375 ruger or 416 ruger?

[CoElkHunter]

The difference is, the RSM is worth every penny of the currently inflated pricing.

I completely agree. But I'd still buy three new Rugers instead. Preferably in the Alaskan so I eventually could sell the SS/synthetic stock version to the manbun crowd when I'm done with it. LOL

 

[CoElkHunter]

For sure. That price is extra hard to swallow when I would already prefer the shorter action of the ruger and the non belted case as well as the stock options for the rugers.

The thing that has drawn me to the Ruger cartridges is the fact they were DESIGNED to be shot out of 20" barrels with little velocity loss. Not so for the large(r) belted magnums which I actually prefer out of 25" barrels which I also prefer. So, this is kind of going down a rabbit or warthog hole for me but it's all new and kind of an exciting change in my mundane firearms acquisitions in the past. Like I said, I've never owned a SS rifle or one with a brake, laminated stock or 20" barrel (well, I have a .308 with a 20" barrel) before. Time will tell I guess?

 

[SoVa]

The thing that has drawn me to the Ruger cartridges is the fact they were DESIGNED to be shot out of 20" barrels with little velocity loss. Not so for the large(r) belted magnums which I actually prefer out of 25" barrels which I also prefer. So, this is kind of going down a rabbit or warthog hole for me but it's all new and kind of an exciting change in my mundane firearms acquisitions in the past. Like I said, I've never owned a SS rifle or one with a brake, laminated stock or 20" barrel (well, I have a .308 with a 20" barrel) before. Time will tell I guess?

The performance in a 20” barrel is definitely a big part of my draw to the ruger cartridges as well because I will be using a suppressor in the states and maybe in Africa as well once I figure out all the import /export logistics.

It is not really the cost of the rifles in some of the chamberings that have been suggested it is that they don’t perform as well with a 20” barrel and can’t operate in a standard action. That’s why the ruger cartridges were the only two I brought up, my one and only concern is ammo in Africa but that will only be a concern once or twice in life.

 

[AZDAVE]

@CoElkHunter The 338 RCM is my wife's favorite rifle! I have enough brass to last a lifetime. A good round that works well out of a 20 in barrel with 185-225gr bullets.

 

[AZDAVE]

@SoVa I think you will like the 416. For North america I use 350gr bullets and if I take it to africa it wil be 400gr.

 

[SoVa]

@SoVa I think you will like the 416. For North america I use 350gr bullets and if I take it to africa it wil be 400gr.

Thanks @AZDAVE I think I will be happy with it as well, I’m going to go for it!

 

[CoElkHunter]

@SoVa I think you will like the 416. For North america I use 350gr bullets and if I take it to africa it wil be 400gr.

I have some 350gr. .416 Speer Hot Cor Mag Tip bullets coming from Midway. I've used the same bullets (and weight) in my .458WM for practice. They're a real stout bullet for the big bores.

 

[SoVa]

I have some 350gr. .416 Speer Hot Cor Mag Tip bullets coming from Midway. I've used the same bullets (and weight) in my .458WM for practice. They're a real stout bullet for the big bores.

I was just looking at those and the swift A frames, would be nice to find a solid and tinker with the loads until they had a similar enough POI to shoot them interchangeably. The barnes TSX also seems like a good choice but a little more pricey.

 

[86thecat]

Might be worth the investment for Hornady / Ruger to insure that at least a few boxes of 375 & 416 Ruger ammo is available in shops near Safari areas. Ammo availability seems to be the biggest hurdle for these rifles.
Maybe those taking Ruger rifles to Africa, could forget to bring a box of factory ammo home from their PH camp.

 

[SoVa]

I thought I would follow up.

I shelved this idea for a while as I considered other calibers and rifles. I have decided now that I will get the 375 ruger and then find a 458 Lott in a Winchester mod 70 and potentially one day a double rifle.

If I get a 416 ruger it will most likely be just because.

 

[WI-2021]

I see that you plan to suppress the .375 Ruger and have mentioned potentially rebarreling and restocking it. I have a bit of experience with getting a suppressor on my .375 Alaskan, so hopefully this will help.

