Best .338

[JakeH]

Curious what apples and oranges comparison leads you to the conclusion that the .338 Fed will outshine the 9.3 at 3-400 yds out. If you take a 250 gr, light for caliber slug in the 9.3 and drive it easily to 2500 fps you have, given a bullet of about .490 BC, a Nosler: you have a 300 yd drop of 9.8 inches and remaining energy of 2220 ft,/lbs. Take a 225 gr .338 slug, about max useful for the little .338 Fed, drive it to 2400 fps, given a BC of about .470, you have a remaining 300 yd energy of 1800 ft./lbs and a drop of 10.8 inches. At 400 yds, the 9.3 still shows a distinct advantage. Perhaps the .338 may make up some ground well beyond normal shooting ranges for the hunting field but so what? Most of us have no business sniping animals with hunting rifles beyond 300 yds anyway. So where is the advantage to the Federal in either bullet drop or remaining energy? Even if you use the heaviest normal weight in the 9.3 of 286 grs, it still holds it own way out there.

My mistake, I wasn't comparing similar weight bullets. Moving on...

 

[ShortMag]

Which is why I said "will have the potential for greater cavitation" Energy transfer of a bullet is a function of speed (aka initial energy), bullet cross sectional area, bullet initial shape, material encountered, and bullet construction. With the number of bullets out there, and variety of game, and the difference in shot placement it is impossible to set enough variables to make quantitative statements about energy transfer between the two rounds. One round may pass between the ribs of an animal, encounter a minimum of muscle tissue and only really hit lung tissue which is mostly air, whereas one may hit several bones in the shoulder and stop before leaving the animal. I was merely agree with the previous gentleman that a .416 can kill much faster than a 338, but it has a much greater potential for destruction to start with so it is not as straightforward of comparison like two different .338 caliber rounds would be.

Yes, I noticed and noted your use of potential, what I was responding to and disagreeing with is "should" in the last part of that sentence. The expectation should not automatically be that a larger caliber equals a quicker kill on soft skinned game for the reasons we both noted.

 

[Mark R]

Can't see why anything other than a 338 Win Mag is required...... In something like a Model 70 Super Grade would be about perfect I think.... Mine is a Ruger.

Cheers,
Mark.

 

[brettp]

Can't see why anything other than a 338 Win Mag is required...... In something like a Model 70 Super Grade would be about perfect I think.... Mine is a Ruger.

Cheers,
Mark.

I've shot a lot of 338 win mag. I'm looking to build a 340 wby now. I want the extra thump in Africa.

 

[Graham Hunter]

340 is not required. 338 will do everything a 340 will do. Also better factory bullet selection in loaded ammo and much less expensive. If you want more thump go to a 375 or 40 cal.

 

[Michael Dean]

At least using factory loads, the 9.3x62mm, .35 Whelen, and .338 Federal are all close enough with their heaviest weight loads to not worry about the difference. The 9.3 hits the hardest, but the .338 Federal catches up with it past 300yds and has a flatter trajectory.

As for the .338 Federal vs the .338 Win Mag, I've started looking at that comparison like that of the .30-06 vs .300 Win Mag. You gain 100yds extra yards of performance by switching to the Win Mag, but your shoulder is gonna pay the difference.

Tomorrow morning I'm going to the range, one of my objectives is to fine tune my 338 federal. 98% of all shots are taken at ranges under 300 yards. The 338 federal will do everything any other 338 will will do in this range. The 210 Nosler AccuBond is a wonderful bullet and is perfect for the 338 federal. The federal delivers a great bullet at the ranges that most hunters hunt. I don't understand why people beat themselves up with the recoil of a 338 Winchester Mag when they can accomplish the same goals shooting a rifle that's a pleasure to shoot. One of the biggest effects to accuracy is recoil, excessive recoil adversely affects way too many shooters. This is but one of the many reasons I've chosen the 338 federal for my medium weight gun. There are 101 different elements that affect accuracy, when you can eliminate one without sacrificing anything it's a pretty easy decision to make.

 

[brettp]

Tomorrow morning I'm going to the range, one of my objectives is to fine tune my 338 federal. 98% of all shots are taken at ranges under 300 yards. The 338 federal will do everything any other 338 will will do in this range. The 210 Nosler AccuBond is a wonderful bullet and is perfect for the 338 federal. The federal delivers a great bullet at the ranges that most hunters hunt. I don't understand why people beat themselves up with the recoil of a 338 Winchester Mag when they can accomplish the same goals shooting a rifle that's a pleasure to shoot. One of the biggest effects to accuracy is recoil, excessive recoil adversely affects way too many shooters. This is but one of the many reasons I've chosen the 338 federal for my medium weight gun. There are 101 different elements that affect accuracy, when you can eliminate one without sacrificing anything it's a pretty easy decision to make.

