Please help me decide between the 338 LP or 300 WM . what would you choose?

[game hntr]

I can't decide what to get .. the Savage 110FCP HS Precision .338 lapua, 300 WM or 7mm

 

I'll be using the rifle for Hunting. I'm starting reloading. I will need the rifle for Long Range. I haven't decide what scope i'll put on it but I have a scope in mind Zero Stop Night Force ...

 

If you choose a .338 LP, 300 wm or 7mm .. Please explain why and what Brand

[reganranch]

338 Lapua: You ask why? Because you are an Amercan and you can, also go big or go home. Lets compare the three calibers listed in the form of fine automobiles. The 300 WM a GT mustang, a great car, used by many more so then the next two cars but plenty of power to get the job done. The 7 mag, a great caliber one of the most underrated calibers with limitless potential with reloads, many times under appreciated because of the 30 Cal super cartridges. The 7 mag would definelty be an AUDI R8,pretty dam fast, and retains speed at the longer distances. The 338 Lapua Mag would be a 69 Camaro SS, very BA, a significant amount more to maintain then the other two calibers, heavier to carry, and it's pretty much going to bring down the hand of God on anything you shoot at.

[oz31p]

300wm. Because if you pick the correct bullet weight/type you can do any thing you what with it. Its components are readily available and cheap enought to be able toto practice enough to become proficient. And its easy to eload for as most bullet /powders are accurate. If your thinking about 338the lapua look at the price of ammo and components. That s what made my choice for me ...now i have 2 300 wm

[Ernesto C]

Any of those 3 will work perfect...............if you make them work

 

Ernesto C

[Antmo23]

For the sake of your hunting partner's ears, go with a 300 WM and don't put a muzzle break on it. It's a good mix of speed and bullet weight. Just my opinion.

[FlyingW]

If you have'nt already I would shoot all three and see what fits you the best . I have shot the above listed calibers and own a .338 , but went with a 300 Wby Mag as my primary gun because it fit me the best...

[Couzer]

if you have the money do a 338

[coues7]

A 7mm will do everything you ever want and then some. Packing a 14lb rifle around is no fun.....I'd recommend that you look at (in person) what you think you want. That may help you make up your mind. All are capable rounds.....I shoot a 300WM out to 1000 yds.

[rcdinaz]

I really like my 7mm's, Dakota and RM and they have proven to be great 1000 yd guns from a target perspective. Not planning in shooting critters that far. I have a 300 RUM as well and don't shoot it much any more since it wears you out a little quicker and doesn't get me any huge gains in performance. I did shoot my bighorn with the 300 so it will always be a special gun to me. All that being said if I hade other deer caliber rifle I would go big and do the 338. If you don't have anything in 7mm or .308 yet I would go 7mm. IMHO

[cbryant11]

I would love a 338 lapua but since i dont want to pack a heavy gun up and down the mountains i would go for the 7 mag

[coues7]

Now I may be a pansy, but anything over about 12lbs is dang near unbearable for hunting coues in AZ. For anyone new to long range shooting/hunting, you'll likely hit up the longrangehunting.com and other forums. Those forums provide lots of pictures of guns, groups and kills. From those forums, your interest goes from excitement, to a burning desire, to action and the next thing you know you are hooked. Lots of folks on those forums are not Arizonans/New Mexicans. Some are in your western states, but very few hunt coues deer in Arizona. You'll see guys on the tactical forums, shooting rifles that weigh between 13-17lbs. The Savage Long Range Hunters chambered in 338LM, after you put a scope on one are going to weigh between 14-16lb. You think to yourself, "Meh, that's not too bad". Well, hump that thing around during an October hunt when its in the 90's and you'll be whistling a different tune.

 

Weight does get you amazing stability, but it can also wear you out. The Gunwerks LR1000 rifle weights in a 12.5lbs, same thing with the Sendero II's. You literally need to feel and carry one of these rifles around to realize these things aren't light and they were built to be light yet repeatable. I have a friend in Flagstaff who builds custom rifles.....his cartridge of choice is the 7RSAUM. He puts pencil barrels on them and they shoot 1/4 MOA all day long, but they heat up fast and accuracy goes down. They are made for making one shot, extreme long range kills. Typically you don't need 2nd and 3rd shots. The military's M40A1/A3 rifles weigh between 14.5 and 17lbs. They have heavy contoured barrels not only for repeatable accuracy, but for stability when shooting.

