Which 375?

[ishootkittens]

Hey guys, been a while. Been shooting my "newer" 300 norma and getting pretty good results out to about 1800yds or so. Inside 1000yds with 215-230gr berger DINGS are almost a given every time. Not that I am bored with the Norma but I have been thinking about building a 375 next. It will be down the road a ways and maybe I will simply rebarrel my norma with a 375 barrel, who knows.

So here is my question. I know there are some great bullet selections out there right now from CE, Hammer bullets, sierra, and maybe one day berger. I was wondering if there was a 375 cartridge out there that could push a 350gr bullet to 2950-3000fps and-or a 375gr bullet to maybe 2800fps. Here's the kicker...I DON'T want to have to go to a cheytac sized action. I was thinking maybe Kirby's Allen Xpress or a 378 weatherby improved could POSSIBLY get me there but I've never seen any velocity/load data for the heavier 350+ (except the smk) for these cases. I know lapua makes great brass and would hold up better than the Weatherby and RUM cases but I'm just not sure the Lapua case would yield as much velocity as the Weatherby or RUM improved.

Any ideas?

Thanks fellas.
Cody

 

[RockyMtnMT]

We did a simple 375-338 Lap Imp. Have not been able to really ring it out yet due to a delay on getting the dies. Fire form loads with 394g bullets have yielded 2700fps. I think it would get a 350f bullet to the speed you are looking for.

Steve

 

[ishootkittens]

Holy crap. I never dreamed of being able to get a 394gr Hammer going at 2700fps. What was the barrel length on that rifle? If you don't mind me asking. Thanks for the info!

 

[alcesgigas]

Here's the 375 Mjolnir (I think Swamplord on this site developed this cartridge) .375 MJOLNIR - AmmoGuide Interactive It might be stretching your action a bit and maybe not; it's sure worth looking into I think.

 

[ishootkittens]

Man, I wouldn't even begin to know how to pronounce that!!! I think the 375 lapua improved will be the ticket after talking to some of the guys. The Lapua has alot of taper and a 20 degree shoulder which means it has the most room for improvment. Cases are made from lapua so I know I will get my money's worth from them. I did notice however than there were some manufacturers out there who offers 416 rigby cases a bit cheaper than lapua offers its 338 cases. 500 jeffery is also any idea but the **** brass is so expensive and I don't know if I like the rebated rim. Anyway thanks to everyone and if anyone else has any info, data, experience please let me know this will be a future build so plenty of time to stew on it

Thanks
Cody

 

[RockyMtnMT]

Our dies came in last week while we were gone hunting. Planning to ring it out tomorrow hopefully. I will let you know how it goes.

Steve

 

[MudRunner2005]

Which .375? The one that says Cheytac after it...

 

[yorke-1]

Our dies came in last week while we were gone hunting. Planning to ring it out tomorrow hopefully. I will let you know how it goes.

Steve

What OAL did you set your reamer up for?

 

[TXAoudadKlr]

I might go with the 375AX or maybe a 375-338 Excaliber when I shoot my 300's barrel out.

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

Not that I don't love these big monsters BT what on Earth do you need a 350 bullet going 2900 fps to harvest game with, no animal including a blue whale could withstand the impact from that horse...

 

[Frank in the Laurels]

Not that I don't love these big monsters but what on Earth do you need a 350 grain bullet going 2900 fps to harvest it with, no animal including a blue whale could withstand the impact from that horse...

 

[ishootkittens]

Not all shooting has to do with hunting. My 300 norma has gotten me to a mile on steel. I will probably continue to use it for hunting but I would like a cartridge that will fit in a magnum receiver (smaller than a cheytac receiver) and in a "standard" sized stock. I'd like a cartridge with good brass life that has enough boiler room to get a heavy, high b.c. bullet up to enough speed to get me to 2500yds or so without going trans-subsonic. My range goes to almost 3000 yards and would be happy if I could pull that shot off one day. But I would like to explore more options OTHER than the Cheytac case. The Weatherby case has that awful belt and the brass is **** expensive. The Rum was an alternative I was looking at but improving the Rum isn't worth the time for me as there is little to gain. So far the Lapua case is the front runner. It's decently priced and always available. You also gain quite a bit by improving the Lapua case. Case life will be much greater than most of the other choices and with a 375 bullet, barrel life will be increased as well. Energy and diameter will always ensure a clean kill when mistakes are made by the shooter.

Cody

 

[TXAoudadKlr]

Some of us just like making big holes and knocking the **** out of the more nucience critters we hunt. I do get what you're getting at though, I've actually gravitated to using my 6.5creed more than my other guns.

 

[RockyMtnMT]

We got our 375 BigDog loaded up today. It is shooting the 394g Hammer Hunter at 2780fps comfortably. We used Win 780 Supreme and the rifle has a 31" 8" twist Rock Creek barrel. Right now I think we will be making a bullet that we can get over 3000fps for it. I think it will work better out to hunting distances. We will work with it more in the future. Now it is shooting well out to 1000y and will hopefully get to shoot a deer in the last few days of the season.

Steve