338 Sherman Build (This Is My Boomstick!)

FYI, for ANY of the long action SHERMAN shooters, I just contacted Huntington's to try to purchase some RWS brass (Xmas present to myself). They are out and not projected to receive more before September. I am going to have to live with Norma for now.

I have been following recent developments with ADG Cartridge Brass with great interest. Naturally, I am hoping they will add Sherman, 280 AI, 280, or 270 brass to their lineup. I note with excitement that they are offering 300 Win Mag. Though I don't own a .300 Win Mag, I think this bodes well for the prospect of Lapua quality belted magnum brass being available in the near future. I, personally, am pining for .264 Win Mag, but if ADG even made 7 Rem Mag, I would buy it and neck it down.

I called them to cheer/beg for the above. They seem to be very open to feedback and I was encouraged to follow/comment on their FB page. It was explained to me that they will regularly update status on their products there, and that they closely monitor feedback of FB and multiple forums, as well as that received by phone or e-mail.

The individual with whom I spoke told me a bit about their manufacturing process and that their design emphasis is on creating cases with tough case heads (via double stamping), while preserving case capacity by avoiding excessive material thickness. Music to my ears...

It was specifically mentioned to me that ADG is working with Rich to offer brass for his SS and SST designs in the near future, as a derivative of the SAUM cases they intend to offer.

If you are a SHERMAN shooter of ANY flavor, I strongly urge you to contact these guys to express your interest in their brass. THEY ARE LISTENING!!!
 
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This is what we need! They do listen and are a great bunch of guys. Glad you took the opportunity to see for yourself......Rich
 
Here is an update on the 338. A client who has one with a 24 1/2" barrel ran the 285 ELDM at 2703 today and was not maxed out! He may have a grain capacity left and will try it tomorrow. This was with Superformance, which none of us had tried before. We were getting well into the 2800's with H100v with the 250 Berger, and being a dense powder, there may be room enough behind the 250 to push it over 2900'!:eek:
 
Here is an update on the 338. A client who has one with a 24 1/2" barrel ran the 285 ELDM at 2703 today and was not maxed out! He may have a grain capacity left and will try it tomorrow. This was with Superformance, which none of us had tried before. We were getting well into the 2800's with H100v with the 250 Berger, and being a dense powder, there may be room enough behind the 250 to push it over 2900'!:eek:

This is an intriguing development! Upon learning of this, I checked my fireformed Norma brass to see how much Superformance it can hold. I measured 74.0 grains to the base of the neck. It looks like some MIN-MAX tests for the 250 Berger and 285 ELD-M are in order...
 
The following is info. from shooting some 338Sherman loads today as a follow up on an initial few loads over the weekend with superformance powder and the 250 EH AND 285 ELDMs. Max load over the weekend on the 250s was 71 grains @ 2957'. Max on 285s was 68 @ 2701. I wasn't careful on temps of loaded ammo and was a mix of lots that were in the back of, and inside the warm cab etc. so today I tried to be fairly careful and ran the following. The H100V loads are what I have been running in the 250EH and was curious as to how temp sensitive it was as well and how speeds compared. I backed off the max loads to what might be comfortable yet good performers. Nothing today showed the slightest bit of overpressure in any way, roundness to the edge of primers and zero felt bolt lift. Hope this info. May be helpful to any interested.

Jace

02-14-18 46 degrees
Loading 67.5 superformance WWM RWS
285 ELDMS at 3.51+- COAL.1,2,3 cold
46 degrees
4,5,6 kept in pocket body temp
1-2714
2-2706
3-2703
4-2720
5-2733
6-2738
Loading 69.5 superformance WWM RWS
250EH at 3.56 COAL 1,2,3, cold 46 degrees
4,5,6, kept in pocket body temp
1-2913
2-2930
3-2915
4-2930
5-2925
6-2929
250 EH 66.2 H100V ditto
1-2824 cold bore cold ammo
2-2843
3-2841
4-2873
5-2856
6-2892
 
Thank you do much Jace!! You being the bashful guy, i didn't know you were going to post so I have some of your results on another thread. My apologies! Your data is far more complete though, so thanks again....rich
 
The following is info. from shooting some 338Sherman loads today as a follow up on an initial few loads over the weekend with superformance powder and the 250 EH AND 285 ELDMs. Max load over the weekend on the 250s was 71 grains @ 2957'. Max on 285s was 68 @ 2701. I wasn't careful on temps of loaded ammo and was a mix of lots that were in the back of, and inside the warm cab etc. so today I tried to be fairly careful and ran the following. The H100V loads are what I have been running in the 250EH and was curious as to how temp sensitive it was as well and how speeds compared. I backed off the max loads to what might be comfortable yet good performers. Nothing today showed the slightest bit of overpressure in any way, roundness to the edge of primers and zero felt bolt lift. Hope this info. May be helpful to any interested.

