338s Are A Great Caliber

[crs]

+1 for the tang safety Ruger M77 .338 Win Mag.

My older brother had his M77 glass bedded, Magnaported, a trigger job, and a nice Leupold 3-8 variable scope installed. It was well broken in when he passed away and passed it on to me. He had always wanted to take it to Africa, so I did that for him. Shooting Winchester 230 grain Black Talon/Fail Safe it did a great job with one shot kills on game from Impala to Eland. That rifle, cartridge, and ammo combination was a world beater before Winchester dropped the ammo line.
WRT DG, you bet! With the right bullets, it would do the job on all from cats to ele.

It has since taken my bull elk of a lifetime, so I passed it on to my son. I reckon it will stay in the family a while as my grandson is thinking if a bigger caliber than his 7mm-08.

 

[Mike Van Horn]

The .338 caliber has been s favorite for years. Have had several different 338 win mag rifles. The latest in this caliber is a .340 Weatherby in a accumark with a VX5 Leupold scope. Assume cartridge and gun scope combo

 

[Ray B]

When Wa allowed any bull elk hunting I varied between three: 300 mag, 338 mag and 375 mag. of the three the 338 got the most use. I had a supply of 200 gr BBCs for it, but Swift had a run that was misadjusted and produced 216 gr bullets, which were sold at discount. 500 of those eased my conscience about shooting them at the range. Of late the open season is for spike elk only, they are smaller so the last few years hunting has been done with a 7/08. But this year I may go back to the 338, although if I can get the load developed I may go over the edge and use a 404.

 

[Fastrig]

338 guy, welcome to the AH forum! I agree that the 338 WM is an excellent caliber, but it hurt me every time I pulled the trigger! Even more than 375 H&H! You’ve got a shoulder of iron!

That’s the reason I sold mine. I’ve shot much bigger bores that didn’t sharp kick the crap out of me like that 338 win mag. Was a very effective round on big browns, but would much rather use my Mauser 9.3x62 for that.

 

[Scott CWO]

I grew up shooting a .30-06 with 165gr bullets for elk, pronghorn and deer - no need to re-sight for different critters and loads. I bought a .338WM later and found that the 225gr bullets generally follow the same trajectory so that made for an easy transition back and forth from caliber to caliber. The .225gr bullets shoot a little flatter trajectory than anything heavier or lighter and still pack a wallop. I’ve shot many a North American animal, including brown bears, and a bunch of African animals with it with no failures. Also, it’s a very inherently accurate round.

 

[Dr Ray]

I grew up shooting a .30-06 with 165gr bullets for elk, pronghorn and deer - no need to re-sight for different critters and loads. I bought a .338WM later and found that the 225gr bullets generally follow the same trajectory so that made for an easy transition back and forth from caliber to caliber. The .225gr bullets shoot a little flatter trajectory than anything heavier or lighter and still pack a wallop. I’ve shot many a North American animal, including brown bears, and a bunch of African animals with it with no failures. Also, it’s a very inherently accurate round.

Omg it’s sounds like myself.

 

[Fastrig]

When Wa allowed any bull elk hunting I varied between three: 300 mag, 338 mag and 375 mag. of the three the 338 got the most use. I had a supply of 200 gr BBCs for it, but Swift had a run that was misadjusted and produced 216 gr bullets, which were sold at discount. 500 of those eased my conscience about shooting them at the range. Of late the open season is for spike elk only, they are smaller so the last few years hunting has been done with a 7/08. But this year I may go back to the 338, although if I can get the load developed I may go over the edge and use a 404.

A 404J for Elk hunting? It would obviously drop an elk with no problem, but is that going to shoot long and flat enough? Guess it depends on local of your hunts, but I’ve been on elk hunts where 250 yards was the norm for taking shots and wouldn’t think that would be the sweet spot for a 404J. Haven’t been elk hunting in a number of years, but the last one I took was at roughly 300 yards and my hunting buddies all took their at distances a bit longer than that. Would think a 300 wm, 338 wm, 7mm rem mag, or 7x64 would be a better option. I’m itching to try a 7x64 Brenneke on a hunt using the Norma Tipstrike, and think elk would be the perfect hunt for that.

