240 SMK; performance on game, 30-378 Wby

[Marine sniper]

I am the worlds worst "searcher" on forums. I put in 240 SMK, etc.....and could not come up with anything trying to search the forum for threads on this subject. I know there has been a lot of discussion about the 240 SMK on game.

I have a 34 in barrel 30-378 Wby built on a Hall G action; can't wait on the 230 Bergers. Hows are the 240 SMK's on game?

While I am at it, favorite powders for heavy bullets in a 30-378?

Thanks,
John

 

[J E Custom]

I am the worlds worst "searcher" on forums. I put in 240 SMK, etc.....and could not come up with anything trying to search the forum for threads on this subject. I know there has been a lot of discussion about the 240 SMK on game.

I have a 34 in barrel 30-378 Wby built on a Hall G action; can't wait on the 230 Bergers. Hows are the 240 SMK's on game?

While I am at it, favorite powders for heavy bullets in a 30-378?

Thanks,
John

There has been a lot of discussions on this subject and Lot's of different opinions, so hear is mine.

I don't like the wound consistency on game of any match/target bullet although I do like the
accuracy. For extreme long rang shots if I can't find a hunting bullet that is accurate then I have
two choices. Don't shoot that far, or take a chance that performance will be good enough.

With the match bullets you are almost forced to take a high shoulder shot and not worry about
meat damage

There are some very good hunting bullets today and the need to use a match bullet for hunting
is rare.

For the 30/378 I use H50 BMG and US 869 with good results on 200+ grain bullets.

J E CUSTOM

 

[Joel Russo]

While I am at it, favorite powders for heavy bullets in a 30-378?

I shoot the 240 SMK in my .30-.416 Rigby Improved, and it likes VV 24N41. Accuracy at 1,760 with that combination hangs around 10-12 inches..

 

[Marine sniper]

JE,

I figured the 50BMG powder would be good. I happen to have a kep of it. Going to start around 108 grs. and work up from there.

I have had good results with the 210 Berger in my 300 Wby, I know the 300 SMK is highly thought of. I get what you are saying about match bullets in general though.

Joel,

What kind of velocity do you see with the 240 in that improved case?

 

[Camshaft]

I put down a 300 or so pound hog at 420 yards i think it was with a 240smk out of a 300 rum going 2950fps and it put him down hard but ruined an insane amount of the carcass. I hit him dead center in the should, destroyed the first shoulder, broke the second shoulder, recovered a few pieces of the bullet. It worked, just not very well as far as excessive damage goes.

 

[Joel Russo]

Joel,

What kind of velocity do you see with the 240 in that improved case?

I'm just shy of 3,200 fps. I can run it faster, but I keep it where it's most accurate..
I worked up a load for the rifle years ago with the VV powder. Reasonable velocity, single digit ES, and superb accuracy. I just never felt the need to try anything else. VV does not make the 24N41 powder anymore, but no worries... I have enough for all of us..

 

[Marine sniper]

Thanks Gents, going to shoot the first round of test loads Tuesday.

 

[yobuck]

ive used a 30x378 weatherby on a custom action for about 25 years.
there were very few powder choices at that time. the most popular was
h570 which is a ww2 surplus powder. h870 also worked well as does wc872.
the most popular bullet has been the 200 gr smk.
with my 36" barrel it will produce about 3500 fps with 113 gr. h570.
118 gr. h870 will do likewise as will wc872.
im of the opinion 869 is similar to h 870.
there is no doubt the energy of the heavier bullets is superior to the 200gr.
but for flatness out to about 1500yds its no contest.
the 200 is better than the 220 and the 240.
at least thats been my findings.
from a 100 yd zero i need about 38 min. @ 1500.
the accuracy factor could be better however and ive not tested them enough to determine that.
back then the 30x378 was the ultimate long range cartridge.
it no longer holds that distinction.
the 300 ultramag is almost as good and the big 338s are superior.

is there anything you dont have joel?
do me a favor and go shake bruce. tell him some old guy would like his gun before he croaks.

 

[Joel Russo]

the big 338s are superior.

is there anything you dont have joel?
do me a favor and go shake bruce. tell him some old guy would like his gun before he croaks.

Ernie~
Glad to hear you took the plunge, and stepped up to the big .338.. You are going to be rather impressed with the performance.

About six months ago, I realized that there was something I didn't have. In fact, I realized that there was something that no one else had. So I started working on it and I'll soon tell you about it. If the weather cooperates this weekend, I'll be out testing again. Been playing at 2,000 yds.

I'll do my best to shake the old guy, but you know as well as I do how hornery the old cuss is...

 

[Marine sniper]

I have the 240 SMK, the Berger 230 (when it comes out) and the Hornady 225 (already ordered) on the recipe list for the 30-378. I decided against the lighter bullets because now that almost everyone has a lazer range finder a very flat trajectory is not as important as it used to me. I remember the days of picking a bullet based on a series of compromises; trajectory, wind drift, energy, etc. I used to shoot 190 Bergers in my 300 Wby, but as soon as I got a lazer I stepped up to 210 Bergers......might give them a shot in the 30-378 as well.

I almost bought Joel's 375 Improved (I was just a little late on the trigger) so the bigger calibers interest me. I have a windrunner 408 as well, but I am not sure I agree the .338's are superior. Until they start winning 1000 yard benchrest stuff on a regular basis I would not call them superior to the 30's. I am not interested in ultra long range work with the 30-378 as much as I am killing elk and deer at 12-1400 yards. That being said a .338 is in my near future, still picking a caliber.

 

[Joel Russo]

I am not sure I agree the .338's are superior. Until they start winning 1000 yard benchrest stuff on a regular basis I would not call them superior to the 30's.

The 210's will serve you well with the .30-.378 case. I've been shooting them for a while now and the results are acceptable across the board.
Enjoy that lethal combination for what you are doing.


The big .338's will never win the 1,000 yard benchrest competitions on a regular basis because they are not a 1000 yard benchrest combination and there are not to many on the line these days. The .30 caliber fodder will always dominate over the .338's in that discipline.

Now when you talk about playing on the field from 1,500 and further, the big .338's will always dominate over the .30's.

 

[Marine sniper]

The 210's will serve you well with the .30-.378 case. I've been shooting them for a while now and the results are acceptable across the board.
Enjoy that lethal combination for what you are doing.


The big .338's will never win the 1,000 yard benchrest competitions on a regular basis because they are not a 1000 yard benchrest combination and there are not to many on the line these days. The .30 caliber fodder will always dominate over the .338's in that discipline.

Now when you talk about playing on the field from 1,500 and further, the big .338's will always dominate over the .30's.

I agree Joel, 1500+ and the higher BC of the 338's edges out the more inherantly accurate .30's

Any tips on powder and speeds for the 210's in the 30-378?

Thanks for the help.

John

 

[Joel Russo]

My one .30-.378 loved 104 gr of Retumbo with the 210 Berger. Hung around 3100 fps.

 

[Marine sniper]

My one .30-.378 loved 104 gr of Retumbo with the 210 Berger. Hung around 3100 fps.

I will give it a shot, thanks.

I am going to try to push them a little harder though. I have a 300 Wby that shoots them at 3000 fps with unbelievable accuracy...so the 30-378 is going to have to earn its keep if it want to get the nod over the 300.