My favorite Hunting rifle 338wm - what is yours?

JG26Irish_2

JG26Irish_2

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I own and shoot and hunt with a lot of rifles and do not really have a true one gun solution. More like this is my favorite of the moment. It is my Sako 85 in 338 Win Mag. This is the same rifle that I used to drop a Nilgai in its tracks in East Texas last winter. It is topped with a 1-8x illuminated optic that works great out to 300ish yards and for me that is enough. It is not a tack driver but with 225g Barnes TTSX ammo it is able to hold 1moa pretty consistently and with the Federal 200g Trophy Bonded Tip ammo, it is even a pretty good long range varmint rifle. To be sure, this rifle is overkill for 90% of all hunting scenarios that we might encounter but if you can handle the recoil which is less than a 12ga shotgun, then it does save you a Hell of a lot of tracking when hunting big game like the 600lb Nilgai or Elk & Moose.

What makes the Sako 85 special? - The rifle has a fixed extractor which is in my mind the biggest weakness of most push feed rifles. Work the bolt like you mean it and it works fine. The Sako action is not a traditional Mauser type CRF action but has many of the same features of that action all combined with a super strong three lug bolt which also shortens the bolt throw to about 60 deg (I do not know the exact spec). It also has a very secure all metal detachable magazine that feed flawlessly. Hammer forged bbl is tough and accurate. The 338 is a hot rd but does not seem to eat barrels like some of the hotter cartridges. Super high quality in a factory rifle. Not cheap but well worth the tariff.

I plan to take this little puppy with me for my up coming Canadian Moose & Elk hunt this fall. Show us your current favorite hunting rifle?

Sako 85 338wm.jpeg

Sako 85 in 338wm​
Sako 338wm.jpeg

Ammo testing at 200y NEKFGA​
IMG_3836.jpeg

Yturria Ranch Texas Nilgai - Best Venison Ever!​
 
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Hello,


I have a lot of traditional rifles, Sauer, Heym, but I wanted a specific rifle to shoot farther than my 9.3x62s. Influenced by American shooters, I searched Google and came up with the best combination in .338, namely: a Lothar Walter 24-inch barrel, top-quality match-grade Terminus action, a shortened lever for speed, and an MDT receiver—all assembled by a French gunsmith over the course of more than a year. It’s a field-serviceable setup with an S&B Polar T96 scope. I mainly shoot in the morning and at night, achieving 1/2 MOA accuracy and several four-shot groups!


It’s not pretty, but it’s very functional. Oh, and I almost forgot—a DF 2000 is mounted, and I only shoot the excellent ELD-X in 230 g
 
Carcajou said:
Bonjour,


Je possède plusieurs carabines traditionnelles (Sauer, Heym, etc.), mais je souhaitais une carabine spécifique capable de tirer plus loin que mes 9,3x62. Influencé par les tireurs américains, j'ai effectué des recherches sur Google et trouvé la meilleure combinaison en calibre .338 : un canon Lothar Walter de 61 cm (24 pouces), une action Terminus de haute qualité, un levier raccourci pour une meilleure rapidité d'armement et un boîtier de culasse MDT. Le tout a été assemblé par un armurier français sur une période de plus d'un an. C'est une carabine prête à l'emploi, équipée d'une lunette S&B Polar T96. Je tire principalement le matin et le soir, et j'obtiens une précision de 0,5 MOA et plusieurs groupements de quatre coups !


Ce n'est pas très esthétique, mais c'est très fonctionnel. Ah oui, j'allais oublier : un DF 2000 est monté, et je n'utilise que l'excellente pellicule ELD-X en 230 g.
Click to expand...
 
From the mid-80's to about 2020, all my hunts were done with a .338 Win. Mag. (except for varmints). Used it on everything from antelope to grizzly bear. Never failed me and only use others now just 'to play around'. IMO, one of the best all around calibers out there. Initially it was a Rem. 700KS and then I had Lex at Rifles, Inc. build a Strata in .338.
 
My favorite rifle to hunt with is the custom 280 AI I built. My most sentimental rifle is an early 70’s tang safety Ruger M77 in .270 that my dad gave me maybe 30 years ago. Lots of character in the stock at this point and it has put down a pile of whitetail and hogs.
 
Of all of the rifles that I have bought and hunted with over the years, my favorite is a Remington model seven 7mm-08. My father purchased that rifle for me at the age of seven years old. I still hunt with it to this day. The sentimental value of that raffle cannot be compared to any of my other high-end rifles.
 
My favorite is my CZ 550 American in 9.3x62.


1783867298418.jpeg

Juvenile Bushpig taken for the pot. (Handload: 286 gr Woodleigh RN at 2395 fps MV.)