 

[Felipe]

Tenía un .338 y un .338 RUM, LOS DOS MARAVILLOSOS. EL .338 RUM, MEJOR AÚN

 

[Rob404]

As Mr Zorg says a 338-06 is an excellent Caliber, I have a Savage 110 that has been re-barreled with an Apache Arms Barrel to 338-06, stupid accurate

 

[CoElkHunter]

I grew up shooting a .30-06 with 165gr bullets for elk, pronghorn and deer - no need to re-sight for different critters and loads. I bought a .338WM later and found that the 225gr bullets generally follow the same trajectory so that made for an easy transition back and forth from caliber to caliber. The .225gr bullets shoot a little flatter trajectory than anything heavier or lighter and still pack a wallop. I’ve shot many a North American animal, including brown bears, and a bunch of African animals with it with no failures. Also, it’s a very inherently accurate round.

Interesting? Two of my hunting buddies are Browning BLR .30-06 Federal 165gr Sierra cartridge shooters. But when they shot my Browning A Bolt .338WM 225gr Core Lokts they both said the recoil “wasn’t bad”. One since found a barely used .338 A Bolt as his new hunting rifle.

 

[Ray B]

A 404J for Elk hunting? Guess it depends on local of your hunts

Correct. Where we presently seek elk it is wilderness area along the Pacific Crest. A forest fire went through a few years ago, which opened things up a bit, but it's mountainous (up & down) with very little in open parks or across the valley shots, so 200 yards would be a long shot in the area with 50 - 150 being the norm. Right up the 404J alley.

 

[Felipe]

.338 RON, 250 GRANOS, SWIFT A FRAME DE REMINGTON, PUEDEN CON TODO PG

 

[Felipe]

RUM

 

[ActionBob]

I've had a Ruger Mark II Express for a while but never got around to using it. Even thought about selling it. But last year I had a moose combo with my mountain goat hunt so put a Zeiss Conquest HD 3-15 with the Rapid Z 800 reticle on it and started shooting it. That thing is a tack driver! Unfortunately I did not get a chance at a moose but this rifle is going to get a lot more use going forward.

 

[lwaters]

I've had a Ruger Mark II Express for a while but never got around to using it. Even thought about selling it. But last year I had a moose combo with my mountain goat hunt so put a Zeiss Conquest HD 3-15 with the Rapid Z 800 reticle on it and started shooting it. That thing is a tack driver! Unfortunately I did not get a chance at a moose but this rifle is going to get a lot more use going forward.

Was that the one you got from me

 

[ActionBob]

Was that the one you got from me

No this is the Express model with the quarter rib. The little brother to the RSM models.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

338 Win Mag is my favorite caliber! I have a Ruger Hawkeye and a Browning BAR that was my dad's. Swift A-Frames in 225 gr work well.

375 Ruger Fan
The 338 BAR would be a sweet shooter
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

I picked up a .338-06 last year, a rebarreled Remington 798 with 22 inch long barrel and laminated wood stock. I've purchased loaded ammo from Reed's Ammunition and Research in OK, 250 grain Nosler Partitions loaded at 2550 fps muzzle velocity which is probably 2500 feet per second neighborhood in my rifle but haven't taken it to the range yet. I plan on mounting a Sig Sauer 2-7X32 Whiskey3 Hellfire Quadplex scope as it's a intermediate 300 yard max option between. 30-06 & 9.3X62mm for me in my battery. Not a magnum, 200 fps less than Win Mag with 250 grain bullet but certainly still seems useful for me with 5 ft-lbs (18%) less recoil for me to deal with.

Mr Zorg
When I was building my Whelen it was a close call between the Whelen and the 338/06. As you know the Whelen just pipped it at the post because I could load it better than standard, but it was close.
Cheers mate Bob

 

[bruce moulds]

bob,
I think you made the right choice in your situation.
with your shoulder issue, you want the biggest calibre you can shoot comfortably.
if you could use and had a 375, the 338 might be more suitable.
they are both fine rounds in their own niche.
bruce.

 

[PaulT]

I recently tested two different factory loads.
Hornady Superformance (225gn SST's) and Winchester (225gn Accubonds).
They both returned 2900fps + or - 10 fps and both printed groups at or less than 1" at 100 meters. It's been a long time since I've seen factory ammo perform so consistently.
Stunning performance from both loads really.
225gn pills at 2900fps, that's a substantial pay-load for most game in most situations so long as the bullets stand up to the task, you're ready for most things.