.338 WinMag

[jvspopeye]

To answer you question, if the bullet is adequately constructed (not one of the "loved" frangible Bullets) , the heavier, slower moving bullet, will "generally" produce "less" damage and bloodshot meat! memtb

Awesome thank you

 

[jvspopeye]

I shot a mule deer behind the shoulder at 100 yds using Hornady 250 gn interbond. Lots of velocity at that range. 4 in exit hole. The deer did a 100 yard death run leaving a huge blood trail in the snow. After that I switched to the 225 gn accubond. I believe the hornady expanded to fast. The 338 wm is a great all around caliber for any animal in north America.

Holy wow! 4 in exit wound....

 

[jvspopeye]

I'm a big fan of the. 338 Win Mag. My favorite hunting load is with a 180gr Nosler Accubond. I have taken everything from Whitetail deer, elk (723 yards) and the Shiris moose you see in my inset, all one shot kills. The Moose was at 347 yards. The speed of the load exceeds 3300fps and is sub MOA. The 723 yard elk kill caused little expansion of the Accubond but it penetrated from the right side into the left shoulder socket and bent about 30 degrees. I wouldn't take another shot at any elk at that distance again but up to 500 yards it performs well. Still take this rifle along with me on hunting trips as a backup. Also load up some 250gr bullets for the long range shots. The. 338 Win Mag, I was told, was the first caliber used in long range competition shooting.

Awesome thank you...Nosler accubond seems like the bullet for deer in 180 gr

 

[Elk Hunter 338]

Awesome thank you...Nosler accubond seems like the bullet for deer in 180 gr

honestly id shoot nothing smaller than the 210

 

[freddiej]

I recently purchased a Ruger Guide Gun in .338 winmag.
I have always hunted deer with either my 7.62 or my 30-06 an ocasionally with my old .300wsm. I always used 180 gr in my 30-06/300 wsm for whitetails, as I found less meat damage than a lesser grain bullet. Of course bullet placement is everything.
My question is this, would my .388 win mag be way to much caliber for Whitetails? Im just curious on whether I should try it out at longer shots. I have used a .300 wsm 180gr bullet in the past and it was fine, but I no longer have that 300wsm. If I do use the new .338 what bullet would you recommend for deer. Most of my shots are anywhere from 50 to 200 yards.
Thank you
Jaime

Jaime, This question is bringing back lots of fond memories of my first centerfire rifle. it was an old pre-64 338 win mag Win m-70.. it was a loner from the ranch I was working at. no one wanted it, except me. we all had our rifles to work with. I loaded 165 grain Barnes X for deer, 225 for tan color faze bear, and 250 for big bears. in those days I shot nothing but 338 Win Mag and nothing but Barnes slugs.. do not ask me why.. The whimsy of youth is all I can say. the 165 grain slugs at 250 yards was to say the least devastating on deer. you hit them in the neck, shoulder, heart/lungs.. they all immediately stopped, fell over dead and hardly twitched. something I happen to like. Never let anyone tell you any differently the 338 Win mag is one of the most versatile rounds on the planet even before they brewed up 300 grain recipes for the case. I have plans to rebarrel my 338 Win Mag to a 1:8" twist barrel so I can shoot everything from 165 to 300 grain slugs. I might just have to buy another 338 W/M to rebarrel that one. since I have a perfectly wonderful Rem 700 in 338 W/M. This time I think I will go back to my roots.. Win M-70 26" 1:8" twist 0.625"-0.650" muzzle, lightweight fiberglass stock, 1-6X32MM Leupold VX6 or 3-15X40MM VX-5HD.

 

[jvspopeye]

Jaime, This question is bringing back lots of fond memories of my first centerfire rifle. it was an old pre-64 338 win mag Win m-70.. it was a loner from the ranch I was working at. no one wanted it, except me. we all had our rifles to work with. I loaded 165 grain Barnes X for deer, 225 for tan color faze bear, and 250 for big bears. in those days I shot nothing but 338 Win Mag and nothing but Barnes slugs.. do not ask me why.. The whimsy of youth is all I can say. the 165 grain slugs at 250 yards was to say the least devastating on deer. you hit them in the neck, shoulder, heart/lungs.. they all immediately stopped, fell over dead and hardly twitched. something I happen to like. Never let anyone tell you any differently the 338 Win mag is one of the most versatile rounds on the planet even before they brewed up 300 grain recipes for the case. I have plans to rebarrel my 338 Win Mag to a 1:8" twist barrel so I can shoot everything from 165 to 300 grain slugs. I might just have to buy another 338 W/M to rebarrel that one. since I have a perfectly wonderful Rem 700 in 338 W/M. This time I think I will go back to my roots.. Win M-70 26" 1:8" twist 0.625"-0.650" muzzle, lightweight fiberglass stock, 1-6X32MM Leupold VX6 or 3-15X40MM VX-5HD.

Thank you. I am overwhelmed with all this great info...I initially was told that 165 gr Barnes TTSX was the load to use for deer, but...I thought to myself...in my old Rem Woodsmaster 30-06, I've always used 180 gr bullets, Remington Core-Lok's, (Cheap ammo that this gun really likes for accuracy ) because it did less damage than the lower grain bullet. At least in comparing similar shots on deer in the past...I guess and correct me if I am wrong, am I better off with a Nosler Accubond tip for deer in this caliber than a Partition tip?...only because bullet retains weight better...correct ? And use heavier grain in 210-225 gr for heavier animals like elk, moose or bear in a Nosler partition...am I rights guys?

 

[Elk Hunter 338]

i would load 225 accubonds for around the course personally .. one and done ..

 

[jvspopeye]

i would load 225 accubonds for around the course personally .. one and done ..

You mean as round to do the job on regardless of the game and distance under 200 yards, am I right?

 

[Elk Hunter 338]

You mean as round to do the job on regardless of the game and distance under 200 yards, am I right?

yessir !!! its the most versatile that ive ever seen in that cartridge

 

[jvspopeye]

yessir !!! its the most versatile that ive ever seen in that cartridge

Thank you

 

[memtb]

You mean as round to do the job on regardless of the game and distance under 200 yards, am I right?

jvspopeye, Other than a preference for a different bullet, we feel the same way......a 225 grain bullet is very hard to beat. A good high BC 225 grain bullet easily makes the .338 WM a 700 yard cartridge (tho my wife's personal limit is 500) with the retained velocity giving ......a relatively flat trajectory, minimal wind drift, and plenty of energy. memtb

 

[jvspopeye]

jvspopeye, Other than a preference for a different bullet, we feel the same way......a 225 grain bullet is very hard to beat. A good high BC 225 grain bullet easily makes the .338 WM a 700 yard cartridge (tho my wife's personal limit is 500) with the retained velocity giving ......a relatively flat trajectory, minimal wind drift, and plenty of energy. memtb

Perfect! Thank you. You guys have been a great help. No one around here uses that caliber...so you guys have been awesome!

 

[memtb]

jvspopeye, I'd just like to praise your wisdom in selecting what, arguably, could be the "best all around" factory cartridge! Ya done good! memtb

 

[jvspopeye]

jvspopeye, I'd just like to praise your wisdom in selecting what, arguably, could be the "best all around" factory cartridge! Ya done good! memtb

Awesome thank you!