Steyr Dragoon Scout and African Big Game Cartridges: 376 Steyr 375 Ruger 375 H&H
Bolt Action Rifles
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11m
Jeff Cooper envisioned a few variation on the Scout Rifle, most notably a heavier-caliber type suited more for African dangerous (or large) game hunting, for which the .308 Winchester cartridge was not really suitable. Cooper had a rifle he called his "Lion Scout", chambered for the .350 Remington Magnum cartridge. In order to offer a commercial version of that rifle, Steyr and Hornady introduced a new cartridge in 1999 - the .376 Steyr. Many African nations require .375" as a minimum bullet diameter for hunting, and so this new round was designed to meet that requirement and be as long as possible while still fitting in the existing Steyr Scout action and magazine. The result was a round based on the 9.3x64 Brenneke, which was just slightly lower velocity than the gold standard of African hunting, the .375 H&H.
In the years since its introduction, the .376 Steyr has failed to become popular however. What has taken off much better is the .375 Ruger, a longer cartridge that fully duplicates (exceeds, actually) the Holland & Holland cartridge ballistics. Today I'm trying out all three cartridges on the range...
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