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July 10, 2012
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Had an idea today about making a "special" version of the 375 super-mag, meaning a shorter, lower power round to shoot in the 375 super-mag revolvers.
I have heard about people cutting down 375 Winchester brass to make shells for the 375 super-mag, and also heard of people using modified 30-30 brass, though that is not as recommended as 30-30 brass can have thinner walls from what I understand.
According to everything I've read, 375 S.M. has a case length of 1.610".
According to SAAMI, the 30-30 Winchester shoulder starts at 1.440 approximately, leaving .170 difference (in theory).
What if you were to cut the 30-30 bras back to 1.400, and then expand it to fit the .375 bullet? The case would only be .210 shorter, not allot for the bullet to jump to get to the forcing cone. This would also, in theory, allow you to load slightly longer bullets to get a heavier bullet in place.
I obviously wouldn't suggest max loads with this, but maybe it would work for some lighter "plinking" loads. 30-30 brass is cheaper and more plentiful, so that would be a plus.
What do you guys think? I have access to reloading equipment and could try it out if you guys think it would work.
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December 4, 2011
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Keep in mind the 375 is a tapered cartridge. Using a shorter.case could product e some accuracy issues but I'm not certain
Also the bullet will have more gap to jump than. 210as the full size round doesn't fully fill the cylinder.
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December 4, 2011
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Also the 375 produces best accuracy when drive fast ie near full power loads.
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March 25, 2008
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If the full 375sm loads are to much to handle go with a 357mag it will be cheeper in the long run and also you will have less wear and tear on the 375sm. I like the 375sm as an option for heaver loads, I loly wish hornady would produce the HPXT in the 375 bullet. good luck experimentation make the world go around. Most of the time!
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February 22, 2009
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the .375 is a "re-loaders cartridge", so just stick with the standard case and fiddle with the loads. If you get into reduced loads, make sure you use a filler or you can have a grenade on your hands- literally.
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
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December 4, 2011
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Can you elaborate on what you mean by a "filler"? Also, what about the greande part?
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February 22, 2009
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Here you are:
I have a great .223 reduced load, but I use COW (Cream of Wheat) on top of the powder.
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
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February 9, 2009
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I would also add that since the 375 SM is a tapered case, dependig on how much you would cut it down, if that is what you really meant, there will be a challenge in the cylinder and the case mouth accepting the bullets properly. I also, as others have mentioned, have found the accuracy in this round at near maximum loads. It just does not like to slow down
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July 10, 2012
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I think i may need to carify the intent of this post.
It is not a "i cant handle the recoil, i need a weaker round" post.
The intent was to come up with a cheaper, easier way to shoot this gun in this caliber. finding 30-30 brass is much easier and cheaper than 375 Winchester brass, and more so then 375 super-mag brass. reduced power loads would reduce powder consumption and thus a less expensive load and more loads per pound of powder.
i understand that to get full potential out of the gun, i should run the rounds hot. but lets face it, im no sharp shooter, im not shooting 200 yards, and im sure as hell not made of money.
will this round give fulk potential? no, and i fully understand that.
will this round be easier to load and cheaper? yes, and thats the intent.
i also understand that it is a tapered case. i was hoping that by only reducing the case length by .210 would not make enough of a difference to matter. plus, i am no expert when it comes to loading, nor balistics, and that is why i posted the idea. if it got great response and support, then i would have no problem developing this "special" round and sharing my results.
on the other hand, if you guys thing it wont work for legitimate reasons, or will cause an unsafe condition, then i have no problem dropping it and just dealing with 375 supermag as its intended.
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July 10, 2012
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With this new information in mind, please, continue the discussion. i really enjoy the posts and hearing what people think.
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February 22, 2009
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IMO 30-30 brass should be fine at the lower levels. No reason to cut the brass shorter than required though. Just watch for case head separation and neck splits. Many folks have used 30-30 brass, but I have no personal experience with them. I cut 375 brass down:
https://www.danwessonforum.com/forum/reloading/375-sm-brass-forming/
Regards,
Ron
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
February 9, 2013
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I have been using 375 Win brass from EAB inc made from 30-30 cases. I use a min load of H110 with a lg rifle primer, so far so good. It is a lot of fun to shoot and I can see why a more economical way to shoot it is worth looking at. I find the price and availability of bullets to be the bummer with the 375. I would also like to see a discussion on the 375, you know bullets,powder,cases,data. I have some interesting observations of my own making cases and things like that that might be worth sharing.
