My 40th birthday approaching....yesterday wife asked...hmm..338 Lapua??

[saturno_v]

As I wrote before I was in the process of "squirreling" away and deciding about a new rifle and my choice was directed at the Weatherby Vanguard in 300 Wby or 338 Win Mag....

My 40th birthday is approaching fast, unfortunately and my wife yesterday asked me for some ideas about a nice gift.

My "dream" rifle has recently been the 338 Lapua....big and powerful, excellent at very long range (one of the hobby I'm trying to get into) still portable enough to be considered a shoulder carried rifle...I know, I know others may have different opinions but I just did look at different rifles weight.

So thinking about ditching the Vanguard and "joining forces" with my wife...my question is....what is the minimum budget for a decent, non single shot, 338 Lapua?? (excluding scope at the moment)

Rifle model and prices?? anything uder $1200???

I hope you can give me some ideas because at a quick glance all of them seems outside of my potential budget!!!

 

[gvnwst]

There are some really nice rifles cahmbered in the .338 lapua, but i don't know of one under $1200, repeater or not. You are looking at $3k plus for the more commen rifles. (there might be a cheaper one, but i have never heard of it....)

 

[R.W.Dale]

Rifle model and prices?? anything uder $1200???

LOLOLOLOOL

Yeah! THE SCOPE, if you go cheap that is.

Just 100 cases will set you back 1/4 of your entire budget

In theory you could do one on a TC encore, but a 3MOA 338 Lapua strikes me as an extreme oxymoron

 

[JimmAr]

Actually in real world terms ive seen alot more impressive shots made with the 338-378wby mag, 338 RUM and the 338 Edge.. so think long and hard before you go get a lapua.. its an overrated cartridge..thats extremely expensive..

If you were to compare the cartridge to the other magnums.. lets just say the in 6.5mm cartridge for example the 338 lapua would then be the 260 Remington of the group as the 338-378 weatherby would be the 6.5-284..

So before the extra expense remember that from a ballistic approach your just getting a hot loaded 338 win mag..the boys over at longrangehunting.com dont think to highly of the lapua.

And Lapua anything is going to be 2000+ rifle wise(brand new) and then the brass to reload is.. 300 dollars for 100?

But if you heart is set.. this baby is in your price range.. well sort of...

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=122449428 O btw thats just a barreled action..

 

[saturno_v]

Ok....thank guys...I should forget anout it then....

 

[gvnwst]

Look for a big .30 magnum (.30/378?) or the .338/378, those are cheaper, and can be made very accurate.

 

[saturno_v]

Gvnwst

I thought often about the 30-378 but quite few people talk me out of it, included a Weatherby technician and a Weatherby dealer!!!

They said that it offers not real tangible advatages over the much more popular 300 Wby to pay for the significant increase in ammo (I know both are reloading propositions) and brass price.
And to top it off, you get less barrel life...

They call it more of a technical showcase for the company than anything else, and only real experienced long range shooters in seripus competition can take advantage of its slight edge over the 300 Wby.

 

[gvnwst]

Then the .300 wby mag or .300 WM may be the awnser. I like the .338/378 (which has more "tangible" performance over the .338 WM) it is a great catridge. Do you allready reload? If so, and you have a .30 caliber cartridge, then one of the .300 mags. JMHO

 

[Strongbad]

Between my father and I we have more 30 cal mags and up, than I can count. Including a 338/378 Wby apiece, as well as an 8mm/378 Weatherby, and a couple other custom jobs. Coming from someone that owns a 338/378 and loves it, I will say that I honestly believe that the Lapua is a better cartridge, and the price of brass isn't going to be that much different from the 338/378 or 30/378, and you're getting much better brass to boot.

Now, all of that said, if I was on a budget and who isn't these days, I would look at a 300 Ultra or a 338 Ultra. I know a guy who had a 338 Edge custom built by Kirby Allen and although the rifle shot great, he now says that he'd just go straight to a 338 Ultra. That's good enough reason for me. The 300 Ultra that we have is a shooter, the components are easy to find and relatively inexpensive. There's no match quality brass out there really, but then again you're not necessarily looking at match quality rifles from the sound of it. To make a short story long, my suggestion would be with the 30 or 338 Ultra depending on what diameter you want to be throwing down range. You can find either of those in your price range, and if you shop around, likely considerably less.

Good luck!

 

[JimmAr]

30-378 is.. to much overbore.. obvious sights of erosion will show up under 200 rounds..sure its a fun round.. but it eats at your barrel..

300wm is enough beyond that... 300 wby, 300 ultra are overbore and more expensive..

I own a Sendero SF in 300wm.. wonderful rifle.. extremely accurate.

 

[MCMXI]

Ok....thank guys...I should forget anout it then....

That depends on how YOU feel about it ... if you really want a .338 Lapua then that's what you should get regardless of the opinion(s) of others here. However, make an EDUCATED decision. JimAR's post should get you started in the right direction. I always find that the research before I buy something is a big part of the enjoyment. It's ALWAYS best to know what you're getting yourself into, so do your research, come up with the PROS and CONS of what you're interested in, look at alternatives, and make an educated decision. Maybe at the end of the day you'll still decide to buy a .338 Lapua but it'll be for YOUR reasons and that's what matters.

P.S. I'd like a .338 Lapua too but for now will "settle" for my .300 Win Mag which offers a good compromise between affordability and performance for long-range shooting.

 

[Afy]

Try shooting a .338 without a suppressor or a brake.
If you are comfortable.. it might be for you.

Personally... a .260 for all practical purposes.

 

[IndianaBoy]

Go with a 6.5 if you want to shoot long range and you are on a budget.

Consider the Grendel if you would like to do it with an AR pattern rifle.

 

[husker]

i wounder what i will get for my 40th birthday 2-20-69

 

[clown714]

how about a 340 weatherby?

just a thought.

clown