Sir,

I figure if anyone can answer this question it would be you:

I am absolutely in love with the new LA Kimber rifles and have an oddball idea. I am an avid .340 Weatherby fan and would love to have one a little lighter than the rifle I have now.

My question is: "What would be involved in rechambering the .338 Win. Mag. in the Kimber to the .340?" The ejection port looks plenty long enough, but what about the magazine box?

The rifle (the one that I saw in .30-'06) certainly looked like the action was made with the possibility of a long magnum in the future.

Thanks in Advance.

Be carefull what you wish for! I think the .340 does well in a gun the weight of the MK V when shooting more than a few rounds.I believe stock configuration and balance make this caliber useable-too light and a bad stock design will give you more recoil than is fun. This being said -one shooter I know liked shooting his .460 WBY that he had the barrel cut to22" on for enjoyment until it sheared all four mount screws on an EAW mount mounting a S&B 1.5-6 scope. Took less than 10 rds to do this.
Glenn

Not asking "should it", but more of a "could it"...

Badboyz,

The maximum cartridge length that can be used in the Kimber long action receiver is 3.600". The SAAMI maximum cartridge length for the 340 Weatherby is 3.675". Too long!

Sorry,
Headache

Thanks for the reply.

quote:

340 Weatherby is 3.675".

I show two different references with the AOL being 3.562". Even the 378Wby AOL is only 3.655"

ramrod340,

When loading different bullets, depending on their weight and ogive, you will have different OAL requirements. Manufacturers design for the SAAMI maximum OAL to insure costomer satisfaction.

Your different OAL references where possibly/probably out of reloading manuals and depending on which manufacturer published the manual determines what the published OAL may be. A bullet manufacturer will have only the bullets that they offer.

Headache

Excuse me if I should have used AOL instead of COL. What I'm saying is I have now 3 different references that give the AOL of the 340 WBY as 3.562". Same references give the AOL for the 378 Wby as only 3.655 which is still shorter than the number you quoted for the 340.

ramrod340,

The maximum over all cartridge length or cartridge overall length (not important how you say it) established by Weatherby and submitted to SAAMI is 3.675". This is the industry standard for maximum cartridge length and is used when designing a rifle for that caliber or to determine if a rifle can be marketed in that caliber to insure that all factory ammunition will fit in the magazine and function through the system.

You are correct for the 378 Weatherby, the maximum OAL or COL is 3.655". Why it is shorter than the 340 only Weatherby knows. It may be because of the ogive and the fit to the chamber and forcing cone.

Out of curiosity, where are you getting your other references?

Have a great day,
Headache

I have a 25 year old Reloader Digest that calls the SAAMI AOL as 3.562. Loadtech gives the AOL as 3.562. Per them this is supposed to be SAAMI. My Nosler book calls "industry standard AOL as 3.562" And Reloadbench.com shows this picture.


But, then Chuck Hawks calls it 3.675" and looking on the Wby site their Cartridge their display shows the 340 longer than the 378. So the more the data the more the confusion.

So confusing as heck to say the least. To the original question if the 3.675 is correct and all factory ammo is loaded to that then yes the action is too short. Do other manufactures load to the shorter length? Reloads could be made to fit fine.

Good morning ramrod340,

All factory ammo is not loaded to the maximum dimension of 3.675". Many factory loads will fit. Usually a lighter bullet is shorter and would be loaded to a shorter OAL. Many things enter into the picture when determining the proper OAL for a specific bullet configuration. The length and ogive of the bullet and how it fits in the chamber. A lighter bullet will probably be shorter and will have more bullet jump before entering the rifling. The bullet ogive will also influence this.

Each manufacturer will specify a cartridge OAL for each of the bullets they offer and each one may be different depending on what they determine is optimal.

I'm not sure about the old Reloader Digest information. The SAAMI standard for the 340 Weatherby was issued 1/12/94 with no record of any revisions.

Headache

The Digest might not be that old.

I've been loading for over 30 years. Designed around a dozen of my own wildcats. I'm aware that most bullets, manufactures, bullet shape etc will result in a different OAL. All I was doing was reporting what Nosler listed as "industry standard" and Loadtech listed as SAAMI OAL since I don't have a copy of the actual SAAMI data. Sounds like your data is a lot more accurate than mine. It really does bother me that these various sources imply that their number is the actual "industry standard" OAL. Guess I had always "ASSUMED" industry standard and SAAMI were one in the same.

When I allowed Loadtech to include a couple of my wildcats they told me that the data they listed was SAAMI and in the case of wild cats the parent SAAMI pressure limits along with the most common dimension. This is the first I'd found to be off this much.

Oh well never plan to own a 340 Wby anyway.
Thanks for the headsup.

Paul

More than a few 340 s have been built on M-70 platforms , which are also limtied to a 3.6 inch magazine box .

You just may not be able to use certain Weatherby brand factory loads , but I can't imagine having a 340 and not handloading for it .