The .338 Federal gets about the same velocities as the .30-06 with the same bullet weights, so there's no reason it wouldn't work on a wide variety of big game at "normal" hunting ranges. And I have used it, and seen it used by others in various places in North American.
Whether the extra .03 inch in bullet diameter makes any difference in "killing power" over the .30-06 is debatable, along with whether rifles chambered for short-action rounds are "handier" in the field, given the same barrel length. Which may be be why the .338 Federal never became a best-seller.
One of the things I've noticed over the decades is that more and more hunting rounds have been introduced to fill various ballistic "slots" in the line-up--no matter how small. This may have something to do with the "shortage" of brass in some less-popular rounds--though luckily .338 Federal cases can be easily formed from widely-available .308 Winchester brass.
John,
Always wondered about bullet performance in the Federal.
338, like 270, is kind of a specific use bullet.
A manufacturer can guess exactly what cartridge and velocity the vast majority of those caliber bullets are going to see.
Being that the standard for 338 is quite a bit faster than the Federal,
are even the normally softer bullets designed for the magnum?
And since most 338 use is for bigger animals, my concerns were
adequate expansion at what wouldn't be very long range.
Tikka must have built a pile of them. Remember them selling cheap
around here. Then, for the next several years, even cheaper on the used market.
