The bullets discussion is a bit dated too. Heck, the article is 31 years old !!!
I used to shoot nothing but 250 gr Nosler Partition in my two successive .340 Wby, but a 250 gr NP that looses 40% of its weight (front core) after the first few inches of penetration is penetrating deep with only 150 gr (rear core)... Seyfried correctly predicted the incredible results that the Barnes X delivers in the .340. Most would likely select the 225 gr TTSX, and I tried it with outstanding results (see the Sable shot), but I am convinced that the 185 gr TTSX will provide outstanding performance too on the large stuff. After all, retaining 95% of its weight, it penetrates deep with 175 gr, which is more than what the legendary 250 gr NP had left after shedding its front core in violent expansion. The incredibly sweet thing about the 185 gr TTSX is that it brings the recoil of the big .340 down to .300 level. A definite bonus for long range accuracy...
I am not aware of ANY Mark V that was not a well made rifle, whether it was made in Germany, in Japan, or in the US. They dropped true stainless due to low demand, and sacrificed true steel bottom metal on the altar of costs savings, but any Mark V is rock solid. At $800 or $1,100 these rifles represent incredible value.
As to barrel life, the classic misconception is that because the .340 Wby is fast it will burn its barrel. Not in the least! The .340 is fast indeed, but it is not overbore.... A 6.5-300 Wby will indeed likely burn a barrel in 1,000 rounds or so, but it will take 3,000 rounds to wear a .340 Wby barrel (unless someone unwisely shoots constant rapid-fire 10 rounds strings), and since one is unlikely to go plinking with it every weekend, it will outlive you, and likely your son too...
A much younger One Day... in Newfoundland, circa early 1990's, with his first .340 Wby. A beautiful bespoke full custom rifle built for him by Griffin & Howe on a ZKK 602 action, sadly later destroyed by airline luggage handlers when they speared its guncase with a forklift fork...
