The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Rifles Medium Bore Rifles 8x57mm Vs .318 WRGo | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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Is there enough difference in the rounds to justify a custom Lothar Walther barrel in .318 WR over the 8x57mm? I guess I mean performance wise since everything about the .318 is not easy? Maybe it is just my nostalgia but having .318 Westley Richards Accelerated Express engraved on a barrel does sound cool as hell | ||
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The 318 is slightly more powerful but if you are reloading the 8x57 to modern pressures (i.e 61000-62000 PSI) in a modern rifle there is not an animal on the planet that can tell the difference of .007 of and inch and 50 grains of bullet weight. And as you say...everything westley richards is a pain in the ass. Now if the cool factor is gonna get you laid, well then that is a different story. Mike Legistine actu quod scripsi? Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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Trying to justify a cartridge by comparing it to a similar cartridge is an exercise in futility, to me. Someone will always make an argument for one of the other, usually based on their own preferences. The real question is: how bad do you want a .318? It is a great and historic round and it, like the 8x57, is very effective when used properly. Me? I have two of them and it is one of my favorite cartridges. Used with 250 gr Woodleigh soft handloads, I found it to be very effective on plains game. It costs a bit more to build one and the bullet selection is fairly limited to basically the Woodleigh 250 softs and solids and the Hornady 205 grain spire point. I am sure someone will say that it is far easier to build a 338/06 and I agree wholeheartedly.... except it is not a .318 WR Accelerated Express! I always say "Dare to be different"! DRSS(We Band of Bubba's Div.) N.R.A (Life) T.S.R.A (Life) D.S.C. | |||
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A 338-06 would be a lot more practical There some one had to say it. | |||
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what's wrong with the 8mm-06? it certainly doesn't do anything the 30 caliber doesn't do but make 200gr. bullets easier to find. | |||
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Good point, trouble is about the only woman I've ever met who might have been impressed batted for the other side. | |||
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Luckily my wife of 31 years likes guns | |||
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My wife of 40 years used my Vickers .318 in TZ. on an impala and promptly informed me it was now her gun! I agreed on the condition that I would build a custom .318 for myself. Everybody was happy! DRSS(We Band of Bubba's Div.) N.R.A (Life) T.S.R.A (Life) D.S.C. | |||
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I think the .318 Westley Richards Accelerated Express may be the coolest cartridge ever developed. The cool factor is enhanced by the beautiful Westley Richards bolt action magazine rifles that chamber this round.  The cool factor is doubly enhanced by the fact that, to keep himself sharp in between elephant safaris, Karamojo Bell used his .318 WR for wingshooting! Mike Wilderness is my cathedral, and hunting is my prayer. | |||
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I have both. The 8x57 is of course "easier" since brass is readily available and relatively cheap. I say that because 318 brass is readily made from 30-06 brass but has to be trimmed just shy of 1/8 of an inch. I hate to trim brass and that much just adds time. Other than trimming it is no more involved than making 338-06. Interestingly, I have brass, bullets and ammo for the 8x57 and have not shot it to this day. It just doesn't really hold any interest. But I don't want to part with it either. Go figure. | |||
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I think calibres like the 318 WR really need to be in the right rifle. Having one in an "ordinary" rifle such as a rebarrel M70 or some basic M98 rifle etc., I think the odd bullet diameter would get tiring. | |||
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Mike, I have to agree wholeheartedly. I get that some folks want a 318 or a 404 or any other nostalgic caliber but to me, something is lost seeing a 404 on a Remington 700. Same thing for synthetic stocks on "nostalgic" calibers. I might disagree a little on the "basic M98" though. For me anyway, something like a 9.3x62 on a synthetic stocked M70 actioned rifle is pointless. | |||
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Exactly! When I think of the “classic” African rounds Like the .404 and .318 it has to be in a Mauser action. | |||
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Like having a Ferrari engine in a F150? 577 BME 3"500 KILL ALL 358 GREMLIN 404-375 *we band of 45-70ers* (Founder) Single Shot Shooters Society S.S.S.S. (Founder) | |||
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The .318 WR is a nostalgic caliber and vastly over rated in that the 30-06 with 220 gr. bullets, the 8x57 with 225 gr. bullets, the 338-06 or the 35 Whelen with heavy bullets all are similar from a practical point of view. Big old slow bullets penetrate like hell, and kill very well at short range.. Ray Atkinson Atkinson Hunting Adventures 10 Ward Lane, Filer, Idaho, 83328 208-731-4120 rayatkinsonhunting@gmail.com | |||
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