I'm in the process of getting a Weatherby .338 win mag., I’m from South Africa and will be doing most of the hunting here. Any comments on my choice of calibre & rifle? New on this site – very helpful and interesting!!!


ps. what is the origin of the .338 win mag?
montani@telkomsa.net

If it's a Wby. is it a .340 or .338winmag? Either is a superb cartridge for hunting most of Africa. Bullet choice is critical w/ the .340wby if you are hunting typ. veld ranges. 210grNPs @ 3000fps can handle longer shots & 250gr bullets for close in.
Curious why you didn't go .375h&h in Africa since it's DG legal & you are limited to the number of rifles you can own now?

quote:

.375h&h

Got .458mag in the family for DG

I don't know the pricing you find there but I am in the process of ordering a Weatherby Accumark.... My question to this forum was which of the two .338 cartridges they had opinions on.. At this point I am leaning towards the 340... I started looking into a 338 cal rifle earlier this year and finally decided that if it was extra thump I wanted, what better then a Weatherby cartridge...

You will find the non Weatherby cartridges in the Vanguard line from Weatherby... Unless you are ordering custom you won't find .338 win mag chamberings in the Mk V line..

Either way you can't go wrong with one of their stainless models that utilize the composite stock... Very durable for hunting situations.. But let's face it, they don't look as good as the classic Weatherby wood stocks...

Ken....

It is the vanguard – reasonably priced here taking in account the $ to our Rand, the Mark V quite pricy on this side of the Atlantic. Ammo in .338win mag easier to come by. Would reload soon though!!!

The 338 Win mag is simply the 458 Win mag necked down to 338.

I have a ruger stainless laminate .338 win mag and it will put 3 woodleigh 225 gr protected points just under an inch at 100 yards.

I would prefer a Ruger over a Vanguard they are a very tough rifle might be worth checking out, but if your hearts stuck on a vanguard then it will do well to (I like crf rifles).

I would prefer a Ruger over a Vanguard they are a very tough rifle might be worth checking out, but if your hearts stuck on a vanguard then it will do well to (I like crf rifles).[/QUOTE]

with the strick gun laws out here now it is very difficult to get any new guns -options are limited. dealers don't bring many in any more!

The Vanguard is a rifle of reasonably good quality which should give you good service.

The .338 Winchester Magnum was the second in the line of Winchester Magnums and was introduced in the late 1950's. Like the earlier .458 and the later .264 it was based on a .375 H&H case shortened to 2.5" and blown out to a minimum taper with a 25 degree shoulder. Remington beat Winchester at its own game by introducing the 7mm Rem Mag on the identical case. Then Norma one-upped Winchester by appropriating an almost identical case for its .308 & .358 Norma Magnums. So, the 1963 .300 Winchester Magnum used a similar case slightly lengthend to 2.62" to give it a tad more powder capacity and be different from the Norma .30 Magnum.

I've owned both a .340 Wby and several .338's, and shot a friend's wildcat 8mm/.338 extensively. In my opinion there is little to be gained from the larger cases. The regular .338 provides all the steam you can use. My current .338 churns out 2940 fps with a 225 grain Nosler (probably on the fast side for most rifles, but not unusual.) If you want more then go to the .375 or .416 or such.

In North America, the .338 is a favorite for elk, which weigh 600-800 lbs and moose which are even larger. This should make it an excellent round for your larger plains game such as zebra, kudu, and even eland.

I use the 225 Nosler Partition because it shoots well in my gun. It is also a good "all-around" load. But it you want to use the gun for the big stuff, a 250 grain bullet does nicely, while a 200 or 210 grainer is excellent for the lighter plains game.

I have a .338 Win mag in a Browning A-Bolt with a BOSS and I wish I would of gotten one sooner. I don't necessarily mean the Browning as much as the caliber. I've never shot a elk with it but it might sound overgunned for whitetail but

338 WM, Winchester model 70. I spinned a whitetail with it Monday and have taken Eland in RSA - single shot. Giraffe with single shot in Nambia. For Africian game I use barnes 225X or solids in 225 for the little guys i e Orbi etc.

One bullet you should try if they're available to you is a 250gr Woodliegh Weldcore PP. They are great bullets and quite accurate in my rifle pushed with RL22. In fact I have not tried other loadings as I see no need, and I don't have the time right now anyway.

You'll love it! Nate

thanx for all advice

Johanv,The 338 WIN. is A good choice, I have the Ruger 77 MKII, And I like it becuase it is like the Mauser, But the weatherby will be A good one to. I think the 225gr. shoot's the best in that rifle. Have fun with the new rifle.

quote:

Originally posted by BigNate:
One bullet you should try if they're available to you is a 250gr Woodliegh Weldcore PP. They are great bullets and quite accurate in my rifle pushed with RL22. In fact I have not tried other loadings as I see no need, and I don't have the time right now anyway.

You'll love it! Nate

At last found the guy who put me on to the Woodleighs, 5 years ago. Thank you!!! I'm getting 1/2" groups with the 250gr's. If it wasn't for the fact that I cannot leave these things alone I would also leave it at this. But that's not what we do. After 5 years I can now say I'm one of us- a re loader! It took me almost 3 years to get the licence we require for my Weatherby Vanguard. I have taken plenty Impala, kudu, gemsbok (oryx), warthog. Every single animal expired before going 10y.

Cheers
Johan

quote:

Originally posted by BigNate:
One bullet you should try if they're available to you is a 250gr Woodliegh Weldcore PP. They are great bullets and quite accurate in my rifle pushed with RL22. In fact I have not tried other loadings as I see no need, and I don't have the time right now anyway.

