albertan
.333 member
Reged: 13/06/06
Posts: 432
Loc: Alberta, Canada
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The title of the post is self explanatory. Is it Boddington doing an O'Connor? Has everyone been saved from certain death by ol' Thunder and Lightning (aka .375 H&H) after someone else shot the beast with a lesser cartridge?
I'm not trying to flame anyone, but if this a big bore forum the .375 bore does not apply. I truly believe that Mr. Boddington's enthusiastic praise for this cartridge is one big reason for its popularity. Like O'Connor's .270. I also believe that the .458 Win is less popular than it should be because of a couple of popular scribes, and for no other modern reason.
I am most likely headed for one in the near future so it is not like I dislike the round. The questions why I am not using more suitable rounds (read proper English rounds) are all that bug me about this cartridge.
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500grains
.416 member
Reged: 16/02/04
Posts: 4732
Loc: Salt Lake City, Utah USA
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The .375 H&H is definitely at the light end for elephant and buffalo hunting, as well as for hippo on land. However, it has very little recoil so most hunters can shoot it accurately, and it has enough penetration to get the job done most of the time. It's kind of like a Chevy truck - they usually work (but not always).
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DUGABOY1
.400 member
Reged: 02/02/03
Posts: 1340
Loc: TEXAS USA
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In the first place the 375H&H had a great following long before Boddington was born. It has that following because, like the old thuty-thuty, it works all out of perportion to it's paper balistics. It is easy to shoot, can be used in a fairly light rifle,and combined with a good Mauser actioned rifle,feeds like quicksilver, and is about the best all around for the world one can use!
Ammo is available in any place where hunting, and firearms are allowed. It shoots flat enough to be usefull on long shots, and powerfull enough to take anything you run into on planet Earth, with proper bullet, and a reasonable shot placement!
I have my doubts whether gun rag writers influenced the popularity of the 375 H&H that much, any place other than the USA, and only with youngsters then.
In Africa, and India, it gained it's reputation by doing what it was designed to do, Take game animals cleanly!
A big game hunter with more than one rifle, not haveing one of them be a Bolt actioned CRF 375H&H rifle, is almost blasphemy! 
500, you got that backwards, a Chevy truck breaks most of the time, but not always!  Compareing the fine old 375 H&H to a Chevy truck, is like calling Mother Teresa a bitch! UNFORGIVABLE!
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..........Mac >>>===(x)===>
DUGABOY1, and MacD37 founding member of DRSS www.doublerifleshooterssociety.com
"If I die today, I have had a life well spent, for I've been to see the Elephant, and smelled the smoke of Africa!"
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Marrakai
.416 member
Reged: 09/01/03
Posts: 3708
Loc: Darwin, Top End of Australia
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Perhaps only a non-American can point this out, but the .375 H&H had already made its reputation well before the first shot was ever fired with one on continental USA!
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Marrakai
When the bull drops, the bullshit stops!
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www.marrakai-adventure.com.au
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BillfromOregon
.333 member
Reged: 27/10/04
Posts: 254
Loc: Sweetwater, by God Texas
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Um, Albertan, I hate to break the news but one of the biggest all-time fans of the .375 was ... Jack O'Connor.
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zaitsev
.300 member
Reged: 15/05/06
Posts: 138
Loc: Trysil, Norway
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We regard the 375 here in norway as a heavy .30-06,and we call it the 06`s brother. It`s many who use it for vrious hunting such as elg (moose) ,red deer and other game.
It is a cartridge that many can use and get used to.
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The world hasnt got enough big Bores ,and people who uses them
(mr rigby at AR)
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Boomer
.300 member
Reged: 13/04/05
Posts: 144
Loc: The Hudson Bay Coast, Canada
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The .375 stumbles into the big bore group not because of bore size, but because of the game taken with it over the last 95 years. It is truly a world class cartridge - easy to shoot, accurate, and of flat trajectory. The .375 takes small game without undue damage and is able to take large game with enough damage to ensure humane kills. I no longer have light, medium and heavy big game rifles, because all I need is a .375.
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albertan
.333 member
Reged: 13/06/06
Posts: 432
Loc: Alberta, Canada
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I have been to Zimbabwe and have some dangerous game experience. I went on a PAC after jumbos and while nothing was taken, I spoke to men who had a lot of experience. One used a .460, another a .458. Neither owned a .375. There was a young assistant PH in training who was carrying a .375. I looked at his ammo belt and counted 8 different brands of ammo. He had but a few solids.
I am sending this young man a care package which includes dies, bullets, including solids, Imperial sizing lube, a case trimmer, a case annealing kit, a 6 inch caliper in Imperial, a priming tool, and load data. I put out a request for Somchem data for a .270, a .375, and a .458 Lott for this reason. The North American data does not even mention Somchem powders or primers.
The ubiquitous nature of the .375 makes it very attractive in nations like Zimbabwe where handloading is difficult, if not illegal. This young man has a Lott, but as he does not have access to the manuals we all take for granted, proper case forming dies, and bullets, it collects dust.
The day before I embarked on my lion hunt I got a newsflash of a former Zim PH who had just lost an arm and an eye. His client lost his right leg. The client made a decent shot with a .375 and a Barnes X. They went into the tall grass and things went sour. I am certain that the same shot with a Core-Lokt would have been more immediately fatal. My lion was taken with a .338 Win and it did not move after the first shot. My buffalo was felled with one shot from my .458 Win. In both instances the shooting was good and I used an appropriate bullet.
The two old pros I spoke about earlier had taken elephant and buffalo that numbered over 1000 animals. Both had been scared using .375's and went to the .45's. One had been tossed. The gentleman who had been tossed by a buffalo was using the wrong bullets but they were all he had. The Zim government cannot afford premium solids. He was the top man at Wanke.
He went on his own after almost a year in the hospital.
If you are going to Africa, always have few solids on hand. If for no other reason than to give to your hunter. It may save a life later on.
Edited by albertan (14/08/06 06:41 AM)
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Boomer
.300 member
Reged: 13/04/05
Posts: 144
Loc: The Hudson Bay Coast, Canada
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It is apparent that one must draw a line between the PH's rifle and the clients. The client's rifle will be called upon to take a variety of game weighing as little as a dik-dik or as great as an elephant. The range he shoots at might be from a few feet to several hundred yards. The .375 gives a client a single rifle solution to all these possible scenarios.
The PH's rifle on the other hand is for when things go wrong, and as you have pointed out, sometimes things go horribly wrong. The PH's greatest weapon is his brain, and when his brain fails him, his choice of rifle is of little consequence. All PH's are human, and as with any such diverse group, there will be a great range of shooting ability and tolerance to recoil amongst them. I would therefore sooner hire a PH who was smart and competent with his rifle, rather than hire a PH based on his rifle's bore size.
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k80
.333 member
Reged: 07/05/04
Posts: 314
Loc: San Antonio ,Texas, U.S.A.
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The 375 "Earned It".
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Ken
San Antonio
Welcome to South Texas
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Tightloop
.275 member
Reged: 24/06/06
Posts: 74
Loc: Spring, Tx...
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It is a round that can do everything and has been doing that since 1912...
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