Or what have I gotten myself into? An Accumark Mk V in 340 was just a little bit too good a deal to pass on. I'm getting brass with it so that will help the ouch on the wallet. The Norma Weatherby brass isn't cheap!

I'm wondering what would be a good powder to start with? I'm thinking of starting with lighter bullets like 185 gr ttsx or maybe 200 Accubond, 210 partition or 210 Sirocco for a bit more manageable recoil.

I have a possible scope for it, a Sightron S3 3.5-10x44mm it should be good and reliable but the eye relief is listed 3.6-3.8" which might be borderline for something like a 340 ?

Anybody run one of these things? Not the ultralight minimalist rigs that seem to be so popular these days but I always wanted to try a Weatherby and the 340 seems to have an old school hot rod coolness all its own. I was just reading a little Bob Hagel, and he seemed to like his. I'm sure Elmer Keith would approve too, especially if I could find some 275 gr bullets to load for it... you know for raking shots on bull elk in the timber

I had a 340 WM. It was a deal I could not pass up on a SS MKV Maine Gun. The guy who had it said it didn't shoot. I took the rifle, mounted a proper scope on it. 3.5-10X Leupold the floor plate screws were loose so I torqued them down to spec's and with Factory 210 Nosler Partition Weatherby Ammo, that rife shot very very well, I would put four dead on at 200 yards and you could cover the group with a quarter and change left over. Get yourself a load manual, you should able to find a good load without much trouble. I hunted with it for a bit then when I downsized that rifle went down the road. I got a 338 Winchester and I could never tell the difference anyway,

This is what you need:

My buddies 340 Weatherby is fond of 210 gr. TTSX's and RL-19 and he's fond of the 340... I should know; I reload for him. The 340 is an impressive round that never got the credit it was due, IMHO. His is braked and not at all unpleasant to shoot with that load. He's a Weatherby fan, as in 300, 30-378, and 340. He formerly had a 257 but that now lives in my safe.

Had one for two decades plus. I love the cartridge. I tried many bullets and settled on the Barnes 210 TTSX. Many one-shot kills on bull elk and caribou to a step or two short of 500 yards.

Learn to shoot it and it will serve well.

I bet those 300 great bullets would have some kick. I was surprised to see that the 340 can kick them out over 2600 fps!

Anybody with experience with hard kicking rifles comment wether 3.75" eye relief would be sufficient?

my favorite rifle, in a weatherby fibermark stock, mine likes the 250 hornady bullets over h 4831 and a 215 fed primer,
at about 2800 fps, its always proved very lethal and accurate , 1" 3 shot off the bench groups at 100 yards are routine
sight in 3" high at 100 yards and go hunt!

I think so but it depends on your stock shape too. I had a Brown Prec Classic for mine — it had no to almost no drop at the comb with a Decelerator pad on it. My rifle weighed ~ 8.5 lbs ready to go regardless of scope it had, and I probably had at least three. Not because of scope failure due to recoil but more so due to the “evolution of scopes.”

But I would mount bases with 8x40 screws and use blue Locktite on the ring screws, minimally.

I’m pretty sure no scope I had had ~ 4” of eye relief.

ETA: I would get 3050-3100 fps with the 210 TTSX’s.

It’s an awesome rifle/cartridge combo. Congrats!

When I first bought mine 11 years ago, I thought the same way you did. I bought and first tried out some cartridges with lightweight bullets because of my fear of the infamous recoil. I went to the range and shot some 200 ad 210 grain bullets and was underwhelmed with the recoil. Loaded up some 250gr partitions and didn’t notice any difference.

I have settled on the CorBon factory 225gr TTSXs (https://shopcorbon.com/index.php?ro...oduct_id=72&mfp=11-type-of-cartridge[Rifle]&sort=p.price&order=DESC), which leave my 26” barreled Accumark at 3,140 fps (through three separate chronos).

They seem to work well in that rifle.

3-shot groups last fall at 100 Yds sighting in a new scope:





Okay on game:



I still have those 200gr & 210gr cartridges sitting idle in boxes in the garage 11 years later.

It also can kill fruit:

https://i.imgur.com/xMUu4AG.mp4

And notice how violent the recoil is in that video--not much--for a 225gr 0.514 B.C. bullet moving at 3,140 fps out of the muzzle.

Bought the boy one for graduation, Talley lw, 3.5-10 Leopold cds, great shooting rifle...

It's fed factory 225 hornadys..

We made our .340 brass from 8 mag. Rem.. It will need to be trimmed..

