Got the caliber lets pick a bullet

Bullet

  • 210gr Barnes TTSX

    Votes: 18 29.0%

  • 200gr Nosler Accubond

    Votes: 4 6.5%

  • 225gr Nosler Accubond

    Votes: 13 21.0%

  • 210gr Nosler Partition

    Votes: 8 12.9%

  • 225gr Nosler Partition

    Votes: 19 30.6%
  • Total voters
    62
J

Jayph

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Final thread I promise :)

I am going with the .338-06 just two more things I need info on. What is the optimal barrel length. would like to keep it between 22-25. Also what bullet should I start load development with. Looking for a good all around bullet.
 
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With that size case, it would be a tossup for me. Either the 210 Partition [my first choice, if it will shoot in your rifle] or possibly the 225 Partition or 200 Accubond. The 210 TTSX is a great bullet, but it is quite long, and intrudes on powder space a bit. But if acceptable velocities can be reached, it would also be good. 22" barrel is great with the 338-06, and makes for a handy rifle. Regards, Eagleye.
 
Hard to beat the 225 Accubond. BC .550 (!), plenty of bullet weight for raking shots, and easy to load.

I don't like to go smaller than 225 in this caliber, and wouldn't want to go heavier in your chambering. The .338-06 will push a 225 2600-2700 from a 24" bbl, so with the lighter bullet weight you're only adding 50-100 fps and giving up significant SD and BC to the bigger bullets.

With the 250 you're at around 2400-2450, but recoil picks up significantly and you're starting to see more bullet drop.
 
Bishopus said:
Hard to beat the 225 Accubond. BC .550 (!), plenty of bullet weight for raking shots, and easy to load.

I don't like to go smaller than 225 in this caliber, and wouldn't want to go heavier in your chambering. The .338-06 will push a 225 2600-2700 from a 24" bbl, so with the lighter bullet weight you're only adding 50-100 fps and giving up significant SD and BC to the bigger bullets.

With the 250 you're at around 2400-2450, but recoil picks up significantly and you're starting to see more bullet drop.
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Thanks to both that have replied so far. Is anybody able to get some numbers for velocity energy and drop out to 400 yds using a 225gr accubond at 2650 fps. I know that it will vary by load and actual rifle but just looking for ball park numbers
 
Jayph said:
Thanks to both that have replied so far. Is anybody able to get some numbers for velocity energy and drop out to 400 yds using a 225gr accubond at 2650 fps. I know that it will vary by load and actual rifle but just looking for ball park numbers
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Hornady has some pretty good stuff on their website:

http://www.hornady.com/ballistics/

They may not show the bullets you are looking at, but you can get a rough idea of what you're looking at.
 
I have used the 225 Nosler partition on 2 black bears one elk and 1 moose. I load mine to just over 338-06 velocity in my 338winmag. It will go through both shoulders of a 50" moose and out the far side at the velocity I use.

On smaller game like bear it still opens rapidly enough at 100 yards to be highly effective.
 
I always vote for Partitions. They just work that well. And being a heavy bullet guy I'd say you should go with the 225 NPT. If it was a 338 WM I would say the 250, but the 225 should be perfect for what you want to do.
 
my rem is quite accurate with 225 hornady interbonds. with a 24 inch barrel 2700 fps is easily obtained. i find the 24 inch barrel balances well. i have tried 200 to 250's and to me the 225 is the best comprimise of speed and thump.
 
The best load for a 200 grain X bullet in my Lee manual says 63 gr of H414 @ 2802 FPS.(max) At 100% weight retention thats a pretty good bullet. Plenty flat and good penetration.
For a 225 gr Jacketed bullet , it says a max load of 62.0c of H4350 @ 2744 FPS.
They even list a 275 gr Jacketed bullet with 59 gr of H4831 @ 2348 FPS.
I would try the X bullets first, then if they don't shoot well, I would hit the jacketed bullets and let her rip!
I imagine a 22" barrel is more than sufficient. You can make up for loss of barrel length with appropriate powders , slightly faster burning.
Good luck on your quest.
 
Mine just loves the 225 grain Hornady SP and 225 grain Nosler Partition. Another great one is the now discontinued 200 grain Nosler Ballistic Tip. (The 200 gr Ballistic Silver Tip is the same bullet with a black coating) These Ballistic Tips have VERY thick jackets and are fine to use on moose. The new 200 grain Accubond my be worth a look. The 225 Accubonds do not shoot well in my rifle. I also have a new 160 grain TTSX load that is running very close to 3100 fps which should be a great sheep/mule deer round.


I had my rifle built with a 24" barrel. The thoughts were that if it was too long it would be easy to trim back. Starting with a short barrel would not have that flexibility. As it is the 24" tube is just fine with me and I find that the extra length puts more weight out front which greatly helps off-hand shooting.
 
Eagleye: Stop sucking the thoughts from my brain! Agree completely. a 22" bbl is perfect for what the caliber's all about - interesting that it'll shoot light bullets faster than an '06 and real heavy ones faster than a .35 Whelen. Must be the caliber God meant when he stuck the '06 in somebody's brain a long time ago!
 
Could you not find any more expensive bullets......I think the MRX may cost more and maybe a Burger, or North Fork, what about Trophy Bonded Bearclaw, they are all more expensive and must be better. 2008's moose are much harder to knock down then yesterdays' and you need the most expensive bullet out there.
 
I don't like the idea of a light .338 bullet. If you are going to shoot 200-220 gr bullets you might as well of had a .30/06 or a .300 magnum. At .338/06 velocities, you don't need a premium bullet, but if they make you feel better all's good. A 225 will get you 2700 and a 250 will get you 2600. In the field you'll never know the difference. If it was me I'd go with a Hornady 250, as my go to bullet.
 
ben hunchak said:
Could you not find any more expensive bullets......I think the MRX may cost more and maybe a Burger, or North Fork, what about Trophy Bonded Bearclaw, they are all more expensive and must be better. 2008's moose are much harder to knock down then yesterdays' and you need the most expensive bullet out there.
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Well I shoot Hornady BTSP in all my other rifles I just thought a custom build deserved a good bullet. And for the record it's only expensive if you can't afford it.:)
 
I just think that you and alot of others have fallen prey to the magazine advertisers, where they hype a new bullet every year, and of course charge accordingly. There really isn't much new under the sun and bullets that killed animals stone dead one year will do so the next year as well, regardless of cost. Most bullet failures I see(on med. game) is due to over penetration, and it's the more expensive newer designs that tend to over penetrate. In most of those cases, shooters would have been better off with a std. cup and core bullet which tend to open up faster. The same happens with cast bullets,failures I see are usually from too hard a bullet. Even the big .50 cal. slugs kill much better when they are soft enough to expand somewhat. Most of this hasn't changed in 100years, it just doesn't sell expensive and unnecessary and sometimes ineffective bullets.
 
I think the 210 TSX or TTSX will be the ticket. Rl 15 and H414 will likely be your friend. You can get 2700fps out of a 22" bbl, I wouldn't go over 24". That combo is good for most of the world to 300yds, and I wouldn't hesitate to take elk out to 400yds. Those bullets will penetrate like crazy. My second choice would be the 225gr Accubond at 2600fps.
Have fun.
 
WHatever shoots best in your gun, they are all good bullets.

All the bullets you mention open fast and penetrate well. The idea that these bullets will "over penetrate" is just false.

A standard "heavy" bullet will probably work just fine, but one of the premiums offers a better trajectory with the same "killing power"

Whetehr or not trajectory is important, is up to you.:)
 
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