Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting 338 RUM

I have shot several elk with my 338 RUM - old Rem SPS - 28", using 250 gr. accubonds.

The 338 RUM seems to tip them a little faster than the 300 RUM - using 180 Siroccos. Never lost an elk to either round - knock on wood!

I've taken several bull moose with the 338RUM and a 250 Accubond. Shots were from 54yds to 315yds IIRC. I caught only one bullet which traveled through both shoulders of an old bull. The retained weight was 140gr which I thought was pretty good considering how much heavy bone it penetrated.

Remember one very important thing, If you blow off a humans pinkie finger, he is out of commission.

My 338 WM in a Winchester SS Classic is pushing 225 grain Accubonds out the spout at 2950 with about 20% less powder charge. I'm wondering if it is worth the effort , time, and expense to go to the RUM version just so I can deal with all the extra recoil. I've taken elk out to 600 (so far) with the Win Mag and it had plenty left IMO, so I think I'll stick with it for now....

Good choice buddy. Then you have to consider weight too. When I'm elk hunting, I don't want to be packing a 13 pound 338 RUM or Lapua magnum with a muzzle brake either. I like to keep my 338wm nice and light and well balanced. I was just out shooting a very nice 338 Lapua mag the other day with my buddy. He's thinking about buying it. It is damn heavy, has a big brake on it. It shot well. Probably better than most guys I've seen at the range with their big Lapua mags. 5/8" 3 shot groups from myself and my buddy laid down a couple 1" groups. He's SWAT, so he's still learning. Ha ha. He wanted me to come out and help him decide if he really wants to buy the rifle. He likes it, but after we started shooting his Tikka 308, he started wondering why he needs the 338... He said he's not going to be shooting past 500 yards. At 400 yards, he was shooting 4" groups with the big gun. 1" groups with the Tikka.. Here's my 5 shot group from the 308, using factory ammo:


Target is chewed up looking, but his ballistic app said it was in the .1's. I told him it was closer to 1/4". Both my buddy and I were shooting 1" 3 shot groups at 400 yards with that rifle. I told him, lets work up a good load for that rifle and you can drop just about anything you want at your imposed range limit of 500 yards.. Everyone has their range stories, but it seems like most guys that I've seen shooting the tactical looking big 338's are younger inexperienced shooters. Usually shooting 3"+ groups at 100 yards, then saying, "that is good enough".. You are a member of my club, hell you may have seen one of the guys I'm talking about? I'm like you though, I've used the 338wm enough that I know it will get the job done with less fuss...

Posting pics of a group shot with a 308 in a thread about 338’s you just can’t help yourself…….

My other 338 is a Pre 64 with a custom spout cut at 22" and pushes the same load at 2650. Still just as accurate and recoil is very comparable - I assume due to fairly similar stock design and weight... I don't see anything wrong with the UM based cartridges, I just have never been much for inefficient cartridges, extra weight, and excess recoil when the rifles I have settled on get the job done so well... my 338s are loaded with approx 72 grains of H4831 compared to 95 grains in the UM cartridges typically- for about 100 fps difference...

I guess I'm in your boat BSA- as demonstrated in your post I think a lot of guys would do much better with a 308 over a big magnum just because they would shoot them much more. Not to mention the inherent accuracy of most 308s. How many times have you seen 300 and 338 UMs for sale with most of a box of ammo thrown in on the deal. I'm betting that box you get is the first box the seller ever tried in the rifle...

I don't want to be hauling much more than a 9 lb rifle including scope. Shooting the 225's at 2950 fps from a long-throated 25" .338 Win Mag is right on the border line of what I can shoot precisely with an imperfect field rest or off-hand in a 9lb rifle. Even using 250's at a slower speed takes me over that threshold. In the .338 RCM using 225's at 2720 fps I like an 8 lb (including scope) rifle.