The London and Birmingham gun trade in the UK supplied many such arms and ammo, but the English-built rifles could hardly be considered affordable by the settling farmers. The majority of the British large bore rifles capable of taking on the dangerous game of Africa at the time, were expensive double rifles, with a few single-shot rifles thrown in for good measure.
They were, by and large, superb quality rifles, mostly hand-made, and they and their ammunition were expensive. Otto Bock, a German gun maker, threw a monkey wrench into the English knickers when he introduced the 9.3×62 cartridge in 1905, and chambered many Mauser 98 rifles for this capable round.
The combination of the dangerous game capable cartridge, chambered in the comparatively inexpensive Mauser 98 rifle, was an immediate hit. Shortly after its introduction, most of the British manufacturers set about coming up with their own designs to compete with the Teutonic marvel, including Holland & Holland.
H&H chose a design that featured a rather long case with a long, slow taper. Since the shoulder was pretty small, H&H used a belted case for better headspace control, only the second cartridge to do so.
The powder used at the time was cordite, which consisted of long strands of propellent, rather than granules. The long slow tapered case facilitated the loading process, and contributed to almost fool-proof feeding and extraction, a big advantage, particularly in tropical climates.
The .375 H&H cartridge (middle) bracketed by the .458 Lott (left) and the .458 Winchester Magnum (right).
The downside is that the cartridge length required a longer length action. It is possible, with substantial machining, to fit the cartridge in a standard length Model 98 Mauser action, but generally it is not a good idea.
If a world-wide hunter wanted to hunt anything on the planet with but a single rifle, the .375 H&H is one of, if not the best all-around choice. Commercially loaded ammunition is available just about everywhere, and practically every hunting camp in Africa has at least a box or two around.
It is loaded in primarily two bullet weights, 270 and 300 grains. In the past it was also available in a bullet weight of 235 grains, but I’ve not seen any in decades. I’m not sure it is even loaded in the bullet weight anymore, but that doesn’t matter. The two bullet weights that are readily available everywhere cover the planet nicely.
Jack O’Connor was a great admirer of the cartridge, and used it extensively, mostly on the big cats, lions and tigers. John “Pondoro” Taylor, author of the bible on African Rifles & Cartridges and so titled, raconteur, avid hunter, and highly successful elephant poacher, also thought very highly of the cartridge.
He wrote that one of his rifles in that chambering had accounted for more than 100 elephant and some 411 buffalo, besides rhino, lions and lesser game. He also wrote, “Altho my formula gives this rifle a Knock-Out value of 40 points, I must regretfully admit that does not really do full justice to it. In actual practice the stopping power of the .375 Magnum would seem to warrant a higher classification.”
Originally a proprietary cartridge loaded exclusively for H&H, they released it to the trade after WWI, and it eventually made its way to the USA. Winchester apparently saw some marketing promise and began manufacturing rifles chambered for it in 1925.
It became quite popular for American safari hunters and also brown bear guides in Alaska, and still is. I currently have three rifles chambered for this magnificent cartridge, and will never be without at least one in my battery.
Actually, largely due to the vast improvements in bullet design and construction, it is a more efficient cartridge today than it has ever been. But then, so are all the rest of today’s cartridges.
Chapter 4
The Indispensable .45 ACP
Over the past 100 years, the .45 ACP has become one of the most iconic American pistol cartridges every devised.
The .45 ACP cartridge was a development of necessity. It was designed in 1904 by one of our most prolific firearms geniuses, the brilliant John Moses Browning, to be used in his newly designed Colt semi-automatic pistol.
At the time of the Moro Rebellion in the Philippines, the US Cavalry there was armed with double action handguns chambered for both the .45 Colt and .38 Long Colt cartridges, and the .30–40 Krag rifle. The Moro insurgents proved to be a formidable opponent. Both the .38 Long Colt and the .30–40 Krag cartridges proved to be largely deficient in stopping the Moro warriors effectively.
Largely as a result of the Philippine experience and the results of the Thompson-LaGarde testing of 1904, the US Army and the US Cavalry decided that a minimum of .45 caliber would be required for any new military handgun.
At the time, Colt and John Browning were working on a .41 caliber cartridge for Browning’s newly designed pistol. They then modified both the pistol and cartridge resulting in the Model 1905 pistol and the new .45 ACP cartridge.
After considerable experimentation involving several different government departments and other involved American companies, they settled on a load consisting of a 230-grain bullet with a muzzle velocity of 850 fps.
In 1906, the army decided to conduct a series of tests to determine the best pistol to be adopted as the military’s new sidearm, and invited the firearms industry to submit their example to be tested. Models from three manufacturers made it through the first series of tests, Colt, DWM, and Savage. One company, DWM, even though they had made the cut in the first round, withdrew, leaving a shoot-off (no pun intended) between Colt and Savage for the gold medal.
The second trial was held in 1910, with the Browning designed Colt handily coming out on top. It was then adopted as the Model 1911, now an icon among handguns. From that time until 1985, the 1911, and the modification of it, the 1911 A1, chambered for the .45 ACP, was the standard firearm of the US military, a very long time, attesting to the success of the handgun for military applications. It was eventually replaced by the Beretta M9 9mm, although some units retained the 1911A1 as their primary sidearm.
The 1911 pistol is one of the main reasons why the .45 ACP grew in popularity. After 74 years of service as the U.S. Military’s sidearm, the pistol and its cartridge more than proved they were battle ready.
As a youngster, surplus 1911A1s were common items in gun shops, pawnshops and at gun shows. They were not very expensive and surplus .45ACP ammo was plentiful and cheap. The first one I can remember that came my way in a trade was a surplus 1911A1 that someone had chrome plated and fitted with simulated stag grips.
I got the pistol and 100 rounds of surplus military ammo for something like $25.00. That would have been in the late 1950s I believe. At the time, I thought the combination was the cat’s meow. In retrospect, it was pretty hideous although it shot well and would have served its purpose admirably if needed.
The ballistics of the .45 ACP is pretty anemic by today’s standards. Even though the standard military load of a 230-grain FMJ bullet at 830 fps is, by most assessments, formidable, ammo manufacturers are continually tinkering with the round.
The SAAMI max pressure is set at 21,000 psi. Higher and higher velocities seems to be the holy grail of loading ammo these days, and consequently, SAAMI approved a pressure increase to 23,000 psi for .45 ACP +P ammo. Why, I can’t say.
For home defense and self defense purposes, it has done very nicely without the increased pressure. It seems to me that the increased pressure and therefore velocity, is a solution to a nonexistent problem.