im about to buy a 338. win mag in a savage i was looking at 210-225 gr nosler partitions but just wanted other opponions in a good flat shooting accurate factory load

That's gonna hurt! I don't like painful guns. I went 338 Fed AR10 with JP captive spring set. My wife loves to shoot it. In her words no perceptible kick. She is also very proud of her clover leaf target.

ive shot the new 338 savage bear hunter and it doesnt kick to bad at all. thats the gun im buying and it is sweeeeetttt i was just wondering about the best bullet from 100 to 500 yards max

For flatter shooting, you will want a 200 grain bullet. The faster it goes, the flatter it shoots. But the heavier bullets will pack more energy and more stopping power. Hornady has a 200 grain SP, and a 225 grain Interbond (bonded) bullet. Those would do very well. Nosler has the 180 grain Accubond, and heavier one's also. I'll PM you some info.

IMO the 338WMg is right on the edge of the seperation in recoil levels between the plethora of non mag deer shooters and the next level of critter getters. Having said that I also am of the opinion that a 300Wmg can provide more felt recoil because folks coming out of 30'06s don't realize the step up in recoil 'tween the 2 calibers.

Personally, the 7Rmg recoil pulse slaps me faster and more distastefully than either the 300Wmg or the 338Wmg, and the of the 3 I am more comfortable with the 338Wmg's seemingly slower recoil pulse than the other 2. IMO It's all about your shooting techniques & getting sloppy won't create a problem in a 270/280 etc...getting sloppy with even medium bore "all up" magnums under 8-9 lbs gets painful quicker the bigger the bullet weight at the same MV's in the same weight shooter. Stock fit becomes more important and not just an interesting campfire discussion.

Having shot a 270 & 300 Wmg pairing for 30-35 years off the bench up to a 100 rounds a session per caliber during load ladders and practicing shooting disciplines taught me to keep my thumb away from my nose...baaad technique for sure since my bad habit of crawling the stock when I get tired and lazy with the details can become an "attention getter"....and why I've downsized to a 300WSM to get same MV's as the 300WMg with 10-12% less powder with the same weight bullets, but just not comfortable yet simply for lack of trigger time.

Flip a coin...a 338'06 & AI it? or 280 AI is on my short list of next toy up on the bucket list.
Ron

One of the hardest felt recoiling guns I have ever shot is a 338 Win Mag in a Ruger M77 MKII. And keep in mind I am no stranger to magnums.......that one just flat out hurt though!

I used to load 185-210 grain mostly Barnes X. You don't need a real heavy projectile for Whitetail.

Buffalo Bore makes really good loads with Barnes TSX and TTSX depending upon what you are hunting. Barnes also loads their own bullets now. You can also use softer bullets with such heavy weight as 200 grain if you are going for softer skinned animals.

You can kill Red Stag, Scimitar Horned Oryx, Audad Sheep, Axis Deer, Blacbuck Antelope, and Barasingha Deer with a 270, so if you can find a 338 load that you really like, you can go soft point with any of these animals and you are OK. For Nilgai Antelope, the 225 Barnes TSX by Buffalo bore would be great.

I have several 338's one is a Savage Weather Warrior which has a 20 in bbl with built in break. I had a SS No 1 Ruger with a break and purchased a Ruger 77 with a light syn stock and had Vais put a break on it. The no 1 Ruger was a 1/2 MOA rifle, the Savage is a MOA rifle, and the jury's out on the 77. All kick some, the no1 was always easier on the shoulder than the others and the 77 is worst with the light wgt stock

I have a Browning SS with a KDF muzzle break. Sweat shooting gun. Got it in 1993 when I was in AK.Way overkill for TX, but I still own it and will eventually shoot a hog with it. I wiped out a few raccoons and a opossum with it

Have shot mostly 210 and 225 Partitions with it. Had a bunch left over when I left AK.Have not really done much with it lately. Thinking about trying some reduced IMR4895 loads with it and the Hornady SST 200 grainers....that and the muzzle break should make a low recoil rifle.

FYI night and day in recoil with muzzlebreak. Kicks less than my Rem 700 30-06 I used to have.

I love my .338 Win Mag for Elk and Nilgai. I load 225gr Nosler Accubonds, and have been very pleased with their performance, both ballistically and on large game.

I have a long history with the .338 WM and the 210 Nosler Partition: 2 bears, 2 moose, 1 elk, 1 caribou.

With the 250 Nosler PT, I've shot a brown bear and a grizzly. The 250 gr load recoils more noticeably. John Barsness has written more than once that he sees no difference in the performance on game between the 210 and 250 gr bullets, and he's now come to use the 210 exclusively in the .338 WM. He's shot the 210 all over Africa, so he likely knows what he's talking about.

I currently load for 3 rifles chambered in .338 WM. I recently worked up a load with the 210 TTSX featuring IMR 4350 at 2938 fps. It should be a fine load for heavier game, but I haven't shot any animals with it yet. I KNOW the 210 Nosler is a killing machine, though!

I have a Kimber 338 and it loves 210 ttsx's over H4350 , shot two bucks with it 10 minuites apart and neither took a step. Did not destroy meat horribly either. Both deer were in the 300 yard range.

Ruger stocks are bad!

Partition for sure!!! 225 gr is my choice for elk. They are a little tough for whitetail but 210 would be about right there IMO.

Never felt or heard a rifle or shotgun when dropping the hammer on game. If I was to have one cf rifle for lower 48 would be .30-06 w Partitions.

I finally got the Ruger 77 with Brown Mountain Stock cleaned and shimmed the rear ring so I could zero. I shot 3 different loads, all with 4831 and got 1" or better groups. So now I had some 185 gr Barnes TSX left and loaded them for my son.