338 federal definitively cannot deliver what a win mag can. A 210gr bullet at 2,630 is not at all the same as a 250gr at 2650.

 

[Michael Dean]

338 federal definitively cannot deliver what a win mag can. A 210gr bullet at 2,630 is not at all the same as a 250gr at 2650.

A 210 grain bullet cannot deliver what a 250 grain bullet at comparable speeds will deliver. That being said, a 210 grain bullet will penetrate a Moose or Eland leaving a wound channel that will effectively and cleanly kill said animals. What I'm saying is a 210 grain bullet will deliver everything and more, the animal will be just as dead as with a 250 grain bullet. Accuracy is far more important than the extra weight of the bullet. What I'm saying is the average hunter will shoot a 338 federal more accurately than they will a Winchester Mag.

 

[brettp]

A 210 grain bullet cannot deliver what a 250 grain bullet at comparable speeds will deliver. That being said, a 210 grain bullet will penetrate a Moose or Eland leaving a wound channel that will effectively and cleanly kill said animals. What I'm saying is a 210 grain bullet will deliver everything and more, the animal will be just as dead as with a 250 grain bullet. Accuracy is far more important than the extra weight of the bullet. What I'm saying is the average hunter will shoot a 338 federal more accurately than they will a Winchester Mag.

Have you shot an eland with that setup? I shot one a couple of months ago just behind the shoulder with a 250gr accubond from my Win Mag and it didn't fully exit or even reach the hide on the off side. He went about 30 yards and died, but there was not a drop of blood. It worked out, but that load didn't fully penetrate and I'd honestly call it a bullet failure despite the happy ending. On the same hunt, I had basically the same performance on a Kudu and a Zebra.

Thus, I am at least switching to a Barnes or A-Frame in the 250gr and also potentially going to 340 wby.

 

[kudukid]

 

[kudukid]

Above photo of an eland bull taken with my .338 win mag loading 210 gn Barnes TTSX. The bull was running at around 150 and quartering away. The projectile entered just forward of the hip and penetrated right through to the lungs. He didn't get far.
Excellent performance.

 

[kudukid]

 

[kudukid]

Projectile on the left is the 210 gn Barnes TTSX retrieved from the eland bull.
Don't ask about the projectile on the right.

 

[brettp]

View attachment 202072

Well done sir. I suspect that merely changing to a harder bulker like that Barnes would handle it.

 

[Bos Javanicus]

The .338 Win Mag is more than capable, but I'm biased. I've never shot any of the other .338's. Over the last 10 or so years of owning a .338 WM, I've only shot Red Deer and Buffalo and it is more than capable on these. I've also shot a couple of wild dogs with it too, but that was a bit of over kill, but what I had in hand at the time.

 

[Mekaniks]

I've shot a lot of 338 win mag. I'm looking to build a 340 wby now. I want the extra thump in Africa.

In my opinion a 338wm is plenty of gun for SA plains game and 340 wby is not much of a step up from 338 WM.
If you really want more "thump" than a .338 my suggestion is to step up to a .375. And then covered for DG as well.

 

[IvW]

I've shot a lot of 338 win mag. I'm looking to build a 340 wby now. I want the extra thump in Africa.

Wrong way to go for Africa.

The only extra thump you will achieve is to your shoulder.

If you want to deliver more thump on the other side step up to a 375 H&H Magnum, that would be all the thump you need.

 

[sambarhunter]

I have a .338 Win Mag and also a .358 Norma mag,the latter has more thump but nothing ever knows it.

 

[Dr Ray]

I'd go with the .338 Win Mag. With 200gr Trophy Bonded Ballistic Tips you're getting .270 trajectory but delivering more energy at 200yds than the .270 has at the muzzle!

The .338 is a remarkable round that carries a number of factory loads in a variety of bullets. I wouldn't hesitate to own one, and if I didn't intend to hunt Africa I'd have one before I had a .375.

I like the 225gn bullets which have the highest energy levels.

 

[kudukid]

Guys I also have load for my .338 win mag using 285 gn Barnes TSX. These have incredible penetration and are emphatic killers.
At the other end of the spectrum I can drive 180 gn pills at impressive velocities that shoot flat and are excellent on medium sized game.