Hey guys! Very seriously looking at a Vanguard .338 Win Mag. I was looking to try and find ammo and it seems much harder than I assumed it would be. I live in a very small town (8k people), the local store has nothing and of all the sponsors on the site only one listed .338 ammo (happened to be federal) in a box of 20. Is this gun hard to find ammo for in the cities or? I will likely start reloading but it would be nice to have purchasable options in the meantime. Also as a bonus if anyone has specific opinions on a Vangurd vs Vanguard 2 id be open to hear them. I know the newer one is supposed to have a better trigger and is a touch more accurate but always open to real word advice. Thanks again so much for the space.
.338 Win Mag Ammunition?!
- Thread starter BigTree1
- Start date
i beleive you're paying for the name with the weatherby- the choice of the 338 cartridge itself is fine, but i believe your money would be better served with a browning, winchester, or savage;it's the old cadillac vs chev thing- they both get you from a to b- just a matter of how much you want to spend on getting there- as for the 338, yes, it's easily attainable in most major cities and components are readily available- and again, i beleive that federal is not my first choice as far as ammo goes- brass is soft, you don't get as many reloads out before the primer pockets begin to loosen up- i pefer winchester, then remington, with federal ( any caliber) coming in a VERY distant third- but if you can find it, either lapua or NORMA
and for goodness sakes, DON'T HANDICAP it by using bullets of less than 250 grains- that's what it wasDESIGNED to use- the factory load is a 250 spitzer moving out at roughly 2500 fps- meant for use on big brown bears out to 600 yards-
and for goodness sakes, DON'T HANDICAP it by using bullets of less than 250 grains- that's what it wasDESIGNED to use- the factory load is a 250 spitzer moving out at roughly 2500 fps- meant for use on big brown bears out to 600 yards-
Wow thanks guys! Ill head to the next town over this weekend and try Can tire, see if they can special order some. Thanks for the heads up. I am aware federal is cheap ammo, its was just the only ammo listed online at any of the sponsors.
As to your opinion on the Weatherby i understand and appreciate the input!
Thanks again for the info guys! What a great site!
As to your opinion on the Weatherby i understand and appreciate the input!
Thanks again for the info guys! What a great site!
Sask_Hunter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Saskatchewan
your full of it. the weatherby vanguard is one of "the" if not the best gun for the money out there. the vangaurd S2 is even better than the first model. the only down side to the vanguard is the bad trigger which was fixed on the S2 and that they are alittle on the heavy side. as for hanndicaping the 338 by shooting bullets less than 250gr thats simply not the case. the 338 win is a very useful and well mannered round with all weights of bullets. you can load 180gr to 30-06 levels all the way up to 300 gr bullets. my vanguard 338 shot all the bullet weights well and really shined with 210-225gr offerins.
bigtree if you do pick up this rifle it will probably shoot well and be a handfull, federal blue box 225 shot crazy good out of mine and they work good on big game.
338 is not one of those calibers where you need a lot of ammo. not exactly a plinker.
Availability of ammo is an issue only in that if you travel and lose/forget your ammo, you will want to consider how readily available local ammo would be. 338mag is common enough that it should be available.
You can order in 5 boxes of ammo and be set up for life.
The Vanguard is a good cheap rifle. A gunsmith could improve the trigger a bit and it would be a very good rifle.
It will handle all weights of bullet, but I elected to settle on just one bullet, for all game - the 250gr. In smaller game, like deer, the heavy bullet is slow enough that it is not terribly destructive.
Availability of ammo is an issue only in that if you travel and lose/forget your ammo, you will want to consider how readily available local ammo would be. 338mag is common enough that it should be available.
You can order in 5 boxes of ammo and be set up for life.
The Vanguard is a good cheap rifle. A gunsmith could improve the trigger a bit and it would be a very good rifle.
It will handle all weights of bullet, but I elected to settle on just one bullet, for all game - the 250gr. In smaller game, like deer, the heavy bullet is slow enough that it is not terribly destructive.
This whole post is a load o' poppycock. Vanguards are cheap and great, the .338 is easy to get yer hands on, federal brass isnt my first choice but it isnt butter, and the best bullets for the .338WM are the 210gr TTSX, 225gr Partition and Accubond and 225gr Fusion. And the .338 WM was designed to push 250's at 2700fps with 2800fps safely attainable. The 338-06 gets 2500fps easy. And if it starts at 2500 it isn't likely to have the poop to expand on game at 600.
All that said I would throw you the benefit of the doubt and assume your drinking or trolling, maybe mixin both.
I have a Weatherby Vanguard S1 in 338 Win mag. Inexpensive & well made.
It is a very accurate rifle, shooting under 1 moa with the 225
Partition or Accubond. The 210 Scirocco II shoots right on 1" at 100 meters.
Very pleasant to shoot for a larger chambering.
Hits with authority.
I have 4 Vanguards in all, and I think they are great for the price.
Regards, Eagleye.
