Are the .338s becoming pointless?

Just sold off my .338 Lapua and moved over to .338 RUM in a lighter setup. Much cheaper, and I'm not at the fine edge of competition. Besides haven't you heard...the 6.5 Creedmore can circle the planet twice, and give you a high five on it's third interplanetary pass?
 
Small hi performance engines in small cars are fun to drive and have their place in the racing world.
but when you absolutely positively hafta have the win in a no limits competition,,,,,, these words will forever hold true.

THERE IS NO REPLACEMENT FOR DISPLACEMENT.

and
THERES NO SUBSTITUTE FOR CUBIC INCHES.

I believe this theory holds true in shooting also.
 
I appreciate this forum because of the information and advice offered. The preceding posts validate that.
I consider the OP as a curiosity best answered by getting one. You'll probably really like the caliber. Whether you're capable or not is another story.
If you're looking to 375, 408, or 416 for long range guns, sell a kidney. Any of those three are built off cartridges where the action alone is ~$2K.

I remember asking the same questions about 338LM back in 2010, before I contracted the wildcat fever.
In short answer, it can be pointless, if you load it with 225 RN or Woodleigh solids.
IIRC, 338LM was being pushed as the ideal long range cartridge. Noise was just starting about the 6.5 Creedmoor.
I drank the Koolaid and bought a 338 LM. It delivers on it's promise. In hunting rifle carry weight (< 8 lbs ), I would not use one for ELR hunting for shots beyond 600 yards. Because of the recoil, for longer shots, you need heavier.
I have wildcats in 338 (Edge), 7mm and 6.5. All serve an intended purpose for different ranges.
There is no "catch-all" cartridge, but I would say plenty of people make the 6.5 Swede, 7mm-08, 7 Rem Mag and 30-06 look like they will do 90% or better of most any hunter's needs.
The sad thing is, there are not enough places where one can go out and shoot 1,000 yards for practice.

3000' mountains of the Oregon south coast....... in 40deg rain....
With the rain coming down in buckets, sideways, at 30mph. Been caught in that in the mountains above Reedsport. People in Oregon look at you funny when you wear an Aussie cowboy oil coat - maybe it's a side effect of the Matrix movie series. BUT, wearing one, in said storms, you will be warm and dry - better than any foul weather gear I've ever had.
 
Not looking to offend or claim they're not effective, BUT...it used to be that the .338 lapua was regarded as in a league apart compared to .300 and 7mms because of the bcs on the 338 bullets. Now this is definitely a thing of the past, with high .7 and even .8 range g1 bc 7mm and .308" bullets that can be driven faster all things equal For true extreme range the big .375s are dominant. For tactical purposes all of the above are way more than adequate antipersonell rounds, body armour or not. None of the above are truly suitable anti material caliber. The way it seems now is that the .33s don't have an advantage over the 7 and 30 trajectory wise and can't match the 375s out of similar size rifles. Nothing wrong with .338 cartridges but not a whole lot I see that would make me choose one with things as they are now. Show me if I'm wrong!

I tend to hunt elk in heavy timber, max range is 300 yds in the sub-alpine parks, most shots are taken within 50 to 75 yds. A 338 Win is fine.
 
To put it politely: I call 'bs' on that!
I've been hunting (aswell as gunmaking) for over 44 yrs and have built, owned and used most calibers under the sun. However: my most used go to calibers have always been in some kind of 6.5 bore during my approx. 23 yrs of living, working and hunting in NZ's South Island; where, depending on weather conditions; we literally tried hunting each weekend! Sometimes we even hunted several times a week, when the weather had been bad for weeks in a row and not ideal for hunting! Doing this we tend to shoot loads of reds & elk: more then likely some of us were shooting more in one or two yrs, then most of you are able to shoot in a lifetime! My observation: granted, most shots were short range bush-hunting shots, with the odd one over longer distances; the first one not dying instantly on the spot or running away still has to occur! My advice; teach your hunters proper distance, proper shot placement and using the right bullets for the job! Although I've moved on from NZ some a decade and a half ago and live since in 🇨🇦: back then in NZ, I also helped out with guiding at times whenever the gunwork was slowing down during NZ's Winters. This where mostly US, Australian & the odd Canadian clients arriving with big bore magnums! Frankly; I've never observed more chances missed, animals missed, animals wounded & running off to be tracked later with dogs and some, not all to be recovered at these times then on any occasions before! So you tell me, what conclusion should I need to draw from this? From experience I know the 6.5's are very capable and 135 yrs generation of Scandic hunters would agree with me and any caliber from .223 & up are very capable in the right hands, the right situation, using the right load combination and using common sense! Yes, bigger bores produce bigger holes, but they don't necessarily makeup for better killing-power! With that kind of logic one would also have to assume that the US military & Nato must have really screwed up big time back then, by adapting a .223 bore size, right?
I don't have time to comment on everything you said so I'll address the "I call bs". I'm sorry that you are disappointed by my experience but it is actual Real life experience with the 6.5 Creedmoor whether you like it or not. I didn't address any other 6.5 cartridge; The 6.5-284, 6.5 Saum, 6.5 PRC 6.5 Sherman etc... are much different and I'm sure more capable of creating the hydrostatic shock and wounding that Is needed to drop animals in their tracks. I don't have experience shooting animals with those so I can't speak about them. I have plenty of experience shooting deer and antelope with the 6.5creedmoor and it's cousin the 6.5-47 lapua. And I'm done shooting big game with them. I have a 6.5 saum and a 6.5 PRC that I will hunt deer and antelope with but not the creedmoor. A little extra recoil is worth it for a clean fast kill.
 
