.338 RUM vs. .338 EDGE

TORCHRIDER

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Why would I want to go with a .338 Edge over a .338 RUM? Is there a lot of difference between the two rounds?

Thanks and sorry if this is an ignorant question. :)
 
I initially wondered the same thing. Until I saw that the Edge is built off the 300 RUM case, which has a little more powder capacity than the 338 RUM case has.

I believe the 338 EDGE has to be handloaded for, whereas the 338 RUM is a factory chambering. Don't know if that matters to you or not?
 
Performance wise they are the same thing. There is no fps difference between the two. The difference is the trouble of loading the 338-300 RUM wildcat vs over the counter 338 RUM. Much easier to buy 338 RUM and shoot.
 
If your shooting factory ammo 338rum obviously but I can't even afford factory ammo in standard calibers these days so I have to handload if I want to shoot much and if your handloading anyway then 300 ultra brass is much easier to acquire regularly and has more options. Necking it up is a piece of cake.
 
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I handload. Guess I still dont get the high level of interest in the .338 Edge if the .338 RUM is ballistically its equal. Not looking to pick a fight, just trying to understand which .338 to go with. Thanks!
 
The 338 RUM feeds better through standard magnum actions with long 338 bullets which is why Remington made it slightly shorter. Usually guys buy a longer custom magazine box like the wyatt's for the 338-300 RUM or just shoot it as a single shot. Anytime you go to a wildcat cartridge other little problems usually come up other than just the trouble of necking your brass. The same accuracy loads commonly used shoot well in both. +-92 grains of H-1000. What velocities you get depend on your barrel because there is not enough seperation between these two to overcome individual barrel differences. I tested these two at length on my range when the 338 RUM came out in 2001. I quit doing the 338-300 RUM I had been doing for a few years at that time because there was no improvement in performance and the 338 RUM was over the counter.

Basically the 338 RUM will do anything the 338-300 RUM will do in a hunting situation and it is over the counter. If a guy goes with a custom rig then one with more performance than either of these makes more since to most people in the know. The improved lapua can top these two by up to 150 fps. Then the 338-378 improved stuff and the Excaliber which is also over the counter can give you up to 150 fps beyond the lapua imp. Then always remember you can get a slow 338-378 imp barrel and a fast 338 lapua imp and be shooting the same velocity. Or get a slow 338 lapua imp barrel and be shooting the same numbers as a fast ultramag.

For another guy quite a while back I went over all my old loading notes on all the popular 338's. My 340 Weatherby shoots the 300 SMK 2735 fps with best accuracy load. This is right in there with many lapuas and ultramags. One of my 338-378's has best accuracy at 2940 fps. Only 205 fps difference and these two are on the slow side and fast side of big 338's. So basically if you have your own 1000 yard range and shop right beside it like I did. Then build all kinds of 338's to test side by side. You realize through time and 1000's of rounds there is just not a lot of difference performance wise between all of them. Combine a fast cartridge with a fast barrel and a slower cartridge with a slow barrel and there can be quite a difference. Reverse that scenario and there may be very little difference. You just never know what velocity range your best accuracy will come in at. Therefore make your choice based on other criteria such as cost, availability, quality of components, time consuming extra details, etc.

Cartridges like the 338 RUM and 338-300 RUM that basically shoot the same numbers anyway are just so close it is irrevalent to judge them by performance. They must be judged with other criteria. All are equally accurate if built right. I kept a couple of the original 338-300 RUM's I did back in the 90's but since the 338 RUM came out in 2001 they have got very little use. All of my hunting and shooting since then have been with the 338 RUM when I used the ultramag case. To me after putting both through the ringer in testing and considering all the factors in my opinion the 338 RUM is the best cartridge. If it wasn't then the 338 RUM's would have been on the shelf for the last ten years instead of the 338-300's.
 
Thanks LTLR. Great Info there!


The 338 RUM feeds better through standard magnum actions with long 338 bullets which is why Remington made it slightly shorter. Usually guys buy a longer custom magazine box like the wyatt's for the 338-300 RUM or just shoot it as a single shot. Anytime you go to a wildcat cartridge other little problems usually come up other than just the trouble of necking your brass. The same accuracy loads commonly used shoot well in both. +-92 grains of H-1000. What velocities you get depend on your barrel because there is not enough seperation between these two to overcome individual barrel differences. I tested these two at length on my range when the 338 RUM came out in 2001. I quit doing the 338-300 RUM I had been doing for a few years at that time because there was no improvement in performance and the 338 RUM was over the counter.