July 10, 2012
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rgw said
I have been using 375 Win brass from EAB inc made from 30-30 cases. I use a min load of H110 with a lg rifle primer, so far so good. It is a lot of fun to shoot and I can see why a more economical way to shoot it is worth looking at. I find the price and availability of bullets to be the bummer with the 375. I would also like to see a discussion on the 375, you know bullets,powder,cases,data. I have some interesting observations of my own making cases and things like that that might be worth sharing.
RGW,
Thanks for your input. I think a sticky thread about loading the 375 Super-Mag would be a great idea. I have a set of dies pending, and once i get all set up, I will be looking for info on loadings and tips & tricks lol.
Luckily, I have a good friend & co-worker who loves to reload, so he can show me allot of ins & outs of reloading, plus help me with load development as he does allot of experimentation as well.
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December 4, 2011
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I'll throw out a few pointers you may or may not know. First this is a tapered case, so your dies will not likely be carbide, so you will have to lube your cases prior to loading. Don't over do the lubing, I had some get in the case mouth (I think) that caused some bullets to jump crimp and made the cylinder drag. I reseated and recrimped and was able to use them. As mentioned earlier, this gun performs best in a narrow window at the higher end of the load curve, faster is better for accuracy. If you are just going to plink with it, then you can pick your load from lower in the table. Get a good reloading manual to two and compare thier loads for the 375SM. Some of the older books list more than the newer editions as guns for this cartridge aren't all that common. I'm sure others will chime in with more info.
Anything worth doing is worth doing well.
My father
If a man designed it, and a man built it, then a man can fix it.
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November 23, 2008
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Good morning
Me I would absolutely stick with full length brass. Yes I have a 375 SM.
Problem is stability with long bullets going slow. But shorten the bullet to lets say the old Ballard bullet (Ideal 37583) and you can fire this one to about 1000 FPS. Recoil is very mild in the big frame DW. Bullet weights about 150 grains. 8 grains Unique But with a 1/4 square of toilet tissue to hold powder to the primer. I use a wood pencil to tamp the tissue down in the case onto the Unique. I did not try Cream of Wheat (COW) as it was going to be alot in there.
I think Lyman still makes the mold on regular runs so you should be able to find one easily. They only come in single cavity (best I know).
Then there is the lowly round ball. 6- 8 grains Unique with the tissue. Your chambers may be .001 larger or smaller than my chambers. .378 ball was the perfect fit in my DW. But whatever is the max diamater ball that will enter the case mouth and still chamber. Slight roll crimp over the the ball curve so they do not fall out of case. After the slight crimp dobber some bullet lube around the exposed ball or it will lead.
Those are my two solutions to light practice or bunny loads. No I did not ever pop a wabbit with it. But if need be I could be well armed and bunny dangerous in about 30 minutes.. Or I would just get out the 4 inch .357 DW that has a box of 140 cast at 850 fps ready to do bunny battle.
Had considered doing about the same drill with the 414 SM but decided it was not good use of time or primers. The 41 mag DW is so much easier to download to 41 Colt power.
Mike in Peru 
July 10, 2012
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I was doing some more research the other night, and found some reference to a trim die for this caliber. Is it worth getting one of these? I was thinking it might be handy for shortening up 375 Winchester brass. Cut the majority of the .410 off, then clean it up with the trim die.
I don't do high volume reloading, and I've never had good luck with any of the lathe-style case trimmers, so I figured for the amount I'll use it, the trim die might be the way to go, kinda fool-proof.
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February 22, 2009
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Not certain if you missed this above:
https://www.danwessonforum.com/forum/reloading/375-sm-brass-forming/
Tube cutters are found at most hardware stores and are inexpensive.
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
July 10, 2012
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rwsem said
Not certain if you missed this above:https://www.danwessonforum.com/forum/reloading/375-sm-brass-forming/
Tube cutters are found at most hardware stores and are inexpensive.
I saw the link before, thought to myself "I gotta read that" and never did. Thanks for reposting it. Good information in there.
I ended up scoring some older, once-fired 375 Winchester brass today for a pretty decent price IMO.
I will have to give the tubing cutter a try, thanks!
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