 

All in all you need to find people that have the rifles you are after and contact them. I've yet to find anyone within the long range community that isn't helpful. As a matter of fact they are extremely gracious. They can give you real feed back and will likely let you handle and shoot those rifles......

 

You can literally get an out of the box Savage or Remington 700 and make a few mods (if any) to them and they will shoot lights out! Range time is the most important thing. If you spend $5000 on a custom rifle, but don't go shoot it, I don't care what guarantee comes with that rifle, you can't drive it well enough to get its full accuracy out of it. All 3 calibers that OP (original poster) mentioned are capable long range rounds. The 338LM can make kills out to a mile on big game.....problem is most folks aren't capable even though the equipment is. You literally need to spend as much or more on optics as you do the rifle. You ain't going to get away with a bushnell elite on a 338LM. I have a friend who has personal experience with that. The 338LM even with a muzzle break has a tremendous amount of recoil!

 

Most folks will tell you that the very bottom end of "good" long range scopes are the Zeiss/Swarovski/Leupold Target/LR series. I haven't been impressed with Swarovski because their turrets aren't labeled well. The ones I've seen have the color coded tabs and to set them up you count "clicks". If you are going to shot long range and are still counting clicks you have no business shooting long range! That's my personal opinion and in no way gospel. My buddies Zeiss has been repeatable and true. My daughters Leupold LR/T has been reliable and true. Without question if you throw down the dough for a NightForce IT WILL BE BOTH. I'd recommend NF, because I have personal experience with them.

 

You need to understand MOA. If you are hunting big game you should stick with 1/4MOA or .1MIL turrets.....if you plan on shooting varmints or benchrest go with 1/8MOA. There is a significant difference between 1" tubes and 30mm tubes......read up and learn so you are educated before you start throwing down big $$.

 

I live by the motto "buy once cry once". Don't buy crap....it will bite you when you least expect and could cost you big! Long story short, there is a lot to consider. Try out what you think you want. If you've always had it in your mind that one want one of those calibers, well then satisfy the itch! Otherwise you'll always have regrets.....our opinions are just that opinions.

[Antmo23]

Now I may be a pansy, but anything over about 12lbs is dang near unbearable for hunting coues in AZ. For anyone new to long range shooting/hunting, you'll likely hit up the longrangehunting.com and other forums. Those forums provide lots of pictures of guns, groups and kills. From those forums, your interest goes from excitement, to a burning desire, to action and the next thing you know you are hooked. Lots of folks on those forums are not Arizonans/New Mexicans. Some are in your western states, but very few hunt coues deer in Arizona. You'll see guys on the tactical forums, shooting rifles that weigh between 13-17lbs. The Savage Long Range Hunters chambered in 338LM, after you put a scope on one are going to weigh between 14-16lb. You think to yourself, "Meh, that's not too bad". Well, hump that thing around during an October hunt when its in the 90's and you'll be whistling a different tune.

 

Weight does get you amazing stability, but it can also wear you out. The Gunwerks LR1000 rifle weights in a 12.5lbs, same thing with the Sendero II's. You literally need to feel and carry one of these rifles around to realize these things aren't light and they were built to be light yet repeatable. I have a friend in Flagstaff who builds custom rifles.....his cartridge of choice is the 7RSAUM. He puts pencil barrels on them and they shoot 1/4 MOA all day long, but they heat up fast and accuracy goes down. They are made for making one shot, extreme long range kills. Typically you don't need 2nd and 3rd shots. The military's M40A1/A3 rifles weigh between 14.5 and 17lbs. They have heavy contoured barrels not only for repeatable accuracy, but for stability when shooting.

 

All in all you need to find people that have the rifles you are after and contact them. I've yet to find anyone within the long range community that isn't helpful. As a matter of fact they are extremely gracious. They can give you real feed back and will likely let you handle and shoot those rifles......

