Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Lost a bear with .338 wm.

There is no way that bear was double lunged.
1. less than optimum shot placement
2. bullet failure
3. combination of both

I haven't read the entire thread but I agree the problem was identified early on as inadequate bullets. I use my .338 WM for moose and from the beginning hunted with 225 gr. Partitions. For practice I use 225 gr. Hornadys. On my very first hunt with this rifle I shot a moose at short range and at a single shot he went down so hard that two of us had trouble breaking one of his antler tines free of the ground. With the proper bullets this caliber is an absolute hammer IMO.

Jim

I've never shot a bear...let alone a big bear.


But, I used to hunt with a small group. The core group of us got things done. Weekends and such would bring out guys that had troubles killing deer. I've always been the group tracker. Archery or gun..if someone had a track job, my phone rang.


The ONLY time I have every found bone chunks in the blood trail has been leg hits.


And yes....one of those guys dinged a black bear one day...I wasn't with them...but they said the same thing. Bone chunks and a great blood trail for like 2 miles before another hunter put it down. Leg hit.


The OPs bear was NOT hit twice in the chest. Nothing takes 2 338mag hits to the chest and goes 4.5 miles. I'd venture to guess the first was in the leg... possibly the bullet blew apart on the shoulder and left a gaping hole with bone fragments. 2nd shot...who knows. 150+yds running...most guys would be lucky to hit it let alone send a perfect quartering away shot exactly where they wanted it to go...



I'd agree....a bigger gun won't help. Better bullets and shot placement absolutely will.


There are a number of fantastic bullets on the market. And as a handloader, there is no reason to shoot a bullet not built for the task at hand. I'm in Pennsylvania shooting little old whitetails and black bear...I load premium bullets because I don't want a failure. Millions of critters are killed every year with cup n core soft bullets...I know that. But again, back to hunting with a group of guys....I've seen various bullets perform. Various calibers and cartridges...various hits. I've noted that with many soft cup n core bullets that performance isnt consistent. Sometimes they seem to pencil through and not do much. Others they perform perfectly. Others they are like grenades.


I shot Sierra's one season. Broadside buck at 30yds. 165gr 3006 load. Shot in the ribs right behind the shoulder. I found it incredible to find the guts blown up as well as the chest. I found it more interesting to find a mangled jacket in the hind quarter. Ya...it killed him. But whew. That was a wild bullet performance. I saw enough.

YES!

Hopefully the OP is still reading and learning with an open mind.

You're better than me. I think he's closed-minded to better bullets and just wants a bigger caliber to take care of his problem.

too much of Elmer keith can do that to some minds.

re; .338, didnt Barnes Co. recommend 185x as sufficent for BBs?

OP could also reverse his thinking - trade .338 for a humble .30-06 200 AF and witness a miracle ..

Yep!

A 338 recoils significantly more than a 300win mag. I like the 338 caliber but it sits in favour of a 300wm or 30-06. They do the job with much less fuss. I’m a bit of a delicate flower and 338 just isn’t pleasant to practice with. Lol

The 225 Sierra is actually one of the hardest sierras I know of. Thick jacket and hard lead core. I think they may be poking smallish holes through the lungs. Not what you normally expect from sierras. I've shot them through rock chucks from full house 338 lapua loads and it looked like FMJs. The 225 hornady or partition in the same load sent chucks into orbit.

When I had several 338s I either shot the 225 interbond or the 210 partition. Hard to beat the partition for fast acting expansion with penetration. Shooters pro shop sometimes has seconds for not much more than sierras. Nosler seconds are as good as firsts for hunting. I've had poor accuracy or other issues with hornady seconds from midway but SPS noslers are good to go.

Bb

I remember reading years ago that Chub what’s his name said that the 210 Nosler was the best bullet Nosler ever made. I had 250’s and 225’s loaded up for my Bear hunts, but the 210’s had worked so well, and consistently on everything else I decided to roll with them. Bang, a few seconds of oh chit! And then flop.

That oh chit part will get your attention for sure! Makes you realize that first shot better be perfect.

I had 338WM back in 1997, used it on a couple elk, a few deer and an antelope. I did not like the recoil at all. I would much rather shoot my 300 H&H or 338-06. Even my 375 H&H is better than that 338WM I had.

Son and I are taking 338-06's to SE Alaska this spring for Black Bear. Premium bullets and shooting for the front shoulder structure will be priority. I have not settled on specific loads, but 185gr GMX or TTSX, 210gr T/TSX or Partition will be on the list to try.

