Do any of the .338 family of cartridges really contribute anything to field, game, performance in the lower 48? Other than you want it and just got to have it , is there a legitimate reason for the existence of the .338s.
IMHO the 30 calibers do it all plus.
The step up to the .338s would be a real plus for bitting game such as brown bear (Grizzly) but the cartridge and rifle should be capable of yielding perhaps 4000 ft-lbs. of muzzle energy with heavy bullets; again my opinion.
What say you? roger

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:
Do any of the .338 family of cartridges really contribute anything to field, game, performance in the lower 48? Other than you want it and just got to have it , is there a legitimate reason for the existence of the .338s.
IMHO the 30 calibers do it all plus.
The step up to the .338s would be a real plus for bitting game such as brown bear (Grizzly) but the cartridge and rifle should be capable of yielding perhaps 4000 ft-lbs. of muzzle energy with heavy ; again my opinion.
What say you? roger

As far as that goes, there isn't anything a .30 will do that a 7mm can't. I think the .338 has a useful place in the lower 48, if not in the magnum, the -06 version is very versatile with a lot less recoil.

The 30-06 will handle everyuthing that walks on the North American continent.

This would be a sad and pathetic world if we all had to bow to the wishes or concerns of one individual.

I have a 338 RUM and the on game performance has been very impressive! Deer, bear and elk have all been DRT kills. Shot placement is key any my 338 RUM is very accurate.

JD338

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:
Do any of the .338 family of cartridges really contribute anything to field, game, performance in the lower 48? Other than you want it and just got to have it , is there a legitimate reason for the existence of the .338s.
IMHO the 30 calibers do it all plus.

One could just as easily ask:

Do any of the .308 caliber family of cartridges really contribute anything to field, game, performance in the lower 48? Other than you want it and just got to have it, is there a legitimate reason for the existence of the .308s?
IMHO the .338 calibers do it all plus.

The answer to your question is no. W/ that said, I shoot a 338 WM when I Elk and nilgai hunt. It's comforting. I've been fortunate to have killed many nilgai--some w/ an 06 and 7x57, the 338 just seems more "appropriate". It's good to have options, but in reality, not necessary.

quote:

. . . snip . . .
IMHO the 30 calibers do it all plus.. . . snip . . . roger

Well! IMNSHO, arrows do it all, plus!

Al Goerg proved it many times...you don't need no stinking rifle. He kill all manner of game up to and including grizzlies with his tiny handguns...mostly 256 Winchester and smaller...but did cheat with a 44 mag once in awhile. If he could do it why can't you?? Oh, and many were one shot kills! There you have it.

There has to be a reason?

Boy, that's a blast from the past, I recall Al Goerg from Outdoor Life in the late '60s and corresponded with his widow in '69-'70 concerning the purchase of one of the excellent holsters he developed. I had a S&W Mod. 29 on layaway at Vancouver's legendary gun store "Harkley and Haywood" and intended to carry it when working alone on fire lookouts in remote Grizzly country.

College costs made it impossible to buy the pistol and holster and I even had to sell all of my rather fine gun collection, for a 23 year old kid to pay these costs....but, I still remember Al, his stories of places I had worked and his .44 Magnum and holster....ah, to be young again and be smart enough to keep the minty Mannlicher-Schoenauer 1961MCA-6.5x55 (not an error, btw), the pristine Browning Safari Grade in .3006, the out of the box P-64 Alaskan in .338WM and so on....one learns too late!

Whatever was determined about Al's tragic aircrash and death, anyone?

I don’t know if the 338 fill’s a need but what’s wrong with it? Hell the 30 caliber’s aren’t needed either, 6mm would work just fine.

Good topic for people to “talk Smack”.

In the lower 48 I don't believe you "need" a .338, however I own a .338 Win Mag and several rifles larger that may never get out of the lower 48.
Need, want who cares.
I've killed Deer, Elk, Antelope, Bighorn Sheep and Mountain Goat with a 30/06 and never felt I needed more rifle, I have felt many times on Deer and Antelope that an '06 was way more gun than needed but they all died anyways.

Why does our lust for a new rifle and a different calibre have to be driven by "need"? Or have to be justified for that matter?
I want one so I've bought one. Now that I have it, I feel a need to kill something with it. Look out, 100# whitetail.

