Long Range Heavy Bullet Rifle Help?

[Duckslayer89]

Nothing like planning a custom for the new year ............... was too foggy to shoot yday

  looks like a sweet rig!!

[Karl Blanchard]

I ordered another from mike last week.  I hate waiting

mines gonna be done before yours

[uplandhunter870]

have you ruled out 300 RUM? i think it is worth considering. I have one of the new(ish) rem 700 LR in 300 RUM and it shoots lights out, sub MOA out to 500, i haven't shot it passed 500 yet. currently im pushing 168gr Nosler HPBT custom comps with 97 gr of H1000. havent chrono'ed this round but its in the 3300fps neighborhood according to the math.

with the heavier weight of the 700LR set up and a DE break to match the barrel contour recoil is less than my 270 win. in a 10-11 pound set up with a larger break i think recoil would be very manageable. and if/when you shoot out the 300 RUM barrel you could rechamber in 338 edge if you wanted to upscale.

just food for thought.

[hogslayer]

I would vote for 300 win mag with h1000 or rl 26.  A 215 in a 26” barrel should get 2950-2990.  Brass is everywhere and cheap.  Fits in a box mag.  Most of the other options you mentioned wouldn’t be able to be ran through a mag.  You would end up single feeding if you ran a high bc bullet and a 300 rum or edge.  Not a deal breaker for me.  But just something to consider.  Word on the street is that lapua is dropping some new brass at the shot show next month.  The 300 Norma mag being one of the new lines. 

[Biggerhammer]

A guy can't go wrong with a .300 Win Mag, which is my all time favorite chambering for the long stuff. I have  had a 300 Win Mag barrel go over 4K. The throat was way gone and if I cleaned it, it took 12-15 rounds to settle down. Still shot 3/8" when I pulled it and had Boots Obermeyer rebarrel it. 1-11 twist for the 190 Bergers. That was 20 years ago.

[mallard]

You're bound to get a lot of opinions. I'll throw mine in as well. All the calibers you mentioned will get the job done. Unless you have specific ballistic requirements, I think you should get what you prefer and would enjoy shooting.

I've owned both the 300 RUM and 338 RUM. I sold the 300 because I preferred the way the 338 shot and the ballistics of the larger bullets. However, if I was to choose again, I think I would choose a different 338 cartridge since the RUM has since fallen out of favor and brass is harder to obtain.

[jaymark6655]

A guy can't go wrong with a .300 Win Mag, which is my all time favorite chambering for the long stuff. I have  had a 300 Win Mag barrel go over 4K. The throat was way gone and if I cleaned it, it took 12-15 rounds to settle down. Still shot 3/8" when I pulled it and had Boots Obermeyer rebarrel it. 1-11 twist for the 190 Bergers. That was 20 years ago.

I second 300WM, it is an awesome round. Not sure who came up with the 2K being the limit for these rifles, I guess it all comes down to what you shoot out of it. They can go for at least 5000 rounds as long as your paying attention to not overheating the barrel by shooting fast. I would recommend a 15 lb. rifle with a 25 inch barrel and 1-10 twist, but that is just me.  Shorter barrel is stiffer resulting in a tighter group, heavier gun tames the recoil a lot.  I have personally shot several 4" groups at 600 yards with such an animal with more than 4000 rounds on the barrel and seen one guy print a couple 2" groups at 600 yards with that rifle.

I don't have much experience with them, but I have heard that 300 and 338 Norma are supposed to be awesome especially with heavier than 200 grains which would help with inaccuracy in winds calls more. I think around a 1-9 twist is used on those. They would also be useful if you decide to stretch your ranges out later.

[birddogdad]

Been thinking of building a long range rifle capable of shooting 200+ grain bullets.  Primary use would be bear and elk hunting to 600 yard and target shooting to 1000 yards.  I have a 6.5 creedmoor capable of what is mentioned....minus the 200+ grain bullets so really looking for suggestions on the larger bore rifles. 

Rifles I have considered: 340 weatherby mag, 338 win mag & ultra mag, 300 weatherby mag and 300 win mag. 

Figure whatever I build will have a 26" in barrel with a break.  Looking to weigh in around 11-12 lbs total.....anything lighter will likely kick like a mule.  I do all my own reloading so cost of rounds is not that big a deal and should not be taken into consideration.  Ease of finding components though is a big deal. 

have them all , shot them all and my go to is a 375H&H. The 340wby will shoot very flat, but is a heavy carry. 300 is always a good choice. all would be acceptable, I would recommend a muzzle brake for any of the large mags. the options you have with the larger deadly game cartridges is in bullet/reloading. I have a 300gr FMJ brush load and a 300gr game king load for up close and long range. I site to  the game kings and the fmj is fine out 250 or so. Remember you will have large drops on most of these out around 400yds and you need to ensure you are proficient with dialing your rifle at distance regardless, be mindful of the scopes range of turret adjustment as well, you may need a rail to increase your hold overs down range, not a big BDC guy here, dope it out...

Thanks for any suggestions.

[MooseZ25]

I shoot a 338 RUM and love it.  If I built another one I would go with a 338 Norma.  Everything just fits better on the Norma cartridge.  Do some research though you will get lost in all of the options.

[jasnt]

Another vote for 300wm.

[BULLBLASTER]

I ordered another from mike last week.  I hate waiting

mines gonna be done before yours

You're bound to get a lot of opinions. I'll throw mine in as well. All the calibers you mentioned will get the job done. Unless you have specific ballistic requirements, I think you should get what you prefer and would enjoy shooting.

I've owned both the 300 RUM and 338 RUM. I sold the 300 because I preferred the way the 338 shot and the ballistics of the larger bullets. However, if I was to choose again, I think I would choose a different 338 cartridge since the RUM has since fallen out of favor and brass is harder to obtain.

Check out adg Brass. They are making 338 rum brass

[andersonjk4]

Another vote here for 300wm.  I shoot 200 grain Accubonds at about 2950 fps.  This load is fairly mild in my opinion.  My rifle has a 26" barrel and is about 10-10.5 pounds with scope and doesn't have a break.  I don't have any issues with the recoil and I'm a small guy. Recoil wise, I actually prefer to shoot my 300wm over my 30-06 with a standard sporter barrel shooting 165 grain bullets.   

[b23]

The 300 Win and 215's have proven to definitely be a winning combination but I certainly wouldn't overlook the 30 Nosler.  It has a little more case capacity than the 300 Winnie so it'll give a slight edge in performance.  Also, the case is a fair bit shorter so depending on the action you use it'll allow you to use a longer OAL and still feed through the magazine.  Not really an issue though if you're using a custom or Rem 700 LA receiver.

[jrebel]

Wow....so many great posts / responses.  I guess I have a lot more research to do.....problem being, everytime I research a caliber, I find 3 more to add to the list.       Example:  I am pretty sure I will have to own a 6.5-300wby some day.  My obsession continues to be expensive.  LOLOLOL

Leaning a little more toward the 300 win mag due to components and capabilities.  Just seems a little boring LOL.  Not sure I will go 100% custom build.....just becuase most factory rifles shoot so well these days.  I like the idea of saving money on a factory rifle and tweaking it to my likes over time. 

[jasnt]

Have you looked at bergara rifles?