Why a .338 WM in Africa?

[DLSJR]

I never thought I needed a 338 WM till now myself. In process of makeover of a New Haven Winchester 70 Classic Sporter that found its way to me. It will be used on 2027 Zim trip for Leopard and PG with 458 Lott for DG. Now to decide and find the right ammo for it.

I think you’ll find 225 grain TTSX, A Frames and Partitions will all serve you well. I’ve shot various bullet weights and bullets in my .338 and finally settled on 225 TTSX and Trophy Bonded Bearclaws as the best option. Only problem is, it’s very difficult to find Bearclaws any longer. The one bullet I’ve never shot that I’d really like to try is Northfork. They seem like excellent bullets.

 

[Michael70]

Thanks Bob, those numbers are crazy impressive and put the Whelen hot on the heels of the mighty 375H&H with a standard action and cheap common brass (resized 30/06). The CFE 223 you speak of, is this a Hodgdon powder? Might be a bit hard to find in these parts as we have good access to ADI powders but not much else. I am guessing the burn rate will be in the ADI 2206-2206H range.

Is this load in a very long barrel? I would prefer to keep my barrel length to 22 inches max, if possible, for a scrub gun. Either way any details on your Whelen set up would be greatly appreciated especially if the loads that you have shown aren't raising any pressure issues.

 

[Cannonball]

Jim Carmichael wrote about being on safari and he and his PH came across a pair of big Cape buffalo. He shot and killed both with one shot to each buffalo. I am not saying that is the reason to use a 338 just repeating Jim’s story.

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

What length barrel ? I bought my first .35 Whelen in 1992 and have hunted with it ever since. For the past 30ish years my load was a 250 grain Nosler partition at 2530ish FPS. I have killed moose to 400 yards with this load. I recently decided to try the CFE223 powder I have been reading so much about. With a 225 TSX I am right at 2690 FPS with 66 g CFE223. In Remington brass this is a slightly compressed load, and pressure about as far as I want to push it. I have a 22 inch barrel. To get another 200 FPS I would need a fair bit longer barrel. I am happy with this load, accuracy is spectacular, but I was expecting a bit more velocity before maxing out load from everything I have been reading.

@roklok
I run a 25" barrel. Those Barnes bullets just don't seem to like CFE 223. Try up to 61 gn of Varget/2208
I use copper atomic 29 projectiles with CFE 223 and get 2,880 fps
Bob

 

[Bob Nelson 35Whelen]

Thanks Bob, those numbers are crazy impressive and put the Whelen hot on the heels of the mighty 375H&H with a standard action and cheap common brass (resized 30/06). The CFE 223 you speak of, is this a Hodgdon powder? Might be a bit hard to find in these parts as we have good access to ADI powders but not much else. I am guessing the burn rate will be in the ADI 2206-2206H range.

Is this load in a very long barrel? I would prefer to keep my barrel length to 22 inches max, if possible, for a scrub gun. Either way any details on your Whelen set up would be greatly appreciated especially if the loads that you have shown aren't raising any pressure issues.

@Michael70
CFE 223 is a Hogdon powder and impossible to get in Australia now as it's no longer imported
When I found it I knew they were not importing it any more so ended up with 20 pounds of it. No one had heard of it so it didn't sell well.
The burn rate is between 2208 and 2209 and can be used in cartridges from 17 REM to 375 H&H.
HOGDON Superformance is another good powder we can't get in Australia anymore as well but I managed to get 5# of it.
Every funshop I went to I bought all the CFE 223 and superformance I could get.
In my sons 308 I get 2,950 fps with 150 grainers and 50gn of CFE 223 as well
Bob