Yes



SSR

No "need", only a "want". I don't have any .338s but I do have a .35, a .375 and a .45. I do most of my serious hunting with an '06 but don't feel any need to justify the others because I simply want them.

Larry Gibson

quote:

Originally posted by B. L. O'Connor:

quote:

. . . snip . . .
IMHO the 30 calibers do it all plus.. . . snip . . . roger

Well! IMNSHO, arrows do it all, plus!

Perchance; did you have anything to do with Hot Core's conversion to the bow? roger

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:
The 30-06 will handle everyuthing that walks on the North American continent.

This would be a sad and pathetic world if we all had to bow to the wishes or concerns of one individual.

This is North America:


Now is that 30-06 going to be sufficient for Kodiak Bear, Grizzly, Polar bear...when you got one pissed off and charging you from a short distance? What say you now 44 magnum lever man?

Yes, 0.03" diameter and heavier bullets.

The .30-06 WILL quite adequately handle grizzlies, kodiaks, etc. So will some of the less powerful rifles which were commonly used on them before the .338s came along. A fair number of NA dangerous game were done in as dead as dead gets with cartridges such as the 6.5x54 M/S, the .30-40 Krag, the .270 W, and so on, in the first half of the 20th century.

Me? I would prefer a .338 WM for kodiaks, but I'd even more prefer my .404 Jeff.

Need them? Perhaps no, but it's kind of like "Did I need a girl like Brigette Bardot back in her prime"? No...but I wouldn't have kicked her out of my bed if she had hopped in there for the night, either. I did manage to make do with what was available, however .

For the "South 48" I don't elect to use the .338 WM for game animals, but I sure wouldn't feel abused, less manly, or over the top for using one either. It's a nice option to have available. (Might even be preferable for South Phoenix if one could properly line up 3 or 4 of those merciless animals that travel in packs and are REALLY dangerous......)

7x57/.30-06 will work for anything, but I think the .338's are a bit quicker killer on the larger stuff. Alaska, not the 48 states makes it another story.

My .338 WM has filled my need in the lower 48 on lots of animals. It kills deer just as well as it kills eland in Africa. If the by "need" one means it is absolutely necessary, then no one caliber is "needed." For example, in the 1970's, my mother used a .270 Win with Remington core Lokts to take a record book grizzly in Alaska along with moose, elk, and at least a dozen other species of big game. Does that mean that nothing above a .270 is needed for griz? I "need" my .338 becasue I find it very effective and fun to shoot (not so fun from the bench, however). I have even used it on whitetail deer occassionally, not because I needed to, but because it was fun. I usually use a .270 or .308 for deer. Wait a minute..... If my .338 works for deer, then I don't "need" any of the 10 or so smaller calibers I have! I better sell all the them

My guess is that this post was started to initiate good conversation. I "need" lots of different hunting rifles because I want each of them. That's need enough for me. That reminds me, the woodchucks are out - I "NEED" another varmint rifle. The other four or so I have are lonely.

SmokinJ, therte have been plenty of Grizzlies and Kodiaks and Polar Bear killed with '06's and even smaller calibers.

If I remeber correctly Russel Annabell wrote an article for Outdoor life back in the early to mid 60's about a guy killing a pissed off grizzly that had him up a tree with a 22 RF handgun.

People have also killed at least grizzlies and kodiaks with 44 magnum handguns.

The point is, this is one of those pure topics brought up just because someone is bored.

Choice of caliber for a hunting rifle is an Individual concept, not determined by a committee.

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:
Do any of the .338 family of cartridges really contribute anything to field, game, performance in the lower 48? ..

Yes indeed. BIG/HEAVY Bullets Kill amazingly well.

In fact, the only real problem with the 0.338" Bullets is they are even better when they are 0.020" Larger in diameter.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:


The point is, this is one of those pure topics brought up just because someone is bored.

Choice of caliber for a hunting rifle is an Individual concept, not determined by a committee.

So why are you wasting your time with it?

SSR

The only purpose a 338 serves is to make you happy if you want one.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:
SmokinJ, therte have been plenty of Grizzlies and Kodiaks and Polar Bear killed with '06's and even smaller calibers.

