.375 H&H TSX loads ?

[Tikka]

I am interested in working up some loads for my .375 H&H utilizing Barnes 300 grain TSX bullets. If anyone has some experience with this bullet in a .375 H&H I would like to have your input. I never had much luck with the old X bullet, but am hoping the TSX will behave differently. Any and all input is appreciated.

[Dan in Alaska]

I haven't shot the 300gr version, but I've had great accuracy with their 270gr TSX and RL-15 powder. I took a brown bear with this load a couple of seasons ago, and the bullet performed admirably. I recovered one slug, after it travelled through several feet of the animal. It was a perfect TSX mushroom, and weighed 270 grains, just like the day I loaded it.

The 270gr TSX is my go-to hunting bullet with the .375 H&H.

[marshall]

I am interested in working up some loads for my .375 H&H utilizing Barnes 300 grain TSX bullets. If anyone has some experience with this bullet in a .375 H&H I would like to have your input. I never had much luck with the old X bullet, but am hoping the TSX will behave differently. Any and all input is appreciated.

I'm getting ready to start the same project for a friend of mine. If you get some good data send it my way. I'll be using a Remington 700 down here.

[Ronster]

From the Barnes website:

Charge Velocity Charge Velocity Load
Powder (grains) (fps) (grains) (fps) Density (%)

♦

Win748 68.5 2432 75.0 2609 95
RL 15 65.0 2403 71.5 2589 101

Kinda hard to read in this format, but the webaddress is here: http://www.barnesbullets.com/images/375H&HMagnumWeb.pdf

[Tikka]

Dan in Alaska,

Thanks for the reply. Sounds like you're one of the lucky few who actually recovered a fired TSX. From what I hear they usually just bore right through and keep going.

I'm hoping to drop a Brown Bear at my cabin on Flathorn this fall, and figured a TSX might be just what the doctor ordered.

Thanks again for your reply,
Tikka

[Dan in Alaska]

The first shot broke both shoulders and kept going. The second shot was taken with the bear facing away from me. The bullet broke a few ribs going in, and paralleled the spine all the way to the base of the skull. I found it just inside the hide.

[marshall]

I had an opportunity to work with my friends Remington 700 chambered in .375 H&H. He is dead set on Barnes TSX in 270gr and nothing else so I agreed to help him get started.

I went to the Barnes manual for initial load data. I was a bit confused by their charges. For example, Barnes claims a max charge and velocity with a 270gr TSX using RL-15 in the 375 Ruger to be 73.5gr / 2772fps and the 375H&H to be 77gr / 2820fps.

The confusion is that the Ruger was designed outrun the H&H and do so out of a shorter barrel. Barnes is using more of the same powder and achieving higher velocities which goes against all other data that I've come across. Data from other manuals are listing higher charges and velocities in the Ruger when compared with the same powders. Thinking that their data is a misprint I emailed them and have yet to get a response.

It would be nice if "Dan in Alaska" would post his 270gr RL-15 load here since it's working out so well for him. I'm curious if he's loading max Barnes loads or a reduced load that he found along the way.

I began my testing with a conservative charge of RL-15 and results are as follows:

RL-15
CCI 250
Barnes TSX 270gr
COL 3.553 / light crimp first groove

71.0gr 2623fps
71.5gr 2641fps +18fps increase
72.0gr 2660fps +19fps increase
72.5gr 2677fps +17fps increase
73.0gr 2697fps +20fps increase

The velocities are in line with their data and increasing proportionally to the powder increase. It appears that I can continue to increase the charge so I will. When I get to a point that pressure shows it's self to the eye or the chronograph shows a lack of response to increased powder I will stop and then tune down to get best groups. I will update this post with my findings at that time.

So far shooting his rifle has been unpleasant. I've grown accustomed to my Ruger .375 which has a Vias muzzle break and what I consider to be a better recoil pad. The twenty rounds that I shot through this Remington put a twitch in my trigger finger :eek:

[Dan in Alaska]

It would be nice if "Dan in Alaska" would post his 270gr RL-15 load here since it's working out so well for him. I'm curious if he's loading max Barnes loads or a reduced load that he found along the way.