Basically the 338 RUM will do anything the 338-300 RUM will do in a hunting situation and it is over the counter. If a guy goes with a custom rig then one with more performance than either of these makes more since to most people in the know. The improved lapua can top these two by up to 150 fps. Then the 338-378 improved stuff and the Excaliber which is also over the counter can give you up to 150 fps beyond the lapua imp. Then always remember you can get a slow 338-378 imp barrel and a fast 338 lapua imp and be shooting the same velocity. Or get a slow 338 lapua imp barrel and be shooting the same numbers as a fast ultramag.

For another guy quite a while back I went over all my old loading notes on all the popular 338's. My 340 Weatherby shoots the 300 SMK 2735 fps with best accuracy load. This is right in there with many lapuas and ultramags. One of my 338-378's has best accuracy at 2940 fps. Only 205 fps difference and these two are on the slow side and fast side of big 338's. So basically if you have your own 1000 yard range and shop right beside it like I did. Then build all kinds of 338's to test side by side. You realize through time and 1000's of rounds there is just not a lot of difference performance wise between all of them. Combine a fast cartridge with a fast barrel and a slower cartridge with a slow barrel and there can be quite a difference. Reverse that scenario and there may be very little difference. You just never know what velocity range your best accuracy will come in at. Therefore make your choice based on other criteria such as cost, availability, quality of components, time consuming extra details, etc.

Cartridges like the 338 RUM and 338-300 RUM that basically shoot the same numbers anyway are just so close it is irrevalent to judge them by performance. They must be judged with other criteria. All are equally accurate if built right. I kept a couple of the original 338-300 RUM's I did back in the 90's but since the 338 RUM came out in 2001 they have got very little use. All of my hunting and shooting since then have been with the 338 RUM when I used the ultramag case. To me after putting both through the ringer in testing and considering all the factors in my opinion the 338 RUM is the best cartridge. If it wasn't then the 338 RUM's would have been on the shelf for the last ten years instead of the 338-300's.
 
I had the same questions last year when I was planning to build a large 338. Mainly I was worried about the RUM not having enough muzzle velocity compared to the EDGE. Finally decided to go with the RUM and figured it would be fast enough. I ordered a 27" Pac-nor barrel.

To my surprise I am getting 2900' sec. using Retumbo and 300g SMK. Thought maybe my chronograph was reading wrong, but checked the drops out to 750 yards using 2900 in the ballistic calculator and they are right on.

So my rifle shooting 300g bullets at 2900' sec at ½ to ¾ MOA will do everything I think I will ever want in a large 338. I shot a cow elk in DEC with this rifle (first kill) at only 184 yards, but she never took a step DRT.
 
Thanks LTLR. Great Info there!

+1!!:)

But now I've got a Q, what is the Excaliber? Factory ammo for it and 338-378Wby?

I am just starting to understand these big boomers, so elaborate if you would please.

TORCHRIDER, not trying of jack this, assuming you'd be interested to know too? If not, just say " PM that SBruce SOB and lets get back on track"!!

LOL, Thanks.
 
+1!!:)

But now I've got a Q, what is the Excaliber? Factory ammo for it and 338-378Wby?

I am just starting to understand these big boomers, so elaborate if you would please.

TORCHRIDER, not trying of jack this, assuming you'd be interested to know too? If not, just say " PM that SBruce SOB and lets get back on track"!!

LOL, Thanks.

Not at all. Same questions went through my mind. :)
 
I handload. Guess I still dont get the high level of interest in the .338 Edge if the .338 RUM is ballistically its equal. Not looking to pick a fight, just trying to understand which .338 to go with. Thanks!

The 300/338 was the answer for a 338 RUM before Remington came out with the 338 RUM
chambering.

But when the 300/338 is seated to fit the Long action mag box the case capacity is reduced
slightly so there is little or no gain over the 338 RUM seated to the same COL.

Either of these cartriges are very good in the velocity department and with normal pressure
loads very capable performers on large game at great distances.

I think that some of the interest in the 300/338 is the "Wildcat" factor. But any benefits are
negated by the ease of using factory ammo or loading a standard cartridge like the 338 RUM.

If anything the 300 RUM brass is harder to come by than the 338 Brass and requires sizing
the necks up to 330 and some neck thinning is normal.

There are more powerful 338s (338/378 or the 338 Excalibur) but brass for either is very
expensive (3 or 4 times) that of the rums.

I went through the same though process and chose the 338 RUM and have not been disappointed
in performance or accuracy.

So the choice is yours .

