is it possible to get the 30-338WM in a standard Mauser 98 action?

Oddball,

If the cartridge you refer to is the 30-338, a 338WM necked down to .308, the answer is YES. It will fit with no problem at all. Call Walt Sherman at 850 878 9563 if you want to know more. He specializes in building them on Mauser actions. Will shoot like an absolute house-afire. Ku-dude

I understand that the 308 Norma magnum is very near to being a 300-338. If so, it would seem to make more sense to go with the Norma unless you like fooling with a wildcat. Is this true?

ballisticly and practically the 30-338 and 308 norma are identical.

I toyed around with the idea of one of these about 10 or 12 years ago... and went with the 300 winchester instead. it was the same performance, a slightly larger case, and 100% mainstream...

jeffe

The 30-338 wildcat is one of the most practical wildcats that I know of...Brass is very cheap and all you have to do is run it through the 30-338 die and presto....It is the cartridge the 300 Win. should have been. It is very well designed and has a substantial neck..It will equal the 300 Win or the 300 H&H...

I fear the 308 Norma is bound for the bone yard and brass is expensive and it won't quite catch the 30-338 on the balistic chart.

Jeffe,
I am with you. I can see this cartridge before the .300 winchester came out but why anyone would do it after is beyond me. And that long neck crap will not even fertilize your garden. The .300 Winchester IS all the cartridge it should have been.

Chic:

IMHO, the 30-338 and 308 Norma have it over the 300 Win mag in all cases except factory ammo. The 300 win has too short a neck, the bullets need to be seated deeply into the powder space, The other two are very efficient cartridges and will fit in a standard action as will the 300 win. In order to make the Win more efficient, one must seat bullets out farther. To accomplish this, one has to throat out the chamber a bit longer and lengthen the mag box. There goes your standard action length; the "new" 300 win will be too long. In a custom rifle or a match rifle, this is fine; one can make an accomodation. The 30-338 was brought out as a 1000 yd match cartridge and has won the wimbeldon match on a number of occasions, but then again, so has the 300 win, but not as a factory length cartridge.

Oddball,

To answer your question, the answer is yes. If you are going to hunt with it as I assume you are then the .300 win mag (because of factory ammo) would be the way to go. But if you are looking for a medium bore and a factory cartridge that is all it should be, then why not the .338 win mag? The .338 fits in a Mauser too.

The 30-338 is indeed what the .300 Win mag should have been. The only reason it wasn't is the fact that Norma came out with the .308 Norma mag first.

All are good cartridges, and for hunting it would be hard to knock any of them. If it is accuracy over long distances the 30-338 has it all over the 300 Win Mag. But then you would be looking at another action other than a Mauser. Probably one of those #@*&!! push feeds or a custom.

[ 11-03-2003, 19:07: Message edited by: Phantom Duck ]