Looking for more reach then my .375 ..options?

[khesser]

338 Lapua and the 338 Norma with 300 grain bullets will match or exceed most 375 calibers muzzle energy and at distance are extremely impressive. My 338 Lapua delivers more energy at 600 yards than my 7 PRC with a 170gr at the muzzle. Recoil from these rifles is impressive in a hunting weight rifle and will require a brake which most people will not enjoy. I use a Thunderbeast 338 Ultra on my 338 Lapua and it tames the rifle some but it still pushes on you pretty good. I load mine with 300gr Berger OTM bullets and they kill good, are accurate, and have a great BC. I would strongly consider the 300 PRC or 300 Norma for a long range hunting rifle. Loaded with heavier bullets they can deliver over 4000ftlbs of muzzle energy and will not have near the recoil as the 338’s.

Gemsbok taken at 570 yards with my 338 Lapua.

 

[Ridge Runner]

Some Great responses for reference.
But in reality, we need to limit our responses to what @charlieB12345 is DIRECTLY wanting /needing!!

We (community members) must try to understand what and relate our experiences and relative knowledge and information as to: What the OP is wanting/ requiring/ asking/ etc., etc., rather than dispense "obscure or otherwise irrelevant information that has little to no reference to the OP's inquiry.

That said,......

Awaiting OP's response to my previous question.

 

[1dirthawker]

Moose/bear/african Plans game

beyond 300 yards is a VERY long shot on a moose, i guide brown bears and would not let you shoot at one at 300 yards if you were my client.

i suspect that 300 is a very long shot in africa for PG as well.

as stated earlier, use a 270/or 250 gr bullet (a good quality one) and it will shoot faster out of your H&H.

 

[sgt_zim]

beyond 300 yards is a VERY long shot on a moose, i guide brown bears and would not let you shoot at one at 300 yards if you were my client.

i suspect that 300 is a very long shot in africa for PG as well.

as stated earlier, use a 270/or 250 gr bullet (a good quality one) and it will shoot faster out of your H&H.

I was listening to a podcast interview of Phil Shoemaker, yeah, he has the identical view as you on moose and especially on brown bears. A messed up shot on a brown bear seems to be about as bad of a deal as a messed up shot on a lion. He likes to get almost close enough to touch them.

I'd say this video from Stuck in the Rut, which probably most of us have seen, is the exemplar of why LR shooting brown bears isn't a good idea.

 

[WAB]

Similar power, longer range, moose/bear/african plains game. Since you don’t have a DG caliber restriction, I’d be looking to step down in bore diameter and up in velocity. 340 weatherby or .338 WM come to mind. Admittedly not the power of a .375 but plenty for what you are considering.

 

[Kevin375]

How far would you think to shoot at the maximum ?

I have hunted with several calibers, but the .375 Holland & Holland magnum is not ridiculous for long shot. I own a Leica Magnus 2.4-16x56, with a ballistic turret, that is on my .375 H&H magnum and associated with a Rangefinder, I already killed animals up to 300 meters...my longest shot so far is an oryx at 306 meters. On targets and gongs, I already shot up to 500 meters and it also worked great. With 250 or 260 gr bullets, it's perfect for such discipline.

If you really want to shoot further, the .338 Lapua magnum is the way to go. I made much longer shots with mine, but it was more for culling than hunting. But this caliber is harder to shoot than the .375 H&H magnum and a good muzzle brake, or a suppressor, is almost needed with spicy rounds.

 

[Luvthunt]

Short answer…..the 340 Wby will get you there

 

[charlieB12345]

Since you are using a semi-bonded bullet, consider stepping down one step in bullet weight and use a bonded, a mono, or a bonded/mono hybrid bullet (like a North Fork). Ramp up the MV and flatten the trajectory a touch. You may get just what you are looking for using what you already have. Just needs some R & D.

Awesome tips thank you!

 

[Northern Shooter]

Moose/bear/african Plans game

338 WinMag is your answer for North American dangerous game and large plains game.

Ron Spomer has a great comparison video of the two, the 338WM ballistics surpasses the 375 at 125m.

Anything beyond that the 338 is shooting flatter and retaining more energy.

 

[khesser]

A comparison for those suggesting a lighter .375 bullet at higher velocity. I used Buffalo Bore Supercharged 375 H&H with Barnes 270gr TSX at box listed velocity of 2750fps Vs. my own 338 Lapua loaded with 300gr Berger OTM bullets at 2733fps. The 338 already has a significant advantage over the 375 at the muzzle but really starts to show its potential as you get farther out. At 300 yards the 338 has a 900ftlb advantage and at 500 it’s just over a 1000.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

For your intended criteria, the .378 Weatherby Magnum would suit you well.

 

[charlieB12345]

338 WinMag is your answer for North American dangerous game and large plains game.

Ron Spomer has a great comparison video of the two, the 338WM ballistics surpasses the 375 at 125m.

Anything beyond that the 338 is shooting flatter and retaining more energy.

I have watched that and it certainly does!!

