There's quite the difference between the Win Mag and the Lapua Mag, I didn't realize there was that much of one. This shows the requirements to know that not all .338s, are the same. But then again my LM is a bench type rifle, that requires a lot more time to get out to use, as opposed to a rifle while heavy can still be man portable.. I'm glad that I don't have to pack mine around, except from truck to firing position.
Favorite .338wm powders?
- Thread starter Hmatt
- Start date
The Hornady IL FBSP, 225 grain bullet is a cup and core bullet and fairly frangible, should the opportunity for an up close shot comes to fruition.
Screaming velocities as you show are fine, for longer ranges.
I don't shoot much past 300yds, other than on the very odd occasion, and then only from a rested position.
Depending on which manual you read, 2750fps is near max with IMR7828 and it was also very accurate out to 300yds from what my notes indicated in the rifle I had back then.
It's not about how fast I can push the bullet but loading to the capabilities of the bullet and shooting it well.
I don't doubt your recipe works very well for you in your rifle, but I'm willing to bet you've got pressures around 60,000psi.
Screaming velocities as you show are fine, for longer ranges.
I don't shoot much past 300yds, other than on the very odd occasion, and then only from a rested position.
Depending on which manual you read, 2750fps is near max with IMR7828 and it was also very accurate out to 300yds from what my notes indicated in the rifle I had back then.
It's not about how fast I can push the bullet but loading to the capabilities of the bullet and shooting it well.
I don't doubt your recipe works very well for you in your rifle, but I'm willing to bet you've got pressures around 60,000psi.
Because of the expansion ratio the .338 acts more like an 06 for powders. Had many over the years. 7828 was always too slow for anything under 250 even rel 22 was too slow for the smaller bullets. Not arguing just stating what I’ve seen. Oh been reloading for 40+ years and have had a chronograph since the dawn of time
so have a pretty good idea about pressure.
so have a pretty good idea about pressure.
Chuckbuster
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
I’m looking to do some more reloading for my own .338. I have some 225gr SSTs on hand and a couple of pounds of Hybrid 100V I haven’t been able to find much use for with other cartridges. Has anyone used the SSTs in their .338? Did they hold up well? And, has anyone used Hybrid 100V? From what I can discern, it’s burn rate should be suitable, but there doesn’t seem to be much data out there.
The SST is a very frangible bullet, even the Interlock version.
You may be able to push it faster and it may be very accurate but look into what the bullet is designed to do at the ranges you feel you're able to shoot well.
IMHO, those bullets shouldn't be pushed much over 2800fps, if the majority of your shots on game are around 100-150 yds. At close range, which happens quite often, say 50yds or less, those bullets will not stand up well at higher velocities.
You may be able to push it faster and it may be very accurate but look into what the bullet is designed to do at the ranges you feel you're able to shoot well.
IMHO, those bullets shouldn't be pushed much over 2800fps, if the majority of your shots on game are around 100-150 yds. At close range, which happens quite often, say 50yds or less, those bullets will not stand up well at higher velocities.
Magnums such as the 338 Win Mag seem to give the best accuracy with close to maximum or slightly above SAAMI recommended limits.Because of the expansion ratio the .338 acts more like an 06 for powders. Had many over the years. 7828 was always too slow for anything under 250 even rel 22 was too slow for the smaller bullets. Not arguing just stating what I’ve seen. Oh been reloading for 40+ years and have had a chronograph since the dawn of time
I wasn't saying your loads were unsafe, but approaching the limits of safety and maybe surpassing the limits for some rifles.
I've been loading at least a decade+ longer than you have and have learned the hard way, not all rifles are created equal.
I wasn't dissing you, and I'm sure you reload for several firearms. I've just become more cautious over the years after seeing bulged barrels, cracked locking lugs, separated cases, etc.
Like you, I like velocity and accuracy together, if possible, bullet performance on game depends on the design parameters of the particular bullet.
Manufacturers will usually list a velocity range the bullet will perform best within. Depending on the ranges you shoot, you may want to exceed those parameters, especially if you're shoot out past 300yds on a regular basis and using cup and core style bullets.
Nosler partitions, monometal bullets, and premium types with heavy jackets were purposely designed to hold together under extreme circumstances and I don't have any issues with people loading them to the velocities or pressures they feel is safe in their rifles, but caution folks to be careful when approaching those maximum limits.
Chuckbuster
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Okay, yeah that’s what I was thinking with regard to the SSTs. I’ll save those for another day and go with some X-bullets or partitions I have, instead. I’d like to try some interbonds but those seem to be as scarce as hen’s teeth while the accubonds are, as has been noted, priced stratospherically. Any thoughts on the Hybrid 100V?
Once again, not being argumentative just relaying what I’ve been doing. Long case life is the key. Pretty straightforward stuff.
H100V in the 338Winchester Magnum with 225 grain bullets hasn't received a lot of attention, mostly because H100V duplicates a lot of other powders which are already available. It fills the small gap between IMR4350 and H4831.
It should be quite well suited for 225 grain Partition type or monometal bullets.
Most of the published data out there doesn't give loads above 50K-58K PSI for the 338 Win Mag for legal purposes.
The 338 Win Mag has been around for a long time now and it's chambered in a lot of different types of actions, which were built to be safe at those pressures.
When I made my comment to MTM about the 60K psi +, which his loads are easily developing, that doesn't mean they aren't safe in his rifle or any other rifle like it.
Because the 338Win Mag was designed to fit medium length cartridges, such the 30-06, many rifles with magazines of similar length/strength were chambered for it.
MTM didn't bother to fill us in on what type of rifle he's shooting his loads in. It's very likely designed to be perfectly capable of handling 65K PSI as a steady diet safely.
Asking for load for your rifle, but not including more information, will not get you much for replies and you will be stuck with information you can glean from the internet.
I saw a few loads, none of them exceeding 50KPSI with 225 grain Partition type bullets and monometal bullets.
The suggested maximum load was 71.0 grains of H100V over magnum primers = 2800fps with Partition type bullets
Surprisingly, the tables I looked at, which had loads from several sources suggested the same load with Barnes ttsx, 225 grain, 338 bullets for similar velocities.
Monometal bullets are much longer for weight than Partition type bullets and you would think the load would be lighter.
This is a good place to start, as I don't know what type of firearm you're loading for.
All rifles are entities unto themselves and as such, you should load accordingly. Start with the above loads and work up from there.