Mr 300 Dakota
I came within a hairs breath of buying on of them, but had a 338 RUM built instead
still think a 300 Dakota is a niffty gun and cartridge. 👍
 
Each cartridge has it's place. one is no better than the other if used under the right circumstance.

A 338 would not be usable for squirrel hunting just like a 22 Long rifle would not be recommended for elk. the 338 is at home and in it's element hunting elk size game at distances beyond the range of many smaller cartridges. the problem with bigger cartridges/diameter bullets, is that most people cant take advantage of the extra range while hunting. so they are not used to there limit.

No matter how good the BC"s are or how much downrange energy a cartridge has, you still have to place the shot where it counts. If you are shooting at steel then it doesn't matter what cartridge you are using as long as you ring the steel.

In my opinion, there are no obsolete cartridges. Just the ones that are used improperly and to much is expected of them. To much emphasis is placed on BC's and velocity instead of performance for the intended and proper use. Shot placement and shooter skill is still the most important thing in my opinion, and the proper choice of weapons for the intended use.

Tell someone that their favorite rifle/cartridge is obsolete, and they will tell you how wrong you are because they have had nothing but success with it. :)

J E CUSTOM
I have 3 rifles that cover everything I hunt or will hunt in North America. The 243 Winchester, 308 Winchester and 338 Winchester Magnum. These 3 cover bullet weights from 55 grain to 300 grain, that's quite a spread and in their respective classes each one does well. There are better and worse in each caliber but these 3 are easy to find ammo for, at reasonable prices and easy to reload. What else can you ask from a rifle? I have no desire to hunt Africa so the 338 Wm is plenty for me and if I do want to go heavier I have the 458 SOCOM to play with. While only a 150 to 200 yard gun it can throw up to 600 grain bullets on an AR 15 platform. Maybe not necessary but it sure has the cool factor going for it!
 
20yrs ago, David Tubb did his One Mile Rifle video. 6.5-20x Leupold teamed with a 6.5/284. Seems like he was shooting the 142gr smk or maybe it was developed later? Point is there are plenty of smaller caliber ctgs capable of longrange precision. Plenty more hotrod ctgs have been brought to fruition.

If you're a Hobbyist, the fun is in chasing all the new "developments". Yet, there is no such thing as free lunch. The smaller cals are all barrel-burners; have to be to get the velocity to cover the distance. Smaller bore diameters ("calibers") are touted to bridge the weight gap and perform through use of specialty bullets. Probably, they "work" more often than not. Yet, there is no completely reliable substitute for large diameter and bullet weight combined with proper placement.

While there are some great match and hunting bullets made for the smaller bores, the .338 simply has greater weight range and performance capability. In the past 15yrs, this bore diameter ("caliber") has come even further into its own with greatly increased bullet selection. After all, shooting is all about ammunition characteristics and bullet placement. Kind of like how playing the piano is all about striking the right key at the right moment to make a melody...

In my observation, ctg company designers aside from the Dakota ctg series, have never gotten it "right". The .338win mag was very often necked-down to .30cal to great result by early longrange competitors. Necking-up the .300win mag ctg to .338 produced the finest all-around .338ctg I've ever tried; although necking-down the .375ruger is very intriguing to me these days.

The .338/300win mag is right there in performance range of the .338dakota and .340wby. With a 40deg shoulder it might gain enough to get into RUM and Lap performance territory. A .338/375ruger would, very likely; yet still operate through a standard long action with .535" boltface.

Going with the .338/300win over the years, I chose the .30-06ackley instead of any .30magnum. It is a great performer with the heavy bullets I favor where I live in Alaska.

2mi shooting seems to be the province of the .50bmg, really a crew served weapon even when configured as a bolt or semi-auto rifle. I have owned rifles in the 18lb range configured with great glass for longrange precision, and several large .378wby variants, couple of RUMs, and a Lapua magnum. Gave them all up about 10yrs ago.

