338 Win mag

I've always liked the .338 with 200 gr. Speer soft points at 2900 fps. They worked dandy on deer & bear and trajectory wise, they shot about as flat as my 30-06 with 180 grainers at 200 yds. The .338 Win. is a world wide capable round, but Africa don't allow it for the big stuff...Too bad.
 
I've used the .338WM as my 'go-to' rifle since 1992.
I consider the .338WM about perfect, for hiking around in grizzly-moose country.

I've shot moose, black bear, whitetails with it. I've seen spectacular kills, and other times I've seen animals 'soak up a few' before toppling over. But I have seen those same type of reactions with pretty much any other cartridge, bigger and smaller.

If you hit any North American big game animal, in the right place, you're gonna kill it. Just some will kill quicker.

As far as bullet selection, I've never had an issue; 225gr Nosler Partitions have been my favorite. I've also used 250gr Parts and 250gr Hornady Interlocks, and those are both excellent; in fact dollar-for-dollar, I consider the 250gr Hornady Interlock as about the best combination of price and performance.


Edit to add: I have 2 .338WMs: I have a 'working rifle'; a M700 in a Wildcat Composite stock. Scoped with a 1.5-6x Baush & Lomb Balvar scope. The other is a M70 Supergrade; pretty thing... wears a Leupold VX3 1.75-6x scope.
 
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Demonical said:
I've used the .338WM as my 'go-to' rifle since 1992.
I consider the .338WM about perfect, for hiking around in grizzly-moose country.

I've shot moose, black bear, whitetails with it. I've seen spectacular kills, and other times I've seen animals 'soak up a few' before toppling over. But I have seen those same type of reactions with pretty much any other cartridge, bigger and smaller.

If you hit any North American big game animal, in the right place, you're gonna kill it. Just some will kill quicker.

As far as bullet selection, I've never had an issue; 225gr Nosler Partitions have been my favorite. I've also used 250gr Parts and 250gr Hornady Interlocks, and those are both excellent; in fact dollar-for-dollar, I consider the 250gr Hornady Interlock as about the best combination of price and performance.


Edit to add: I have 2 .338WMs: I have a 'working rifle'; a M700 in a Wildcat Composite stock. Scoped with a 1.5-6x Baush & Lomb Balvar scope. The other is a M70 Supergrade; pretty thing... wears a Leupold VX3 1.75-6x scope.
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Yep, I too have been hunting with a .338WM since the mid 80s.

Agree with above noted.

The ones that "soaked up a few" were at close range. Called in a bull moose to about 30 yards one year and it took 3 shots to bring him down. All boiler room through shots. Maybe the white eyes and the snot coming out of his nose as he was coming in may have affected the shooting...hehe.

All I shoot with mine are Federal 210 grains Nosler Partition.

You won't be disappointed with your recent purchase.
 
I also like the 338 Win Mag. I have a custom built on a 700 action.

It is hard to argue with the 225's at 2950 or so,

I have shot 3 Bison with the 338, and each has died quickly. They are generally known for their stamina.

The 338 is what I carry when Moose or Elk hunting in areas that have a known population of Grizzly Bears.

The 210 and 225 Partition, or the 225 Accubonds have all worked well for me, and my rifle shoots them all to the same POI at 100 meters.....a bonus.

Regards, Dave.
 
In a world where most guys max out with a 30-06 in terms of ability to handle recoil and muzzle blast, .338 win mag is big by 99% of guy's standards.

I just talked to a small group of bison hunters who all wanted to upgrade to more powerful rifles as they had been using 30-06's for several years, with some questionable results. I pushed the .338 win mag pretty hard and no way any of them was biting...they ended up doing a group buy one some .300 win mags....
 
which is NOTHING more than a 308 on SPEED- dig out your ballistics charts, boys, and you'll see that given the same 180 grain pill that the mpbr for the 308 is 267yards, the 06 is 276, and the MIGHTY 300 is 325- all at the expense of 2 rounds and a heck of a lot more powder- i'd like to think I can stalk that extra 50 yards
 
Get in that extra 50 yards and the 308 still won't hit as hard as the 300 wm

With proper bullets the 338 wm is a great round. To some its to much to others its just right. It may not do anything a fast 30 can't do but it can send a bigger bullet at a modest velocity out a hell of a long way. I don't own one currently but if a good deal came my way I'd buy one
 
t-star said:
which is NOTHING more than a 308 on SPEED- dig out your ballistics charts, boys, and you'll see that given the same 180 grain pill that the mpbr for the 308 is 267yards, the 06 is 276, and the MIGHTY 300 is 325- all at the expense of 2 rounds and a heck of a lot more powder- i'd like to think I can stalk that extra 50 yards
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So I guess I'll keep the 220 Swift at home next time I shoot gophers, grab the 22 and sneak 500 yards closer?
 
t-star said:
which is NOTHING more than a 308 on SPEED- dig out your ballistics charts, boys, and you'll see that given the same 180 grain pill that the mpbr for the 308 is 267yards, the 06 is 276, and the MIGHTY 300 is 325- all at the expense of 2 rounds and a heck of a lot more powder- i'd like to think I can stalk that extra 50 yards
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MPBR isn't everything. Using the same 180 grain bullets my .300 Wins get to 500 with 50% more energy than my .308s.Its a little hard to ignore half again as much energy, and my Rum is closer to 60% even though I run it at idle compared to some.
 
you're forgetting it takes 10 grains extra powder in the o6 to hit harder and roughly 30- that's better than a half load again to achieve that "hit harder"- imo, I wouldn't take a shot at 350 or better with any 30 caliber, regardless of whether it's a magnum or not- there's just too much drop between 300-400
 
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t-star said:
you're forgetting it takes 10 grains extra powder in the o6 to hit harder and roughly 30- that's better than a half load again to achieve that "hit harder"- imo, I wouldn't take a shot at 350 or better with any 30 caliber, regardless of whether it's a magnum or not- there's just too much drop between 300-400
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Everything drops between 300 and 400. That's why we have LRFs and repeatable scopes.
 
I don't consider 8-9" of trajectory difference between 300 and 400 yards all that much. [My 308 Norma Mag with a 180]

But the 338 with the 225 AB is very close to as flat, and is very persuasive on arrival!. Dave.
 
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t-star said:
you're forgetting it takes 10 grains extra powder in the o6 to hit harder and roughly 30- that's better than a half load again to achieve that "hit harder"- imo, I wouldn't take a shot at 350 or better with any 30 caliber, regardless of whether it's a magnum or not- there's just too much drop between 300-400
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Not forgetting anything. At 30 bucks a pound it costs a whole 13 cents more per shot to use what I want. I'm pretty sure that's the bargain of the century.
 
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