I have one that weighs about 8#. It is hard on scopes. I think I have been through about 4 now, currently without sights. I prefer the 250 grain bullets. Mine is a 12 twist or I would try the 300s. Factory Norma loads with 250 grain Woodleigh Round nose leave the the muzzle north of 3200 fps. I can't duplicate it with any handloads. There are a lot of new powders since I last worked up a load.
R17 and MagPro would give me 3000 fps with 250 grain bullets of various flavors. Seems like if you were going to shoot 200 grain bullets you would just use a 300 Wby and shoot 200 grain Partitions. Not sure there is a better bullet than that.

Been reloading it for years. TRy VV N-165 or RL-22 (MRP). I have A LOT of once fired and new brass plus a die to spare. PM me if you (or anybody0 is interested.

The number of experienced hunters who gravitate to the 33s for worldwide all around use is a good endorsement for the cartridge and most pick the Weatherby. If you want to come closest to book velocities use the Norma data since they load the factory stuff. I would think the number of scopes that have 4" plus eye relief are limited to lower power ones or scout & other specialty scopes. With good stock fit and form 3.5" should be good.

For me it would have to be a reloading proposition especially when you are getting over four bucks a round for custom loads.

That's the sorta gift a fella doesn't ever have the excuse he "needs" something else..

That and a 223/243 like rifle covers all the ground.

Thank you for your generous offer. I will look into both Rl22 and MRP. I have heard Rl22 and MRP are (or were) the same powder but I'm not sure, the data does seem different. Or is that because Norma is willing to publish data that is a little hotter, like the factory ammo they load for Weatherby?

I used IMR 7828 with the 250 grain Nosler Partitions.

Also used H-4350 withe the 210 grain Nosler Partitions.

Which is the better jackwabbit load?

DF

The 250 grain Partitions,the parts flew about 30 feet into the air.

At least it didn't overpenetrate...

DF

Yup.

While there's little doubt that the .340 WBY is a very potent and long range cartridge.....and the Weatherby rifle is up to the task.....I look back on the days when I owned a .338 Mag.....( a M-70 BTW).....

Every time I took it to the range, it's recoil reminded me a lot of my .375 H&H.....and that's why I still have a .375 H&H.....and no .338 Win Mag.....

If you're a die hard bull elk hunter, the .340 just might be as good as it gets.....while I sure don't miss my .338 Magnum, I'll cheer you on with yours and n exchange I ask that you don't look down on the .30-06 I have found to be extremely adequate.

I love mine. I built it in 1980. Mark X Mauser action opened up to 375 length. 26" Douglas barrel. Model 70 safety. Got a California English walnut blank from Don Allen and my MSP trooper buddy did the stock work. It weights 9 lbs with the 3.5x10 Leupold. I broke a sight base screw and had them drilled out to 8-40. No problems with them now. It is extremely accurate with H-4831 and 250 Partitions. I use 300 wby brass necked up to .338 then fire formed. In 1982 I carried it up a mountain outside of Leadville, CO in the Holy Cross wilderness area along with a 90 lb pack with my brother and 2 other police officers. Didn't get a shot, but did get High Altitude Pulmonary Edema after 3 days. (12,000 feet) Started coughing up blood. My brother carried me down to the truck parked at 10,000 feet and then made two trips for our gear. Spent the next 5 days in Vail hospital in intensive care. I thought I was in great shape, 34 years old, 6', 190 and could run 5 miles. Doc said I went up too fast and my body couldn't adjust. Kind of like the bends. Wife says no more trips for elk over 5,000 feet. I'm 70 now and just retired a year ago. Just shoot the 340 for fun. It kicks some, but still less than the 416 mag and 458 mag I used to own.

HAPE, high altitude pulmonary edema doesn’t care if you are a finely tuned athlete with an at-peak functioning cardiovascular system or an out-of-shape desk-rider. It can strike those who go up too fast from too low.

The procedure should be to “go slow”, “stay well hydrated”, “take a couple of aspirin a day”, and at the first symptoms of headache, cough, or other general malaise, head down.

I remember at an anesthesia conference at Breckinridge, a local emergency medicine doc telling us they would have one or two deaths a year at the resort. These would be folks who’d fly in from the coast, get their skis and be on the hill in hours, get sick, go to their condo and die in their sleep. Sometimes, young, fit folks.

I've got an Accumark in .340 WBY as well. It kills no doubt, on both ends.

I tried several bullets, the last being the 200 Accubond, as it didn't have as much kick as many other bullets I shot out of it. I killed a cow elk with it in 2012 and haven't shot it since. It just sits in the safe these days. Back in my younger and dumber days I killed black bear, caribou, elk, whitetail and mule deer with it.

Kind of thinking about selling it. I just don't like the recoil.

George, You are right about HAPE. As soon as I walked into Vail Hospital and Doctor said, "Hello Flatlander". Just like you said, I went up too fast and it didn't mater what my physical condition was. We drove straight through from MI to Colorado, parked the truck at 10,000 feet. Slept for the night and in the morning hiked up to 12,000 or so. I am very lucky my brother and buddies got me out of there.

