338 Lapua Barrel Life

[ezkmo]

Hi Guys,

sorry if this has been asked before, I could not find it through the search.

I want to now how long a 338 lapua barrel will last.

Im currently trying to get a DTA SRS in 338, but will probably get the 308 barrel as well because I heard the life span was as much as 4 time longer.

what do you guys think.

Thanks

 

[Obtunded]

As much as 5-6 times longer actually. The LM is a very over-bore cartridge.

 

[ezkmo]

5-6 times....wow, thats good to know... didn't think it would be that much.

I saw the thread about M14 life span, People were saying about 10K + rounds,

Would that mean the Lapua barrel is only good for 1K-2K...?

Thanks

 

[rnbra-shooter]

"How long will a barrel last" is a bit difficult to answer, because a lot of it depends on your definition of "last". Having said that, here's my estimate (based on bore capacity) of its barrel life relative to a .308: If you find that a .308 barrel lasts you 3000-5000 rounds, you'll probably find your .338 Lapua will last you for 2000-3000 rounds

Or, stated differently, you will use $6,000-$10,000 of factory ammo ($2/rd) to shoot out a .308 barrel. You will use $14,000 to $21,000 of factory ammo ($7/rd) to shoot out a .338 barrel. Note that in both cases, the cost of a replacement barrel is basically irrelevant.

If you're lucky, maybe somebody who has owned one and shot it out will comment here and let us know how much barrel life he got out of it (and what criteria made him decide that it was "shot out")

 

[rsp1761]

2500-3000 rds in our experience. We have chambered in excess of 700 338 Lapua barrels.

 

[ezkmo]

Thanks a lot guys,
very good to now.
Im defenetly going for both barrels.

 

[Mystic Precision]

You need to determine what is acceptable accuracy. Ask the question to a match shooter vs a hunter and you will get to vastly different answer.

Jerry

 

[X-fan]

If you can afford the expensive large action rifle, then practice with expensive bullets, brass, and powder you can afford a new barrel.

If not then well.....Not.

FWIW
1000-300 grain SMKs cost about the same as a new barrel...Something to think about.

 

[Obtunded]

Nobody is getting match accuracy after 2000 rounds in a LM,

One of our club shooters is still competing (and winning) with a 10,000+ round McPhee barrel in 308.

 

[Boomer]

As a (very) rough measure of potential barrel life, a cartridge that has a powder weight of approximately 1/3rd if its bullet weight usually provides good barrel life. The .308 comes in very well, particularly when loaded with heavy bullets, the .338 Lapua, not so much. Whether or not you can predict a specific round count for a particular barrel by this system I doubt, but it can be used as a basis of comparison of one cartridge to another.

 

[rsp1761]

Nobody is getting match accuracy after 2000 rounds in a LM,

One of our club shooters is still competing (and winning) with a 10,000+ round McPhee barrel in 308.

How would you define match accuracy for this cartridge?

 

[bradtothebone]

hmmmm

As a (very) rough measure of potential barrel life, a cartridge that has a powder weight of approximately 1/3rd if its bullet weight usually provides good barrel life. The .308 comes in very well, particularly when loaded with heavy bullets, the .338 Lapua, not so much. Whether or not you can predict a specific round count for a particular barrel by this system I doubt, but it can be used as a basis of comparison of one cartridge to another.

I should be ok then 300gr smk and 110.5gr US869..... Roughly 1/3 but seriously, if you want to shoot these kinda cartridges, when the bbl is done, jam another on..... I have one of these, and a .22-250AI that everybody says are bbl burners.... When they dont shoot, Im gonna spin on another set...... It all depends on what your situation is, If I only got load development done and 1000 rounds??!!! good enough for me..... But to each his own.....

 

[Why not?]

Would a 338 LM last a lot longer if the loads were reduced, as reduced loads do in other catridges? Let's say, if it was loaded to 340 Wby velocities?

Ted

 

[Kevan]

My 338 is the Ackley Improved version same as Brad's and it had about 1500 rounds through it when Rick forced me to buy it....now its pushing 2000, still shoots 1/4 MOA. Maybe the barrel life depends on how well they are looked after and how hard the usage is to a certain degree.

 

[Boomer]

I should be ok then 300gr smk and 110.5gr US869..... Roughly 1/3 but seriously, if you want to shoot these kinda cartridges, when the bbl is done, jam another on..... I have one of these, and a .22-250AI that everybody says are bbl burners.... When they dont shoot, Im gonna spin on another set...... It all depends on what your situation is, If I only got load development done and 1000 rounds??!!! good enough for me..... But to each his own.....

After better than 2000 rounds, my .375 Ultra still shoots better than MOA, and most of my loads are in the 90-95 gr range. Perhaps there is something to be said to the theory that cut rifled barrels last longer.

 

[carbonrod]

Does anyone know when the militarys that use 338 rifles change their barrels?

 

[Boomer]

Beats me, but if the .338 Lapua is envisioned for use in the anti-material role, sub MOA might not be critical in the minds of the procurrers. It seems to me that Accuracy International claims 10,000 rounds for barrel life. If this is correct, I suspect targets at 1500 yards are on the large side.

 

[maple_leaf_eh]

My 338 is the Ackley Improved version same as Brad's and it had about 1500 rounds through it when Rick forced me to buy it....now its pushing 2000, still shoots 1/4 MOA. Maybe the barrel life depends on how well they are looked after and how hard the usage is to a certain degree.

Agreed. Most gross wear on barrels is caused by cleaning techniques and tools. The gradual change is from bullets and gas erosion.

 

[bradtothebone]

im around 1000 rounds

in .338LAI and its still in the 1/4moa.... .557 at 300m last time out..... If I could get 3000 or 4000 rounds out of it great..... But if it gets 1000 rounds after load development.... So be it....

I've got 1 of rocks bbls on my .338LAI and my .260AI which is being built right now will have a rock bbl also....

 

[rnbra-shooter]

Agreed. Most gross wear on barrels is caused by cleaning techniques and tools. The gradual change is from bullets and gas erosion.

Unless you are being pretty abusive, there shouldn't be any meaningful wear from cleaning. Even in a much milder and longer-lasting .308 Win, the wear from erosion is much more pronounced than any wear from cleaning, or from bullet friction.

Re: Accuracy International's claimed lifetime of 10,000 rounds. There's a reason I wrote ""How long will a barrel last" is a bit difficult to answer, because a lot of it depends on your definition of "last".. I suspect that AI's definition underlying their 10,000 rounds lifetime, is along the lines of the rifle being safe and serviceable. Which for certain purposes, is the correct definition to use. But I am pretty confident that the rifle will have shown a noticeable decline in accuracy long, long before that figure is reached. So if extreme accuracy is relevant, the barrel's lifetime will be much less than that.

I don't understand why people make such a fuss about barrel lifetime though, since it is one of the cheaper parts of shooting. Barrels are not a fixed and permanent part of a rifle, rather, they are like brake pads - an inexpensive consumable part that you replace when they are worn. From time to time I need a new set of $50 brake pads - what's the big worry whether that is after I've spent $3,000 on gas, or after $5,000 of gas? The economics of barrels and ammo are similar...