This may be a crazy idea?

I have a new MRC short mag action and was planning either a 350 mag or a 338 wsm with a 20-21" barrel.........got to thinking......it sure would be a lot cheaper to buy a 338 win mag and chop the barrel back.........just wondering what the velocity of a 210 partition would be in a 21" barrel???

Probably high enough to suit you, but you may have enough muzzle flash to light a cigar....just a thought

I have a lot of hands on experience with the .338 Win. Mag., it is my favourite cartridge, along with the 9.3x74R.

At present, I have only one short barreled rifle in this caliber, it is a Dakota 76 with a 23" bbl and it gives me just over 2700 fps MV with my load using 250 gr. Nosler Pts.

I would make an educated guess that you could get about 2600 in a 21" bbl. with this and you probably will find that the heavier bullets over slower powders will tend to lose less velocity per inch in a shorter bbl. than will the 210s.

I actually prefer a 23" bbl. in this cartridge and after owning and using 12 .338s from 23"-26" over the past 36 yrs., I cannot see any REAL advantage to the longer bbls.

Actually, I have a savage 111 in 338 right now that is slated for a short bbl. I plan on 19-20". For the most part, the areas I hunt the loss of velocity wont matter much, I'll just work on my loading data.

If I wanted a short barreled thumper, presumably mostly for short to medium range, I would pick the 338-06 over 338 win mag. Ballistics shouldn't be that different and the rifle should hold at least one more round.

I see cutting the barrel on a 338 to 20 inches as an exercise in foolishness...4 extra inches is not much considering the extra velocity, which the 338 needs to be a 338...

If I wanted a carbine, then I would opt for a 9.3x62 or a big bore rifle...but I like the extra barrel length for off hand shooting, they settle down faster and work better with iron sights also..Heck my pocket knife is 4" long.
!!

Had a 22" 338WM and would generate 2920 with IMR 4831 and 210 NP - 2830 with 225 gr Hornady.

But, if I had my choice I would stick with either the 338 WSM or 350 RM in that MRC action - sounds nice

I have a 1933 Mauser "Banner" action and a Brno-ZG-47 action with which I am going to do exactly that, one low comb, peep sighted 9.3x62 and one scope sighted, both with Serengeti full length stocks and 21" bbls.

For a .338-06, I am rebarreling a HVA steel bottom metal action with Brown stock and Wisner safety. This way, I can have a rifle for any conceivable situation as we all know that we "need" a few dozen rifles each.

Even for my .338-06, I want a 23" bbl. as I find it handles well in the thickest bush and definitely is easier to shoot quickly offhand. Maybe a guy needs a quartet of gunbearers to carry a few rifles on each hunt to attain perfection in his choice of rifle for each situation.

Well Ray


Since posting this question, I found out that Charlie Sisk (of Sisk Rifles)has done several "velocity loss" tests including one on a 338 win mag.......

That "4 extra inches is not much considering the extra velocity, which the 338 needs to be a 338..." you speak of amounts to a whole 87 feet per second!

Here are the results straight from Charlie......

Quote:

---

For a long time I have wondered about how barrel length
affected velocity. I had always been told you need a certain
length barrel for certain calibers. I have read when folks
compared one gun to another with different lengths but I
always thought that was not an apples to apples comparision.
So I did a few test myself.
All these were Shilen barrels. I used the same brass through
out the whole test. All weighed to with 1 grain. Bullets
were tested on the Juenke machine. Powder charges were
weighed to .1 grain. The same rest, chronograph, Redding
press, primers all from the same lot, bullets for the same
box, same lathe, same crowning tool, same cutoff tool, and
each rifle done from start to finish on the same day.
Ambient temperature was the same because I shoot from inside
the shop. I held the rifle the same way on the rest every
time. I shot ten rounds first to break in the barrel. Then
cleaned with Sweets and fired one fouling shot. Then shot
five rounds and took the average. I used a midrange load
fron the Nosler book, not too hot but certainly not a
reduced load. Here is what I got.

338 Win mag
Winchester brass
Federal GM215M primers
Reloder 19....73 grains
250 grain Partitions
27 inches.....2806 fps
26 inches.....2787 fps
25 inches.....2761 fps
24 inches.....2743 fps
23 inches.....2716 fps
22 inches.....2697 fps
21 inches.....2676 fps
20 inches.....2656 fps
150 fps from 27 inches to 21 inches

---

Guess my question isn't as foolish as you seem to think! Next question is, can an old dog like you learn a new trick......or will you keep believing what you think you know?

Good idea. Remember, SAKO have two carbines, one in .338 WM and other in .375 H&H. Both with 20" barrels.
I'm like the carbines for hunting in the woods, 18" to 20" barrels. I have four carbines in medium calibers and all are good hunting rifles (range 150 to 200 meters).
Atkinson's idea (9,3x62 Mauser)it's very good too because the relation between the velocity of this caliber (2.300 to 2.700 fts) and the heavy bullets who shoot.
Regards.
H�ctor