.338 Lapua?

[bruno2]

I was so impressed with the story about Cpl Harrison and his new long range shot record that I was looking around for rifles chambered in this caliber. I havent been able to find any mainstream gun manufacturers that offer rifles chambered in this caliber. The only ones that I have discovered were offered by manufacturers such as Accuracy international, McMillan , Sako and one other that escapes now. However these rifles are upwards around $5000.00 and thats a little out of my reach . I was hoping to find a Howa or Savage maybe possibly even a Remington in my budget for under a thousand. No such luck yet . Does anybody know of any manufacturers in my price range?

[MRWICKWIRE]

Currently, Remington offers a 700 police in 338 Lapua Mag. I think the going price is about 1500. Check gunbroker. However, I would highly recommend a Sako TRG. Even though it is quite expensive, you get Accuracy International level of performance at half the cost. I think the going rate for a TRG is 2500-3000 bucks.

[kcshooter]

and one other that escapes now

Blaser?

Currently, Remington offers a 700 police in 338 Lapua Mag.

I was not aware of this. It isn't listed online at Remington LE.


Armalite AR-30 runs about $1400-$1700 and is available in .338 Lapua.
I saw a box of Remington ammo at the gun shop the other day, we opened it up and they are Lapua casehead brass, not Remington, and the box of 20 rounds was $150.
Seriously. $150 for 20 rounds.
Brass alone was about $2.50ea.
Even if I could justify the price of the rifle, I couldn't afford to feed it.

Look into .338 win mag OR .338rum. Rifles are less, ammo is less, round performance is damn close. You'll get what you're looking for and be able to find one in that budget.

However, depending on your usage, the .300 win mag is flat, great at distance, and capable of taking any North American game.

[bruno2]

Wow I had no idea the brass was that expensive. I also had no idea the loaded factory ammo was that expensive either . I didnt have any intentions of buying loaded ammo b/c I assumed it was high , but , not that high. I was hoping to be able to reload for under $1.00 per round. I doubt anybody else manufacturers brass for that round. It is a military round I wonder if there is any once fired mil surplus around?

[GE-Mini-Gun]

Savage also makes one...110 BA...around $2k. Everything I've read so far it's a shooter.

[kcshooter]

I was hoping to be able to reload for under $1.00 per round.

That was my plan too when I first looked into it. No such luck.

I doubt anybody else manufacturers brass for that round.

I don't believe there is, which is why that box of Remington had actual Lapua-marked brass.

It is a military round I wonder if there is any once fired mil surplus around?

That might be an option, but I doubt they really shoot that many rounds. I've never seen any available.

Are you looking for something in .33 caliber, or just a long-range target rifle? The military also uses that .300 win mag I mentioned. It is also an easy 1000yd round, it just doesn't carry as much oomph with it at those ranges. If your just popping paper, won't matter. If you're set on .33 cal, there's much more affordable options without sacrificing a huge amount of performance.

[bruno2]

I was hoping that the Lapua wouldnt have the viscious recoil that the 300 win mag had. I have 300 win mag dies and components , however I dont have a rifle my buddy does. I really dont like shooting it and working up loads for it is like being caned in an Asian country.

[Sheik Yerbouti]

Here's an easier way to have a 338 Lapua: the 338 Remington Ultra Mag or the 338 Edge, a wildcat based on the 300 RUM.

The 338 RUM is the identical ballistic twin of the 338 Lapua. The 338 Edge has slightly more powder capacity, and you can squeak out slightly more velocity. The great thing about the RUM cartridges is that they have a rebated rim which fits into the same bolt as the standard belted magnum cases, therefore equipment is easier to find. So, any magnum length Mauser action, like the ZKK602 is perfect for the RUM cartridges.

I have 40 rounds 338 RUM experience and it was impressive. If you are looking for something that recoils less than a 300 Win Mag, then you don't want to be looking at a 338 Lapua or a 338 RUM. The rifle I shot weighed 12.5 pounds, had a muzzle brake, and a mercury recoil reducer in the buttstock, and it still kicked harder than my 10 pound 300 Win Mag.

[kcshooter]

Any .338 is gonna kick as hard, most even harder, and some significantly so, than the .300 win mag.

The .338 ultra mag ain't the way to go if recoil is a concern. Probably the hardest kicking .338 round I've had the "privilege" of shooting.

The .338 edge is a great idea, but uncommon, and I'd recommend the RUM over the Edge based on available rifles and components.

[sanglant]

CZ makes one, but it's still over 3 grand.
http://cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-550-safari-classic/
http://cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-550-magnum-het/

[RecoilRob]

If recoil is a problem, and you still want to shoot the 338's, the Armalite rifle has a very nice muzzle brake that will work well. If it is anything like their AR-50, which it seems to be like a miniature version thereof, the recoil will be muted but the concussion fierce. A LOT nicer to carry a 12lb vs 35lb rifle too.....which is why the Military guys are liking them. Not that the 338 is superior to the 50, just that you are much more likely to have one around when you have to hump it.

