Finally finished my 338 RUM

[Timber338]

The 225 is also an Accubond. I've shot a lot of elk with that bullet with excellent results.

With the 338 RUM I finally have enough horsepower to drive the 300 Accubond to a reasonable speed ... but I feel like 2778 fps is right on the edge where the faster and flatter 225 is worth considering.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

How's the recoil ? I'm considering my next rifle to be a 338 Edge or Lapua

 

[Timber338]

How's the recoil ? I'm considering my next rifle to be a 338 Edge or Lapua

When I shoot the 225's the recoil is very mild. Obviously because of the 4-port muscle brake. Now that I'm shooting the 300's they certainly get your attention. To spot my shots I need to hold the forearm. But it's still not too bad.

Without a brake I think either bullet would produce more recoil than I would care to deal with. Of course keep in mind this is a 9.5 lb rifle.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

Sounds like a fun rifle to shoot.. BTW my 7mm rem mag weighs 9.5. Your rifle is light for the caliber.. most of the research I'm doing shows those large mags well over 11.5 with scope

 

[Timber338]

Sounds like a fun rifle to shoot.. BTW my 7mm rem mag weighs 9.5. Your rifle is light for the caliber.. most of the research I'm doing shows those large mags well over 11.5 with scope

I think this is interesting to discuss and you are right especially when you are researching here in this LRH forum... everybody is trying to maximize the long range capability of their rifles. Any cartridge for a dedicated LR rifle is typically setup heavier than my 338.

I look at it like this: my rifle is light for the capability of the cartridge... any of the big boomer 338 cases have the capability of pushing the 300 grain bullet to extreme long range with enough energy to kill an elk.

That was simply not my goal for this rifle. I wanted an absolute hammer out to the distances that I personally would shoot an elk/bear/etc, I wanted a lighter rifle because I backpack hunt, and I love 338's.

Since I was not going to maximize every ounce of range capability I did not need an edge or a lapua or anthing bigger, while the win mag case just isn't enough... so I chose the 338 RUM pretty easily.

Overall I didn't think this rifle would be all that interesting to a lot of people here because it's just not going to kill elk at the ranges that those big sexy rifles are going to reach out to. But with a 300 accubond holding enough velocity out to about 1200 yards, this rifle just fits me perfectly.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

With that said I rarely have been presented a shot over 850 .. That's why I built out a 7mm rem mag knowing that I can drive a tac at 750 comfy and stop a elk or Muley.. But as I read forums and threads I see most of these guys are trying to shoot past normal limits ..

I'm looking forward to your post after this season to see what range you reach out and touch a elk at. I see so many post with pat of 1300 - 1500 and i say wow I never see that When I'm on the mountain



I'm also looking at a big mag but I'm not decided on which caliber yours in the running along with the 338 edge

 

[HARPERC]

We've used the 225 Accubond since it came out. Running hard, up close, on deer, at bad angles, we have recovered a couple. Devastating on deer and antelope though. It will work fine for you.

Try the 180's, at about 3500fps for a tough to beat squirrel load to about 600 yards.

Have fun!

 

[D.Camilleri]

Nice gun, got to love the 338 rum! I have been shooting mine since 2002 and it is a hammer. It doesn't give up squat to the edge or lapua in standard versions. I have been shooting the 300 gr berger tactical for about 4 years now and it is hard to get out of the super fast flat shooting feeling, but it is so repeatable and an absolute hammer at extended ranges. I have killed lots of animals with the 225 accubond and it is still one of my favorites. Right now all of my loads are with H-1000, but I have wanted to give RL33 a try just to see if I am leaving some velocity on the table. I also loaded the 225's with RL25 with excellent results, but didn't like the fact that it lost about 1 fps for every degree of temp drop.

 

[Timber338]

Nice gun, got to love the 338 rum! I have been shooting mine since 2002 and it is a hammer. It doesn't give up squat to the edge or lapua in standard versions. I have been shooting the 300 gr berger tactical for about 4 years now and it is hard to get out of the super fast flat shooting feeling, but it is so repeatable and an absolute hammer at extended ranges. I have killed lots of animals with the 225 accubond and it is still one of my favorites. Right now all of my loads are with H-1000, but I have wanted to give RL33 a try just to see if I am leaving some velocity on the table. I also loaded the 225's with RL25 with excellent results, but didn't like the fact that it lost about 1 fps for every degree of temp drop.

Good to hear you really like the 300 grain. Also looks like your 27" Broughton is considerably faster than my 27" Hart... I was over 3200 fps with the 225 Accubond with H-1000 but the accuracy was best at 3140.

With RL33 I could push the 300 Accubond up to 2850 without pressure signs, but accuracy is at 2780. You might pick up a bit of velocity with RL33, but already being at 2830 fps you already have a dandy of a load!

 

[D.Camilleri]

Good to hear you really like the 300 grain. Also looks like your 27" Broughton is considerably faster than my 27" Hart... I was over 3200 fps with the 225 Accubond with H-1000 but the accuracy was best at 3140.

With RL33 I could push the 300 Accubond up to 2850 without pressure signs, but accuracy is at 2780. You might pick up a bit of velocity with RL33, but already being at 2830 fps you already have a dandy of a load!

Chronographs lie. When I finally broke down and bought a G7 rangefinder last year, I found out that my velocity on the 300 grain bergers is in the 2750 range with excellent accuracy and it matches the drops out pretty far. I don't believe any of my chronographs anymore however my old pro chrono is more accurate than the new beta chrony that I bought. Once the drop matches the G7, I just dial and whack um.