Differences in .338 cartridges?

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brokenanew

New member
Once this dry spell begins to dim and gun haters start to crawl back in their holes, I plan to reacquire my interest for a .338.

I'm not overwhelmingly knowledge about this caliber and the cartridges. Help?

What are the different .338 cartridges and differences? Pros and Cons? and any other knowledge you may have on that particular round. Thanks!
 
It'd be easier to start at what you plan to do with it and go from there. The main differences between the various .338 rounds is case capacity/power and length, so it really depends on what your application is.
 
I own and reload for 340WBY, which most would consider extreme.

Some others are 338wm, and the ones that are wildcats should'nt be.

338\08, 338-57, 338-06, 338 RUM, 338Edge, 338 Lapua, 338-378WBY, isn't there a 338 RCM?

I consider the 33's the most efficient caliber hot or not.

In the hot versions no animal on the face of the earth is safe
 
Well, I shoot a .338 Win Mag. The pros are big bullets at pretty good velocity, but more than that, the high BC of many of these bullets allows them to retain a lot of energy downrange. My Savage is fairly light, and while it does get your attention, the rumors of vicious recoil are just that, rumors and exaggeration. Good bullet selection if you load your own. Mine is certainly accurate. If you don't quite need 4,000 ft lb, look at the .338-06. Good reputation, ballistic twin of the .35 Whelan, but more bullets and better BC. If you really want to reach out, the 340 Weatherby is the ticket.
 
mine is 338 Win Mag in a Browning Stainless Stalker with a B.O.S.S. the gun is very accurate...

last year I got a 5 gallon bucket of new nickel Federal 338 Win Mag cases, that had no flash hole, for scrap price... had my buddy with a lathe put flash holes in them all, so I'm set for life with cases, as I already had 250 of them :D... I also happen to have ( likely) a life time supply of LR Magnum primers, that I inherited from my father in law... the bullets are spendy, but as mentioned, they have great potential to transfer energy...

... I also have a Stainless Stalker in 375 H&H... with a 2" shorter barrel, but in penitration tests, side by side with both rifles, with Federal Factory Premium Safari ammo with Trophy Bonded Bear Claws, the 338 was almost unstoppable... much more penitration than the 375 H&H in my informal testing... I'm planning on stretching my range & finding a good 6-800 yard load for the 338 this summer...
 
My purpose is being able to through a heavy round past 1000 yards. Mostly for play but maybe, occasionally for heavy game. I have been looking at the 300 wsm as well but the .338 sounds like so much more fun:D
Theres a
.338 lapua,
.338 Federal
.338 Remington Ultra mag
.338 Norma
.338 Winchester mag
Are there any others? Whats the differences between these?
 
I love the .33 caliber bullets and I have a few .33 caliber rifles after having tried most of the other .33s.

Kind of in order of energy...

.338 Federal is a .308 case necked up to .338 with realistic velcoities in the 2700 fps range for 180s. Equivalnet in enrgey to the .30-06, but with a bigger hole and less recoil.

.338-06 is a .30-06 case necked up to .338 with realistic velocities in the 2750 fps range with 210s. Exceptional accuracy and an good energy increase over the stock .30-06.

Then there are a handful of .338 Magnums based on various cases with various philosophies and a corresponding range of accuracy potential. The .338 Winchester Magnum being the elder stateman and with decent accuracy. The .340 Weatherby also sits here. Most of these are in the 2900 fps range for the 210/225 with a few getting just to 3000 fps. Some, like the .338 RUM, are necked up .300 magnums which keep them for getting much more performance and out of the next paragraph.

After that you move on to the .338 "Supermags". There are a few in this category that are necked down larger magnums getting true hotrod speeds in the 3000+ fps range with 225/250s. The .338-378 Weatherby can touch 3500 fps with the 180s, but the accuracy is poor. The .338 Titan is a personal favorite. The .338 Lapua Magnum is just a shade faster than the normal Magnums with 225s at 3200 fps, but is not belted which aids in accuracy. It also will handle up to 300 grainers with ease placing it in the Supermag category. The .338 LM is a favorit of many long range shooters when they need more than the 6.5s and less than the .41s and .50s.
 
338 MTM is based on 416 Rigby with almost no taper and the necked pushed rediculously forward and a neck roll that is very reminiscent of WBY. It basically used interchangeable data for the .338-378 WBY.
 
Wow really good info. I am looking at a .338 Lapua on a custom built Savage platform. Not sure on the specifics yet but it looks sweet! He is asking $1850 which struck me as low. I don't recall but I don't think a scope is included.

Thoughts?

Im liking the way the Lapua sounds at this point.
 
Savage is making a factory tactical 110 in .338 Lapua. $1850 is about right. There are two use them at our range. Very accurate and a nice brake design makes them quite pleasant to shoot.
 
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