Project Completed -- 375 RUM Defense Rifle Project Need Suggestions :)

I bought a bunch of of the 300 Sierras a while back...I'm looking forward to trying the 260AB at long range this spring.

The reason I asked about the reamer is that Dennis has my brand new JGS...I bet a crisp cut would have made for tighter groupage or at least less fliers.
Did you have Dennis bed the action?

Why don't you build a 20" 416 Ultra?
Where it comes to crushing North American game the 416 really is in a class of its own.
I don't think it will loose as much velocity as the 375UM does in a short barrel.

The 416 Ultra will shoot a 350 TSX at 2800fps.....

Call it the 40-06?:D
 
I did the glass bedding job myself and both the 260gr Accubonds and 300gr Sierra's give me cloverleaf groups at 100 yards so I don't know how much better recutting the chamber would have worked for me I'm thinking the gun is already more accurate than I can shoot it.

I was thinking about your 416 RUM but can't fatham what I would need it for I believe the 375RUM is the ultimate everything round for North America and unless I win a lottery have no plans on going to Africa.

I thought about a 338 Edge but once again can't think of a reason for needing it over the 375RUM and even though a 338" cal has awesome BC bullets available I just can't see the need to reach out more than 500 yards like I can do with my 375RUM already.

Now that I have found RL17 I am actually not loosing any velocity from the 5" shorter barreled rifle either.

Which leaves me in a delema what too do with that spare 26" barreled Rem 700 LSS in 375RUM so like I said earlier I'll just hang onto it until a need arises or I let it go if I do I will let you know.
 
Camp Cook said:
............
I was thinking about your 416 RUM but can't fatham what I would need it for I believe the 375RUM is the ultimate everything round for North America and unless I win a lottery have no plans on going to Africa.......
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I think you are missing the point.

Think of a 416 as you do a 45/70.
Only real powerful, flat shooting, and accurate....With every bullet.

The 45/70 is a neat round that is housed in neater rifles and is reasonably hard hitting, but (in my experience) its abilities as a stopper are oversold and its total lack of flexibility are completely undersold. I like the nostalgia of the round and I think of the limitations like I do bow hunting, but there are times I want success at all costs.

Shoot something one time with a 416 and you will see why guys that use them use terms like "stopper", "smash", and "crush". The rougher the going and the steeper the shot angle the more you will see what this beast does best....We aren't talking about no bullet diameter hole either!

The up side is that you end up with a flat shooting round chambered in an extremely accurate, dead reliable, intimately familiar platform with more smashing power than you need.....If you continue to hunt Brownies there may come a time when this excess makes you very, very, happy!
We joke about it around here, but those of us that actually hunt these thing know to well that when a bear escapes wounded there are no jokes to be had.

Welcome to the 45/70 of the 21st century!
 
No not missing it at all I totally understand the capabilities of a 416" cal bullet over a 375" but I have to think where does one stop for big game in NA and recoil?

When my last grizzly ran into that horribly thick bush after being shot and we had to go in after it we couldn't see on average from 2 - 10 yards and the furthest window thru the trees was max 20 yards we wanted the shortest most powerfull firearms we had at our disposal and yes if I had a 416RUM at that time instead of my 45-70 I would definately have grabbed it instead and handed the 45-70 to my son but I don't know if I would have grabbed it over this 375RUM.

Also I need to stop buying more firearms and finish perfecting/working on the ones I have now.

This is the beauty if this though if I sit on my spare 375RUM and don't rush into anything I can do some thinking and make a decision that I won't regret later.

Did you say Dennis has you 416RUM reamer? ;)
 
Further to X-Fan's post, I personally think that the .416 bore in a large case cartridge like the Rigby, Remington, Ultra, or Weatherby represents the most powerful general purpose hunting round available. It might not be up to a .458 at close range, but the .416's velocity and high BC bullets makes shooting over distance easier. The recoil from these cartridges, once you are accustomed to it, is tolerable from all shooting positions, something not true of the big bores.

But the .416 falls short of the .375s in one category, and that is bullet availability. As the .416 bores increase in popularity, more bullets could become available, but for the time being it is a shortcoming. If as I did, you settle on a single bullet for all your shooting chores (350 gr Magtip or X bullet) this is not an issue, but if you find it useful to use a variety of bullets for different duties, the .375 has the advantage. Having said that, a .375/300 at 2600 does many things very well, and many .375 shooters use nothing else. As for raw power, the .416 isn't a .577, and a large cased .375 like the .375 Ultra or the .378 Weatherby with a long barrel, when loaded with a 350 or a 380 gr bullet comes very close, .375/380 at 2400 vs .416/400 at 2400.
 
