I once went into a Gander Mountain where I was having a crown put on a rifle (what a fiasco but that's another story) and this guy was waiting on his rifle from the (so called) gunsmith.
He started talking to me and I asked him what he was waiting on and he said a 338 win mag.
Oh, I said are you hunting bears this year and he said no it's for whitetails because every time he would shoot them with one of those lighter calibers they would get up and run off on him.
I just said good for you and walked off.
This is an interesting comment to me, because since I started hunting I progressively moved up in cartridge mainly because I expected animals to fall over when shot.
Being largely self taught without a mentor, I never knew some animals commonly run after being hit, but I did learn that they fall over more consistently when the caliber and bullet weight increases.
I really like .338 caliber bullets as being a little larger than commonly used and as aerodynamic as most of the best choices or most common choices.
I usually have a .338 or .340 Weatherby in my rack but strangely enough, have used calibers either size if it for most of my hunting.
I recommend purchasing it and try for yourself. It either appeals or interest wanes, at least you will make an informed decision after that you will be more comfortable with.
John
