338 Winchester Magnum

[RayAtkinson]

A marriage made in Heaven, 338 and a big bore, A pair I recommended to my clients for 40 years or so, Not the only option but one of the best and if you bump into a buffalo or elephant with a swolen leg from a snare or whatever your PG gun can handle that quite well.

 

[hoytcanon]

@hoytcanon
WHY????
A properly loaded Whelen will do everything the 338WM will do and do it with more class and authority.
Bob

Because of physics, Bob, my good man! Don't worry... I will NEVER go down to one rifle, they are going to have to bury me with a dump truck load of metal and Walnut!

 

[hoytcanon]

I turned my last .338 WM into a .358-375 Ruger... lol... but this old dog learned new tricks and saved the original barrel. Lol... bottom rifle.

 

[Capebuffalo]

I turned my last .338 WM into a .358-375 Ruger... lol... but this old dog learned new tricks and saved the original barrel. Lol... bottom rifle.View attachment 586461View attachment 586462

I guess this must be as close as you can get to the 358 Norma Mag in appearance and ballistic wise....?

 

[hoytcanon]

I guess this must be as close as you can get to the 358 Norma Mag in appearance and ballistic wise....?

Yup, pretty dang close in a modern design with nice factory rifles to choose from... of course, I could have cut the chamber for the Norma, but just gotta be difficult, lol... and get a smidgen more velocity.

 

[RayAtkinson]

Good decision you never know when you might bump into jumbo or his friends that have a wire snare on their leg and you don't have enough gun to deal with the situation. The 338 can handle about any such mess if it has too..a lighter caliber may not? keep a few solids in your pocket if your in DG country..

 

[RayAtkinson]

Great caliber, due to circumstance my PH said use the 338 with a scope and shoot through that hole in the bush, I did and the bull ran 75 yards and stopped, standing straddle legged spewing blood out nose, and ran again as I approached, and I rolled him in a summersault with my 450-400 I've never seen so much blood loss, on dry grass and on my pants. It was an exciting hunt...I also witnessed a elephant kill with a 338 solid completely through the head. Good caliber for a second rifle on Safari//

 

[Daga Boy]

338 WM is a machine. Really, it will do just about everything that a 375 will do.

My grandfather used it for numerous cape, water, and forest buffalo, banteng, lion, leopard, giant eland, EA eland, brown bear, etc, etc, etc.

I've used the 338 for two leopards and dozens of bait animals and plains game animals.

It will kill about anything you'd care to point it at.

Its a fansatic cartridge , which typically outperforms a .375 ito penetration. Loaded with a strong bullet like a 275gr AFrame it will go right through either an eland or a buff shot side on. Just be careful about what's standing behind the target.