ELR Rifle? - 338LP / 7SAUM / 300 WSM

[bsumoba]

Just ordered a McMillan A-5 adjustable stock for my Bat M action so I can do a switchbarrel and stock between my F-Class and an Extreme Long Range rifle.

The nice thing about the Bat action is Bruno's has both the mag and the lapua bolt in stock and now I need to decide on the chambering.

I decided since this is a switchbarrel, I want to do something other than the 284 shehane. So, I am thinking of the following:

338LP - sort of overkill, but all ones of those things that when you have it, you know you can pretty much do 99% of everything you're going to do in shooting.

7 SAUM - I already have the bullet I want to shoot, which is the 180gr hybrid, but its not that much different from the 284 shehane velocity wise, but its cheaper than a 338LP handload.

300 WSM - Also a very nice round, especially with the 230gr hybrid. Haven't done the cost analysis or the ballistics on it, but this is definitely a contender.

What are your choices?

[Hairball]

Depends on how you define "Extreme Long Range". If you are talking in the 1k range then the 7 or 300 will be fine. If you are looking at going out to 1700 yards or so then the .338 is the better choice. It appears from the manner in which you worded your post that cost is major factor in this choice. The .338 is going to be expensive either way you do it (buy factory loads or reload your own). I reload for the .338 and the costs are still high compared to others.

[bsumoba]

Shooting will be done out to max...a mile. Probably sticking in the 1000-1800yd range most of the time.

Cost is a little bit of an issue, but Im trying to be in the buy once, cry once and would be willing to fork it over for the sake of this mentality.

[JMP]

It's a no brainer, the .338 Lapua is an essential cartridge and pretty much the best thing you will get in your stated range. There is a cost advantage of the .338 Lapua in that you can still shoot relatively inexpensive jacketed bullets. The larger, more typical ELR cartridges push you into much more expensive projectiles. The .338 Lapua is a nice round because it's very easy to shoot. It will well balanced and tends to have great precision at all distances. At 1 mile, however, it'll run quite ragged. It'll still pack a punch, but it's getting blown around quite a bit, so it's tough to hit a 1 MOA target at a mile.

Even though you will definitely eventually need more, a .338 Lapua is a must own. Then, you can step up to some of the heavier ELR stuff, where you are best off with a .375 wildcat.

[justin_5585]

Based on your goal ranges, I think the 338 is the best choice of those you listed. On top of that, I think you'd be more excited than with your other options, as your only limitation would really be the guy pulling the trigger

[Thorax]

The Lapua round is LACKING.
Big time.

Do what I did.
Weatherby 338-378 mag
Shoots the exact same bullet as the Lapua and has a 200-500 fps velocity advantage.
Won't be much different in cost and is much more readily available.

Lapua 300 grain Scenar = 2750 fps

Weatherby....well lets hope this posts right

300 grain Sierra Match King, C1 BC = .800, 100 yard zero, sea-level atmosphere muzzle velocity of 3000 fps

Range
yards Velocity
fps Drop
inches Energy
ft.lbs Wind Drift
inches
1000 yds 1929 -222.9 2477 43.55
1500 yds 1501 -649.2 1500 110.97
2000 yds 1182 -1481.7 930 222.5

Muzzle velocity of 3200 fps

Range
yards Velocity
fps Drop
inches Energy
ft.lbs Wind Drift
inches
1000 yds 2083 -192.5 2891 39.89
1500 yds 1630 -559.5 1769 101.04
2000 yds 1270 -1269.3 1073 202.64


From..

http://www.riflebarrels.com/articles/bullets_ballastics/long_barrel_velocity.htm

I suggest reading that well.

(edit) gah, that didn't post for doodly squish.
Go read the linked page.
Short summary the guy was shooting the SMK 300 grainer at up to 3200 fps with a 100 yard zero and was getting 1270 fps at 2000 yards.
About 1000 ft lbs of energy at the same 2000 yards.

Impressive eh ?