J E CUSTOM
 
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Torchrider, it just depends on if you have a donor action or starting from scratch and how much you want to pay. Also what you plan on doing with it. Lots of choices.

The 338 Excalibur is one of the A-Square cartridges. It replaced a smaller 338 they had been doing. It and the 300 Pegasus are the top performers out there that I know of in 30 and 338 caliber that are easily available and over the counter (without needing a custom action). For years the full length 338-416 rigby improved was about tops on a standard over the counter action and then it had to pretty much be a MK 5 wby action to handle it. It had more powder capacity than the 338-378 improved and a slight velocity advantage. The Excalibur is basically this wildcat with just a tad more powder capacity and the biggest baddest 338 out there you can easily do and get brass for. You pretty much need a donor MK 5 wby action or a custom to do this one. Brass is available from asquare and a few internet sales sites. It and the 338-378 wby brass are expensive. $55 for 20 and the loaded rounds retail around $6 each. But if a guy wants the fastest thing out there this is the price to pay. Mk 5 or custom action and very expensive brass. Plus my accuracy load is 128 grains of powder so forget the buying a pound of powder thing. Look at 8 pound kegs with these. The Excalibur with a 30" barrel could get you a top accuracy load well over 3100 fps with the 300 SMK.

The 338 RUM will kill anything in North America as far as you can hit it. It can be done on a cheap standard magnum action from several manufacturers. Brass is relatively cheap at $60 for 50. I had my own shop and made a good living at my day job so I could experiment with everything with cost not being so great a factor, just the fastest cartridge mattered. But if I just wanted one rifle and needed to do it as inexpensively as possible I would get a cheap donor action and screw a 338 RUM custom barrel on it. Cheap over the counter dies and like I said this rifle will kill anything as far as you can hit it. I sold my custom 338 RUM's I used for testing several years ago and now hunt with an over the counter Remington 700 338 RUM. It has the factory 26" stainless barrel. It will shoot the 300 SMK over 2800 fps but my best accuracy is at 2730 fps so that is where I stay. I also shoot the 225 Accubond in it at 3260 fps. The last elk I shot with it was a big 6x6 at 740 yards. He went maybe 25 yards. Those shots are trivial with this rifle.
 
Thanks LTLR. Again, great info. Question, do you know if a Magnum Savage action will support the 338 RUM? I think this may be my next build.


Torchrider, it just depends on if you have a donor action or starting from scratch and how much you want to pay. Also what you plan on doing with it. Lots of choices.

The 338 Excalibur is one of the A-Square cartridges. It replaced a smaller 338 they had been doing. It and the 300 Pegasus are the top performers out there that I know of in 30 and 338 caliber that are easily available and over the counter (without needing a custom action). For years the full length 338-416 rigby improved was about tops on a standard over the counter action and then it had to pretty much be a MK 5 wby action to handle it. It had more powder capacity than the 338-378 improved and a slight velocity advantage. The Excalibur is basically this wildcat with just a tad more powder capacity and the biggest baddest 338 out there you can easily do and get brass for. You pretty much need a donor MK 5 wby action or a custom to do this one. Brass is available from asquare and a few internet sales sites. It and the 338-378 wby brass are expensive. $55 for 20 and the loaded rounds retail around $6 each. But if a guy wants the fastest thing out there this is the price to pay. Mk 5 or custom action and very expensive brass. Plus my accuracy load is 128 grains of powder so forget the buying a pound of powder thing. Look at 8 pound kegs with these. The Excalibur with a 30" barrel could get you a top accuracy load well over 3100 fps with the 300 SMK.

The 338 RUM will kill anything in North America as far as you can hit it. It can be done on a cheap standard magnum action from several manufacturers. Brass is relatively cheap at $60 for 50. I had my own shop and made a good living at my day job so I could experiment with everything with cost not being so great a factor, just the fastest cartridge mattered. But if I just wanted one rifle and needed to do it as inexpensively as possible I would get a cheap donor action and screw a 338 RUM custom barrel on it. Cheap over the counter dies and like I said this rifle will kill anything as far as you can hit it. I sold my custom 338 RUM's I used for testing several years ago and now hunt with an over the counter Remington 700 338 RUM. It has the factory 26" stainless barrel. It will shoot the 300 SMK over 2800 fps but my best accuracy is at 2730 fps so that is where I stay. I also shoot the 225 Accubond in it at 3260 fps. The last elk I shot with it was a big 6x6 at 740 yards. He went maybe 25 yards. Those shots are trivial with this rifle.
 
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