Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Winchester Collectors Good day at the range with the twins

That is a great 338 BSA.. I dig it alot. Mine is about 9lbs all up with the current McM on it. The Legend may be a little lighter, doesn't really matter though, I like the rifle a bunch and it carries fine. I figure if my 71 year old elk hunting partner can lug his Chet Brown stocked 300 Win I won't complain about my 338.. It is a meat getter.

I am actually thinking of rescoping mine this year as well. Not sure what scope just yet, but it'll probably be something like a 6X36 Leupold with or similar.

Glad you were able to get out and shoot though. I shot a little this past weekend myself. It feels good to get out and burn some gun powder and get the rifles ready for Wyoming, Oregon and maybe Idaho this year.

Thanks Scotty. Boy you are right about it feeling great to get out and burn some powder. I have been chomping at the bit to get out there. Your 338 will look awesome when done. Post some pics of the rifle when you get the new stock and scope put on it. I remember you had the original stock that was cracked/repaired and then you went to that pre 64 montecarlo pattern McMillan. Now to a legend. I'll bet you'll like the legend better than the montecarlo pattern. I am very curious as to what you think of it. Please let me know how she works out after you get a chance to pack it around in the field... Thanks... Hey by the way, what color is the legend going to be??????

SWEET! you need to get summers damn brushogging, mowing and weedeating laid by the wayside then go smack some elk with those two this fall BSA.

Good shooting Buddy!

Thanks gunner...

It's olive colored BSA. Can't wait to see it all done.

Cool, should look just like EricM's then. Can't remember who ended up with that/my old rifle. There was a thread started about it a while back... That guy ended up getting a damn good rifle though..

I can't believe he got rid of it! Once he got his done I was dieting to get mine done. Plus it shot like crazy. It'll be tough to choose between my 338 and 35 Newton this fall.

Oh, I bet I know which one you grab....

Nice rifles, nice shooting!

Why did you choose the Leupie PRW setup?

Hey DD. I decided to go with the PRW because I had them laying around after selling my 375H&H to gunner. Pulled the scope and rings off of that rifle and just went with the whole works. I also like the looks of this set-up better. The talley's hung over the ejection port just a bit and BobinNH also thought the rifle would shoot better with a beefier set of rings and bases vs. the talley lightweights. He also thought I should re-drill and tap the base screws for 8-40, but I told him I wasn't going to go that far. Also, you know I'm a dual dovetail guy, but they don't make a good set for the H&H receiver that doesn't hang over the ejection/loading port. Many reasons I chose to go with these mounts and rings. The picture of the rings and bases aren't very good, but here's the scope, rings and bases on my 375H&H that I sold to gunner:



I don't have good pictures of the bases and rings on my 338 right now, but I have a few from the 375 if that makes any sense. Looks just the same on my 338 though:

As you can see, the base doesn't hang over the port:


Please excuse my laziness. I had to weld bilges in the rain today. Not going to go and take appropriate pictures...

Nice rifles and shooting. That mention of 225 IL reminded me of testing my 338/06. Those Hornadys separated at the 200 yds backstop. Core jacket slipped. But they had a beautiful mushroom. For me the 225 NPT or Barnes would be my go to on Elk. The Accubonds are tough. The 225 and 250 would do well. I had deadly results on deer using 200 BTs at 2900. The jackets were thick. All shot 1/2 MOA in my Hart 23".

Again nice rifles. Good hunting.

I believe I am going with Weaver bases/PRW's once I get my 338 back as well. I have 30mm Talley Screwlocks on it right now that have been fine as well. Still searching for that perfect set up for that rifle.

I am debating on putting a FXII 6x36 with LR Dots on it to be totally honest. It's lighter and it is all the glass I need to make hits out my max distances.

I have the same set up on my 300 Wby as what you've got on your 338 now and it is a rock solid combo in my book..

