.300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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I'm looking to get into more long range shooting, and I'm trying to figure out what to build my platform around... I want to stick with these two calibers so that I can pick them up easily from most well-stocked stores.

I have lots of general questions and would love to hear from people who have experience with both calibers, but specifically: Is the higher BC you get from .338 worth the trade off for increased felt recoil? I would probably like to shoot 30-50 rounds per trip minimum. I don't have problems shooting 100 or more rounds of mid-caliber .308 or comparable in a trip. What is the likelihood that I'll get fatigued from these heavier rounds (especially .338)? I'd obviously be investing in a decent brake.

I'm mostly target shooting, and would like to be able to ring steel out to 1500 yards, although I won't get to shoot that distance more than once or twice a year at best. Most times, I'll unfortunately be stuck at 300 yards, which won't let either of these calibers really shine, but I'm hoping I can change that in the next few years.

The .338 is available in my preferred platform so I'd save money out of the box there, but the shooting costs would be higher.

Also, does anyone have any good low end ($300-$500) glass suggestions for these heavier calibers?

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

2
I made the same decisions a couple years ago and Marlene set my mind straight. I was set on .338 Lapua but 90% of my shooting was going to be within 1000 yards and 90% of *that* has been <600 yards. She suggested 6.5 Creedmoor which really is a minor league .338 Plus I am loading my own 6.5 precision ammo for like .50 cents a round with once fired factory brass that I paid $1.35 a round for......338 Lapua factory ammunition in the same quality (Hornady ELD-M) is presently *$5.15* a round!! :think:

Don't get me wrong I still am lusting mightily for a Savage Elite Precision in .338 but I have tremendous fun and get satisfaction galore at banging steel and shooting sub MOA groups at 1000 yards with my 6.5 CM based FrankenGun. Plans to run out to near 1 mile this Summer if the money holds out.

You can build and run a 6.5 Creedmoor rifle and keep it fed and tricked for literally thousands of dollars less than a .338 lapua. 300 Win Mag I lust for as well and it is considerably cheaper than .338 but if I'm gonna move up from my 6.5 CM it's gonna be to .338 Lapua. The king of lang range precision shooting at this time. I just can't afford it and for what I'm doing and shooting at people are "Knocked the Hell Out" by my shooting at 600 yards with my 6.5 Rifle with less than $2K invested in glass, chassis, grips/buttstocks/muzzle brake.

That said I started with a Vortex Crossfire II scope in 6-24X50 and shot sub MOA to 600 with that scope and a $400 Savage 10 FCP-SR in 6.5 CM with factory Accustock and Accutrigger.

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/vortex- ... ifle-scope

My first evolution into precision shooting:

AddfVortexScopeClosed.jpg

This is a $400 Factory rifle with a <$300 dollar scope and it outshot my brothers Custom in .308 and my Nephews AI .308 hands down. In fact *they* shoot my cheapo Savage FrankenGun better now than they shoot their own *very* expensive and custom fitted precision rifles.


Prone200yards.jpg

Start with 6.5 Creedmoor is my advice *or* .308/7.62x51 and a decent scope. Vortex Crossfire and Vortex Diamondback/Diamondback Tactical scopes rock for the money as do Athlon Argos Series scopes:

https://athlonoptics.com/product-catego ... -btr-gen2/

https://vortexoptics.com/riflescopes/diamondback.html

https://vortexoptics.com/riflescopes/crossfire-ii.html

Shit loads of good glass in the market now at less than $500. But please strongly consider something other than 300 Win Mag or 338 Lapua if %90 of your beginner shooting will be under 1500 yards. I started with a cheap 6.5 CM Savage and it *still* can out shoot me at 1000 yards even when my game is on. I cannot out shoot my rifle....I am yet the weak link.
100Yards_FirstHandLoads.jpg
Good luck!

VooDoo
Tyrants disarm the people they intend to oppress.

I am sworn to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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Well, you seem to know exactly what I actually already run... literally: glass, caliber, and platform. I do 600 yards a couple of times a year, and I run 6.5CM almost exclusively at that range. Super easy to shoot, and I love it and reload it already...

Looking to go a little further. After about 1200 yards, my hold-overs looks like .308 does at 600 yards, in other words: like an upside down Arizona cornavirus graph.

I'm looking for something with a little more power behind it and that I can take out further...

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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VooDoo's right about the 6.5 Creed, the perfect balance between felt recoil and long range accuracy. Unless you want to kill something really far away, there is absolutely no reason to do anything other than the 6.5 Creed. .300 and .338 just beat the crap out of you if you're target shooting. If you're after like elk in the next zip code, you're going to shoot one maybe two. So unless you're hunting, you'll go 6.5 Creed: faster, better, cheaper. And less painful.

CDFingers
Crazy cat peekin' through a lace bandana
like a one-eyed Cheshire, like a diamond-eyed Jack

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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In that case I'd go .338 and never look back. Shooting .338 at a mile range is what started my journey into precision shooting a couple years ago.

VooDoo
Tyrants disarm the people they intend to oppress.

I am sworn to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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VodoundaVinci wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 6:14 am In that case I'd go .338 and never look back. Shooting .338 at a mile range is what started my journey into precision shooting a couple years ago.

VooDoo
That's kind of my thought as well.

I see it in the same way I see .44 magnum. I won't shoot it very much, and while .357 works just fine for what I need to do regularly, there's something to be said for shooting something that impressively powerful.

Re: .300 win mag or .338 lapua?

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The Winchester Magnum is a belted magnum based on the .375 H & H Magnum. Unlike regular case cartridges the belt at the case head is where the head space is measured from. Regular case cartridges measure head space from the shoulder at the front of the chamber. Many competition shooters consider the belt a point of failure and if the chamber is worn out or the case is not sized correctly the case might flop in the chamber reducing accuracy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.375_H%26H_Magnum

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