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Guys talk to me about the 375 Winchester. I have never had one, but I am thinking about one in an Encore barrel for deer hunting. I was thinking this would make a fine cast bullet cartridge for deer hunting. So I am interested in what you guys think about the 375?? And what you guys use(cast bullet) in the 375 Winchester??
I am kicking around a couple of other cartridges also. Like the 7-30 Waters, and the 30-30?? Possibly the 30-30 Improved?? But whatever I choose it will shoot cast bullets only. Help me kick this one around.
Any other opinions are welcome. However please remember that this is for an Encore. And the cartridge must be rimmed(I already have a 45-70 barrel). Hopefully you guys consider the Encore a Lever action. Thanks, I realize some of you do not consider it a lever. but I know you guys have a lot of knowledge on these cartridges. Tom.
i'd think the waters and 30 30 would be better suited to a contender,as for the 375,one shot one deer. how about the 375 jdj?it's a cartridge that's supposed to outshine the win.
The 375 Win makes a fine cast bullet cartridge and its one of my favorite levergun cartridges. Plenty of good cast designs around for it too from Lyman, RCBS & Saeco. If you want something heavier, CBE in Oz make a 300gr GC mould that was designed for use in the 375 Win.
Pretty easy cartridge to load for, very economical and powerful beyond what it modest size might suggest.
go for it.I have shot alot of deer with mine(BB94) with the hornady 220 and my cast loads never had a runner.boom flop.I would guess recoil in a t/c handgun would thump you with top end loads. .
As I said I am open to ideas. For instance someone mentioned the 35 Remington. but did not talk about the types of cast bullets and
loads that they used. I am looking for specifics. So help me out with specifics.
My only priority is that it is a rimmed cartridge. I even thought about the 460 S&W??
What bullets and loads are you guys runnig through your 375 Winnie?? Tom.
tom you shouldn't have any problems pushing that bullet 1800 fps+ out of the t/c encore.it a stronger action than the winchester BB 94.
now the T/C has a true .375 bore some you might have to size your bullets .376 I size .378 for the winchester.
for powders 2400 and IMR 4227 are very good.I have tried AA5744 but still working up a load with that powder.
for the hornady 220 gr bullet in my winchester RL-7 @ 36.0 grs with a standard win lg rifle primer has been the most accurate in my rifle.
I also have a t/c encore in 444.I went out friday for the first time and shot it with my cast bullets.I cast the ranch dog 265 gr lfn gc bullet its a good one.they weigh about 273 grs with my alloy.
I bought this one for hunting pigs.it barks and a flamethrower with the 16 " barrel. its pretty stubby but just about perfect for the brush.
pete
Tom,
Txpete's Lyman #375449 is THE mould to get for a 375 Win. With the gas check you'll be able to cast the bullets fairly soft (wheel weights) and push them near max for good performance (expansion) on deer. Even if you have to go a little harder, that big flat nose will do the trick without expansion.
I just have a 38-55 and shoot light loads in it, so I got the plain base Lyman mould for it.
Glenn
HEAD0001 wrote:
I am looking for specifics. So help me out with specifics.
What bullets and loads are you guys runnig through your 375 Winnie??
Using Alliant R-7 and CBE 376300 GC
28gr 1710 fps
29gr 1775 fps
30gr 1850 fps
These loads clover leaf at 50mtrs using open sights.
In my testing older Hecules R-7 was slightly faster and gave approx 100-150 fps higher velocity for the same weight of powder. I have pushed this pill to over 2000 fps but felt this was stretching things somewhat, although accurcy was still good.
The major issue with most bullet designs is that crimp grooves are located for functioning in 38/55 leverguns. Also 375 Win chambers have quite long throats (check chamber diagrams in the reference section on this site and compare 375 Win & 38/55 chamber / throat dimensions).
In a single shot you will be able to long load pills like Lyman's 375449 which will make space for more powder. This cartridge is tight for powder space and with that pill and R-7 or H-4198 you should achieve 2000-2200 fps from a 20" tube. I've obtained over 2200fps from this pill using 38/55 brass and older R-7 loaded to 2.52" OAL. Lyman's 375449 has a large meplat and it does work well but for me its not quite as accurate as the CBE mould I have. CBE also make another design (CBE 375298 I think) that has a larger meplat and maximises internal volume.