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

I absolutely love my model 70 in
375 h&h but i want a caliber that is equivalent in power but has longer reach out and touch them range... Opinions?

You likely have the right caliber. There are a few recent articles about semi custom .375H&H getting out to 500-600 yards (and further) accurately with the right bullet and load combinations as well as the correct spin rate. The last article I read mentioned a 230 grain bullet. I’ll be testing some this winter with my SAKO 375 H&H for similar reasons you’ve mentioned.

Otherwise, I have a 300 RUM that is capable of shooting a 245 grain bullet to significant distance very accurately. I primarily use a 210 grain bullet.

Moose/bear/african Plans game

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

You can go this route:

 

[skydiver386]

All of the above is good advice, but I think we are talking about 2 separate types of rifles here.

A Plains Game rifle is usually around 8-8.5 pounds, and fired off sticks.

A large caliber rifle with the power, range and accuracy being discussed here is usually quite a bit heavier, and fired almost strictly from the prone position for best accuracy.

Totally different components would really go into each rifle. Such as:

Barrel
Caliber
Stock
Optics
Muzzle brake
Suppressor
Bipod

Firing an average .375 H&H from sticks is no big deal, but from the prone position that rifle will BITE you!

 

[PerH]

A Nosler AB 250 or mono could do well

Or like a 230 or similar .

 

[Northern Shooter]

I have watched that and it certainly does!!

I bought mine specifically for longer shots in elk, moose and bear.

I have also seen it recommended for use on larger plainsgame.

After shooting the 375, 416 etc the 338 feels like a plinker in comparison.

 

[IvW]

Gotta ask:

What ranges are you wanting?

The H&H can make long distance calls out to 400+ effective yards on the bigger PG animals.

IMO, Any shot over 300 yds, really over 100 to 150 yards, work in closer, that's Why It's Called Hunting and Not Shooting. But that's another subject and beating the perverbial dead horse, as this has been discussed and responsible for many a hijacked threads.

You could go with a 338 Lapua or 50 BMG if your wanting to play a sniper at 1000 yards+ on game animals. But that's not hunting,...IMO.

What he said????

 

[mdwest]

beyond 300 yards is a VERY long shot on a moose, i guide brown bears and would not let you shoot at one at 300 yards if you were my client.

i suspect that 300 is a very long shot in africa for PG as well.

as stated earlier, use a 270/or 250 gr bullet (a good quality one) and it will shoot faster out of your H&H.

6x safaris to date.. I'd guess between my wife and I we've taken 50+ PG on those hunts... Also hunted AK, Ireland, and several of the lower 48 for various "deer" over a period of close to 50 years...

and I've taken exactly 1 shot over 300 yards on a game animal in my life... a black wildebeest... which as a species is known to be very difficult to get in close on, and it would seem many/most people shoot them at distances of 200-400 yards..

I know there are people out there that fancy themselves "long range hunters" that really like doing the 300-1000 yard shots on elk, deer, etc.. but thats not me.. and most of those guys arent shooting traditional "hunting" cartridges.. they are shooting highly modified precision rifles chambered for cartridges that were specifically developed for long range shooting (like 300 PRC, 338 Lapua, etc..etc..)..

If hunting at distances of 300 or more yards is going to be a regular thing.. I'd recommend figuring out what platform you want to use first.. and then select the cartridge for the intended game (bears, etc per the OP).. I think youre going to find that your typical "hunting" rifle in any larger caliber (like 375 HH, 375 Ruger, etc) CAN make a 300+ yard shot.. but its not going to be optimum... Its not what they were designed for.. and to another posters earlier point.. they are going to seriously ouch when shot from the prone...

One size isnt going to fit all here... What I'd shoot a brown bear with at 300+ yards (I actually wouldnt.. but what I'd recommend someone else use) would be very different than what I'd shoot an elk with at 300+ yards... which would be very different than what I would shoot a pronghorn antelope with at 300+ yards... (very different terrain.. very different shooting conditions.. and very different animals in terms of size, ability to take a hit and keep on keeping on, etc..)..

FWIW Im headed out for an elk hunt tomorrow afternoon (spending a little more than a week in northern Idaho chasing them).. Ive been advised by the guy thats helping us (he lives there) that I need to be prepared for a 300 yard shot... but thats the max he would expect any opportunity to present itself... he thinks it is most likely we will find ourselves taking a 150-200 yard shot (the distance he has taken most of his elk at)..

 

[dchamp]

You don’t indicate how far reaching out and touching someone is, so I’ll make a guess between 400 and 500 yds or so. To do that with your .375H&H you will need to change your bullet. A weight of 250gr’s to 270gr’s would probably work best for what you want it for. But even with those the key factor, in my opinion, is that the bullets BC needs to be a G1 of .4 or higher. Barnes, Nosler, Hornady, CEB and Hammer are the bullet manufatuers I would look to.

My .375H&H load is 299gr Hammer (shock) Bullet, G1.477 @ 3.60”, GM215M, 71.0gr’s CFE223. I average 2580fps. That should get me, at sea level, to 450yds with 2,200 ft-lbs +/-.