338-06 build questions

Had a doner Model 70 fwt .30-06 rebarreled to .338-06 for my personal moose/elk rifle. With a 23" fluted barrel it weighs just over 7lbs complete with a Leupold VariX III 2.5-8x in Talley mounts. Easy to carry and hits with a big wallop. After drooling over Gary's BSA for a couple years, I finally had my own .338-06 built :)
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Next to my 280 Remington the 338-06 is my most favorite cartridge. I have had 2 of them, but had to sell them off.

My last one was built on the Ruger M77 tang safety action, with a Shillen #4 contour left at 27". Stock was a Boyds laminate, action bedded and barrel free floated. I had a gunsmith do the barrel and action work. I finished the stock my self with 4 -6 coats of true oil. Action and barrel where finished my me with Dura Coat. Trigger was worked over by the gunsmith to 2.5 #.

My next is going to be built on the Savage action as I want to build it my self from start to finish.

Yes it is true that the 30-06 and the 270 will do anything that the 338-06 can do, ammo is every where for the pair. the 338-06 just doses it with more authority.
 
http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/ww194/Brno8x57/Moose 2009/IMG_0188.jpg

My custom build is a 340 Gibbs. An '06 case with the shoulder blown forward and almost all the taper taken out of the case. It hits like the Hammer of Thor and has accounted for the last 5 moose I have taken. In 1996, it cost me about $750 to have my old Husqvarna (FN) 30-06 re-barrelled with a 26 inch heavy contour stainless steel pipe.I topped it off with a Leupold 2.5x8 VX-III .
It is a heavy rifle to pack around at just over 9 pounds. That being said, the recoil is quite tolerable and I prefer it to my M70 FWT in 30-06 in that regard.
It still wears the original beechwood stock. I glass bedded the barrel channel and action.
It obviously shoots at least minute of moose with 200 grain noslers pushed by 65 grains of IMR4350.
If I was to do it again, I would have gone with the 338-06 chambering as factory brass is now available and the extra 100 fps or so isn't really all that necessary. The fire-forming process, while fun and interesting, is a bit tedious.
Another consideration for you might be the 35 Whelan. Both it, the 338-06, and the 9.3x62 are as good as it gets for moose and most other large critters.
 
Hmm. It looks like everyone who has/had one loves it. It also looks like it will be about the twice the money to build as opposed to just buying a more poular calibre and using it.

So...do I start saving or just buy something else.

What are the savages like to build off. Are they easier and cheaper to build than the others?
 
Enfield 338-06

Several years ago I had Steve Holborn of Warren ONT rebore my sporter P17 Enfield from 30-06 to 338-06. After much reading about what caliber to make I settled on the 338-06 over the 35 Whelan or 375-06. I bought the rifle used from someone who did not take care of it very well. The bore was pitted, but the sporter stock was in beautiful shape, therefore I bought it for my project. Steve rebored it, tapped it and reblued it to a beautiful finish. I refinished the stock. It is a gorgeous rifle and extremely accurate. Holborn does superb work and is good buddies with Ron Smith of Alberta, who also does these type of conversions. I highly recomment Holborn. It now is my primary rifle for big game. Would not mind another project rifle in 358 Norma Mag. Need to find a P14 Enfield, if anyone has one to get rid of.
 
When I get my next 338-06 I think I will buy a Cooper rifle, or build on on the Savage/Stevens action. With the Savage/Stevens action I cam eliminate the gunsmith and save a few bucks
 
Ruger1962 said:
Several years ago I had Steve Holborn of Warren ONT rebore my sporter P17 Enfield from 30-06 to 338-06. After much reading about what caliber to make I settled on the 338-06 over the 35 Whelan or 375-06. I bought the rifle used from someone who did not take care of it very well. The bore was pitted, but the sporter stock was in beautiful shape, therefore I bought it for my project. Steve rebored it, tapped it and reblued it to a beautiful finish. I refinished the stock. It is a gorgeous rifle and extremely accurate. Holborn does superb work and is good buddies with Ron Smith of Alberta, who also does these type of conversions. I highly recomment Holborn. It now is my primary rifle for big game. Would not mind another project rifle in 358 Norma Mag. Need to find a P14 Enfield, if anyone has one to get rid of.
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Do you have a picture of your 1917? I recently acquired one of these myself that was sporterized and I was thinking about what kind of project I could turn it into.
 
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