338 Win Mag with cast

[pworley1]

What load are you using for white tails with the 338 Win Mag?

[Mr Peabody]

I didn't hunt Deer. I did shoot the RCBS 200gr gcfp they offered and it was a dandy. If I was to hunt Deer I'd go back to that design and try a load with Reloader 7

[waksupi]

I hunted with one for years. It may seem counter productive, but I found the 250 gr. Sierra the be best for deer. They don't have time to expand much, and leave pretty much the same wound channel as a cast bullet. Eat the hole. Lighter bullets were too destructive.

[quilbilly]

I am using two boolits in my 338 WM, the Lee 220 and an NOE 235. With either our local blacktail deer or your whitetails, a terminal velocity of anything over 1000 fps (or probably slightly lower) will do just fine with cast lead that isn't too hard. In my rifle's case, an old TCR single shot, it wouldn't stabilize the Lee 220 at any muzzle velocity under 1650 fps. The NOE boolit, however, is stable at a muzzle velocity as low as 1450 fps. At these CB velocities, the light weight rifle is very pleasant to shoot and accurate to well over 400 yards with the high BC of these projectiles. Several powders will get you there including RE-7, 5744, 3031, and 4198.

[missionary5155]

Will you be popping those deer across long open fields ?
But from what I have seen a flat nose 50-50 (cast of WW- range scrap) 200-250 grain striking said critter at over 1100 fps is going to do that corn cruncher in. Hit same deer at 1350 fps and you with have a nice exit channel.
They just do not need alot to get turned inside out. But ya have to have the slug in the right place and still doing at least 1100 fps.

[clintsfolly]

Never loaded the 338 but did some work with a 300 win mag with cast. The only thing that may help you from my experience is mag primers and AA5744.

[stubshaft]

I have pretty much settled on Lyman 338889 (249gr) ahead of 17.0 Unique, it comes out at about 1430 from my Ruger #1 and has not failed to drop a hog or goat up to 150 yds. with one shot. (the difference in the groups was due to two different primers).

[rockrat]

If I hunted deer with my 338wm, it would be using an Accurate boolit of 240gr gr I had Tom make for a 338ME. Loaded over 4759, gave me a three shot group a little under 1/2" @100yds

[pworley1]

Thanks for all your replies.

[KWJohnston]

Thanks for the info. I've noticed very few guys load cast for any of the various 338's. The 338 Win Mag is a really great cartridge, just not one that's high on the popular list at the moment.

I have a 338 Win mag that's being put together as an Elk rifle (if I can draw a tag). I fully intend to work up a cast bullet load for use on Whitetails. Seems like a good way to become comfortable with the rifle and get more use out of it. The information on this thread will come in handy!

[Three44s]

I have a 338 win Mag barrel for Savage bolt guns that I have not tried yet. I have run my 338/06 Savage barrel with cast and it did well.

Also, the Lyman cast boolit manual lists their .338 win Mag they used for testing as one of the most consistent cartridges they tested.

Three44s

[waksupi]

I recall BruceB did quite a bit with the .338 WM. You might try doing a search for him, and on his profile look for topics started by him on the chambering.

Found this one;

https://castboolits.gunloads.com/sho...-success-today

[winelover]

I had Tom at accurate moulds clone the RCBS 200 grain FP for me.



I believe he added it to his catalog.

I use SR 4759 powder in my SS Model 70 Classic .338 Winchester Magnum rifle. My whitetail hunting load is 27.2 grains of SR 4759, CCI SR primer, air cooled COWW, lubed with Carnuba Red...............for just under 1900 fps, with the aforementioned bullet. No fillers required.



I have gotten decent results with AA5744 in the mid twenties range.

Winelover

[richhodg66]

I had Tom at accurate moulds clone the RCBS 200 grain FP for me.



I believe he added it to his catalog.

I use SR 4759 powder in my SS Model 70 Classic .338 Winchester Magnum rifle. My whitetail hunting load is 27.2 grains of SR 4759, CCI SR primer, air cooled COWW, lubed with Carnuba Red...............for just under 1900 fps, with the aforementioned bullet. No fillers required.



I have gotten decent results with AA5744 in the mid twenties range.

Winelover

That sounds like a perfect woods deer load to me.

Someone mentioned AA5744 and I was considering getting a .338 to try just that. I have quite a bit of it, it worked pretty well with jacketed loads in the 7 mag, but how boring is that? Lately been using it in my .458 and it works pretty well with 500 grain bullets. I get a few kernels of unburnt powder but not bad. The smoke signature is rather impressive.

[dverna]

I hunted with one for years. It may seem counter productive, but I found the 250 gr. Sierra the be best for deer. They don't have time to expand much, and leave pretty much the same wound channel as a cast bullet. Eat the hole. Lighter bullets were too destructive.

Well wash my shorts!!! I had to reread your post. Never thought I would see you recommend a jacketed bullet. LOL.

[waksupi]

Well wash my shorts!!! I had to reread your post. Never thought I would see you recommend a jacketed bullet. LOL.

That was during my conversion period, before I got this sickness at the old Shooters.com board. I am now fully recovered, and have been copper free for many years.

[Doughty]

That was during my conversion period, before I got this sickness at the old Shooters.com board. I am now fully recovered, and have been copper free for many years.

Hallelujah!!!

[LEADHOPPER]

Makes my heart feel good, that there are others trying to do the same thing with their 338 Win Mag that I'm trying to do. I've got a couple of molds that I've picked up over the years newest to me being an old Ranch Dog 200gr fn. I'm thinking it is going to give me the best results. At the moment I'm really leaning toward A5744, but did come across some load data for H335 as well. Time to load one up and see what it will do.

Winelover, is that a flat base bullet? Kinda hard to tell from the picture

[winelover]

It's a gas checked bullet, as was the original RCBS design.

Winelover

[gunther]

the Lee 225 grain bullet and 13 grains of Red Dot. Don't know the velocity, but it groups 2 inches at 100 yards. Velocity should be similar to the 32-40, which has accounted for a lot of deer.