If you go to the Castboolit site you will find a lot of info on the 375 Win. Ranchdog has done a lot of load development for this cartridge and has come up with some accurate designs too.
I've no personal experience with TC rifles & barrels but there's some interesting info out there by a guy called Bellm that would be worth reading.
The 375 is one of my favorites. I had a Win. Big Bore for many years, but sold it recently when I came across a Marlin 375. Both shoot cast bullets well. I've shot the RCBS and Lyman gas check bullets, and now also have the Ranch Dog mold for the 375 which I am currently developing loads with.
Left to right, Ranch Dog, RCBS and the Lyman. The Ranch Dog bullet is cast out of a #2 alloy, the others are wheel weights. I'm driving the Ranch Dog bullets around 2000 fps and getting pretty good accuracy and zero leading. Still trying to perfect the load. I always shot 30 gr. of RL7 with the other two bullets for 1800 fps or so. I really like this Ranch Dog bullet because of it's lighter weight and much larger meplat. Never thought I needed 280 gr. of bullet for a whitetail.
The .375 Winchester will do anything the .375 Winchester was designed to do, and will do it as well as the .375 Winchester could possibly do it.
The .375 Winchester was envisioned by the mind-numbed engineering school dropouts at "Winchester" to be a .38-55 +P, of sorts. Is it? That's left up to the individual shooter and/or reloader to determine. In my experience -- with and around the cartridge -- I'd have to give it a qualified "maybe...'
FWIW, the cartridge under discussion ALSO brought us the Model 94 Winchester Big Bore carbine -- an unintelligent answer to a question nobody had ever asked.
Answer to the OP... In the Encore, a .375 Winchester makes just as much sense as any other similar cartridge in that range, fired from similar guns. If that's what you think you need --- go for it!
Regards
Buck
Life has a way of making the foreseeable that which never happens, and the unforeseeable, that which your life becomes...
Short range, brush poppin' excellence! I only have a Marlin 375. I originally got it for black bear. But have neber had the opportunity to use it. Only time I've gone bear hunting I carried my 1886 rifle. The next 3 outings I carried it along, but didn't get my deer till late & didn't time to see a bruin.
I've only used Hornady's 220gr jacketed bullet with RE-7. I like its performance but others have touted RE-15 as better. Haven't used it myself, so I really don't know.
And, the TC is NOT a lever action!
Griff,
SASS/CMSA #93
NRA Patron
GUSA #93
There is a fine line between hobby & obsession! AND... I'm over it!!
No I ain't ready, but let's do it anyway!
Buck Elliott wrote:The .375 Winchester will do anything the .375 Winchester was designed to do, and will do it as well as the .375 Winchester could possibly do it.
I know you're not a fan of the cartridge or the BB94 platform. That said, if you were to choose something of a power that fell somewhere between the .30-30 and .45-70, what would it be, instead? .35 Rem? .356 Win.? .38-55? Something else? What would it be?
If I were starting in that direction from scratch, as it were, I'd probably opt for the .356 Winchester. It has long held my attention, since the pre-.307/.356 days, when we rechambered or rebarreled regular '94s to both cartridges, and made ammo from virgin .444 Marlin cases.
Don't misconstrue my quoted comment above... I don't mean to da(m)n the .375 with faint praise... It is a fine cartridge, in its own niche. I even understand some of the thinking that went into its design... It WILL do the jobs for which it was designed, and do them well. A good friend of mine carried one in Alaska and the Yukon for proof against the big bears, and never felt undergunned, until the day he thought he might actually have to use it in that vein. He met a bruin in a "tunnel" in the alders, just off the river bank. He got through the situation without firing a shot, but always says the .375 felt mighty puny, at that moment.
For deer, black bear and even elk or moose at under 200 yards, the .375 will get the job done, if you do yours. I just feel there are other, generally better-suited combinations available.
If the .375 is what trips your trigger, go for it. I would NOT want anyone shootin' at Me with one...
Regards
Buck
Life has a way of making the foreseeable that which never happens, and the unforeseeable, that which your life becomes...
Buck Elliott wrote:If I were starting in that direction from scratch, as it were, I'd probably opt for the .356 Winchester. It has long held my attention, since the pre-.307/.356 days, when we rechambered or rebarreled regular '94s to both cartridges, and made ammo from virgin .444 Marlin cases.
