PC: The 9.3 may be a great cartridge, but rare in Alaska where the toughest US game can be found. In fact you won't find any ammo for it around here. Most hunters up here use the .30-06, .300WM, and .338WM. Even the famous .375H&H is outnumbered (by a wide margin) by any of the three cartridges listed above.



Common cartridges, after those listed above are: The .416's, .458., 300Wby., .340Wby., .338RUM, .308, .270, etc. The 9.3 does not even make the list up here. Well...maybe somebody may have one.

Yes the .338 win probably has the edge in the distance department but it has slightly less frontal area to so make of that what you will.

The cz .300 win uses the 550 magnum action I think, and you would not require that action length for the 9.3 it would be better to convert a cz 550 30/06 or just go and buy a cz 9.3 lux they are for sure nice rifles and come with double cross bolts etc.

I've always thought that the 9.3 has less range than the 338 win???

How much work would it take to convert to one with a CZ 550 in 300 win mag?

Thanks!

Ray,

thanks for that I would have thought the 45/70 would have been a little more popular, I though quite a few 1886 Winnies would have found there way into that country maybe from before the .338 win mag was developed ??

I would love to visit or to live in Alaska for a while.

PC:

There is a following for lever guns such as the .45/70, but for general hunting of Alaska game, must hunters prefer guns with more reach. A .45/70 or similar gun should work very well at close range. For example, the .30-30 is still being used by moose hunters. Lever guns are favored as trail guns; they are lightweight, and travel well in a scabbard or attached to a backpack. But like most hunters up here, I want enough reach from my gun to drop a moose at least 300 yards out without too much bullet drop.

I usually hunt moose in large open fields of spruce and low growth vegetation. The center of one of some of these fields is located approximately 200 yards away. From my vantage points at the outskirts of these fields I have killed moose from 100 to a little over 250 yards, but the first moose I ever killed was shot at 300 yards. I sight my .338 so a 250-grain bullet hits the 200 yard mark in the center, and a 300-yard shot presents no problem with just a little or no compensation, since the bullet drops perhaps 8".

The 9.3-caliber would make an outstanding Alaska gun, but with so many cartridges that are already here and have similar ballistics, coupled to the lack of factory ammo and reloading components, all that creates a steep curb for the 9.3 to climb. For example, bear hunters could use one of several .338's with 250 to 300-grain bullets, or one of the .300's with 200 or 220-grain bullets, .375's with 300-grain bullets, one of the several .416's with 300 to 400-grain bullets, and even the .458 Magnum. There are other cartridges that fill the niche between those I mentioned, but in general, there is a wide range of cartridges that overlap each other's ballistics.

Have you heard of Wild West Guns? Wild West modifies lever guns in numerous ways, and are very well known throughout the US. Take a look at their "Copilot"

http://www.wildwestguns.com/

Reloading is not a problem here since we just go to the store and buy what we need from reloading components to anything one may need, or order it from Cabela's and others. Also, if for whatever reason I can't use my ammo, all I have to do is use some of my hunting partner's handloads, as well as factory ammo, since they too use the same popular cartridges I use. The 9.3 is extremely rare here, and you won't find ammo for it at the stores. If for whatever reason you can't use the "rare" ammo while hunting in a remote location, you may have to use a hunting partner's or the guide's rifle and ammo. Cases like that are not the norm, but every now and then I hear hunters telling how they had to borrow ammo from their hunting partners. Sometimes ammo is dropped in the river, left at home, lost at the airport, etc., and Alaska hunting usually takes place in very remote areas.

Also, keep in mind that those cartridges for which ammo is readily available at the stores are the ones that usually maintain their popularity with hunters, regardless of if hunters reload or not. Perhaps that's the reason why the 9.3 is unknown up here? The following cartridges are the most popular up here:

This is from the NRA's January 2001 issue, American Hunter: "The Alaska Department of Fish & Game hunter safety staff in Anchorage tallied the big game rifles sighted at the Rabbit Creek rifle range for the 1999 hunting season. The top three cartridges were the .30-06 (21%), .300 Win. Magnum (19%), and the .338 Win. Magnum (18%). These were followed by the 7mm Rem. Magnum (9%), .375 H&H Magnum (6%), .270 (6%), .308 (4%), and .300 Wby. Magnum (4%), .45-70 (1%), .280 (1%), and a host of others, including many wildcats. Comparable data are not available for hunters who live in the bush."

Ray,

if your are a reloader though would you be able to get buy if you ordered your components in bulk ??

Are Alaskan folks into reloading, the perception I am getting is that no one in Alaska reloads and that they all shoot factory ammo and if it aint sold as factory ammo no one buys that caliber ??

The .338 Win Mag with a 210 Partition is capable of a 400 yd. shot on an elk if the hunter is skilled and experienced at that range. How would the 9.3 x 62 compare in velocity, effective range & energy versus the .338 Win Mag? With like rifles and comparable loads as possible, how would they compare in recoil?

Thanks,

C-ROY

C-ROY



I don't know about the ballistics for the 9.3, but the following trajectories from the two fastest .338 factory loads are as follows:



Federal 225-grain TB-HE, rifle sighted +1.7" at 100 yards

Muzzle = 2940 fps/over 4320 foot-pound

100 yards = 2690 fps / 3610 foot-pound

200 yards = 2450 fps / 3000 foot-pound, bullet drop = 0.0"

300 yards = 2230 fps / 2475 foot-pound, bullet drop = -7.5"

400 yards = 2010 fps / 2025 foot-pound, bullet drop = -22.0"



Some handloaders are getting from 2900 fps to 3000 fps with 210-grain bullets.

-------------

250-grain NOS HE (Federal), rifle sighted +1.8" at 100 yards.

Muzzle = 2800 fps / over 4350 foot-pound

100 yards = 2610 fps / 3775 foot-pound

200 yards = 2420 fps / 3260 foot-pound, bullet drop = 0.0"

300 yards = 2250 fps / 2805 foot-pound, bullet drop = -7.8"

400 yards = 2080 fps / 2395 foot-pound, bullet drop = -22.5"



You will notice that the 250 grainer hits the target at 400 yards with more authority, and hardly any difference in trajectory. If the two bullets were of the same design and shape, they would be even closer at 400 yards. At the beginning, the lighter one is much faster, but the heavier one has a greater ability to maintain its speed a little longer, somewhere from around 300 yards to 500.



An interesting point about .33-caliber bullets is their great SD. For example, the SD of a 250-grain bullet = .313, and a little higher with 275-grain A-Frame, and higher with the 300-grain Woodleigh. The high SD helps the bullet penetrate deeper.