.340 Weatherby Magnum

Last updated
.340 Weatherby Magnum
340 Weatherby with 308 and 9mm.jpg
A .340 Weatherby Magnum cartridge between a .308 Winchester cartridge and a 9×19mm cartridge
TypeRifle
Place of origin United States
Production history
Designer Roy Weatherby
Designed1962
Manufacturer Weatherby
Produced1963 to present
Specifications
Parent case .300 H&H Magnum, full length
Case typeRimless, bottlenecked with venturi shoulder
Bullet diameter.338 in (8.6 mm)
Neck diameter.366 in (9.3 mm)
Shoulder diameter.495 in (12.6 mm)
Base diameter.513 in (13.0 mm)
Rim diameter.530 in (13.5 mm)
Rim thickness.048 in (1.2 mm)
Case length2.82 in (72 mm)
Overall length3.6 in (91 mm)
Case capacity98  gr H2O (6.4 cm3)
Primer typelarge rifle magnum
Ballistic performance
Bullet mass/typeVelocityEnergy
200 gr (13 g) SP3,221 ft/s (982 m/s)4,607 ft⋅lbf (6,246 J)
225 gr (15 g) SP3,066 ft/s (935 m/s)4,696 ft⋅lbf (6,367 J)
250 gr (16 g) SP2,963 ft/s (903 m/s)4,873 ft⋅lbf (6,607 J)
Source(s): Weatherby [1]

The .340 Weatherby Magnum rifle cartridge was introduced in 1962 by creator Roy Weatherby [2] to fill the gap between the .300 Weatherby Magnum and the .378 Weatherby Magnum, and in response to the .338 Winchester Magnum released in 1958. [3] [1] [4]

The .340 Weatherby Magnum uses the same .338 in. diameter bullets as the .338 Winchester Magnum, but it does so at greater velocity than its Winchester competition. Factory ammunition pushes a 250 grain bullet to 2,940-2,950 fps. [2] [5] Reloaders may have trouble matching the published Weatherby velocities as Weatherby factory ammunition is loaded to maximum specifications. [6] Weatherby no longer loads the 250gr. round-nose cartridge pictured but continues to load the 250 gr. Spire Point and 250 gr. Nosler Partition. Weatherby has also expanded their factory loads including Nosler Ballistic-tip and Barnes TSX bullets complementing the powerful cartridge. [7] Currently A-square is the only other factory ammunition producer of the .340 Weatherby Magnum, which has led to limited popularity of the caliber. In field tests the .340 clearly outperforms the 300 Ultra mag, .338 Win mag. and even rivals the larger .375 H&H, providing a much flatter shooting and harder hitting performance.

This cartridge is powerful enough for even the largest North American game and is suitable for most African game as well. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table of handgun and rifle cartridges</span> Small arms cartridge data

This is a table of selected pistol/submachine gun and rifle/machine gun cartridges by common name. Data values are the highest found for the cartridge, and might not occur in the same load.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.460 Weatherby Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .460 Weatherby Magnum is a belted, bottlenecked rifle cartridge, developed by Roy Weatherby in 1957. The cartridge is based on the .378 Weatherby Magnum necked up to accept the .458-inch (11.6 mm) bullet. The original .378 Weatherby Magnum parent case was inspired by the .416 Rigby. The .460 Weatherby Magnum was designed as an African dangerous game rifle cartridge for the hunting of heavy, thick skinned dangerous game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.270 Winchester</span> Rifle cartridge

The .270 Winchester is a rifle cartridge developed by Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1923, and it was unveiled in 1925 as a chambering for their bolt-action Model 54 to become arguably the flattest shooting cartridge of its day, only competing with the .300 Holland & Holland Magnum, also introduced in the same year.

The .375 Remington Ultra Magnum, also known as the .375 RUM is a .375 rifle cartridge introduced by Remington Arms in 2000. The cartridge is intended for large and dangerous game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.458 Winchester Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .458 Winchester Magnum is a belted, straight-taper cased, Big Five game rifle cartridge. It was introduced commercially in 1956 by Winchester and first chambered in the Winchester Model 70 African rifle. It was designed to compete against the .450 Nitro Express and the .470 Nitro Express cartridges used in big bore British double rifles. The .458 Winchester Magnum remains one of the most popular large game cartridges, and most major ammunition manufacturers offer a selection of .458 ammunition.