Yeah, Bob Hagel did like the 340..and the 378, and the 270 Wby among others. And I don’t think he spared the gas much. The load I mentioned above was very accurate though not max in my rifle, and true, it may not have offered anything above a 300 Wby or even a 300 Win, but it did it at lower pressures.

I’m not a “long range” guy anyway; meaning past five hundred yards which used to be long range before laser range-finders and dependable elevation turrets. And that is mostly the era I used it in. I knew the drops at three hundred, four, and five hundred yards and while “it knocked elk off their feet” sounds hyperbolic, I saw it time after time.

I used one in 1998 with H4350 and the then 210 xbt. It was clocking right at 3200fps. I killed zebra, impala, blesbuck and then went over to Namibia and shot the big gemsbuck. They are as big as a spike elk, big cow elk. I later on, in 2007 used its "twin" ( as far as I'm concerned) the 338 RUM and 180 NAB/H4831 340w is a fine round, and I too would start with the 185 TTSX or 180 NAB. Have a ball pard!

I have used my .340 on several elk,a whitetail buck and an antelope... It is a sure killer.. The recoil is not bad, but I have a 26 " number 5 on mine, but that is my std. barrel for all my rifles.. If I ever go for brown bear that will be my rifle.. Hagel love it with a 210 Nosler.. Bob was way ahead of his time, as far as I am concerned... Plus he was a hunter.. Except in Alaska where he was required to have a guide, he hunted on his own.. Many or most of the famous gun writers used guides most of the time. A bad shot, or an animal that runs too far is the guides problem, not theirs..

My favorite elk rifle is still a synthetic stocked Wby. Its probably taken 2 dozen elk, and multiple deer and antelope, all in the 3-500yd range. It shot factory 210 partitions in to bug hole sized groups. Sadly,they discontinued the loading. They clocked 3250fps and the factory 225s were 3080. Since moving back east, it’s sat idle in the safe. My summer reloading project includes some 225 AB and RL26. I hope to use it on deer this year....just because. I could never get my handloads in 210 to match the velocity and accuracy of the factory fodder at the same time.

I too was a Bob Hagel reader. As I recall, he noted the 210s penetrated nearly as deep as the 250s while shooting much flatter. I liked them because even at 500yds, they’d expand in the lungs of an antelope.

Some folks are intimidated by the recoil. I find it more it comfortable than an identical rifle in 300wby. More of a shove than a crack. I would opt for a longer eye relief scope in the event you find yourself shooting from an awkward position. Mine has had a Varix-III 3.5x10 on it since the mid 90s.

My .340 and .338 went down the road, still have a .375 H&H. Also have .300WM and 7RM, so feel well enough armed. No gaps there, IMO. I use more of my non-mag rounds.

DF

In Bob Hagels day the 250 was a "semi spitzer" so one reason he favored the 210 but he might still if he were around. Same as Dirt farmer skipped from 300 to 375 for Africa but was sorely tempted by the mediums for Alaska. All of them 8RM, 338, 340 & 358 Norma.

My one experience with a 340 Weatherby really impressed me with it's recoil! You guys must be some tough SOB"s!

Got my first 340 in 1974, used it on a few elk and deer over the next 10yrs then sold it. Got the itch again back in the mid 90s and built one on a M70 action. Great round for Alaska bears and moose, and of course elk IF you can manage the recoil. A fast 33 cal is a spectacular killer on large game when used with good bullets.

I've been a 30-06 guy my whole life, I am definetly in uncharted waters for myself stepping up to a 340 Bee. But part of my reason for getting into a medium bore was less an absolute 'need' for the capabilities of a fast .338 but more from a desire of the personal challenge of teaching myself to shoot well (with a lot of practice) a heavier recoiling rifle.

Now there's a report you can take to the bank!

My moose wasn't quite that big but those 250gr Partitions leaving the muzzle of my 26" Browning A-Bolt (rechambered from a .338 Win Mag with a new .375 H&H clip) at 3000 fps, put him down on the spot after a couple of steps. And no CNS or heart hits, just lungs at 165 yards.

I made my brass from .375 H&H necked in a .340 die and fire-formed using about 35 grs SR4759 at 2100 fps for the 200gr Nosler BT. Accurate, and a great deer load! That brass was given to me at our range, once fired. I never used Weatherby .340 cases. They were stronger than the Weatherby stuff if Hagel was right in his experience, which I believe he was. They lasted "forever" with the one load used for hunting - the 250 NP at a ten-year average of 2997 fps over the Chrony. RL-22 proved best at an average MOA of 1.25", and I shot 1000 through it. Primers were WLRM.

