.338 Win Mag or .300 Win mag?

[Sully2]

The better of the 2 for the longest of ranges ( 1000 to say 1200 yards)

Choice of bullets for either / both for this longest of distances???

 

[Timber338]

I'm not even sure this is a debate.

300 win mag hands down with a Berger 215 Hybrid (.696 bc) at 2850 muzzle velocity.

338 win mag and a Berger 250 Elite Hunter (.682 bc) at 2750 muzzle velocity.

winner is easily the 300 win mag that pushes a higher b.c. bullet faster than a 338. Flatter trajectory and less wind drift.

Although I love the 338 win mag, it just doesn't have enough horsepower to push the heavy/high b.c. bullets fast enough for a 1000+ yard application.

 

[MudRunner2005]

Do you want a Chevelle SS or a Vega?

Of those 2 options, go for the .300 WinMag.

 

[Sully2]

Do you want a Chevelle SS or a Vega?

Of those 2 options, go for the .300 WinMag.

The .338 WinMag is anything BUT a "Vega".

 

[Sully2]

I'm not even sure this is a debate.

300 win mag hands down with a Berger 215 Hybrid (.696 bc) at 2850 muzzle velocity.

338 win mag and a Berger 250 Elite Hunter (.682 bc) at 2750 muzzle velocity.

winner is easily the 300 win mag that pushes a higher b.c. bullet faster than a 338. Flatter trajectory and less wind drift.

Although I love the 338 win mag, it just doesn't have enough horsepower to push the heavy/high b.c. bullets fast enough for a 1000+ yard application.

I dont know? The .338 has a LOT of horsepower in it at long ranges. The .300 might beat it out...but the .338 does a decent job of it.

 

[Engineering101]

Sully2

At the ranges you mention it is all about the wind and therefore I contend all about bullet BC. I think you should forget the Win Mags and consider the RUMs as in 338 RUM. The 300 grain Berger with a BC of 0.818 is THE bullet.

 

[Sully2]

Sully2

At the ranges you mention it is all about the wind and therefore I contend all about bullet BC. I think you should forget the Win Mags and consider the RUMs as in 338 RUM. The 300 grain Berger with a BC of 0.818 is THE bullet.

Except I cant buy a factory Model 70 in a RUM caliber...

 

[MudRunner2005]

The .338 WinMag is anything BUT a "Vega".

I owned one...Trust me, compared to the other .338 calibers with case-appropriate capacities....It's a Vega. Get a RUM, Edge, Terminator, Lapua or something of that nature if you want a .338. The .338 WinMag is not a hotrod caliber.

 

[Sully2]

I owned one...Trust me, compared to the other .338 calibers with case-appropriate capacities....It's a Vega. Get a RUM, Edge, Terminator, Lapua or something of that nature if you want a .338. The .338 WinMag is not a hotrod caliber.

If I cant walk to the local gunshop and buy a box of ammo..then I dont want it!

Now which one of these...RUM, Edge, Terminator, Lapua can you find in your local gunshop????

 

[MudRunner2005]

If I cant walk to the local gunshop and buy a box of ammo..then I dont want it!

Now which one of these...RUM, Edge, Terminator, Lapua can you find in your local gunshop????

I can find .338 WM, RUM, and Lapua at my local shop. They even have .50 BMG, Nitro Express calibers, and all sorts of other odd and end stuff. They're a small shop, but their primary sales are guns, ammo, and reloading equipment and supplies. So they have VERY thorough and large selections for those.

 

[benchracer]

I went through this myself a few years ago. That was when I learned that the .338 Win Mag was not a hotrod cartridge (as Mudrunner said) like I thought it was at the time. It still isn't, but there are better bullets available now, which can dramatically improve its performance. If you are determined to have a Winchester Model 70 in .338 Win Mag for use at long range, Cutting Edge bullets are worth a long look. They are expensive, but they can give you everything that can be had within .338 Win Mag case capacity limitations.

With available bullets and powders, the .300 Win Mag will far outperform its .338 counterpart at long range. It is an easy and inexpensive solution compared to taking the step up to the larger cased .338's. I have a .300 Win Mag in process, myself.

If you want a large cased .338 with relatively easy factory ammo availability, the .338 Lapua is the way to go, IMO. I have consistently seen ammo on the shelf at big box type stores for several years. Off-the-shelf rifles chambered for the Lapua are also not hard to find. The issue is cost. There is nothing inexpensive about shooting the Lapua. Available, yes. Expensive, also yes.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

It's a shame you specify factory chambering. A 338/26-Nosler will do it.

but

A 300 Win Mag will do it better past 1000 (well so far in my testing)

 

[kshunter]

This got my wheels turning so I punched in a 300gr Berger otm at 2400fps for the 338wm which I believe HSM sells as a factory loaded offering and a 230 Berger otm for the 300wm at 2875fps also offered by hsm I believe, into jbm ballistics trajectory calculator. Which I feel is fairly accurate from past experience. At a 1000yds The 300wm was moving 1750 fps and carried 1500ish pounds of energy. Surprising to me was that the Vega was moving out at 1600Fps and carried 1600 pounds of energy. The nod went to the 338 for wind drift by .1 MOA and drop went to the 300 by 9 MOA. Lol I guess if you stick a 400 small block in the front end of a vega it might run just a hair different. Lol if a guy long throated a 30" barrel for the ol 338 vega I wonder if the 300wm could hang??? Looks like to me speeds aren't much different and a heavier bullet may penetrate better. Lol not that I believe a 300gr 338 cal bullet would have trouble penetrating anything with four legs but hey I was a little surprised at the potential of the 338wm. Just food for thought.

 

[tim_w]

The question what which one reaches out the furthermost and the 1000-1200yd and no matter what if you are comparing on those standards I am with MR. Its not an absolute as the 338 is a good round but not compared to the WM when it comes to reaching out to 1200 yards. It does not have the muscle to throw the big 338s way out there all things being equal.