So last year I picked up M-97 Dakota for cheap. It is chambered in .330. The .330 wouldn't have been my first choice but the price was way right.

I've been playing with this rifle and have settled on a .225 gr Interbond @ about 3,000 FPS. The rifle is DEADLY Scary accurate, (after a bedding job and a recrown), I like the round it's obviously a capable killer but in my honest opinion I don't think that the minimal gains in performance are worth the extra cost in brass over a stock standard .338 Win.

I am gong to hang on to it as I never get rid of a rifle that shoots like this thing does. If I had it to do all over again I'd have just bought a new M-70 in .338 and called it good.

For what it's worth...

Happy new year guys!

At this point i wouldent get rid of it either, and i would be stocking up on brass. Im guessing 3000 fps is giving you a little felt recoil.

If you bought it for a hunting rifle I doubt you would wear your brass out any time soon. If it shoots that good it's a keeper.

surestrike The 330 Dakota is a pretty serious hunting rifle. I'm gl;ad to hear you are happy with the way it shoots. The only problem seems to be the price of the brass. If you buy up even a hundred brass (200 would be better)you have a lot of hunting ahead of you before you wear out that brass. If you factor in a few out of state tags, plane tickets, guides etc the price of that brass is pretty small. Good luck hunting with that rifle.

I've owned both and I'll take the 330 Dakota...it does great with 250gr slugs...+100 fps over the 338 W.

I beleive this is all wrong. Scarse brass, little factory ammo,too much recoil--I would sell it immediately
(when and where? )


Seriously sounds like a super rifle in a very interesting Cartridge Have fun and happy hunting

SSR

I agree with bobgrow, the bigger cases don't really have a huge advantage over the 338 win until you get into the heavies.

Got any Pics of the rifle?

I'll take some and post them. When I say this thing is scary accurate I've shot several sub 3" 3 shot groups at 400 yards with this rifle.

A fluke? Maybe once, maybe twice but I've done it now three times on a calm day when I'm shooting well.

The rifle is super capable the shooter (me) is not always that sharp!

I've got it topped with a Burris 6x 2X12. I didn't get a chance to elk hunt this year but I plan on smoking one with it next year for sure.

I also have a .330 Dakota and have pretty much settled on 225gr Nosler Accubonds and 225gr Northforks both at 3000fps. I have also used the 250gr Nosler Partiton at 2850fps. Mine also thinks it is a sniper rifle.....one of the most accurate rifles I own.

surestrike : Sounds sad that you had to have a bedding job done on a rifle that had a out the door cost of $3500++.

F/A,

When the M-97 first came out, and this is an early one, they were priced at about $1,700 for the basic model with a blind magazine.

The reason I got mine so cheap is that somebody had tried to "fix" it with some sub par back yard bedding work and I did the crown as it had some dings in it. I'm guessing that it was fine from the factory to begin with judging from the other M-97 that I own. The guy who owned it was disgusted with it because he couldn't get it to group. You should have seen the look on his face when I showed him a 5 shot one hole cluster of a group after less than a $150.00 bucks worth of work.

The original "gunsmith" owner had the gun bedded into the stock at an angle with the right side of the barrel hard up against the stock all up the forearm. Which is why I bought it. The flaw in accuracy seemed pretty obvious to me.

I bought it for under a grand. Sometimes when you roll the dice you win. Sometimes you don't. This was a lucky roll.

I like the Dakota designs better than the RUM w/ almost the same performance. Lay in 200rds of brass, probably outlast the bbl. The brass is high quality, I am onto 6 firings on my 7ammDakota w/ little signs of them giving out soon.

The .330Dak. and the .416Dak. really appeal to me and my buddy had a .330 for a little while, but, exchanged it for a custom sts. Mod. 70 built by Dana Campbell in .338RUM.

My four P-64 Alaskans in .338WM will hit 2800 fps-mv with 250s over 76-RE-22 and will shoot this sub-moa. But, the 25" tubes are a little longer than I prefer and my Dakota 76-.338WM at 2735ish is my preference to carry in typical thick BC bush.

I would love to have a .330 on a Dak. 97 action and with a 24" bbl; I would expect to hit 2825 with 250s and would try RE-25 to get there. This is about as "perfect" a combo for BC as one can envision and I would like another lightened Mod. 97 in a 7mm on the .300RCM case to make my ideal pair.

I have a Dakota M-97 in 330 Dak. 24" SS barrel. Bought the barreled M-97 action from Dakota, and had Brown Precision stock it. (Like it so much I even gave it a name - "Earl.") I built it as a handload-only rifle. Earl is accurate, tough, and deadly ... a good Alaskan hunting rifle.

The only thing that pisses me off is that the magazine only holds 2 rounds. That has to be remedied. Haven't found a solution yet, but I'm searching. Otherwise, the rifle is just what I intended and want. It's been the only rifle I've hunted with in the last 8 years.

I had one built on a Commercial Mauser a few years ago. It is one of my most accurate rifles and really likes 250 gr. A-Frames with 4831 SC. I took it with me to RSA last August for plains game and took ten animals with the rifle. Flat shooting, accurate and just hammered whatever I shot with those Swift bullets. I have also used it with 210 gr. TSX's for hogs with great results. I have no complaints.