Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles A look at the 338 Federal 3 years later.

I've only taken one animal thus far with my 338 Fed (20-in bb), but it was a big cow elk standing broadside at 300 yds . One 185 gr TSX through the lungs and she stumbled 50 yds and fell over.....Still surprised how little it recoils.

Jeffrey: I have only used my newish 338 Federal Rifle for spring Black Bear Hunting so far.
I have had it two seasons now and have not harvested a Bear with it as yet.
I am happy with my Rifles accuracy so far and its light weight for packin over the miles in the spring high country.
My friend here in SW Montana killed a mature Bull Elk with one shot using his 338 Federal this just past season.
He relayed the yardage as around 200 yards.
Let me say this though - even though I have never done this exact thing myself - I am sure if YOU put a 210 grain Nosler Partition through an Elks heart/lung area even out at 300 yards that Elk is going to die!
You may not knock it down but it is going to die!
I have shot enough Elk with Nosler bullets to know this to be factual!
My secondary use for my Tikka T-3 in 338 Federal is to use when Hunting the fresh tracking snow conditions and pussyfooting into the bedding areas of the Elk (defined as "thick stuff"!) and getting closer shots there in their bedding areas.
My Rifle is shooting the 185 grain Federal factory TSX ammo right now.
Some more "thoughts" for your consideration.
There are (and I own some of them!) some better "LONG RANGE" Elk cartridges out there.
My main Elk Hunting partner uses a custom 338/378 Weatherby Magnum with a 30" barrel and a Shepherd scope!
I have seen him kill Elk (including a dandy 7x7 Bull!) with this Rifle at longer ranges than you mention.
His son "allegedly" killed a Bull with this rig at 950 yards!
I don't know this to be fact as I was not along on that days Hunt.
But they both allude to that being the reading on the laser rangefinder.
Once I go through all these Federal factory TSX's I have I am going to use THE Nosler 210 grain bullets for my handloads - and I will let you know what I found out with them, then.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

VG-any chance you've clocked any of those factory 185's? A buddy of mine did and had some slow speeds with it.

Thx
Dober

From the other side of the pond, i use my Tikka 338Fed for two seasons now, really an intesresting cartridge for us that deserve more attention even in the USA where you can use every thing. Changing from scope to red dot sight i used the Tikka for driven hunt (red and roe deer, wild boar), stalking roes and corsican ram and even gams, shots were from 15 to more than 200 meters. All were one shot kill the farthest distance after shot was 35m, a red deer doe shot in heart lung area in driven hunt, pushed very fast by dogs. Used factory 180AB and 185TSX plus some hand loads with 225grs Speer and 250grs (yes 250)Hammerhead from Sako cause i've more than 1000 of them. The Hammerhead really hammered (no pun intended)hogs at short range (15 to 60 meters), less recoil than my 9,3 or 45-70, light to carry and powerful enough for all euro games even big boars,mooses, bears. Surely better than the 300/270WSM that a lot of guys use here in "battue hunting" with semi-auto. I spoke with the Browning manager to have some made for Europe but they are not interested at the moment...To bad, would be a seller in France (biggest Euro market for BAR/Short Trac,Argo,SR1,or 750 semi autos). About velocity had mesured the AB and TSX factory loadings with my Chrony Gamma Master controlled by firing some match 22lr ammo of well know velocity (R50RWS and Eley EPS): the 338Fed speed were right on with the TSX and a bit faster with the AB than announed by Federal. Temperature was 19�C, elevation 100m above sea level.
Looking to rebarrel un old Browning BLR 243 i own!

The Nosler Partition was designed to open at moderate velocities and stay together at high velocities or through heavy bone, hence the partition.

Thats the way I see it

Good point Temmi...

RugerDude, I think you're the one not reading carefully. I think most of us responded very clearly -- we just seem to disagree with your and the OP's belief that 150 yards is the end of the limit for the .338 Fed. You might notice that most of us are expressing opinions based on our actions using the cartridge or a similar one to kill game...that might be a clue that we might actually know something. Not too much point to arguing at a guy that 150 yards is the limit when he's been succeeding at 300...

Someting for you to think about, when you present opinions to us about what you think we know...

Dennis

What is a 335 Win Mag ???

Hopefully, just a mistyping and inability to grasp "editing" functions...

Dennis

For the ranges you are intending to work in the 210 Partition ought to work great.

I keep thinking that I need a fed in the kimber montana. If I got one with a 4x leup on top I think I would shoot the Hornady 200. Seems about middle of the road. Cannot decide yet as I have a new montana in 308.

I dont think the 338 federal was ever intendid to be a 300 yard plus elk rifle but I would be willing to bet that in the hands of a compitent rifleman that could put the bullet on the mark, would have the Elk in the bag by days end.......

how many factory loads are there?
who other than the originator loads for it?
how many factory rifles are chambered for it?

