Insight on .338 Caliber choices

[35whelen]

I'm in search of my very first 338. These are the rifle and calibers i have been looking at these for big game.

Mark V WeatherMark 340 WBY
Remington AWR 338 RUM
Nosler M48 Mountain Carbon 33 Nosler
M70 Weather Extreme 338 Win

I'm not very familiar with these calibers so I'm looking for some insight on these calibers.

 

[mtmuley]

.338's are a handful. Do you really need one? I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but with the exception of the Winchester, those cartridges are on the top end of big .338's. But, I would say out of that list, the AWR in the RUM. mtmuley

 

[35whelen]

.338's are a handful. Do you really need one? I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but with the exception of the Winchester, those cartridges are on the top end of big .338's. But, I would say out of that list, the AWR in the RUM. mtmuley

mtmuley i have been looking close at the 300 PRC the last few days.

 

[mtmuley]

mtmuley i have been looking close at the 300 PRC the last few days.

Can't help you there. Been shooting a .300 RUM for 20 years though if you are interested. mtmuley

 

[matt0550]

mtmuley i have been looking close at the 300 PRC the last few days.

300 PRC is a great choice all around. For my money if I were looking at bigger&heavier I'd be looking at the 338 Lapua just for all around value/performance/availability/tunability. Having owned and loaded for several 338's, my best experience has been with the Lapua - best results by far and most consistent tunable loads with a wide variety of bullets.

 

[D4570]

338 Federal, looks kinda cool, little recoil for a 338
https://www.americanhunter.org/articles/2019/3/15/behind-the-bullet-338-federal/

 

[35whelen]

Can't help you there. Been shooting a .300 RUM for 20 years though if you are interested. mtmuley

I just picked up a 300RUM on friday in SPS casue they guy ordered and didn't want and just started to dig into the round

 

[mtmuley]

I just picked up a 300RUM on friday in SPS casue they guy ordered and didn't want and just started to dig into the round

Then you don't need a .338 for anything. Lots of good bullets and new powders. The .300 RUM is a great cartridge. There's a few of us here that use it. PM if you want. mtmuley

 

[matt0550]

Then you don't need a .338 for anything. Lots of good bullets and new powders. The .300 RUM is a great cartridge. There's a few of us here that use it. PM if you want. mtmuley

What he said⬆you dont need either of the other two I spoke of - that 300 RUM will do everything.

 

[justdada]

No advice about the shoulder pain cartridges listed but the 338 rcm is surprisingly fun to shoot...

 

[turbobrick]

I don't know about those calibers, I've heard great things about them though. The 338 that I'm interested in is the new 338 Blackout from Q. I love heavy subsonics, so 300+ grains in a short action sounds great to me. It is similar to 338 Federal ballistics when loaded supersonic, I think I'll have one in a Q Fix if I can afford it.

 

[tzone]

I'm in search of my very first 338. These are the rifle and calibers i have been looking at these for big game.

Mark V WeatherMark 340 WBY
Remington AWR 338 RUM
Nosler M48 Mountain Carbon 33 Nosler
M70 Weather Extreme 338 Win

I'm not very familiar with these calibers so I'm looking for some insight on these calibers.

I'm interested in your thread because I'm looking into my first .338 as well. I have had a few Win M70 Extreme Weathers. They're tanks. But, in this case it may be warranted. A .338 Win Mag seems like a VERY useful round. Almost everyone I've talked to with experience shooting one tells me the recoils isn't as bad as a .300 Win Mag because it's different.

Of your choices listed, I'd pick the M70

 

[Seamaster]

I guess it all depends on your intended purpose for the rifle. If you are interested in a hunting cartridge the 338 WM is a great choice. If you are shooting long ranges or have "tactical" aspirations the Nosler, RUM or Lapua might make sense. I have never figured out a purpose for the 340 Weatherby, but some guys like the cartridge.

 

[elkduds]

.338-06 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Brian in Montana]

I have always found the .338 Federal and .338-06 to be very interesting. Never even shot one, but I kind of have this idea that once I'm done with my .280 AI build, I may look at building a rifle, or rebarreling one to one of those cartridges.

 

[Jc2020]

Can't help you there. Been shooting a .300 RUM for 20 years though if you are interested. mtmuley

How is you barrel life on your 300 rum I’ve heard it’s not very long but wasn’t sure been thinking about getting one my self

 

[cmorsch]

How is you barrel life on your 300 rum I’ve heard it’s not very long but wasn’t sure been thinking about getting one my self

I got 600 rounds out of my last 300 RUM barrel before the accuracy started to fall off.

 

[tzone]

You should get more than that

 

[D4570]

Even at 600 shot life, if you shoot 15 large animals a year and took two shots at each, you're looking at a 20-year life.

 

[cmorsch]

You should get more than that

Not when you are running a 220 gr round at 3250fps. That takes alot of powder to accomplish.