[bearkilr]

Thus the .375 is hands down the most versatile big game cartridge available.

I'd agree with that statement if we were talking in terms of worldwide versatility. For Canada, which this thread is about, the nod goes to the 338 Win Mag.
And any caliber that requires the shooter to add a brake is too big.

 

[Dogleg]

I agree with the disagreement about the disagreement.

Not only is the .375 a great all around big game caliber, its close to being the only all around choice. Not that there aren't plenty of situations where I'm happier packing something else.

 

[BigUglyMan]

I'd agree with that statement if we were talking in terms of worldwide versatility. For Canada, which this thread is about, the nod goes to the 338 Win Mag.
And any caliber that requires the shooter to add a brake is too big.

Most shooters can't shoot a 338 or 300 wm worth a damn. Oddly enough they seem to handle the 375 H&H better.

 

[Boomer]

I'd agree with that statement if we were talking in terms of worldwide versatility. For Canada, which this thread is about, the nod goes to the 338 Win Mag.
And any caliber that requires the shooter to add a brake is too big.

I agree with the part about the brake, but a puny little .375 doesn't need one . . . neither does a .416 Rigby, a .458 Winchester of a .500 Nitro, but clearly the .375 is more versatile then they.

 

[Dogleg]

Most shooters can't shoot a 338 or 300 wm worth a damn. Oddly enough they seem to handle the 375 H&H better.

Seen that more than a few times. Recoil is such a subjective thing; a person with ringing ears and a stinging shoulder may not even notice that his .300 didn't have enough kick to bounce off the sand bags. The new to .375 shooter is usually so surprised to live through the experience that he is busy telling everyone about it before the rifle quits moveing.

When I younger I used to wonder when people talked about working the bolt during recoil on the heavy hitters, since at 130 pounds I was often wondering who got shot every time I pulled the trigger on some pretty tame but fast recoiling rigs.
Come to find out in later years that the big guns kicked for so long that I might as well work the bolt because there was nothing else to do.

 

[jjohnwm]

.... The new to .375 shooter is usually so surprised to live through the experience that he is busy telling everyone about it before the rifle quits moveing....Come to find out in later years that the big guns kicked for so long that I might as well work the bolt because there was nothing else to do.

LOL, perfect! There are so many threads on here and elsewhere pontificating about the vicious recoil of .30-06's and .270's that some shooters probably have psychosomatic bruises before they even pick up the guns. I vividly recall the worst-recoiling gun I ever shot: a Lee-Enfield .303 that kicked the snot out of me at age 13 simply because everybody had me scared green before I ever touched the thing.

A few years ago I met a young fellow at the range to which I belonged, when he was there with his father. I was shooting my Blaser R93 in .375H&H, and the young guy was obviously a budding gun nut who had read about and was very interested in the gun (straight-pull bolt, interchangeable barrels/chamberings, kinda different). It was probably the lightest of the various .375's I had owned over the years, but fit me so beautifully that it was a joy to shoot. The young guy was roughly my height and build, and when he diffidently asked to shoot it I was happy to oblige since I figured it would fit him as well. He picked it up, shouldered it nicely and took a good offhand stance, then easily drilled the 200-yard gong. I wish that I had a picture of the smile on his face. I told him that reading about shooting was useful, but actually shooting was 'way more so. I hope he is an accomplished shooter now, and unafraid of recoil.

 

[Jericho]

The problem I have is with the "bare minimum" hunters, who think they possess some mystical skill which allows them to .410 slug a deer at 50 yards.

.410 slug can more than down a deer at 50 yards...

 

[bearkilr]

Most shooters can't shoot a 338 or 300 wm worth a damn. Oddly enough they seem to handle the 375 H&H better.

Having shot many rifles in those calibers I'll agree with the caveat that the rifles chambered in 300 and 338 generally weigh quite a bit less than the traditional 375. The 375 does have more recoil if the weights are kept similar. I have a Tikka M695 in 338 that kicks like a mule, yet my Blaser R93 is a pussycat and a pretty heavy Ruger M77 that's inbetween the two. I had a Sako AV in 375 chopped to a 20" bbl. with a lightweight Brown Precision stock that kicked quite a bit more than any 338 I fired, yet the Ruger RSM was a gentle behemoth.

 

[vviking]

I have to admit that my BRNO 602, even with it's barrel reduced to 20", scoped with a Leupold 1.5x5 scope is a little heavier than I like it to be if I'm walking in the mountains. I am getting old

A .375 H&H rifle is a very versatile rifle and if you are OK with the recoil, weight and length of the gun, then go for it.

BTW the recoil in an 8.5 lb+ rifle is surprising mild, more of a push than a sharp jolt.

Yes geo, I hear you loud and clear. My 1.5x6 B&L scoped 602 weighs 11lb 2oz., slung and loaded. And how I love that rifle. A fellow gets kinda partial to fat, heavy bullets ... that go where he points 'em, Eh?.