The .338cal rifle has the ideal bullet weight range for my situation, even when it comes to cast bullets. I also own a .338-06ai which enables .338win performance, but with 5rd capacity and greater loading versatility. Ammunition versatility is something lacking with most magnums, although I begain finding loads for my .338/300 18yrs ago by using .338win data. I found I could get close to Dakota/Wby loads using 250gr btsp Sierras. That is about 13gr of charge weight variance using xmr4350.

With a quality scope and reticle matched e&w it's a pretty capable combination. Not a 2mi rifle, for sure; but who's judging the wind over there in the next county before taking their shot? Maybe on some rifle range with kestrels located at every 50yds to the target and bluetooth linked to your ballistic app or laptop? If your game is small groups at great distance, have at it... Of course, my idea of golfing would be shooting golfballs with a rifle trying to chip them into the hole. That might be fun.

The old adage is "beware the man who owns only one rifle". I never had the will resist owning many friendly firearms, but if I only owned one, it would be a .338
 
20yrs ago, David Tubb did his One Mile Rifle video. 6.5-20x Leupold teamed with a 6.5/284. Seems like he was shooting the 142gr smk or maybe it was developed later? Point is there are plenty of smaller caliber ctgs capable of longrange precision. Plenty more hotrod ctgs have been brought to fruition.

If you're a Hobbyist, the fun is in chasing all the new "developments". Yet, there is no such thing as free lunch. The smaller cals are all barrel-burners; have to be to get the velocity to cover the distance. Smaller bore diameters ("calibers") are touted to bridge the weight gap and perform through use of specialty bullets. Probably, they "work" more often than not. Yet, there is no completely reliable substitute for large diameter and bullet weight combined with proper placement.

While there are some great match and hunting bullets made for the smaller bores, the .338 simply has greater weight range and performance capability. In the past 15yrs, this bore diameter ("caliber") has come even further into its own with greatly increased bullet selection. After all, shooting is all about ammunition characteristics and bullet placement. Kind of like how playing the piano is all about striking the right key at the right moment to make a melody...

In my observation, ctg company designers aside from the Dakota ctg series, have never gotten it "right". The .338win mag was very often necked-down to .30cal to great result by early longrange competitors. Necking-up the .300win mag ctg to .338 produced the finest all-around .338ctg I've ever tried; although necking-down the .375ruger is very intriguing to me these days.

The .338/300win mag is right there in performance range of the .338dakota and .340wby. With a 40deg shoulder it might gain enough to get into RUM and Lap performance territory. A .338/375ruger would, very likely; yet still operate through a standard long action with .535" boltface.

Going with the .338/300win over the years, I chose the .30-06ackley instead of any .30magnum. It is a great performer with the heavy bullets I favor where I live in Alaska.

2mi shooting seems to be the province of the .50bmg, really a crew served weapon even when configured as a bolt or semi-auto rifle. I have owned rifles in the 18lb range configured with great glass for longrange precision, and several large .378wby variants, couple of RUMs, and a Lapua magnum. Gave them all up about 10yrs ago.

The .338cal rifle has the ideal bullet weight range for my situation, even when it comes to cast bullets. I also own a .338-06ai which enables .338win performance, but with 5rd capacity and greater loading versatility. Ammunition versatility is something lacking with most magnums, although I begain finding loads for my .338/300 18yrs ago by using .338win data. I found I could get close to Dakota/Wby loads using 250gr btsp Sierras. That is about 13gr of charge weight variance using xmr4350.

With a quality scope and reticle matched e&w it's a pretty capable combination. Not a 2mi rifle, for sure; but who's judging the wind over there in the next county before taking their shot? Maybe on some rifle range with kestrels located at every 50yds to the target and bluetooth linked to your ballistic app or laptop? If your game is small groups at great distance, have at it... Of course, my idea of golfing would be shooting golfballs with a rifle trying to chip them into the hole. That might be fun.

The old adage is "beware the man who owns only one rifle". I never had the will resist owning many friendly firearms, but if I only owned one, it would be a .338
I guess whatever turns you on, we each have our own experiences! If it was during a SHF situation and I would have only have the one option to pick, then mine would be the venerable.22LR!
 
Hammer hunters and many others at high bc with tons of what actually counts at long range "ENERGY"
 

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Aw crap! News I wasn't aware of! I'll get a list ready, of my .338's and list them for sale so I won't have a bunch of useless rifles. That list will include a 388 Win mag Browning A-bolt, a 340 Weatherby mag, a 338-378 Weatherby mag, and a 338 wildcat based on the .416 Rigby necked down and body taper removed. I guess I need to follow up with an apology to the animals that have expired at the hands of these rifles, including elk, moose, and deer. 😉
I'll do you a favor and take them all for $500.00. I can use the stocks for kindling and I'll find some use for the steel.
 
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