[Sunray]

"...anybody else manufacturers brass..." Hornady. Midway wants $31.99 per 20. (Naturally, it's on back order.) $259.99 per 100 for Lapua brass. $214.99 per 100 for Norma($54.99 per 20).
Like kcshooter says, any standard weight hunting rifle in .338 will have heavy felt recoil. None of the rifles are cheap either. Under a grand is a dream.

[love.3calibers]

If you are interested in .300 win mag then I would look at Savage. Their website lists 18 rifles chambered in .300 win mag, all but one with retail under $1,000.00.

If you don't mind dealing with NFA items, putting a supressor on the .300 win mag makes it kick like a 7.62 nato.

[Titan6]

If you really want a smoking hot deal, AR-10 in .338L for under $1500:

http://www.dpmsinc.com/store/products/?prod=5293

DPMS AR-10s are excellent quality, I own a couple.

The problem is waiting the 6+ months for delivery. The reloading prices are insane. You are much better off with a .300 WM.

[Loosedhorse]

Titan--

It looks like that rifle is in .338 Federal, not Lapua.

[bruno2]

That is what I was getting ready to say Loosed. Good lord there are certainly enough 338 rounds out there.

[Regular Joe]

Consider that the secret to the success of the .338L is that it moves the Sierra 300 gr. Matchking HPBT at very close to 3,000 fps. The equal and opposite reaction is substantial recoil.
Back in the previous millennium, a buddy and I developed a load for .338 WM that came very close to doing the same thing. We found that his barrel (Shilen fluted bull, I think, with 22" behind the custom muzzle brake that the gunsmith cut directly into it) had just the right amount of freebore to seat the bullets .340" into the neck, with .040" left to allow for bullet "jump" before engaging the rifling. We struck on that seating depth because Ackley sez that all you need is "square seating", where depth in the case neck equals bore dia. This gave us enough case capacity to hold a slightly compressed load of Reloder 22. I think the most we tried was 82 gr.
This yielded consistent chrono results of right around 2,830 fps. At that, the big Sierra bullet remains super-sonic to just over a mile.
I saw my buddy fire 54 rounds in one range trip. I don't know how bad the recoil was, and didn't want to find out. I think this would be the cheapest round you could make in that category. I cannot imagine what you would do with it.

[Titan6]

My bad, I saw ".338L" and assumed to much.

Well you don't want the wussy .338 Federal, it only produces 3200 ft/pounds at the barrel. I was wondering how they fit that Rigby case into the AR-10 anyway...

[kcshooter]

OK, I did a little looking around (I've wanted a .33 caliber for a while and you got my jones started back up).

I think I found the most affordable rifle and ammo combo along with the best recoil management system while staying well under $1000.

The Savage Weather Warrior in .338 Win Mag.

Model #116fhsak

It's got a compensator that can be rotated to turn it off and on. Great for the range (on) or the field (off). Affordable ammo and rifle, and gets you close to the performance of a .338 Lapua at a third or less of the cost.

The compensator should help quite a bit. I've got one on a .308, shoots like a .243.
My guess is this would shoot more like a .30-06, but that's just a guess.

Thanks a lot. Now I gotta start saving again.

[bruno2]

Tell me about it KC. I still have a 25-06 heavy barrel and optics in front of the .338. I will be around 2k by the time I get the gun and mounting hardware and spend at least $500-$750 on a good optic. Then I need to get to saving for the big boy.

[Tom488]

Coming in to this a little late, but...

I picked up the Savage 110 BA about a month ago, and got it up to the range. First.... the recoil. What recoil? Seriously, with the muzzle brake, and the weight of the rifle, this rifle kicks less than my Model 70 in .30-06. I could shoot it all day without any impact to my shoulder (though my wallet wouldn't fair as well). This was shooting 250gr. factory loads from Black Hills.

As for reloading costs, well... I picked up 100 cases of Lapua brass for $250. Lapua claims you can get 10 firings out of their brass. If that's true, that amortizes the cost of the brass to $0.25.

I'm using RL-22 for my powder, at 93.0 grains. Buying a 5lb. container of powder, that works out to another $0.25 per round (yeah, powder goes quick in these big cases). I'm using Federal 215 match primers, bought locally for $50/1k (admittedly a little high), so that's $0.05 per round.

For bullets, I grabbed several hundred 225gr. "blemished" bullets that Midway had on sale... $40/100. Add $0.40. Total cost of a reloaded case works out to 96 cents. That's a far cry better than the first box of 20 factory rounds I bought for the gun at $6.00/ea.

[Orthonym]

I think that cartridge started out as a necked-down .416 Rigby. Maybe one could do that at home? Of course, I suspect .416 Rigby cartridges might be even more costly.

[ronbuick]

bruno, hate to hi-jack, I also was loking into the .300winnie and the .338 WM
or the .300RUM, but just ordered a Marlin in the 25-06 cal., how do you like
yours, could you pm me about yours so we can yack, again sorry for the hi-jack.

Ron

[swgunner]

Here is another option

http://www.tactilite.com/tactilite-t...ypage.tpl.html

I might try this, but I really want an Accuracy International

check out snipers hide they put stuff up frequently

[CDignition]

There is only one real platform for this round and it is the AI-AWSM.. Its spendy, but large long range is spendy anyhow.. it is a battle hardened platform that will not let u down when u need it to perform.