Is it just me?, or has this "global warming" thing ... made gravity the more powerfull, and the air ... more thinner??. This must explain the gasping and the leg burn, of late.

recoil in an 8.5 lb+ rifle is surprising mild

Bingo!. (slap upside the head) ... there... is the surefire antidote to deteriorating global envioronmental quality.. Just listen to those on here who are older, more decrepit, ... and go get yerself a nice light 9.3x62. Like Member Emetrious Ted hauls hither and yon about the Yukon, in(no doubt)severely oxygen depleted atmosphere. (thx. for the inspiration <Why Not?> ... ).

It's a FN 98 actioned Husqvarna(642?), 7 1/2 lbs, ... 8 1/2 with the 2.5 post and crosshair Weaver in QRW rings. Open sights, open gripped, snobble tipped, walnut.
270's at 2500+.
Just begining to play with it, but it looks damn pretty, ... and it is accurate.. Good trigger. M70 safety. Fast to the shoulder.

The damn thing may end up up buying me 10 more good years.

 

[Ganderite]

I found it kicked less than a 338. More of a push that a hit.

Just so long as you know caliber and power don't make up for poor shot placement, go for it.

 

[BigUglyMan]

Just listen to those on here who are older, more decrepit, ... and go get yerself a nice light 9.3x62. Like Member Emetrious Ted hauls hither and yon about the Yukon, in(no doubt)severely oxygen depleted atmosphere. (thx. for the inspiration <Why Not?> ... ).

It's a FN 98 actioned Husqvarna(642?), 7 1/2 lbs, ... 8 1/2 with the 2.5 post and crosshair Weaver in QRW rings. Open sights, open gripped, snobble tipped, walnut.
270's at 2500+.
Just begining to play with it, but it looks damn pretty, ... and it is accurate.. Good trigger. M70 safety. Fast to the shoulder.

The damn thing may end up up buying me 10 more good years.

Decrepit? Did you not see the old boy dragging that bald-headed-bear on the tarp to his canoe? Brother Ted is like an action hero to CGNers. The kevinB to our Hunting and Sporting Arms forum.

 

[Boomer]

Decrepit? Did you not see the old boy dragging that bald-headed-bear on the tarp to his canoe? Brother Ted is like an action hero to CGNers. The kevinB to our Hunting and Sporting Arms forum.

To say nothing of the pics of him humping moose meat out of the mountains! I'd be scared to go hunting with Ted. He'd see more game then me, outshoot me, out walk me, and then haul out bigger loads. I'll stick to something easy like a mixed martial arts cage match.

 

[blwebster]

Try one before buying that. If you can take the recoil and enjoy it, then hunt with it. For moose which are very easy to kill with well placed shots it is not needed, but whatever floats the boat works.

 

[Camp Cook]

My latest 375 H&H is a 22" barreled (had Guntech shorten the barrel from 28"), camo synthetic stocked, T/C Prohunter single shot with Leupold QD scope base/low QD scope rings/Leupold VX3 2.5-8X36mm B&C reticle + sling = weighs in at 7.5lbs.

OAL is 4" shorter than my 20" barreled Rem 700 LSS in 30-06.

In these lighter rifles a 375H&H can recoil a bit I currently load this rifle with 250gr TTSX @ 2600fps and when I get around to it I'll load 300gr to 2450fps.

I have shot my fair share of deer with a 375H&H loaded with 300gr Partitions @ 2450fps you can definitely eat up to the hole.

 

[c-fbmi]

Ted and I took a moose a couple years back and I can assure you there is nothing decrepit about Ted! (except his hearing) The moose ended up in the lake (don't ask) and we had to tow it 1/2 mile across the bay to a nice pebble beach to work on it. After come-alonging it up onto the beach we set about the necessary chores until near midnight.
You'll never guess what caliber was used for this beast...........I'll give you a hint......the first number is 9 !!!!
I think I have a pic I'll try to find.

To the OP the only way to get good with the 375 and larger calibers is to purchase one and shoot, shoot, shoot...........If you can shoot 50 rounds from a 12 ga at clays or birds you can master the 375.

 

[vviking]

more decrepit,

Decrepit? Did you not see the old boy dragging that bald-headed-bear on the tarp to his canoe?

Brother Ted is like an action hero to CGNers.

To say nothing of the pics of him humping moose meat out of the mountains! I'd be scared to go hunting with Ted.

I can assure you there is nothing decrepit about Ted! (except his hearing)

Well gent's, where in the blazes ... is that "tongue in cheek" smiley icon?.
It's a good thing for moi that there's humour aplenty in this group, eh?.
No one called me 'dik' .... yet !!!, LoL.

Ted rocks.

Thanks to his posts, got me the perfect walkabout rifle for this decrepit (and soon retired/RV mobile) 'ol coot ... good company it will be, in a scabbard strapped to the zimmerframe walker, for a short wobbly lap of those lower trails of high country.

The damn thing may end up up buying me 10 more good years.

 

[thinhorn]

who cares get what you want and have fun.I've used mine for everything and had great luck with elk, moose and deer.I would recommend shooting cheap bullets that open up on deer.I lost a nice buck on last day of season with H&H AI shooting accubonds.Also remember big guns dont make up for poor shooting ,I've learned that myself. Robin