1783867324702.jpeg

Bushpig for breakfast! It was delicious.

Cheers! Bob F. :)
 
Back in the early 80's got to thinking sould I have a custom rifle built or start a collection of guns. Well I picked get a cutom rifle built and go hunting with it while I'am still fairly young. So I had Dave Gentry build me on a pre-64 Winchester 70 action a 338 WM. Action was electroless nickel plated a light weight stainless steel 24" barrel and a Gentry carbon fiber stock. Gun weighed 7 pounds 2 ounces put a 2-7 Leapold on it. Then went to work hunting with the rifle, I've shot evey game animal in North America except a polar bear, some several times over, using Nosler 210 gr Partitions. Never having to use more than one shot on every animal.
 
I am mainly a deer hunter. And in the dense woods I find myself in, the first shot has to count because the opportunity for a follow-up shot is rare. So the majority of my hunting is done with Ruger No. 1's or 1885's. Any one of them is more than adequate for the game I am usually hunting. The one that has put the most deer in the freezer is my Ruger No. 1A in 6.5x55 with a Schmidt & Bender 1.5-8x42 Stratos shooting 140gr Partitions. Either I've been very lucky or this rifle simply excels at dropping deer where they stand. I've never had to track anything with it.

AH_Swede.jpg


My Ruger No. 1A in 303 British with a Meopta R2 1-6x24 RD shooting 150gr Hornady SP InterLocks is a sentimental favorite. I like rimmed cartridges in my falling blocks & everything I've ever shot with this rifle has died so it's an excellent choice too.

ah_303br_meopta-jpg.671718
 
odonata said:
I am mainly a deer hunter. And in the dense woods I find myself in, the first shot has to count because the opportunity for a follow-up shot is rare. So the majority of my hunting is done with Ruger No. 1's or 1885's. Any one of them is more than adequate for the game I am usually hunting. The one that has put the most deer in the freezer is my Ruger No. 1A in 6.5x55 with a Schmidt & Bender 1.5-8x42 Stratos shooting 140gr Partitions. Either I've been very lucky or this rifle simply excels at dropping deer where they stand. I've never had to track anything with it.

View attachment 776333

My Ruger No. 1A in 303 British with a Meopta R2 1-6x24 RD shooting 150gr Hornady SP InterLocks is a sentimental favorite. I like rimmed cartridges in my falling blocks & everything I've ever shot with this rifle has died so it's an excellent choice too.

ah_303br_meopta-jpg.671718
Click to expand...
And now I have to buy a Ruger No. 1, thanks so much
 
odonata said:
I am mainly a deer hunter. And in the dense woods I find myself in, the first shot has to count because the opportunity for a follow-up shot is rare. So the majority of my hunting is done with Ruger No. 1's or 1885's. Any one of them is more than adequate for the game I am usually hunting. The one that has put the most deer in the freezer is my Ruger No. 1A in 6.5x55 with a Schmidt & Bender 1.5-8x42 Stratos shooting 140gr Partitions. Either I've been very lucky or this rifle simply excels at dropping deer where they stand. I've never had to track anything with it.

View attachment 776333

My Ruger No. 1A in 303 British with a Meopta R2 1-6x24 RD shooting 150gr Hornady SP InterLocks is a sentimental favorite. I like rimmed cartridges in my falling blocks & everything I've ever shot with this rifle has died so it's an excellent choice too.

ah_303br_meopta-jpg.671718
Click to expand...
Those are fantastic! Very elegant yet superbly functional.
 
In 1984 I bought a post-64 model 70 in .338 Winchester to take to Kodiak on a Brown Bear hunt. It worked great on that Bear hunt but it wasn’t an ideal rifle, yet. Over time I put a Brown Precision fiberglass stock on it, shot out the factory barrel so now it has a fluted 24” Lilja stainless barrel, Timney trigger and it’s topped with a Leupold VX5HD in 2-10x with Firedot reticle. I’ve settled on 225 grain bullets and it shoots 1/2” groups with Barnes factory TTSX’s. It weighs 8 3/4 pounds, so Carrie’s easily.

Over the years it’s been my ‘Go-to’ rifle for most anything I’m hunting except big, heavy DG. I’ve shot game from Klipspringer to Livingstone Eland with it. I regard the .338 as the ultimate elk rifle. In September I’ll be hunting with it in Mozambique. While I’m also taking my .375, I’m planning to probably use my .338 exclusively. I’ll be shooting 225 TTSX & Northfork solids.

I have a few other rifles that I really love and use regularly but my .338 is the #1 choice for me.
 
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