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10K views 21 replies 7 participants last post by  mele 
#1 ·
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#2 ·
There are several factors to consider like what are you shooting at. For instance if you are shooting 1 moa and hunting deer vs ground hogs, it makes a diffrence. The 338 is a good round and the model 70 a good rifle. I can't say specifically what your rifle is effective ate but here are some guidelines.

A bullet tends to lose accuracy when it drops below the sound barrier, so where it drops to subsonic may be its max effective range. Check ballistic charts to get an idea.

1 MOA means about 1 in at 100 yards. (actually is more complicated but this is close enough for this study) at 200 yards 1 moa will be a 2 in group 300 yards 3" etc. Figuring that how big is the target you are shooting at say a 10 in target. so 1 moa rifle should be able to hit a 10 in target at 1000 yards. If you are getting 5 moa or 5" groups at 100 yards you can hit the 10 in target at 200 yards max.

The kicker is some rifles will shoot 1/2 moa out to say 300 yards, but at 400 yards 2-3 moa. So the only real way to know is to shoot your rifle at long ranges and see.

You are probably more confused than before now.
 
#4 ·
Enjoy the recoil. Beginners toy with a .338 at their own risk. You might get scope eye, you might develop a flinch, and you might have no problems whatsoever and turn into a master marksman. However, you will end up with a bruised shoulder fairly quickly during long shooting sessions.

Also; Ammo is more expensive.

As for the rifle and the Caliber, they both sound fine enough as it is. The 70 model Winchester is a rifle that I have heard no complaints about, and the .338 Win Mag, from what I am seeing according to Winchester's ballistic info, is really just a high energy round, AKA, a hunting round. It'll no doubt perform quite a bit of the good shooting at a distance, but it doesn't seem to be too heavily outperforming smaller calibers in terms of velocity and drop. This is only at 500 meters, though.
 
#6 ·
Joel, I think this should go in the Cartidges forum since we're talking about the 338 round and not the rifle itself...

Because it's a high-powered hunting round, is he risking thej possibility of barrel burnout or no?

Welcome to the boards!

Scatch Maroo
 
#7 ·
Welcome to the boards!

Your rifle "should" hold 1-1.5 MOA with quality ammo. You may want to look at getting a trigger job to lighten it to a crisp 2 lb (that is what I like). You may also want to look at having the action trued as well, maybe have the barrel lapped. You have a fine hunting rifle and with a little work a "decent" long range rifle.

Chances are that this rifle will outshoot you at 1000 yds.

Have fun!!
 
#8 ·
Ehh, this one can stay put for now I think...thanks for bringin it up tho...Nope, the .338 Win mag is not too much of a barrel burner because it's not pushing the round faster than it should be, or focusing too much heat into a narrow neck.

Amen to what Caver said for the trigger job! My Win 70 turned into a new rifle when I had the trigger tuned down to 3 pounds. It was over 7 when I got it from the shop.
 
#10 ·
mmpoeth said:
My trigger is pretty tight on my M70. Is there any way I can do a trigger job on this model myself I WOULD NOT SUGEST THAT YOU DO IT, IT IS WORTH IT TO HAVE A GOOD SMITH DO IT FOR YOU, or is it too indepth and best left up to a well-trained firearm armorer? How much does a typical trigger job cost on one of these? WHERE DO YOU LIVE? NORMALY $30-$50
 
#12 ·
A good smith that can be trusted is a life saver, a bad smith on the other hand will cost you more than you will ever know. Try to find a smith that works on/builds benchrest competition rifles, he will be more qualified (in my mind anyway). Check the word on the street too.

As far as breaks go I am not the person to ask :oops: I don't know that much about them on a 338.
 
#14 ·
First things first - find a GOOD smith. Let him make a recomendation to you. The big names in barrels are Hart (my fav.), Lija, Douglas, Mike Rock, Kriger, and the list goes on and on...........

Price for the barrel by its self is going to run around $350-$500 depending on what you want.

You may also want to look at Montana Rifleman. That is the Barrel that MEL is using on the SC rifles with great success. And much cheaper I think too.
 
#16 ·
mmpoeth said:
Do you know what proceedures are necessary for installing an aftermarket barrel? Can I just buy a "blank" barrel from one of these manufacturers and install it on my M70 or is there significant gunsmithing work that needs to be done to the barrel and to my M70 before I can actually shoot the modified M70 with new barrel installed?
You can get several diffrent configurations of bbls from one "short chambered" to just a blank bbl with a .338 hole in it. A bbl blank will need to be chambered and threaded meaning the gunsmith will have to cut threads onto the chamber end of the bbl the screw onto your action and also cut a chamber. I would go with the blank my self, but it is up to you and your gunsmith.

Nothing has to be done to the action, however it would be worth it to have the gunsmith square the bolt and action, and true your locking lugs. These are basic thing done to a long range rifle and really makes a diffrence. If the gunsmith doesn't know what these things are, then find another one. He doesn't know what he is doing.

Another thing to think about is are you sure you want a .338 at this point. Since you are putting on a new bbl, the gun can be rechambered, but you have to use a magnum caliber due to the size of the bolt face. The .338 is a good cal, but if there is another magnum caliber you prefer you can have your rifle rechambered to it instead and it is the same cost, or should be.
 
#18 ·
I am not sure if the .338 laupa will fit in the model 70 action. It is a very long round. Mel probably has better insite than I do on that. As for cost I am not sure what it would be to have your action trued. You don't need to do it, but to get the full potential of the rifle I would suggest it. Without it the rifle may or may not shoot moa. Since you are spending time and money on a new bbl, just save a little longer and have it done. I guess in the end, the answer is Yes you need to do it. BTW the rifle MAY already be square. Some come out of the factory that way, but not many. A gunsmith needs to look at it. The thing is you can have the action trued, lugs fixed etc with the bbl you have on there now, then get a bbl later on when you have more money.

As for calibers to change to, look at this site with diffrent calibers for sniping. If you are happy with the .338 win mag, then stick with it. rememberr it is your rifle and your money. no matter what cal you come up with there will be some jerk that swears you should have rechambered to x cal because it is better. The shooter is more important than the caliber as long as you have a decant shooting rifle.

As an idea why don't you PM mel and get a quote from him on doing the work ? his prices are fair and it will give you something to compare to. If he does the work just find a local FFL dealer in your area to have the rifle shipped back to you BEFORE you send it off to Mel. He could also probably give you a better idea on options for your build than I can.
 
#22 ·
heh, welcome to the world of custom rifles. The advantage of working on the one you have is that you can pay for it a piece at a time. But besides that, its probably good to keep what you have, spend a little bit more, and then get a 2nd rifle!

In terms of the .338 Lapua in the winchester action. You could do it as a single shot, but the magazine length is not long enough nor is the bolt face large enough. Winchester does make a safari rifle that is chambered in the .416 rigby and would work well, but it has a pinned action, and it costs about $900.

MEL
 
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