[SansSouci]

bsumoba,

How will you hunt elk? Will you do it yourself or hire a guide? Will you hunt the rut or general season? Rut hunts usually mean closer shots. Do it yourself hunts can mean longer shots.

Guides will almost always get hunters as close as possible to game. Last month I shot a huge bull at 130 yards. Just about any suitable cartridge would have killed him. On the other hand, guides prefer your first shot to be a shoulder shot because they want elk to fall in its tracks for a follow-up killing shot. A .308 Win/'06 will do that. I prefer heart shots. I like my big game dead when I walk up to them.

You might want to consider your barrel's rate-of-twist before you decide on a long range bullet. If rate-of-twist is out of whack for your intended bullet, it probably won't stabilize it.

All of your identified cartridges will kill elk, and everything else in North America.

Were I to be accorded a rifle do-over, I'd buy a Sako .280 Rem with a 22" barrel and never look back. The .280 Rem will kill everything in North America. The rifle is for practical reasons. It's one thing to shoot a big rifle off a bench. It's another thing entirely to carry it at 9000' where air is thin and exhausted from chasing elusive big game.

Last month I carried a 10 pound 7MM Rem Mag at high altitude up-and-down I have no clue of how many ridges in pursuit of a huge bull. When I finally caught up to my guide who was glassing my bull, he told me to shoot him. The problem was holding my rifle steady while I was out of breath and my heart rate elevated higher than the peaks that surrounded us. I did kill it with one 160 grain Partition, but the reality is I could have killed it just as dead with a 150 grain .270 Win Partition.

As I see it now, I will hunt everything that I hope to hunt including Alaskan moose with a lightweight .270 Win with a 22" barrel. I'm all but done carrying heavy rifles up-and-down ridges at high altitude. Believe me, it ain't easy.

Finally, you might want to keep in mind that the '06 has been reliably killing everything in North America for better than a century. It will do so for centuries to come. The .308 Win has become extremely popular because of its inherent accuracy and ability to replicate '06 ballistics out of short-action rifles. But in the end, it will be your elk rifle, so you'll have to go the way you want to go. I'm merely conveying the thought that it isn't necessary to carry a heavy rifle chambered for a big cartridge to kill game. All that's required is a reasonable cartridge a bullet from which destroys an animal's ability to pump oxygenated blood to its brain.

[Thorax]

umm....

ELR does not spell ELK

ELR = Extreme long range
ELK = Wapiti, a antlered animal similar to deer, moose, antelope, caribou, reindeer, etc.

[shellslinger]

416 barrett

[toby]

I like the 340 Weatherby.

[CSACANNONEER]

416 barrett

Yea, go with something with limited components and support. Right. Besides, a type M action won't support any cartridge based on a 50BMG. If it would, I would have recommended a .510 DTC.

[BLACK LION]

Of the 3 choices most people will steer you towards the Lapua.
Cost has already been cut significantly since you are just swapping barrel, bolt and bottom metal and not buying a whole rifle. I say Lapua.

[bsumoba]

first off...ELR = Extreme Long Range, not mispelled "ELK"

I just went on JBM to run numbers for the 300 WSM and will just get to 1700 yds staying supersonic. If I push a long barrel, then I might be able to stay supersonic out to the mile mark.

That being said, Im leaning towards 300 WSM only because if ever I decide to want to run the heavier bullet for F-Class, I can still run the 300 WSM or any of the cartridges in the "Mag" bolt configuration.

As much as I want the 338LP, I think flexibility wise, the mag bolt might be better for me then a dedicated Lapua Mag bolt.

Does this make sense?

Like everyone mentioned, if somehow extreme distances (1-3 miles) is the name of the game, there are a lot of other cartridges that fit the bill more and do it better than the 338LP.

Chances are, I will shoot out to a mile a couple times a year.

[MongooseV8]

338 Edge, and 338 RUM are options as well.

[Bhobbs]

If you are sticking to around a mile or less, I would go with a .300 Win Mag with 230 or 215 Bergers.