.375 Ruger?

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richhodg66

Well-Known Member
Haven't hunted with cast the past few years, I've gotten lazy about deer hunting since moving out here and the was Kansas does seasons favors archers very, very strong;y, so most of the time I have spent on tree stands has been with a cross bow.

I have a Santa Barbara Mauser here I've been planning for about six or seven years to turn into a .35 Whelen, always seemed like the perfect cast hunting cartridge, but since getting into the .38-55, seems I have a lot of appropriate bullets around for turning a big, bad magnum into a deer cartridge and the new Mossberg bolt rifles chambered for it seem cheap (relatively) and available. It also seems like that case would be better in this role than the .375 H&H for reduced cast loads.

ANyone done much with cast in this cartridge? I need to set up to load for another cartridge like I need a hole in my head, but at least I have all the bullet part of it figured out I should think.
 
Matt

Matt

Active Member
Don’t discount the .375 H&H as a cast bullet cartridge. I’ve had a M70 .375 and still have a Whitworth 98 Mauser in .375. Easy to achieve accuracy in both from .38-55 power levels to 2000 fps plus loads. I’ve used powders from Bullseye to 4350. I imagine the .375 Ruger would be just as versatile. The is something about the 3/8” bore whether hits a .38-55 or .375 .
 
Glaciers

Glaciers

Alaska Land of the Midnight Sun
Well don’t discount the 35 Whelen as you can load from 125 pistol bullets to 300 grain cast. But if your donor rifle is already a magnum bolt face then the Ruger would be a good choice, but if it’s the 06 bolt just send it to JES to bore and chamber to the 35’s.
Either should work on white tails, or anything else on this continent.
 
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richhodg66

Well-Known Member
The mention of the 9.5x57 got me wondering. I'm usually pretty metric savvy, but I never made the connection of 9.5mm and .374, did the math and sure enough.

Made me even more curious and then this turns up on gunbroker; 9.5x57 Mauser

That one is set up with a left handed cheek piece and I sure wish someone had left the side mount off of it, but otherwise, I could get into a rifle like that. Starting to wonder how hard dies would be to come by?
 
fiver

fiver

Well-Known Member
belt sander and some tru oil would fix the left handed problem.
i bet there's no cast on to that stock, and it'd shoot just fine as a righty.
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
My 35 Whelen is on an '03-A3 and I can't imagine anything outside of Africa I wouldn't feel adequately prepared for. But as it happens, the sole kill to the rifles record with me behind it was a Woodchuck! Worked fine there too!

A 375 in any form is more of the same, tough choice.
 
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richhodg66

Well-Known Member
The chief advantage, and it is a significant one, is the ability to use .38 caliber revolver bullets in the Whelen. That is significant for most of us as we nearly all have, cast and load for a .38 Special or .357 Magnum (most of us several). Brass would be another as that can be formed from surplus '06 brass which is common.

For me, that isn't as significant an advantage as I already cast for a .38-55. I have enough lead that I'm not real worried about economy of it. I can cast those Lee 250 grain bullets about as easily as anything else and no gas checks required. I've found nine grains of 700X to be a good 100 yard target load in .38-55, I'm sure I'd have to use a little more of something slower burning in the .375 Ruger.
 
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obssd1958

Well-Known Member
My only experience with the 375 Ruger, was using factory ammo in a brand new Mossberg Patriot.
I don't recall whether it was the 300gr. or 250gr. Hornady product, but I do recall that about 7 or 8 rounds, while trying to sight in a new scope, was about as much as I cared to shoot that rifle!!
I have a couple of 375 H&H, and a 358 Norma, and have no issues taking them out for a day at the range. I think the recoil problem with the 375 Ruger in the Patriot, was primarily stock design. Some stocks just whack 'ya!
 
Bret4207

Bret4207

At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
I found a guy that looked about like that hiding under a bush in a guys back yard one night. Apparently some people take the vows of matrimony very seriously, at least when they catch sweety pie with someone else in the house...
 
CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
My buddy has one of these. Also on a '03 IIRC.

We spike about it and ge said he would "set it aside" for me. ;):p

We have traded bought and sold before. I contemplated one when I made my 6mm Rem. He talked me into the 6mm saying I could buy this 375/06 anytime I wanted it.

Good score hope ya enjoy it!!!

CW
 
Missionary

Missionary

Well-Known Member
We bought that 1st 375-06 about 7 years ago. Whenever JES started making them. Been shooting caliber 38 rifles a long time now. From 38 Long to 375 H&H they just seem right.
Sort of like caliber 41 rifles. Next project is a 40-65 Roller SS. Somewhere a 416 Remington on a Mauser action when I get tired of the 405 Winchester.
 
todd

todd

Well-Known Member
in my head (not a good place to be...lol), i want to take a 1898 Spr Armory and make it a 405 JES.

i have too much time, don't i? lol
 
RBHarter

RBHarter

West Central AR
I don't know how much different the 40-65 is from the 45-70 , obviously it .400-.408 and 40 cal I was thinking more of the source case . There's this Alexander Arms 45-70 AR or something like that. It's basically a 284 Win basic run in a 45-70 die . Solves the rim problem for feeding, mags , and bolt face . If you have a 110 laying around in a WSM it too is very close to just run a WSM basic case in the 45-70 die also . Of course you can use the full 58kpsi of the 308 based 45 Raptor or just shoot the works and blow the 06' straight head space on the mouth and you have a 45-70 data cartridge at 2.5" of case length that will handle the Ruger data only in a .452 groove . .......I guess that would be 400 Whelen then .
 
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