It is a very accurate rifle, shooting under 1 moa with the 225
Partition or Accubond. The 210 Scirocco II shoots right on 1" at 100 meters.
Very pleasant to shoot for a larger chambering.
Hits with authority.
I have 4 Vanguards in all, and I think they are great for the price.
Regards, Eagleye.
338 WM ammo is usually fair easy to obtain. I have a pre-64 Model 70 Winchester in 338 WM and before Wholesasle Sports was around, I bought some at Can Tire. . At Wholesale Sports I believe it was $30 for basic Federal and Winchester was around $50. . The Federal ammo was 200 gr. and grouped pretty good at 100 yds. .
i got a model 70 alaskan 338 wm, mine loves 225 tsx and 250 partions but let me tell you, you dont need top end bullets with a 338 wm to get great preformance. any 250 gr. reg type bullet with an sd of .300 or better will go all the way through a moose or bear or even both of em lined up for that matter.
and ammo is not a problem, the big boys have been loading it for over fifty years.
and ammo is not a problem, the big boys have been loading it for over fifty years.
ALBERTA BOY
Regular
- Location
- Edmonton, AB
Vanguard represent an extremely good value!
some of the S1s had really bad triggers. The ones near the end of their production cycle had OUTSTANDING triggers. Maybe that's when they were figuring out triggers for the S2/new Howas.
Who knows. In any case, the Vanguard and especially the S2 Vanguard are extremely good value and very accurate. I own several!
The build quality and fit/finish on the entry level vanguard far exceeds the most expensive Savage rifle available.
You can completely disassemble the bolt by simply grabbing the rear of it and twisting. It comes into two pieces - the solid one piece body and the spring loaded firing pin. Easy to clean!
The entire rifle has NO plastic parts of any kind whatsoever - unless you get one with a plastic stock, of course.
some of the S1s had really bad triggers. The ones near the end of their production cycle had OUTSTANDING triggers. Maybe that's when they were figuring out triggers for the S2/new Howas.
Who knows. In any case, the Vanguard and especially the S2 Vanguard are extremely good value and very accurate. I own several!
The build quality and fit/finish on the entry level vanguard far exceeds the most expensive Savage rifle available.
You can completely disassemble the bolt by simply grabbing the rear of it and twisting. It comes into two pieces - the solid one piece body and the spring loaded firing pin. Easy to clean!
The entire rifle has NO plastic parts of any kind whatsoever - unless you get one with a plastic stock, of course.
I have nothing against Weatherby at all, but I thought that the Vanguard line was not made by Weatherby but a Japanese company called Howa.
But then I have been wrong before...in any event i would not own one if this were the case...Personally I would go for a real Weatherby other than I hate their stocks.
That being said however, if you are going for the .338 Win Mag, I would have a long hard look at the Sako Finnlight before you make the committment.
But then I have been wrong before...in any event i would not own one if this were the case...Personally I would go for a real Weatherby other than I hate their stocks.
That being said however, if you are going for the .338 Win Mag, I would have a long hard look at the Sako Finnlight before you make the committment.
doug keller
Member
- Location
- Winnipeg,Mb.
I have a Browning A-Bolt in .338 Win Mag. I used to shoot Federal Vital Shock, (I think they were called) with 225 gr. Trophy Bonded Bear Claws. They performed perfectly, one only lost 15 gr. after hammering through a moose. They were a bit pricey, close to $80 a box. Any large sporting goods store carried them but they were hard to find in small towns. I now hand load and use 225 gr. accubonds. This is my go to Moose gun and will never sell it. It is a great caliber.
Was that recently? When I got my .338 a couple of years ago the cheapest ammo I saw was Remington Core-Lokt and it was ~$50 a box. Granted, I was looking for 250gr bullets, as 200gr bullets are a waste of the .338's capability. I bought the one box to sight in with and have handloaded everything else for it since.
Mark
The "real" Weatherbys aren't made by Weatherby either. For about 20 years the Mark Vs were made by Howa as well.
westcoaster
CGN Regular
- Location
- Central BC
I am not personally familiar with the Vanguard but can only recall hearing good things about it. I would agree with the posters who have suggested it is a good value.
Most Canadian Tire stores in BC seem to have Blue box Federal 338wm ammo in 225. Should not be a problem. Then tell your local sporting goods dealer that you are shooting a 338 and I'm sure he will bring some in. While 225's have always shot well in my rifle I have settled on 250's. At longer ranges they seem to be more consistent.
Let us know if you go ahead with the purchase. I think the 338wm is an outstanding choice for BC.
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Yup . . . Wholesale sports, $29.95 for a box of Federal SP, 200 gr. . . . I looked in my ammo cabinet and there's a box of Remington Core-Lokt, 250 gr. with the price tag still there. . .$49.95. . Federal Premium, 225 gr. $63.99.
Look at that. I guess the 200gr bullets keep the price down. Your price on the Remington is the same as I paid at my local CT, so things haven't changed much. Reloading just looks better and better, I can reload with premium bullets for ~$1.50 per round and make what the rifle likes.
Mark