Buck Elliott wrote:If I were starting in that direction from scratch, as it were, I'd probably opt for the .356 Winchester. It has long held my attention, since the pre-.307/.356 days, when we rechambered or rebarreled regular '94s to both cartridges, and made ammo from virgin .444 Marlin cases.
That's all I was wondering. Thanks.
How did the regular 94s do with the .356???
Scott
out to about 200 yards, maybe a little longer, the .356 wcf. will do what a 30-06 will do. but you're doing it in maybe the best handling, close quarters carbine ever. 61/4 lbs. that's what makes the win94 bb one of the all time greats.
Buck Elliott wrote:If I were starting in that direction from scratch, as it were, I'd probably opt for the .356 Winchester. It has long held my attention, since the pre-.307/.356 days, when we rechambered or rebarreled regular '94s to both cartridges, and made ammo from virgin .444 Marlin cases.
That's all I was wondering. Thanks.
How did the regular 94s do with the .356???
Scott
We loaded the .35 caliber (then) wildcat to low-to-mid level .358 Win. speeds and pressures, which put it somewhere on the higher side of in-between .35 Rem. and later .356 Win ballistics. The '94s we converted held up very well, as I doubt any of them were "horsed" a lot -- if any. Same basic story for the .30-caliber conversions...
Regards
Buck
Life has a way of making the foreseeable that which never happens, and the unforeseeable, that which your life becomes...
Buck Elliott wrote:We loaded the .35 caliber (then) wildcat to low-to-mid level .358 Win. speeds and pressures, which put it somewhere on the higher side of in-between .35 Rem. and later .356 Win ballistics. The '94s we converted held up very well, as I doubt any of them were "horsed" a lot -- if any. Same basic story for the .30-caliber conversions...
Buck Elliott wrote:If I were starting in that direction from scratch, as it were, I'd probably opt for the .356 Winchester. It has long held my attention, since the pre-.307/.356 days, when we rechambered or rebarreled regular '94s to both cartridges, and made ammo from virgin .444 Marlin cases.
Don't misconstrue my quoted comment above... I don't mean to da(m)n the .375 with faint praise... It is a fine cartridge, in its own niche. I even understand some of the thinking that went into its design... It WILL do the jobs for which it was designed, and do them well. A good friend of mine carried one in Alaska and the Yukon for proof against the big bears, and never felt undergunned, until the day he thought he might actually have to use it in that vein. He met a bruin in a "tunnel" in the alders, just off the river bank. He got through the situation without firing a shot, but always says the .375 felt mighty puny, at that moment.
For deer, black bear and even elk or moose at under 200 yards, the .375 will get the job done, if you do yours. I just feel there are other, generally better-suited combinations available.
If the .375 is what trips your trigger, go for it. I would NOT want anyone shootin' at Me with one...
buck, have you rebarreled a standard 94 30-30 to .375? i see that there is a smith named JES who does this conversion. i'd like to have it done, need some expert advise.
tman wrote:buck, have you rebarreled a standard 94 30-30 to .375? i see that there is a smith named JES who does this conversion. i'd like to have it done, need some expert advise.
.375 Win. cases being shorter, wouldn't a newer .38-55 rifle or barrel do the trick for you?
tman wrote:buck, have you rebarreled a standard 94 30-30 to .375? i see that there is a smith named JES who does this conversion. i'd like to have it done, need some expert advise.
.375 Win. cases being shorter, wouldn't a newer .38-55 rifle or barrel do the trick for you?
wondering if the standard 94 30-30 will hold up to the .375wcf.? the bigbores had beefed upped sidewalls.or was that an advertizing gimmick?
tman wrote:wondering if the standard 94 30-30 will hold up to the .375wcf.? the bigbores had beefed upped sidewalls.or was that an advertizing gimmick?
You're talking to the right guy...I'll let Buck fill you in on the BB94.
Thank you; RSY, BUCK, and all the other contributers. looks like i may have JES rebarrel one of my 30-30 to .375 wcf. that way i can take advantage of having both .38-55 and .375 to choose from. i'm gonna stay with factory and custom loads from GRIZZLY, BUFFALOE BORE, etc,
Thanks, I realize some of you do not consider it a lever. but I know you guys have a lot of knowledge on these cartridges. Tom.
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