I settled on 72.5gr of RL-15 in my .375 H&H loads (Federal cases, Federal 215M primers, crimped the bullets with a LEE Factory Crimp Die). This load shot well, and if I pushed it much further I saw REALLY flat primers in this particular rifle.

I worked up the 72.5gr load with my Savage Alaska Guide Gun (20" barrel), which I no longer own. Unfortunately, I never chronographed these particular loads.

I have another .375 H&H that I had screwed together this winter. It's built on a Rem 700 action, and wears a 21" stainless Douglas barrel. I need to do some load development work, since the loads I developed for the Savage don't seem to be as accurate as I'd like. I just picked up a 5# jug of RL-15 this week, so I can now do a full load work up. I'll be sure to drag out the chronograph this time, and I will do my best to remember to post the data. Maybe next weekend?

[marshall]

Thanks Dan,

I plan to step it up .3gr at a time until the chrono goes flat, then I'll tune it down to best group. I'm having doubts about the Barnes data.

The Remington 700 that I'm working with has a 24" barrel. The recoil is a ball buster. That hard plastic stock and hard rubber pad sucks. I'll update as well, perhaps next weekend.

[Dan in Alaska]

The Remington 700 that I'm working with has a 24" barrel. The recoil is a ball buster. That hard plastic stock and hard rubber pad sucks.

Mine is a lightweight rifle, for a .375, and it definitely gets your attention when you're shooting it!

I wanted a short, handy thumper. My latest .375 wears a RimRock stock and has the smallest contour barrel I could get away with (a #3 contour). All up, with a 2.5-8x scope, it weighs 7-1/2 pounds. The Limbsaver recoil pad helps quite a bit.

[northway]

I use the 270 grain tsx

in my .375 ultra mag. VERY good performance and haven't recovered a bullet yet. VERY accurate out of my rifle. Less than an inch at 100 yards.

[marshall]

Very nice looking rifle Dan.

[Jack49]

I am interested in working up some loads for my .375 H&H utilizing Barnes 300 grain TSX bullets. If anyone has some experience with this bullet in a .375 H&H I would like to have your input. I never had much luck with the old X bullet, but am hoping the TSX will behave differently. Any and all input is appreciated.

That's the only bullet I use in my .375. I have standardized on 76 grains of H4350, CCI Mag primer, Rem case, for a chronographed 2513 fps from 24" barrel. I could likely go a bit higher and get a bit more out of it but it's a very accurate and easy shooting load.

[marshall]

Today I finished up load testing on a friends Remington 700 .375H&H using Barnes 270gr TSX bullets. The following data is from an earlier post:

RL-15
CCI 250
Barnes TSX 270gr
COL 3.553 / light crimp first groove


71.0gr 2623fps
71.5gr 2641fps +18fps increase
72.0gr 2660fps +19fps increase
72.5gr 2677fps +17fps increase
73.0gr 2697fps +20fps increase

The following is from today:

73.0gr 2703fps
73.5gr 2726fps +23fps increase
74.0gr 2751fps +25fps increase
74.5gr 2761fps +10fps increase, flat primer with cratering, verified with two shots, testing stopped!



IMPORTANT: Barnes manual states that 77.0gr is max load for this powder and bullet combination, I didn't get that far. Chrony and primer evidence suggested 74.5gr was time to stop.

None of the above four shot strings had accuracy better than a 1 inch group. I went back over the chrony results and picked 72.5 and 73.5 because they had the best ES and SD numbers.

I loaded samples with both charges to 3.600, 3.625 and 3.650 COL. The published .375H&H max COL is 3.600 but this rifle would accept up to 3.730 in the magazine well.

The following combination was a very good shooter. The five shot group was just under a half inch center to center.

72.5gr RL-15
CCI 250
Barnes 270 TSX
COL 3.625 no crimp
.159 off of lands in this rifle

http://s258.photobucket.com/albums/h...t=DSC00397.jpg

Testing will continue with Barnes 300gr TSX in a few weeks.

[Dan in Alaska]

Good info, marshall.

I took my .375 out to the range last weekend, but with the low angle of the sun, my chrony wasn't giving me any readings. I stopped shooting, and figured I venture out again when I could get out earlier in the day.