I've a fair amount of experience when it comes to the old 340 (I'm on my 4th tube myself and have worked with about 6 others from other friends).

All of them have been on M70,Mausers and M700's. They all have a good straight stock, and have generally had tubes that go about .67 to .7 at the muzzle.

I've found it to be a wonderful game round, and one the most accurate rounds I've used on the range. If the gun is set up right, and the chamber is cut right (IMO without freebore). The I see no reason whatsoever not to expect the round to really perk. My first tube (most of mine have been Krieger or Schneider) would do 5 of the 250 Hornady's into .75" or less with regularity.

And lastly about tube length, I long ago gave up being stuck on the fact that this or that round had to have such and such a barrel length. To me it is all about the feel of the gun and getting the gun to balance the way that I like.

I've used barrel lengths of between 23" to 26" and the tubes being fairly stout. To me this makes them very user friendly in the field. I mainly like the 23" tube, for what it is worth.

I've also found there to be just less than 100 fps difference between the tubes irregardless of length. That saying, I'd rather carry the shorter tube than one a bit longer for a 100 fps difference. I mean really, none of us can use or tell the difference in the field with the 100 fps difference. So why sweat and worry about it. I do feel that there will some fast tubes and some slower tubes and I also feel that difference can go 100 to 200 fps from time to time. So then again, I come back to building it to fit and feel the way you would like and not worry about a couple of inches of tube one way or another.

Lastly as much as I love the 340 I am with AD about the 338. I feel that it is a better round for 99% of our work and for 99% of our shooters. Brad a buddy of mine from Boze here loves to cut them to 22" and they make wonderful mountain rifles. He's been singin that praise for years and I do believe he is spot on !

Gotta go hope I helped in some way, and didn't just add to the confusion.

"GET TO THE HILL"

Dogz

I am a huge fan of the .338 bore and have owned, loaded for and used 12 rifles in the .338 Win. Mag. during the past 36+ yrs. I prefer it because I have lived and worked alone in Grizzly country in B.C. and Alberta during that time and because I backpack meat in areas where we are experiencing an increase in both lethal and non-lethal human-bear encounters.

I have owned and used a Ruger No. 1, a custom Enfield P-14, two Ruger 77s, two custom Pre-64 Winchesters, a Dakota 76 Classic and five original Pre-64 "Alaskans" in this caliber and shot a number of other rifles in it. I have also shot the .340 Weatherby in both Mark V and Accumark rifles.

I am not particularly recoil sensitive, although at 57+, I cannot take the pounding I could 15 yrs. ago, but, I find the .340 Weatherby to be an unpleasant rifle to shoot due to it's recoil, more so than any of my .375H&H rifles. This is subjective, IMO, and I think that a person should try to test a few rifles at the bench and from field positions and then buy what works best for you.

I have not shot nearly as much game as many of the posters on this forum, but, I have shot enough and seen enough shot, including Moose, Elk and Grizzlies, that I honestly doubt that any .338 cartridge available is superior to the Winny under North American field conditions. I find that a 250 Nosler PT. started at 2700+ tends to make animals drop like rocks and stay where they land, period.

But, if a person likes a .340. and a lot of guys do, I think that he should have one. I would like to own a German Mark V with a Canjar trigger, "Europa" sights and a "Micky" stock and may, someday....one can never have too many .338s! I have five, at present.

As far as I'm concerned, that big, heavy 250 gr. bullet @ 2700 fps. is what the .338's all about. I prefer the 250 gr. Nosler Partition in my .338 Win. Mag. as well.......

AD

RyanSmith

No good plug for the 340Wby should overlook the 338 Ultra.
The Ultra is more accurate (on average), is faster, and the brass is cheaper.

Velocity gains are something each individual hunter must sort out on his own.
Increased recoil resulting from higher velocity also must be factored. The ability to translate higher velocity and increased recoil into greater effective range is the hunter's challenge.

It can be done... but not by many.

As others have said, the 338 Win. is the 95% solution for 99% of all hunters. Inside 300 yards the faster cartridges offer no advantage.

I wish you luck!

Jamie

RyanSmith ----- I am a fan of the .340 Wby. I have two, both have brakes. I have taken many Elk, Deer, and a huge Alaskan Yukon Moose with mine. A 240 grain North Fork bullet is my number one bullet, followed by 250 grain Nosler Partitions or Partition Golds, and Barnes 225 grain XLC. I also have a .338 Lapua with a brake that my 14 year old grandson took to Colorado this past fall and got his first Elk. He is 6'2" and 170 pounds and had no trouble with the recoil. He shot the .340's before deciding on the Lapua, the deciding factor being the difference in scopes. He fell in love with the 4.5 X 14 Ziess Conquest on the Lapua and could shoot it with .5 inch groups at 100 yards. The loads were all North Fork 240 grain bullets at 3100 for the Lapua and 3000 fps for the .340's. In my opinion the fast .338 chambering really shine when using the heavy for caliber bullets. The fast .30 cals will shoot the 200 grain range of bullets at good speeds, but the fast .338's will step the larger bullets on out there at a clip that the trajectories are still very flat. Good luck and good shooting.