It will never reach the success it needs to become anything other than a flash in the pan, sorry.

it will end up in the same place as the 260, 280rem and the 358.
Great round for its intended purpose but just didnt catch on with the mainstream.

...............As far as I know, Ruger, Sako, and Kimber currently chamber the 338 Federal. There may be some other makers who now do that I didn`t think of and some who might do so later.

The amount of factory loadings available may not necessarily determine popularity. As a reloader, I would be more concerned about brass availability, which has been no issue thus far in loading the 338 Federal for a friend.

From a marketing standpoint and to really determine "correctly" any cartridge`s popularity, one would have to some research and find out what the sales figures have been for new 338 Fed rifles from the makers going back the 3 years or so and then compare those past figures with more recent sales figures. That will determine whether or not there is a growing trend or a decreasing sales trend for the 338 Fed.

Then one should also contact the various distributors to determine how much 338 Fed brass has been and is being sold.

That would better put the puzzle together in order to better determine whether or not the 338 Fed will become just "a flash in the pan" or catch on with the "mainstream."

When it comes to popularity, I`m not so sure that the 260, the 280 Rem or the 358 Win are in such a bad or so-so place right now.

Until the proper marketing research is performed, I wouldn`t exactly say; "it will never reach the success it needs to become anything other than a flash in the pan!"

Opinions are ok, but they can be far from actual marketing facts.

Jimmy, I've got a 338 Montana and I love it. No animals yet but man it is one sweet rifle. I've got a Weaver K-6 and I'm shooting 200 Hornady's like you mentioned. All I can think about is shooting an elk with this bubba...
Af far as the flash in the pan comment, who cares??? We're reloaders right? I haven't bought a single box of ammo for this thing yet. It is just too reloader friendly for us to be concerned about here. I can't believe it has taken so long for this to become a factory rifle. It's too bad Weatherby and A-Square adopted the 338-06. That decision killed a beautiful round.

I like my Sako 85 Grey Wolf. I wanted a foul weather option to use instead of my Sako75 .308; seemed like a perfect fit for hunting Hogs and Deer in the thick Florida brush, swamps, and planted pines. I am a reloader, so factory offerings do not dictate my ammo. Added plus, the .338 bullet selection is pretty good.

t_bare

I'm fairly sure that Federal intended it to be a 300 yard elk rifle, and it's about perfect for such activities. Mine has only killed deer so far, but has been elk hunting and I would have exactly no qualms about shooting an elk with it. Hitting it in the right spot is one hell of a lot more important than whether a 200 gr bullet started at 2600 fps or 2800 fps...guaranteed.

I get a kick out of people who insist that it will somehow "disappear" because it doesn't become one of the top three sales cartridges. Among other things, that demonstrates serious ignorance of how gun owners operate... .

Dennis

1) Two boxes, each half empty, in my house. And about a dozen or so handloats. Don't really care what they sell, though, cause I kinda know how to make my own...

2) Who cares? Their loss...

3) Couple-three Rugers; Sakos; Kimbers; and I think a couple more.

4) It's already reached far beyond the point of "flash in the pan" -- otherwise this conversation wouldn't be going on. Think about it; you might get it...

5) The same place as the .260, .280, and .358 (OK, mine are a .35 Whelen and a .356 Win, but I used to have a .358 as well) is...in my gunsafe! If you actually think the .260 and the .280 are not successes, you need to learn how to think about rifles and cartridges. I guess if you just want to own the top five cartridges and won't buy them otherwise -- then go for it, but remember that your ownership has neither personal character nor actual value, it's just so many images.

And oh by the way..."mainstream" is a pretty irrelevant set for any cartridge acquisition -- we're a small group.

Buy what you want...I could care less. But don't adopt the idea that you can guess what will happen to a given cartridge. There have been quite a number of people, over the past 130 years or so, who were quite certain that the .45-70 would disappear... .

You'll have to wait a long time past three years to make an equal judgement on the .338 Federal, and a whole set of other cartridges.

Dennis

I'm not so sure that any round introduced in the last few decades has been a great hit? May be wrong, but can't think of one off the top of my head. Lots of good solid offerings, and I think the 338 Fed is just that, a solid offering. I think that as better powders become available to us (like TAC and IMR 8208 XBR) it's relevance will improve. Great selection of bullets and factory 338 Fed brass becoming available shortly. In my opinion it has great utility for the bulk of shooting and hunting I'll be doing and does it in a compact, reasonable recoil package. There are other good options out there too depending on what floats your boat. My bigger decision is whether to take the 338 Fed or 338-06 when I hit the woods. Good problem to have.

Damn, man, you expect people to blindly reach for facts instead of their own well-entrenched opinions? In here? *slapping knee*

My own well-entrenched opinion is that the 338 Fed is here to stay.