Interesting info on the pressure. I usually load 250 Noslers at 28 and the 300 gr. Woodleighs at 2600. I have Chronoed the 250s at 2965 with no signs of pressure but never really new what it might be. Good info.

Gentlemen

The 338 caliber is spectacular on everyting from White tail to brown bear, moose and African plains game. I had two 338 win and hunted with a 340 and will get a 330 caliber again. I think the most sane round in the caliber is 338 win, 330 dakota and 340 wby. A 250 grain 338 cal bulllet around 2850-3000 is the real deal..

Still, I wonder why the very nicely deigned imperial magnums died soo quickly, the canucks had the right consept. I would much rather get a wildcat like 338.404 or 33G&A than a RUM since the brass is rebated and the quality sucks

/ JOHAN

Johan-The imperial mags also had a rebated rim.I own one in 7mmimperial magnum so I am sure of this fact.The imperial brass was also very soft preventing these rounds from being loaded to their potential.As for the overall dimensions the imperial mags and ultramags are very close.I have two 300ultramags and brass quality has not been a problem.I have owned both the 300wby and two 300ultramags and prefer the ultramags.I would choose the 338 ultramag over the 340weatherby anytime.

I own a .338 Win. Mag., which D'Arcy built for me with a 24" Kreiger barrel.......


Allen Day: That's my dream rifle!!

X-Man and D'Arcy -- All I can say is try the 240 grain North Fork bullet. I load and shoot this bullet weekly to 3000 fps and have no signs of pressure. Use the instructions that come with the bullets. I shoot two .340's, a Weatherby sporter model with freebore and a Sako without. Don't relate the Noslers, Swift A-Frames, Barnes to the North Forks, they don't load are shoot the same. After shooting them, come on back with results. Good shooting.

All that talk of a 338-06 had me thinking: 9.3X62 anyone?

Up here (Canada) IMO the only all around cal. is a 33,the 338 is OK but it has a short neck the 340 is better and was made in LH (Weatherby)I have used this gun for over 20 years and it is the best.It has all the power needed, mine is accurate 3/4" @ 200 the recoil well you don't want to shoot 50 rounds over a bench (20 no problem)any game shot at,one shot.
If you want to shoot of the bench get a 308 if you want the the best hunting rifle for game up to Grizz. get a 340.
250 gr. bullets at 2900ft/sec lets me reload the Weatherby cases up to 10 times.

Regards Martin

Stubblejumper,I have one of the 1999 actions on order the plan is to have it chambered to the 360 Imp. found some dies ,bought some 375 ultra mag brass run it through the dies seems to work fine.
Bill Leeper found a smith in BC that still has the reamer.
Just wish the would make a heavyer bullet than the 250.
Anyway it will be fun .
Regards Martin

If you go with a 338/06, ( I own two 338s, but quit using them when I built the 338/06, Model 70 action).

An overlooked powder that I found from an old reload source was H 380. It gives real good velocity and lower pressure. I have used most of the popular powders, but H 380 gave me the best of accuracy and velocity.

With a 250 grain Hornady bullet, 60 grains give me 2600 fps in a 24 inch barrel and 63 grains gave me 2700. Both worked so well, I just quit looking after that.

Recoil is noticably more than an '06 with this load, but noticably less than a 338 mag.

Topped it off with a Leupold 2 x 7 Shotgun scope and its off to the woods.

Phurley
Like I said before I don't doubt the velocity you are getting. Your gun or brass may not show the evidence of high pressure, but I assure you it is all there. Find someone with pressure testing equipment and have them test your gun and load combination. You are in for a surprise.

AK GEO
As many others have said on this post I would recomend the 338 Winchester. I have or have had every .338 chamber out there. The 338 Win. has all of the killing power of the bigger chambers, is flat enough shooting for 99.99% of shots at game, and most important it is much easier to shoot accurately than the 340 and its kin.
From the 340 and on up in power you pay a large price in shootability and get a small gain in useable range.

Why do you think some guys describe the recoil of their 340 in terms of a 458? The short answere is that these guys nervous systems are not happy with the gun.

To a dedicated big bore shooter the recoil of a 340 is mild. This mental control takes a lot of focused practise and does not occur overnight. This is not a tough guy thing this is a practice thing.

If you buy a 338 Win you can always have it chambered to 340 or larger when you feel you are ready for it.

I wish you luck!
Jamie