Here is probably the main reason why I am sticking with this 375RUM for my ultimate all round do everything rifle and why I probably wouldn't pack a 416 as often or even feel I need/want one at this time.

In Canada with this 375RUM I can with just a little more range work shoot/hunt out to 500 yards without hesitation or pop the scope off and go into the thickest crap after a grizzly it takes about 1/2 a minute to remove the scope and install the rear XS ghost ring sight so I am ready for any hunting situation that I may encounter.

If I did get a chance to go to Africa it would be a different story I would most definately consider rebarreling my spare 26" 375RUM to a 20" barreled 416RUM but as of now I would probably just take 2 rifles my 21" barreled T/C Contender carbine in 375JDJ loaded with 260gr Accubonds I would reduce the loads 2250fps because I'm pushing max with these loads and this 21" barreled 375RUM with 260gr Accubonds for long range, 300gr A-Frames and depending on what I would be hunting maybe a 300gr solid as well.

I was just thinking I need to try RL17 in my 375JDJ... :D
 
Yup, I agree with Boomer.

For general purpose hunting the big fast 458's are too much (for me). The recoil of a 500 grain bullet at 2400-2500fps is an enormous step over that of the 416's. From my perspective the recoil takes too much muscle control to consider anything over a couple of hundred yards....To be honest even at that the rifle is moving so much (from the muscle tension) 200 yard shots were iffy. During practice sessions I would have an occasionally psychological melt down and jerk of the trigger....What ended it for me was that I seemingly couldn't control it.
The 416's feel like that at first, but with some determination they are in fact manageable and viable...Even at fairly long range.

FWIW I had identical rifles in 416Rem (the 416 is gone now) and 375RUM and there is zero difference in recoil between a 416 Rem and a similar 375RUM. In fact the 375 has a fair bit more muzzle rise.

Hey Boomer, where do you get those big 380's?
They were Rhino's right?
 
The first batch I tried was from Rhinoman in Texas, but shortly after my first order he dropped the line complaining that the US dollar was doing poorly against the Rand so his profit margin slipped below his comfort level, and his customers balked at his new prices. With the new rules about bringing bullets across from the US, purchasing from a small supplier is probably a non-issue anyway. As a result I bought mine directly from Rhino in South Africa. All it took was an email to Kobus indicating which bullet I wanted and how many, he emailed back with his banking information and I wired him the cash. I don't recall how long it took to get them, but it was pretty quick, like 10 days or so.

There's no question that these things are expensive, I paid about $3 a piece for them including shipping, but IMHO they bring a big case .375 to a slightly higher level. I've been pretty careful about using the few I have left, but I'll have to get some more this year I think.
 
Boomer is right about the 380 grain bullets being pretty slick. They definitely come into their own with the large-volume case of the RUM. I tried them with my Taylor, but unfortunatley had to seat the bullets too deeply into the case to get the rounds to fit in the magazine. That of course cut down on powder volume, and yeah...

They certainly open a whole new venue for the 375 bore rifles though.
 
I wasn't looking for any info just re-reading the 2002 Sept/Oct Rifleshooter magazine their feature article was written by Craig Boddington and was titled ".375 or .416 Making the right choice for dangerous game and all round versatility".

This is his conclusion...

Which One for You?

Take your pick. The .375s are absolutely adequate for buffalo. The .416s are more adequate. Your choice should probably on what actual purposes you have in mind for the rifle. The .375 is more versatile, excellent for big bears and moose, not bad for elk, and still the best for a one rifle safari battery. The .416s has versatility, yes, certainly more than a big bore, but its at its best for very large game and has little genuine utility in North America. If you want an ideal rifle for buffalo, a rifle you might also use on elephant, then the .416 is clearly the better choice. But if it's versatility you want, better stick with a .375 -- just like hunters have for 90 years. (now 97 years)
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I've now decided I don't need a .416 for now so I'm sticking with the .375 cartridges and this 375RUM for my everything rifle... :D
 
Latest update this rifle is a dream come true for me and it is more accurate than a dared hope for...

I just ordered 100 Barnes .375" 350gr TSX thru Todd Bartell @ Omineca Sports in Vanderhoof should have them in a couple of weeks.

I'm thinking with RL17 powder it shouldn't be to hard to push them to 2400fps...

Can hardly wait to try them out... :)
 
Been to the range 3 times now to sight in and work up a load have pushed these 350gr TSX to over 2500fps but have backed off to 2440fps.

Accuracy at 50 yards using the XS Sights tall Weaver backup ghost ring sight is several 3 shot cloverleaf groups now....
 
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