What am I going to do with this gun?

[Bbell12]

So my wife’s grandpa gave me a CZ 550 safari magnum 375 h&h a while back (I have no idea why he ever had it) and I’m trying to figure out an application for it. I’m very appreciative of the gift but I’ve never been one to own a gun just to own one so I’d like to try and find a way to use it since I can’t ever sell it or trade it in (the wife is very sentimental). So I figured I would pose this question to you guys, what would you do with it?

I’ve only bow hunted elk for the last few years but will start applying for rifle tags this year as well; would you guys put a scope on this thing and lug it around in the mountains to hunt elk with? Or would you upgrade it first to make it lighter and more weather resistant? Or would you go with a different gun/caliber altogether and leave this thing at home?

I’m curious to hear your thoughts/suggestions....

P.S. I’m never going to Africa because I’m poor so using it there is out of the question.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MuleyFever]

If it was her grandpas then I would imagine there is sentimental value as you said. For that reason I do not think I would modify it. It may be best held as a safe queen that you take to the range with your other rifles to shoot it once in a while. One day you will have the opportunity to pass it on. You do not have anything invested in it. It would be cool to take an animal with it though.

Maybe ask your wife what she is ok with. If she was ok with modifying it go for it.

I am in possession of a Winchester Model 70 .270 that was my grandpas rifle. I do not have any intention of hunting with it and I am tempted to ask my dad what he would think of me using the action for a custom so it would get used. Then I think I am being selfish and its really just in my care until its time to pass it on to the next generation.

 

[KJH]

Shoot it for anything whitetail and bigger. Doubketap ammo makes a load with 235gr Barnes TSX bullets that are 3100 at the muzzle. Those can kill about anthing with good distance on them.

 

[OregonInAlaska]

I had one, what a club!
The rifle shot well and I killed a big brownie and 2 really nice blacktails with it. But I sold it. It was just too much for me to pack around.
Personally if I had kept the rifle I would’ve reamed it out to a weatherby or a AI.
With a tsx it was surprisingly easy on meat. I even shot a buck through the shoulders with very little meat loss.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[elkguide]

Very solid caliber. Great elk gun.

 

[Ndbowhunter]

375 is really good cartridge. You'll find that thing more pleasant to shoot then most modern lightweight 30-06.. can't beat the stopping power of the big bores.

 

[TauPhi111]

I'd keep it as is and shoot light monos for deer as KJH suggested. If you're hunting elk or big game with pack stock it would make a great gun, but probably too heavy to pack up and down mountians. Overall though I think it'd be a cool rifle to just have because not many people have those. Maybe one day you'll find a use for it. I always find that as soon as I sell something off I come up with a use for it.

 

[fightthenoise]

Being an heirloom is a purpose. I wouldn’t try to “upgrade” it. Just hang on to it and shoot it or hunt with it when the mood strikes you, but just letting it be a cool gun with history in your family is purpose enough IMO.

 

[Grumman]

Is he still alive? If so I’d ask him what his plans for it were. Perhaps he dreamed of killing an elk with it one day. Perhaps you can fulfill that mission with it. That’s a cool gun to have. My buddy had one, and surprisingly the recoil wasn’t bad.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[tdhanses]

Yeah I agree, keep it stock. You may not keep guns just to keep them but some should just be that way.

 

[Fatcamp]

Buy the heaviest loads money can get you and videotape your friends shooting it. Post those videos to this thread.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

You need an excuse to keep a free 375h&h and shoot it....?!!!!!!

This new generation, I dont understand them.

 

[16Bore]

Don't do a thing to it...not one thing. Scope it if you must. But that's it. Don't build off of it, don't monkey with the stock. Don't "trade" it for schit.

Nada.

Take it out once in a while, maybe shoot it with some buddies. Have some laughs.

Trust me on this.....

 

[Touchdown88]

Build up a light load of some 260 accubonds and take it elk hunting. Who cares if it's a pound heavier than other rifles, it will put a major hurt on anything under 500 yards.

My wife just bout me a Whitworth Safari Express in 375 for Christmas and I'm seriously thinking of using it for deer in Idaho next year. Should be fun.

 

[howl]

It's not uncommon for people to use those for elk where the shots are not long but recovery is tough.

 

[huntsman22]

book a safari......

 

[MTElkChaser]

You could use it on a Black Bear hunt???

Like others have said, I’d have a hard time modifying it or selling it since it was a gift. Keep it and go on a bear hunt with it. My 2 cents ...

 

[hodgeman]

That thing will drop elk like a hammer...just use it! 260ABs or Partitions and Federal makes a load with 250 Bear Claws loaded a bit lighter.

My partner hunts caribou and moose with a .375H&H...it doesn't just kill them...it numbs them. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot a deer either- less meat damage than a .270.

 

[elkguide]

I can sense what pressure this is putting you under so to relieve your stress, out of the kindness of my heart,
I will put the pressure on me and let you send me that old, nasty .375 and I'll suffer for you.

 

[Wapiti1]

Load it with 260's and hunt stuff with it. It is a good platform if you want to customize it, but that is more up to your wife, I think. It is a hunting rifle, you should just hunt it on occasion, and enjoy it.

Bell and Carlson make a good stock if you want to swap and keep the wood in good shape. May shave weight, may not. The CZ stocks are usually on the heavy side with dense wood.

If you want to go custom, talk to Wayne at American Hunting Rifles. He is a CZ550 specialist and builds some of the nicest I've seen. He also offers a fiberglass stock if you want to shave weight.

Jeremy