Thanks 65. I actually had beretzs do some testing on these interlocks and he basically said the same thing. They really don't hold up nearly as well as a partition, but I ran across 400 of these bullets at a deal I couldn't pass up. I'm down to my last 50 or so now. I didn't realize I liked shooting my .338's this much I guess... . I'm really contemplating making a switch to a 210 partition as my all purpose bullet. For the longest time I used the 250gr. sierra gameking and it produces dead elk on the spot, but you get jacket core separation. The core usually goes out the far side and the jacket found in the offside hide. I just recently bought 300 more of those pills as well. Found some old ones at a small town gunshop for a hell of a good deal.

Scotty, the leupold DD's always worked perfectly for me on my Alaskan like yours:




They are simple and strong and look good. However, if you ever want to go to QRW type rings, the PRW bases work great. I had my 375H&H set up with QRW's for a while when I was running a leupold 1.5-5x20. Quick on and off with the scope and you could quickly use the back-up irons..

DDs are never a bad choice, my most often Go To B&R. Talley's, the steel ones are also tank tough, yes, heavier than AL ones but what's a couple of ounces on a serious rifle when we all could lose a few lbs on ourselves....

BSA, I ran the 225 PTs, the 210s have a great reputation on Elk, yet the 225s only drop about 2" more at 400 with a 200 POA/POI, and you get more retained energy, and SD....I see little downside. Yes, the 250s were hell stout Sierra's - TOUGH jackets, yet no bonding or partition, and I would gladly run a 225 AB or PT for flatter shooting, great killing, and a bit less recoil.

All those bullets will work and work well. But a box or two of your top premiums for an elk hunt is low cost insurance, JUST in case you need it. Don't overlook the 225 Barnes. The 185 has worked great on elk as well, but BC as we know is always compromised when you go light. Downrange Speed, energy, and drop/drift matter to me as I want expansion, penetration, and retention, to ensure vitals are wrecked

If you guys like to spend money (who doesn't?), try some Swift Aframes on Elk sized game.

On Jim's recommendation, I bought several boxes of the 225 Aframes for my 338 when I went to Africa. They shot as well as my Hornadies and NPT's and to the same point of aim. When recovered from game ( the few we were able to find) the mushroom was perfect and the terminal effects were impressive. Most game just decided to lay down right there and give up.
I still had about a box left, so I loaded them up for elk hunting but I'm saving them for hunting and target shooting with the PT's and Hornady.

Bob

Good post man. I'll definitely consider the 225gr. partition as well. If they shoot as well as these Hornady interlocks, I'll be in business and it looks like you don't lose much in trajectory, but gain a little more weight. I'm a heavy for caliber bullet guy anyway, so that just may be my huckleberry. Thanks...

I agree, those swift A-frames are bad azzed pills. As are the trophy bonded bear claws (the old ones). That's one of the things I love so much about the 338wm, there are so many good bullet choices out there. I remember in the early 90's, trying damn near every bullet I could get my hands on. From the light 180gr. Nosler BT's all the way up to some 300gr. pills. At the time, I made up my mind and settled on the ol 250gr. sierra GK, as it was the best shooter in 3 of the 338's I had at the time. Now I'm down to this 1 338wm, and it shoots every bullet I've tried in it very well. I don't think it has a picky bone in its body... I do have to come clean about these 225gr. interlock loads though. I made sure they were totally straight: Less than .002" TIR (run out). Since this rifle shoots so well, I'm going to give the 225gr. Nosler partition a try next. I do have some 210's, 250's and 275's (I believe those are speers) on hand as well....

I really like 225 Partitions in mine. They shoot to the same place as BBCs...

The 225 weight really is about perfect in the 338. I've used a bunch of others but a 225 started at 2900 is pretty serious stuff in my opinion.

I do like the Swifts as well. Great bullet. I need to try them and see if they print like the BBCs.

I've been using the 225 NPT's for many years now. Haven't even come close to what I would call a failure in any elk I've shot with them (around 12 or so IIRC). The couple I've shot with Hornadies I can't be so positive about. Dead elk but long tracking jobs and light blood trails.

At least in my rifles, the Aframes shoot as well as the NPT's. Less meat damage also.

I've been wanting to try some different bullets but I'm so darned old school I can't bring myself to change from something that works so well.

Bob