I'm constantly amazed at the quality of testimony given about the performance of cartridges by guys with little or no experience with same. I know guys around here, in the "Great State of Confusion", who shoot maybe one elk or one deer with a certain cartridge - and sometimes all they've managed to kill is paper - but they still think they've got it all figured out anyway. Just incredible!
Accuracy and velocity issues: The 338 Win. Mag. isn't always an easy cartridge to get to shoot well - not as easy as cartridges like the 308, 30-06, 270, 300 Winchester, or 375 H&H are - and some 338s will either not shoot well at all, or else they'll only shoot well with one bullet. Some 338s are also very slow, and struggle to make much over 2600 fps. with 250s, 2750 with 225s, or even 2850 with 210s. I've owned a number of 338s of various makes that struggled in all those areas, and some of the worst shooting, slowest 338s I've ever owned that had barrels that fouled like crazy were original pre-64 Model 70 'Alaskans', so the old pre-64 70 wasn't and isn't necessarily the sacred object that we're so often led to believe that it was.
BUT, a good 338 Win. Mag. with a good barrel and chamber CAN demonstrate incredible accuracy, and any 338 that's accurate with a variety of bullets, unfussy, consistent, AND fast should be shot sparingly at the range, and reserved mostly for actual hunting. My #1 338 Win. Mag. shoots like a varmint rifle with 210 and 250 gr. Nosler Partitions as well as 225 North Forks and 225 Barnes TSXs, plus it's very fast, and I don't shoot it much anymore. I save it for hunting and practice with other rifles for the most part......