You'll love it! Nate

At last found the guy who put me on to the Woodleighs, 5 years ago. Thank you!!! I'm getting 1/2" groups with the 250gr's. If it wasn't for the fact that I cannot leave these things alone I would also leave it at this. But that's not what we do. After 5 years I can now say I'm one of us- a re loader! It took me almost 3 years to get the licence we require for my Weatherby Vanguard. I have taken plenty Impala, kudu, gemsbok (oryx), warthog. Every single animal expired before going 10y.

Cheers
Johan

I've been interested in this cartridge ever since I shot one which belonged to a friend.

What can we expect about barrel life?

I have the 338 RUM and that rifle will shoot a long distence and be right on target.

quote:

Originally posted by Mal911:
I've been interested in this cartridge ever since I shot one which belonged to a friend.

What can we expect about barrel life?

I have set my barrel back to cut a new throat after 500 rounds, and assume I'll do in it again a time or two before the bore wears out.

Thanks for the info, sir.
Barrel wear has been one of my concerns about magnum rounds. Not that these would necessarily be shot a great deal I suppose.

quote:

Originally posted by Johanv:
I'm in the process of getting a Weatherby .338 win mag., I’m from South Africa and will be doing most of the hunting here. Any comments on my choice of calibre & rifle? New on this site – very helpful and interesting!!!


ps. what is the origin of the .338 win mag?
montani@telkomsa.net

You just can't go wromg with the 338WM.

I call it the "30-06 of the 338s".

It is not as flashy as the new fast 338s but it will always get the job done...
Here is the background you ask for

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.338_Winchester_Magnum


T

Johan,

I can't think of a more ideal South African plains game cartridge than the .338 Win Mag. Think of it as a flatter shooting 9.3x62.

With 250gr premiums like Nosler Partitions it should be up to taking eland, blue wildebeest, or kudu from any angle. For more open plains antelope hunting, the 200 to 225gr boattails like accubonds are great when you need to really reach out.

As you mentioned, the .338 Win Mag is MUCH easier to find in your country than the Weatheby round.

I have a 340 and a 338. Both are going to accompany me to Alaska in 3 weeks for a Grizzly hunt.
I have my loads dialed in with the 340;
1) 250 NP at 2950 (chrono) 3" high @100 yards
2) 250 Swift A 2920 (chrono) 2.5" high @ 100 yards
338 WM
1) 250 NP Fed Hi energy 2800 (chrono) 2" high @ 100 yards

All thee loads will shoot 4 shoots into a quarter at 100 yards. Both guns are tweeked.
I will probably take the Weebe as my primary as it has accompanied me on all my past alaskan hunts and use the WM as a spare. Very confident with either.

EZ

The .338 Win Mag can be superbly accurate. My pre64 based practical custom does 2" at 300 yards with 335 gr Barnes Xs.

Has not been to Africa for larger game, but it has been authoritative on anything I've hunted with it.

I have also found the 250 gr Woodleigh PP to be an excellent projectile. For larger game the only performance difference between the two bullets might be better trajectory for the lighter bullet at distance.

quote:

Johanv

My .338WM's have served me well on #4 of the 5 Continent's I've had the opportunity to use them on , including Africa !.

I've used # 4 different brands of bullets Nosler Partition Swift A-Frame Combined Technology Barnes Tipped Triple-Shock 210 225 250 grain nothing heavier .

I recently purchased some Barnes 265 grain for the Lapua and I'm going to load the Win Mag with some and give em a twirl .

quote:

What can we expect about barrel life?

I have worn out two, number 3 has just over 1500 through it and shows only a minimal change in the throat. Barrel life depends on cleaning routine to a degree. My first barrel got about 3500 rounds before accuracy went sideways (with the bullets), The second didn't quite make 3000 because I got a bit more picky about cleaning out the copper and used JB's fairly often. (JB's is a slightly abrasive cleaner, but it does clean them out quickly). This time I have had the barrel Microslicked, and cleaning is very easy and not hard on the barrel. (Microslick is a ceraminc coating a few microns thick which helps prevent copper from embedding itself into the barrel metal, so it is much easier to remove). My cleaning routine is 1.) spray in some general purpose solvent/lubricant to start disolving the powder residue, patch out, repeat twice 2.) spray in some foaming bore cleanser. 3.) leave the gun for 2 hours pointing muzzle down at about 10 degrees. 4.) Repeat 2.) & 3.)but this time when you leave the gun turn it upside down. 5.) Use a few (3 to 5) patches soaked in copper solvent, each followed by a dry patch. 6.) one patch with general pupose slovent/lubricant, followed by a dry patch and you're done. Apart from the 4 hours soaking time this is about 15 minutes of effort and the barrel comes out completely clean, leaving no copper or powder fouling at all. I don't use brushes (bronze or plastic) only cloth patches, so I am expecting this barrel to go for more than 3500 rounds. Time will tell. It will take me probably another year and a half to hit 3500 rounds, so I will report back then in a separate thread.

As brazos said

quote:

I can't think of a more ideal South African plains game cartridge than the .338 Win Mag. Think of it as a flatter shooting 9.3x62.

I've had four 338 WM's and used three extensively in Africa. It takes plains game at most any huntable range authoritatively, as long as load and shooter are accurate. If needed, it does a reasonably impressive job on cape buffalo, too, similar to 375 and 9.3. I recommend the 225 TTSX at 2800fps for general purpose, or the 250 TSX for buffalo. But I would not hesitate to use a 225 TTSX on buffalo, either. (Just have flatnose solids for backup shots at fleeing animals. Yes, sometimes animals move as the first shot breaks and impact is less than optimal.) In SA you can use the GSCustom bullets for even more velocity.

Though I'm partial to the 416 Rigby, the 338 WM is a great calibre for walking the forest.