My Alaskan started life as one of the early, unthreaded versions. I had it threaded 5/8"-24 by my local gunsmith and he reinstalled a factory front sight behind the threads when he was finished. I've been perfectly happy with this setup. I'm not sure exactly what the cost for just the threading and sight would have been, since I also had him glass bed it and install a Pachmayr recoil pad at the same time. Since it's a stainless rifle, no refinishing was needed, just a quick bead blast. Total cost was somewhere between $500 and $600, so cheaper than a new barrel with sights installed for sure. I can just barely see the factory sights over my Rex MG7.

If you can find one of the earlier unthreaded rifles, the above may be an easier option. I've had good luck with my M77's shooting well, so I didn't feel the need for a replacement barrel. As you're probably aware, the factory threading on current .375 Rugers is 5/8"-18 for some reason, so mounting a suppressor will require either a thread adapter, a custom hub mount, or shortening and rethreading the barrel.

As far as stocks, I'm a lefty, so replacement Ruger stocks pretty much don't exist. B&C does offer a lower cost stock for right handed Rugers though. I have a B&C sitting around waiting to finish my custom Remclone in .375 Ruger and it appears to be a very nice stock, especially for the money. I don't think it gives up much to some of the more expensive options except weight, which isn't an entirely bad thing on a .375.

 

[Beck]

First, I don't think you can go wrong with either choice. I'd choose the .375 Ruger for the brown bear hunt, but I'd choose the .416 ruger for the buffalo hunt. I have a ruger alaskan in both calibers, and I like both rifles quite a bit. Which hunt are you thinking you'll do first? I'd choose the caliber based on that, and I'd probably end up buying the second rifle prior to the second trip - I am a sick individual like that

 

[Doug3006]

I had an early version of the Hawkeye Alaskan in 416 Ruger. Initially, I liked it. Compact, a real thumper, with a great stock. Unfortunately I could not make it feed reliably. It ejected well but almost always jammed when trying to chamber the next cartridge. I sent it back to Ruger twice for repair, to no avail. I met a Ruger exec at the DSC and he asked me to send it back to him. A few days later, he sent me a email with an offer to exchange it, not for another Alaskan, but for an African. That one served me well. I heard through the grapevine that the Alaskans had a known feeding problem with the 416 for some reason. I assume they finally got the bug fixed, but I for one won’t test that assumption.

 

[SoVa]

I see that you plan to suppress the .375 Ruger and have mentioned potentially rebarreling and restocking it. I have a bit of experience with getting a suppressor on my .375 Alaskan, so hopefully this will help.

My Alaskan started life as one of the early, unthreaded versions. I had it threaded 5/8"-24 by my local gunsmith and he reinstalled a factory front sight behind the threads when he was finished. I've been perfectly happy with this setup. I'm not sure exactly what the cost for just the threading and sight would have been, since I also had him glass bed it and install a Pachmayr recoil pad at the same time. Since it's a stainless rifle, no refinishing was needed, just a quick bead blast. Total cost was somewhere between $500 and $600, so cheaper than a new barrel with sights installed for sure. I can just barely see the factory sights over my Rex MG7.

If you can find one of the earlier unthreaded rifles, the above may be an easier option. I've had good luck with my M77's shooting well, so I didn't feel the need for a replacement barrel. As you're probably aware, the factory threading on current .375 Rugers is 5/8"-18 for some reason, so mounting a suppressor will require either a thread adapter, a custom hub mount, or shortening and rethreading the barrel.

As far as stocks, I'm a lefty, so replacement Ruger stocks pretty much don't exist. B&C does offer a lower cost stock for right handed Rugers though. I have a B&C sitting around waiting to finish my custom Remclone in .375 Ruger and it appears to be a very nice stock, especially for the money. I don't think it gives up much to some of the more expensive options except weight, which isn't an entirely bad thing on a .375.

I have decided the juice isn’t worth the squeeze for a re-barrel or rethread on this rifle so i am going to use a Ecco machine hub adapter for the 5/8-18 thread pitch. I will try out the hogue stock for a bit and swap it for the B&C you mentioned if the hogue doesn’t suit.