Rifle weight with scope and ammo = about 8.75 lbs. Never ever worried me in hunting. Calculated recoil = 54 ft-lbs. At the bench, I first expected some unpleasantness, but it proved no more intimidating than a .375 H&H, which bothered me not at all. To be honest, though, I was into shooting some heavy-kicking rifles in those days. Hey, I still am! My favorite is a .458 Win Mag! But now at 83 I use a Lead Sled for that!

Bob
www.bigbores.ca

I've played with a lot of hard recoiling rifles. The 340W I had was built on a Match Grade Arms Mod 700, 24" barrel with a godawful "holes all around" brake. The problem was not so much the reoil as to what it did to scopes! Since it was so light ( right at 5.5 pounds) when the brake "arrested" the backward motion of recoil, it mimicked what happens with an air rifle piston. Scopes are really made and "tested" ( if you think about it) with recoil one way. I killed a Leupold 2.5x8 10 days before my SA hunt. I put on a Zeiss Conquest (3x9 I think) and it went out after those few animals. I had the rifle rebarreled to 338WM, Magnaported and only shot the 185xlc after my return. I gave it away to a friend later. The 338 RUM was built on a Howa action, Boyd laminate and a different 3 hole style brake. It was heavier, and a sweet shooter, but again, I only loaded the Nosler 180 AB. My outfitter friend offered me big bucks for it so I sold it to him. It was one of the ugliest rifles I ever had (it had been given to me) and I can't abide ugly ( not in my dog/cat/woman or rifles! ha) No, it doesn't matter if the world thinks "I'm" ugly either!!!!

Used a "cheap" Bushnell 3 - 9 x 40mm on mine for the decade I owned it. Never a problem and NO "brake"!

Bob
www.bigbores.ca

CZ- Back in the 90s I had an old Bushnell "Sportview" 4x on a ruger #1 .458WM! It held up just fine, but that Ruger was heavy as a truck axel, and it pushed rather than "snapped" in recoil. Still impressive, ha.

Time to revive this thread............. I found the old 340 Weatherby article written by Ross Seyfried that appeared in the September, 1989 issue of "Guns and Ammo" magazine. This thread reminded me that Ross was a big 340 Weatherby fan and I managed to come across that very issue. Just to get an idea here's two comments from Ross in his summation in the last paragraph..............

"The 340 Weatherby will do it all. If it has a limitation, it will be that some hunters will find the recoil level too high".

"We may see the day when bullet and propellant technology will produce a better all-around cartridge, but right now the 340 Weatherby stands alone".

Always liked his work and he knew that of which he spoke. If Ross likes it then it's gotta be good.

Any chance you could scan that article, I would love to read what Ross Seyfried had to say about the 340

I'm not too computer savvy, but if you want, I can take nice digital photos, download 'em onto the computer and then E-Mail them. PM me if interested. I found that article real interesting. Being retired now gives me time to fool around with stuff like that.

Ah, that is the very article by RS that drove me to the 340 Wby. Somewhat later, when the Win Failsafe bullet came out and other mono’s he wrote of these bullets lifting the effectiveness of the cartridges they were loaded in and finally declared, IIRC, that of the “middles” the 338 Win was now his new favorite. I think the article that changed him was about a 30-06 safari for feral donkeys Down Under, and he was amazed at the “new” effectiveness of the cartridge loaded with the Failsafe bullet. (IIRC, RS had a Champlin in 340 Wby).

I wrote Mr Seyfried back at Guns & Ammo in a friendly manner stating in effect that then every cartridge (i.e., the 340 ) was also improved In effectiveness. G&A published that letter and his response. But RS stuck to his guns (no pun intended but it would work 😉) but it was a good exchange.

Because of newer "everything", including rifles, powder and bullets, I too switched to a 9.3 x 62 as my "medium"> It will do just about anything a .375 H&H or .338 WM can do, and could fit the shoes of a .340.

a 250 AB at 2700+
a 286 NP at 2600+, and
a 320 W at 2400 +

All in a 7.7 lb ready-to-hunt rifle with a 22.4" barrel.

One powder = RL-17
One case = Hornady
One primer = WLRM

Bob
www.bigbores.ca

Is that the article where he used a FMJ on a wounded moose, if I recall.

Went back and looked at it again... In the wounded moose part of the story; he finished it off with a 250 gr. Nosler from 200 yards. The FMJ part must have been the section on a wounded British Columbia Mountain Caribou bull that had been wounded with a 250 gr. Nosler, hit too far back from about 350 yards. Went down but got up as he approached, didn't mention range, standing up facing directly away, Ross says he pulled a Hornady solid from his belt and shot the bull in the seat of the pants, killing it instantly. Said the solid made a neat exit hole in the center of the chest, damaging neither meat nor cape. Never mentioned bullet weight on that Hornady solid but it was a heckuva good story written with finesse in classic Seyfried style.