Off to Quebec for moose this fall. The 9.3x62 Mauser I am building will not be ready, so a friend gave me an older Ruger M77 in .338 to take along.

From looking through posts in this forum, it seems like I can't go wrong with 250 Nosler Partitions.

My question is, can anyone here suggest a load? I will want to shoot a cheaper 250 grain bullet for practice all summer, then make up some Nosler Partition loads in the fall. Thanks.

Moose are not hard to kill, but like all game, shot placement is very important. The NOS 250 grainers will provide a great punch, but any Nosler Partition from 210 grains and up will work. Factory ammo for the .338 is not very expensive, and Federal offers great ammo. If you want more speed, Federal offers HE ammo with 225-grain TBBC, NOS, and other premium bullets. A great number of people like the 210-grain Nosler Partition for elk, so it should work on moose.

225 Swift A-frame bullets are very accurate with most .338's. A friend of mine in Canada gets two Swift bullets to hit within 3/4" at 200 meters.

The .33's 250-grain, 275-grain, and 300-grain bullets provide the greatest punch, but you don't need that much for moose. Take a look at "shot placement" at the following site:
http://www.state.ak.us/local/akpages/FISH.GAME/wildlife/geninfo/hunting/huntak16.htm

I used Sierra 250gr. GameKings loaded with IMR4350 but it was what I had at the time. I now use RL19 at 71.5 grs. They shoot well and you can afford to practice enough. I think they would work for your hunting needs as well but that's a personal choice.
FWIW I mostly hunt Elk and have gone to a lighter bullet for them. I have 200gr. X bullets loaded and plan to try the 200gr. Nosler BT's. I have a lot of faith in this caliber.

I am very fond of the 250 Gr. Nosler Partition and all game..I have used it and the 210 Nosler Partition extensively and I like them both..For long range I choose the 210. I shoot a 338 Win.

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Ray Atkinson

ray@atkinsonhunting.com
atkinsonhunting.com

what 338 rifle are you using. looking for input as to the accuracy of a ruger M77 in 338. these are definitely tough actions

Fred,
250gr. Hornady spire point
WW brass
Fed215 primer
67.5 gr. Reloader 19

or

same load but incorporate:
64.0 gr. IMR 4350

Both loads are readily under maximum...will offer 2500 fps, and I have found great accuracy in my rifle. I have found these combinations to be great loads; I have also used them interchangeably with Nosler Partitions and found that bullet strikes are very close. The Imr 4350 load is also the "accuracy" load in the nosler manual>
best,
bhtr

Dr. John, Mine is a M77 ( tang safety) and it now shoots most everything into an inch at 100 yards. But, it has been recrowned, bedded, and the trigger reworked to break clean at 3 1/2 pounds. Now I wouldn't trade it off but there was a time I wondered. The bedding and trigger work were necassary. The recrowning was because I had a muzzle break cut off.

Thanks for this. I'll probably see which of these powders can also be used for the 9.3 I am building, the .388 is sort of on permanent loan, will probably go back to its owner at some point.

quote:

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Originally posted by bearhunt'r:
Fred,
250gr. Hornady spire point
WW brass
Fed215 primer
67.5 gr. Reloader 19

or

same load but incorporate:
64.0 gr. IMR 4350

Both loads are readily under maximum...will offer 2500 fps, and I have found great accuracy in my rifle. I have found these combinations to be great loads; I have also used them interchangeably with Nosler Partitions and found that bullet strikes are very close. The Imr 4350 load is also the "accuracy" load in the nosler manual>
best,
bhtr

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I use 74.0 grs. RL-22, Win. brass, and a Fed. 215 with the 250 gr. Nosler partition. This is 1.0 gr. below what Nosler lists as maximum, but is maximum for my rifle. It has worked fine on several elk here in Utah, so I would think it would work on moose. The only moose I shot was with a 175 gr. Nosler from a 7mm Rem. - it dropped instantly.

what are you worried about fred? you won't shoot anyway, you're coming along to help carry it out.....

RH

I was afraid that was the case.

I will continue my hunt conditioning diet of poutine washed down with Blue.

quote:

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Originally posted by rockhead:
what are you worried about fred? you won't shoot anyway, you're coming along to help carry it out.....

RH

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My 338 is the only rifle I don't load far because it doesn't get that much use. I use Federal Premium with the 250gr Nosler Partition and have taken African plains game Grizzly and moose with factory ammo. If your not going to keep the rifle practice with the least expensive ammo you can buy and hunt with the premium stuff.