A 185 at 2900 or 210's at 2800 will certainly do the job.

Lots of expert bear advice here. The bear I lost was 150 yards away. I was on the south shore if Tustemena lake about a mile east of Nicholai creek. Anybody whos been there can tell you the bluffs are almost vertical. My first shot was slightly into the bone on his right shoulder. It was a very obvious hit and we could clearly see it. The second was while he was trying to claw his way up the bluff at 2mph also a clearly seen impact. After that he was in the alders. The blood trail was marked at almost waist high on brush and grass. Neither were leg shots. Its possible the second shot never made it into lungs/heart. It was 6-10" further rear than I would have liked. This is the first bear I have ever lost. Im at a loss for while Im catching so much crap over bullet choice. Right on sierras website for this bullet its recommended for Alaskan brown bear. Ive shot two moose with this same load. No problems. Also, I believe I did mention this is my second season reloading. Im certainly no expert. I put my time in at the range and in the backyard. My accuracy and dedication cant be questioned.

If you're determined that the 338 was the problem, I much prefer my 416 Ruger Alaskan to the 338 I had. I've never used the 416 on anything but blowing up water jugs for the kids, but the 300 gr. TSXs make short work of them. The accuracy at the range is impressive, and the recoil is very manageable

That first bullet did not double lung that bear. You can chalk it up to bullet failure or shot placement. Take your pick. It is not the cartridge that caused the issue.

Did the bullet deflect off the bone? catch one lung? I do not know. Sometimes weird stuff happens.

I may not be a bear expect but have certainly seen enough critters put in the dirt to know that most rodeos are caused by shot placement issues.

Anytime someone says their accuracy can't be questioned I'd immediately question their accuracy. It sounds to me reading some of the posts that your ego is wrapped up in this. My suggestion would be to leave the ego behind. No one is perfect. And people are giving you feedback on your bullet choice based on their personal experiences. Just because a manufacturer puts a picture of an animal beside a bullet doesn't mean that bullet is a great choice.

Beat me to that comment, Tann. Hope the OP can check himself and learn a little bit.

As to 375 and 416's, I can only speak with limited experiences on moose. The specific cartridges are 375 and 416 Rugers with 20" barrels using 270 TSX and 350 TSX respectively.

One with the 375, about 25 yards, was a head shot that traveled through a lot of vertebrae bone, dropped at the shot. The other was about 175 yds, depending on where spruce tree was lazered. First shot behind the shoulder, lower mid-third of chest, very slight angle, shooting from a hillside about 10-15' above moose elevation. Shooting through a 1/2 a moose sized opening, 2nd and 3rd shots were through tall grass and other foliage, one was flank to chest, the other I am not sure other than a gash on mid-ham. Distance of travel guess, 3 to 3.5 moose lengths. He basically traveled around the spruce he was beside, and between it and another spruce that the limbs nearly intertwined.

The 416, 78-80 yds, frontal and slightly quartering through the chest, forkhorn looked as though he was going to sit down on his azz, trembled and tipped over to the side just before hams contacted the ground.

338, 225 TSX, about 150 yds, nearly perfect broadside, slightly downhill, tight behind the shoulder, lower 1/3 of chest, exit through a rib and scapula. Dropped so fast, that I did not see it during the recoil.

I luv the bigger medium bores, the 375's and 416's. My shooting distances are 200 and under. But, my 338 Winchester is likely my favorite all around rifle. Hell, may be my favorite rifle period.

One additional 375 Ruger, 270 TSX, I did not pull the trigger and did not see the impact. But, I was near enough to hear the moose fall like a ton of bricks. Slightly downhill, nearly broadside, behind to shoulder, through the heart, and totally busted the shoulder upon exit, distance about 60 yds. I did not see it but I heard him when he hit the ground Very shortly after the shot.

Somewhat related. This year I shot a Whtetail Buck with my 50cal Custom Hawken using 350gr Maxi Hunters. Range was about 100 yrds. Shot felt perfect and he ran off carrying the off side shoulder. Found very little blood and jumped him up after about 100 yrds tracking in the dark. My son was filming it. So we went home to watch the footage. He was clearly hit a little to far forward. I went back in the morning and found him after 4 hrs of searching. I would have sworn I made a better shot than that. If you Don't find them or have it on film. You can't blame the bullet. You can watch it on matt3006 you tube channel.

Never said I was perfect. I did say that two of us watched the impact from both bullets and they looked pretty good.