Sako 85 Kodiak 338WM

I'm thinking of buying the exact same gun for bison/grizzly but I have a "thing" for accurate tack-driving guns. I'm worried that the short barrel might mean that the gun might not be as accurate as what I'd expect from a Sako 85 (I have two others and both shoot subMOA).

The original poster said that he'd give a range report. I was wondering if he or others would be willing to share their experience with this rifle. Is it accurate? How's the recoil? Is it to heavy to carry for long? Is there a load it prefers? etc.


It's generally believed barrel length has little to no effect on accuracy, especially in a hunting firearm. In fact shorter barrels are sometimes considered more accurate because they are stiffer for a given contour. All you lose when you shorten that barrel is velocity, which won't affect accuracy at any normal hunting distance.
 
They sure look like an accurate rifle, however the 14" length of pull kills it for me. I have one of the Ruger Compact Magnums in .338 RCM that fits me like a glove. I'm sure the Kodiak will be a fantastic rifle. It just takes someone bigger than me to shoot it. I would need to have the stock shortened an inch. I would hate to have to do that to an expensive rifle like that, but I couldn't hunt with it otherwise. I'm looking forward to hearing the range report.
 
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They sure look like an accurate rifle, however the 14" length of pull kills it for me.

It's worth it. I carefully took an inch off my own .375 Kodiak stock and fitted a thick pad. Wonderful results and much more accurate than I could ever hope to shoot it.
 
those kodiaks fit me perfect . i think if i owned one i would just use the open sights on it .
 
Ya, I just picked up a Brown Bear at the Kamloops show the other day......wow that was nice. I think one of those in 375 H&H would be a fine all round rig
Does anyone know if the Brown is blued or some sort of black coating on the metal?

Pitched
 
I think the 338WM is a bit of a dog in this day and age in that class of cartridge. Still is a nasty , Just dosnt do it for me. Id rather just run a 300WM
 
I think the .338 WM is a fantastic cartridge. I had one in a Ruger Number 1 but had it rebored to .358 Norma, another excellent cartridge. I still kind of have a hankerin' for another .338 WM but they really are overkill for anything around here. Getting one would be 100% cool factor rather than necessity. Mind you, that could be said for almost all of my rifles, LOL.
 
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