We hear a lot of questions about the .338 Lapua cartridge.  It get’s almost religious-like hushed tones when most guys talk about it.  It gets so much attention, even out here in the Uintah Basin, that when people around here talk about a .338, they are talking about the Lapua round.

Let’s take a look at the most common .338’s here in my neck of the woods.

We see here that the Lapua cartridge is right in the middle according to size.  What’s not pictured is .338 Remington Ultra Magnum.  All cartridges are pushing out the same slugs, a .33 caliber projectile of whatever configuration or weight you want.  The terminal ballistics will be determined on not the bullet but the velocity between these rounds.  So let’s see the numbers.  I’ve fired these rounds over the years over Chronographs and I’ve seen a spread of velocities from all the different hand loads.

The classic .338 Win Mag was one of my first Centerfire Rifles I owned.  The kick is moderate.   More of a good shove than a sharp kick.  The universal 250 grain Nosler Partition can be launched at 2700 FPS.  Same speed as a .308, which shooters often fire out to 1000 yards with great accuracy.  And remember that this is a much bigger, heavier projectile.  The little (in this group) Win Mag does an impressive job at throwing those big bullets.  It’s taken every species of North American Big Game, and probably every other Big Game everywhere else on the planet.  It gets the job done.  Ammo prices is a lot easier on the wallet than the other rounds.

The Lapua round kicks out a 250 grain slug at about 2900 FPS.  Yeah, it’s faster than the Win Mag, but the difference is more like between a .308 and the .30-06.  Which means that the Lapua is no joke, but it’s no monster either.   It’s military adoption (by Foreign Military) has given it not just respect, but almost mythological urban legends.  Don’t get started about some Sniper’s Confirmed Kills at long ranges… just because a specially trained expert an do something with a specially built rifle and a specially trained spotter, doesn’t mean you can.

The Weatherby round kicks out the same 250 grain Partition at 3100 FPS.  Which is a significant increase in power and trajectory, but you can see that it’s another relative step up from the others in power progression.  It’s also the most expensive at about 100-120 bucks a box for Factory Loads.  Compared to the Lapua’s 70-90 bucks, and the Win Mag’s 50-70 bucks.  The .338 Remington Ultra Mag is just a tick below the Weatherby on the power curve, and cheaper on the wallet, about 80 bucks… so I’d probably buy the Remington round if I had to chose between the two.

There are many other .338’s out there.  Smaller ones and bigger ones, but we see about as many up and down from these guys here.  I’ll leave you to your own conclusions, but basically for the .338’s the Lapua round is right in the middle… a “C” grade.  Completely average.  So when you see some Gunstore Commando get all misty eyed about the .338 Lapua, just smile and say “Yeah, it’s decent.”