North Forks 225grn.

[grizz106]

Talked with Mike Brady over at North Fork and his recommendation for the bullet choice for the .338-06 is the 225 grn. and not the 250-just not enough velocity given for the round or bullet to work properly. Now that I have a couple of boxes coming in and with a # of RL15 what would you expect out of my 22" bbl to be the max. velocity? My Nosler 5th ed. gives the 225 @ 2570 fps., suppose this is the norm for this round? Read quite abit of some really pushing this caliber upwards towards the .338 arena and it is not.
It was pointed out to me that the runout of this round can be excessive if you do not use headstamped brass. I ordered 60 rounds of Wthby .338-06 brass as well and Reddings 3pc. die set. If I choose to use .06 brass is the norm for preventing runout is to use the Type S bushing by Redding? Boy reloading is expensive!! but intriguing.

[trixie Mississippi]

Hello from the 338/06 expert trixie

You by all means have chozen the right powder and bullsts for the job. for years I used h-414 witha 21o for 2800- but now the R-15 will up that to 2900 and you should get 2750 with the 225. Of course my 330/05 is the ackley 40 degree sholder.. your may be also if not you will get 50 fps less with about 2 grains less powder.. I think a 58 charge of R-15 and check primer and your case for pressure.. if you have no enjection marks on the case the back of the case ease up a 5 grain at the time.. I think I have had a 338/06 ackley for 21 years and it is a real gun .. my gun is a 24" remington 700 syn. I have stepped up to the 35 gibbs and 62 gr of R 15 will do 2750 with a 250 grand slam bullet, but the gibbs will hold a bit more powder than the 338/06. I hope this will be helpful.. I can assure you will like your 330/63mm.. trixie

[George]

338-06

grizz106,
I touched on some of this info in a PM but just for other's interest I'll try to give my thoughts on the runout issue here. I've found out- most times the hard way- is that no matter how careful one is in reforming brass by necking up or down, the first generation cases, before fireforming, will show some amount of neck runout. Runout is where concentricity is lost between the body of the case and the neck. When necking up or down by a half caliber or more this can be excessive. In the case of the 338-06 from 30-06 brass (1/3 caliber neck up) it appears to be not so bad but still too much for me. I wouldn't worry about it so much except most all the cases shot in the first fireforming after reforming are not concentric and don't usually show the best accuracy so it's seems to be a waste of time, components and some barrel life. I have proven to myself that neck runout detracts from the best accuracy the load or rifle is capable of. In some cases the runout is bad enough that even after fireforming, the necks never fully come back to center- probably an uneven neck thickness thing. First thing I've found to minimize the runout is to start with is good quality brass headstamped for the cartridge and if none is available then neck up or down from the closest caliber available. The next thing is to use an aligning type or close tolerance type sizing die. The three types I use are the Wilson neck bushing hand die, the Redding competition neck bushing die or the Lee neck collet die. When using any of these types of neck dies, at some point, particularly with several full pressure loads in generous chambers, the shoulder or lower body will have to be "bumped" a little with a "body die" to continue to use the brass in the same chamber. Also, these type dies won't allow for "one size fits all" for other guns (chambers). Another sometimes overlooked drawback to necking up or down is that it can drastically change the case length and/or cause too thin or too thick neck walls. Anyway, I've found that for the best accuracy potential (among many other factors!) the neck runout has to be kept at a minimum. A good runout gauge will not solve the problem but will really show when it happens and may answer the question, "why did that load group so badly?" Good brass, good or proper dies, careful brass prep, careful reloading and an understanding of one of the causes of inaccuracy (neck runout) may help in making better ammo. Just some rambling thoughts

[grizz106]

George, that was good-thank you. I am always learning something from somebody and this forum has become a good choice for just that. Collectively we are a bunch of good eggs.

regards,

[George]

338-06 project

Tim,
Hope you get the 338-06 going for this fall. Would really be interested to hear how it shoots and how the 225 North Forks do, both for accuracy and on game if you get a chance at a moose or brown bear. Never used them, but they have a good reputation on larger game. Also, I think you'll like the Weatherby 338-06 brass. Good luck!

[mauserboy]

259 gr, velocities

There are a number of listed loads that put the 250 gr bullets in the same velocity range as your North Fork contact suggested for the 225 gr bullet for proper performance, between 2500-2600 f.p.s. Not saying necessarily that the 250 gr. is the best bullet weight going for the 338-06, but I wouldn't mind the extra weight for moose and bear. The .333 OKH, which has the same basic ballistics as the .338-06, accounted for a lot of big game, including Griz, using bullets up to 300 grains. Speer still makes their 275 gr .338 bullet, if I'm not mistaken. Just depends if you are a believer that a balance between weight and velocity for a specific caliber is the right way to go or if you believe that a less then heaviest bullet at higher velocity is better. I've killed a lot of moose, bear and hogs with a .35 Whelen with 250 gr bullets at around 2400-2500 f.p.s. and they all went down without an arguement.

[grizz106]

mauserboy, thanks. Yes there is alot of bullet makers that do sell a "penetrator" but I was more interested in testing this renown bullet maker "NorthFork" out. I had to ask Mike since he is darn familiar with the bullet as to what would work the best in the velocity range of the .338-06

The Whelan has a good rep and not doubting the bullet weight killing effect. Sectional Density coupled with velocity and the animal you shoot makes a big deal on how the bullet that will work and how effectively. There is alot of bullets that are questionable in all calibers that leave you with less than desirable thoughts in the end.

The 333OKH and the 338Sabi is what gives us the amazement in the effectiveness of this round. I am seriously anxious to carry this an see the performance-a new found friend? Hope so.

regards,

[Paul H]

The thing to remember is most 338 bullets are designed for the higher velocities of the 338 win mag and 340 Weatherby. I'd also agree that a good 225 gr is a better choice for a 338-06. A tougher bullet like the north fork will have plenty of penetration, so you don't give up anything by going lighter, and may find terminal performance is actually better than with the heavier bullets.

[Murphy]

338-06 and 225's

I think I tend to agree with Mike at N.F, we've talked about the 338-06 also and I think for my applications the 225 is about the limit of bullet weight in those tougher bullets. If going to 250's I'd use the partition or maybe the protected point Kodiaks. This is more of a gut feeling than actual performance as I there is very little difference in the field. I have come to really like the shorter 250 grain Kodiaks with the P.P nose, and would probably use that one for up close encounters. The North Forks are very good, strong bullets, the best thing going, but they need a certain velocity to expand fully, they never over expand. They can be driven very fast in the bigger calibers. My hunting with the 338-06's has been with the various 210-225 grain bullets with only an occasional 250 partition, not used the Kodiaks on game yet. I really only use the 338 WM with 250's and this for works for just about everything.

I also want to say something about George's comments on runout and the necking brass for new calibers, such as '06 to 338 or Whelen. Ditto! Totally agree. You and Tim have this figured out. Use the closest available neck size. My 338 WSM is made from 325 WSM brass now that it is available. I would like to see it made by Norma or Lapua. I do think I can get 250 grains in that case and get 2600 fps from it. That is the goal, anyway. Good shootin'.

Murphy