 

You can literally get an out of the box Savage or Remington 700 and make a few mods (if any) to them and they will shoot lights out! Range time is the most important thing. If you spend $5000 on a custom rifle, but don't go shoot it, I don't care what guarantee comes with that rifle, you can't drive it well enough to get its full accuracy out of it. All 3 calibers that OP (original poster) mentioned are capable long range rounds. The 338LM can make kills out to a mile on big game.....problem is most folks aren't capable even though the equipment is. You literally need to spend as much or more on optics as you do the rifle. You ain't going to get away with a bushnell elite on a 338LM. I have a friend who has personal experience with that. The 338LM even with a muzzle break has a tremendous amount of recoil!

 

Most folks will tell you that the very bottom end of "good" long range scopes are the Zeiss/Swarovski/Leupold Target/LR series. I haven't been impressed with Swarovski because their turrets aren't labeled well. The ones I've seen have the color coded tabs and to set them up you count "clicks". If you are going to shot long range and are still counting clicks you have no business shooting long range! That's my personal opinion and in no way gospel. My buddies Zeiss has been repeatable and true. My daughters Leupold LR/T has been reliable and true. Without question if you throw down the dough for a NightForce IT WILL BE BOTH. I'd recommend NF, because I have personal experience with them.

 

You need to understand MOA. If you are hunting big game you should stick with 1/4MOA or .1MIL turrets.....if you plan on shooting varmints or benchrest go with 1/8MOA. There is a significant difference between 1" tubes and 30mm tubes......read up and learn so you are educated before you start throwing down big $$.

 

I live by the motto "buy once cry once". Don't buy crap....it will bite you when you least expect and could cost you big! Long story short, there is a lot to consider. Try out what you think you want. If you've always had it in your mind that one want one of those calibers, well then satisfy the itch! Otherwise you'll always have regrets.....our opinions are just that opinions.

 

Well said! My Dad always told me, "buy it right the first time, and it'll last you a life time!". As proof of that, he bought a pair of Ziess 15x56 when I was 1, they got passed on to me after he passed away and I'm still finding animals with them to this day! (28 years later...)

[sjvcon]

If you reload and want a .338, the .338 Edge (necked up .300 RUM) will give you the same or a little more juice than a Lapua, and I'd wager the brass will cost you a bit less initially (though I understand the Lapua Brass is the Shiznizzle for reloading, and might end up costing you less overall due to more uses). The .338 is a great caliber ... great retained energy and drift resistance, though you gotta be willing to take a beating when you shoot it (unless you like the noise of a brake). Also, at shorter ranges you are gonna waste some tasty morsels.

 

I have had both a 7RM and a .300WM. Both are great. They do about the same thing. Probably easier to get hot rod rounds off the shelf for the .300, but with reloads the .284 bullets have some ballistics advantages. For drift resistance, gotta give it to the .300 though.

 

Guess it depends what you are shooting at. I have a .300 RUM that will someday become an Edge and be my dedicated Elk and larger gun (or ultra long range mulie, sheep, etc.) The 7RM that I have right now is probably going to be my go to mulie rig. I have a .30-06 that is going to become a 6.5 something or other, which I will use for Coues, Speedgoats and the like.

 

What the heck ... get one of everything.

 

All that said ... coues7 has some great words of wisdom there. If you are shooting far ... better practice far and be darned good. Great glass is a MUST. Get your wallet out.

[coues7]

Another thing I'd advise against is having a "dedicated elk" gun......how often do you get drawn for elk in AZ?.....Not very often. Get something you can shoot and shoot lots. A 7mm or a 300WM will kill anything the western US has to offer......

[game hntr]

I did some research on LRS and Hide.. I haven't found any posts that compare this 3 calibers.

 

right now i'm shooting 308 savage model 10 ..which it's about 15 lbs with the swarovski on it.

 

My next one I'm still didn't decide yet. Don't matter which cal. I will get I will have a NF with zero stop .. moa.. .

 

I have seen really good reviews on the savages .338 LP .. (i have the 308 and i love it it's heavy but it's really acurate)

 

Thank you for all the good info. I will still think about it and i'm going to do a little more research.