Jace

02-14-18 46 degrees
Loading 67.5 superformance WWM RWS
285 ELDMS at 3.51+- COAL.1,2,3 cold
46 degrees
4,5,6 kept in pocket body temp
1-2714
2-2706
3-2703
4-2720
5-2733
6-2738
Loading 69.5 superformance WWM RWS
250EH at 3.56 COAL 1,2,3, cold 46 degrees
4,5,6, kept in pocket body temp
1-2913
2-2930
3-2915
4-2930
5-2925
6-2929
250 EH 66.2 H100V ditto
1-2824 cold bore cold ammo
2-2843
3-2841
4-2873
5-2856
6-2892

Your data adds a LOT to the discussion. Thank you for posting this!
 
Hey....you may have already seen this, but I think this bullet would be a good option in the .338 Sherman...

https://www.badlandsprecision.com/product/86/338-240gr-super-bulldozer

It's a mono 240 grain with an aluminum tip and outstanding .710 G1 B.C......that is a good bit more than the .685 G1 B.C. of the Berger 250 Elite Hunter, and at 10 grains lighter you should be ablet to get it at least as fast, if not then faster
 
Hey....you may have already seen this, but I think this bullet would be a good option in the .338 Sherman...

https://www.badlandsprecision.com/product/86/338-240gr-super-bulldozer

It's a mono 240 grain with an aluminum tip and outstanding .710 G1 B.C......that is a good bit more than the .685 G1 B.C. of the Berger 250 Elite Hunter, and at 10 grains lighter you should be ablet to get it at least as fast, if not then faster

Looks like an interesting bullet. I noted that their bc's are derived from tof calculations, so there really is no valid comparison between their data and Berger's data. This could be a very good option, but more and better data are needed to know for sure.
 
Would it be possible to recommend One Powder for all different brands of Brass for the .338 Sherman? Assuming 250-265 Grain Projectiles. I have a Bundle of Federal to eradicate.
 
The following is info. from shooting some 338Sherman loads today as a follow up on an initial few loads over the weekend with superformance powder and the 250 EH AND 285 ELDMs. Max load over the weekend on the 250s was 71 grains @ 2957'. Max on 285s was 68 @ 2701. I wasn't careful on temps of loaded ammo and was a mix of lots that were in the back of, and inside the warm cab etc. so today I tried to be fairly careful and ran the following. The H100V loads are what I have been running in the 250EH and was curious as to how temp sensitive it was as well and how speeds compared. I backed off the max loads to what might be comfortable yet good performers. Nothing today showed the slightest bit of overpressure in any way, roundness to the edge of primers and zero felt bolt lift. Hope this info. May be helpful to any interested.

Jace

02-14-18 46 degrees
Loading 67.5 superformance WWM RWS
285 ELDMS at 3.51+- COAL.1,2,3 cold
46 degrees
4,5,6 kept in pocket body temp
1-2714
2-2706
3-2703
4-2720
5-2733
6-2738
Loading 69.5 superformance WWM RWS
250EH at 3.56 COAL 1,2,3, cold 46 degrees
4,5,6, kept in pocket body temp
1-2913
2-2930
3-2915
4-2930
5-2925
6-2929
250 EH 66.2 H100V ditto
1-2824 cold bore cold ammo
2-2843
3-2841
4-2873
5-2856
6-2892

Based on the above results, I had loaded a MIN-MAX runup with Superformance and 250 EH @ 3.555" in Norma brass. I loaded in one grain increments from 65-69 grains.

I finally had the opportunity to shoot them yesterday. Temp was 95*. The first round in the series, the 65 grain load, gave hard bolt lift/extraction and an ejector mark. Velocity was 2862. Of course, I didn't fire the others in the series and pulled the bullets.

Looks like I will be doing some testing below 65 grains. If I find some accuracy with this, it would certainly be nice to have another good powder choice.
 
Based on the above results, I had loaded a MIN-MAX runup with Superformance and 250 EH @ 3.555" in Norma brass. I loaded in one grain increments from 65-69 grains.

I finally had the opportunity to shoot them yesterday. Temp was 95*. The first round in the series, the 65 grain load, gave hard bolt lift/extraction and an ejector mark. Velocity was 2862. Of course, I didn't fire the others in the series and pulled the bullets.

Looks like I will be doing some testing below 65 grains. If I find some accuracy with this, it would certainly be nice to have another good powder choice.
I have not yet had a chance to try Superformance, but based on some follow up from Jace, it's not looking very promising for temp stability. His first results looked good but on a follow, he concluded that stability was far from stellar and he was going back to H100V! It sounds like you may have experienced the same thing.....rich
 
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