If I remeber correctly Russel Annabell wrote an article for Outdoor life back in the early to mid 60's about a guy killing a pissed off grizzly that had him up a tree with a 22 RF handgun.

People have also killed at least grizzlies and kodiaks with 44 magnum handguns.

The point is, this is one of those pure topics brought up just because someone is bored.

Choice of caliber for a hunting rifle is an Individual concept, not determined by a committee.

Crazybrains....there has been just about every animal killed on earth with a 22 rimfire. So what's your point?

wouldn't it be boring if we all shot the same caliber.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

If I remeber correctly Russel Annabell wrote an article for Outdoor life back in the early to mid 60's about a guy killing a pissed off grizzly that had him up a tree with a 22 RF handgun.
.

I love me some Rusty Annabell stories. I have 4 of his compilation books.

In regards to the 338s, I agree with many others. Need has nothing to do with buying a rifle.

My son finds that his 338wm works very well in the lower 48 deer, bear, hogs all die nicely when he shoots them with a 250gr at max vel.

The .338's make great sense in one respect. If someone for who knows what reason thinks they need bigger than a 30-06, a faster .30 isn't the answer. They need a bigger bore. The .300 mags don't do a thing the 06 doesn't except kick harder, make more noise and burn more powder. The real question is do .300 mags really serve a purpose? Other than the guy at the gun counter said you can hit em anywhwere and they practically quarter and skin em for you too.

quote:

Originally posted by Gary Surko:
The only purpose a 338 serves is to make you happy if you want one.

10-4 roger

When I lived in Alaska I hunted exclusively with a .338 shooting cup & core bullets. When bonded and expanding monolithic bullets came out, I eventually realized the bullets available in .308 caliber were good enough that a .338 was not necessary. I sold my .338 and purchased a .300 WSM. I've never regretted that decision...One might say the same for a 30-06 vs .300 comparison but the extra velocity is a nice way to avoid thinking too much about bullet drop at typical hunting distances.
Cheers,

I need it, I don't want my elk running down to the bottom of Snake River where my pack horses can't go, it adds another day of packing the elk out. I learned my lesson, bigger is better and faster is even better.

quote:

Originally posted by Norseman:
I need it, I don't want my elk running down to the bottom of Snake River where my pack horses can't go, it adds another day of packing the elk out. I learned my lesson, bigger is better and faster is even better.

This is my thought. the 30-06 works fine. I also prefer the extra margin a larger bore offers in recovering game that can go a long way even when properly shot.

Have been using a .338WSM wildcat for the past few years. Am happy I do.

quote:

Originally posted by bartsche:

quote:

Originally posted by Gary Surko:
The only purpose a 338 serves is to make you happy if you want one.

10-4 roger

But . . . but . . . what's more important? Confession time: my .338 WM is my woobie.

Can I say that on a family forum?

quote:

So why are you wasting your time with it?

I wasn't until SmokinJ started his crap, whats your excuse?

quote:

Originally posted by carpetman1:
The .338's make great sense in one respect. If someone for who knows what reason thinks they need bigger than a 30-06, a faster .30 isn't the answer. They need a bigger bore. The .300 mags don't do a thing the 06 doesn't except kick harder, make more noise and burn more powder. The real question is do .300 mags really serve a purpose? Other than the guy at the gun counter said you can hit em anywhwere and they practically quarter and skin em for you too.

Ray, You're pretty much on track. The thing I see about the 300 Win Mag is it shoots further and flatter with little more energy too. It's terrible at real close shots and you can guess why. Kind of like comparing the 222 Rem to the 22-250 and 220 Swift. All 22 caliber but the the two later one will shoot much further and flatter then the 222 Rem and a skilled shooter can make good use of that advantage.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:

quote:

So why are you wasting your time with it?

I wasn't until SmokinJ started his crap, whats your excuse?

Hey don't blame me on your firearms short sightness and narrow mindlessness.

Smokin j--You trying to tell me the little bit of flatter shooting and energy gain of a .300 mag over a 30-06 is worth the half again as much powder? If too far for an 06 it is out of range and you need to learn to hunt better. On a keyboard it sounds great that the bigger gun is always gonna put em down faster, but in the real world it doesn't always work that way.