The .416 Rigby is a rifle cartridge designed in 1911 by London based gunmaker John Rigby & Company, for hunting dangerous game. It is the first cartridge to use a bullet of .416 inch diameter. The rifles, as built by John Rigby & Co., were initially made up on the Magnum Mauser 98 action, although in later years, some were made on standard length actions, a perfect example being the rifle used by legendary professional hunter Harry Selby. Other famous users of the cartridge were Commander David Enderby Blunt, John Taylor, and Jack O'Connor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.257 Weatherby Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .257 Weatherby Magnum is a .257 caliber (6.53 mm) belted bottlenecked cartridge. It is one of the original standard length magnums developed by shortening the .375 H&H Magnum case to approx. 2.5 in (64 mm). Of the cartridges developed by Roy Weatherby, the .257 Weatherby Magnum was known to have been his favorite, and the cartridge currently ranks third in Weatherby cartridge sales, after the .30-378 Weatherby Magnum and the .300 Weatherby Magnum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.300 Winchester Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .300 Winchester Magnum is a belted, bottlenecked magnum rifle cartridge that was introduced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1963. The .300 Winchester Magnum is a magnum cartridge designed to fit in a standard rifle action. It is based on the .375 H&H Magnum, which has been blown out, shortened, and necked down to accept a .30 caliber (7.62 mm) bullet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.338 Winchester Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .338 Winchester Magnum is a .338 in (8.6 mm) caliber, belted, rimless, bottlenecked cartridge introduced in 1958 by Winchester Repeating Arms. It is based on the blown-out, shortened .375 H&H Magnum. The .338 in (8.6 mm) is the caliber at which medium-bore cartridges are considered to begin. The .338 Winchester Magnum is the first choice among professional brown bear guides in Alaska to back up clients where a powerful stopping caliber is required on charging bears. It is also the most popular medium-bore cartridge in North America and has the most widely available choice in rifles among medium bore rifles. The action length is the same as a .30-06, and most major rifle manufacturers in the United States chamber rifles for the cartridge including the semi-automatic Browning BAR Mk II Safari, making it a very powerful combination against charging dangerous game. The cartridge was intended for larger North American big-game species and has found use as for the hunting of thin-skinned African plains-game species.

The .300 Remington Ultra Magnum, also known as the .300 Ultra Mag, 7.62×72mm or .300 RUM, is a 7.62 mm rifle cartridge introduced by Remington Arms in 1999. The .300 Remington Ultra Magnum is one of the largest commercially available .30 caliber magnums currently being produced. It is a beltless, rebated rim cartridge, capable of handling all large North American game, as well as long-range shooting. Among commercially produced .30-caliber rifle chamberings, the .300 Remington Ultra Magnum is second only to the .30-378 Weatherby Magnum in cartridge-case capacity.

The .264 Winchester Magnum is a belted, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. Except for the .244 H&H Magnum and .257 Weatherby Magnum, it is the smallest caliber factory cartridge derived from the 2.85 in (72 mm) Holland & Holland belted magnum case. It was introduced in the late 1950s and early 1960s with the .338 Winchester Magnum and the .458 Winchester Magnum as one of a family of short-cased 2.5 in (64 mm) belted magnum cartridges developed by Winchester based on the .375 Holland & Holland parent case. It was officially introduced to the public by Winchester in 1959. After many years of dwindling use it began enjoying a mild resurgence in popularity in the mid-2000s among long range rifle enthusiasts and reloaders due to the high ballistic coefficient of the heavier 6.5mm bullets and increasing popularity of cartridges such as 6.5mm Creedmoor, .260 Remington, 6.5 Grendel, benchrest and wildcat cartridges in 6.5mm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.338-06</span>

The .338-06, also known as the .338 A-Square, is a cartridge based on the .30-06. As such, it allows heavier .338 caliber bullets to be used from the .30-06 non-belted case. This can be a suitable choice for heavy bodied game such as moose, elk, and brown bear. The number and variety of .338 caliber bullets increased after the introduction in the late 1950s of the .338 Winchester Magnum cartridge, frequently chambered in the Winchester Model 70 rifle. More recently the introduction of the .338 Lapua Magnum has caused an increase in interest in the .338 caliber and their projectiles. The .338-06 maintains many of the benefits of the .338 Winchester Magnum cartridge but has substantially less recoil, makes more efficient use of powder, and allows use of widely available .30-06 commercial and military cases. It is similar in concept to the older wildcat .333 OKH cartridge, as well as the .35 Whelen, which also use the .30-06 brass case as a basis for the cartridge. Thanks to the large number of rifles based on the .30-06 family of cartridges, having a .338-06 made usually only requires a simple barrel change by a competent gun smith. Since the 1960's a relatively obsure cartridge only known to handloaders and "Wildcatters", eventually A-Square adopted the caliber as the .338-06 A-Square in approximately 1998. They then submitted it for approval by SAAMI as a standardized caliber. Weatherby offered factory rifles and ammunition, but has now dropped the rifles from its inventory. The .338-06 A-Square tends to have a velocity advantage over the .35 Whelen, and uses bullets that retain velocity and resist wind drift better than similar weight bullets fired from the .35 Whelen due to an improved Sectional density.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.257 Roberts</span> Rifle cartridge

The .257 Roberts, also known as .257 Bob, is a medium-powered .25 caliber rifle cartridge. It has been described as the best compromise between the low recoil and flat trajectory of smaller calibers such as the 5 mm and 6 mm, and has more energy, but is harder recoiling, similar to larger hunting calibers, such as the 7 mm and 7.62 mm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.300 Weatherby Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .300 Weatherby Magnum is a .30 caliber rifle cartridge created by Roy Weatherby in 1944 and produced by Weatherby. It has become the most popular of all the Weatherby cartridges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.270 Weatherby Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .270 Weatherby Magnum was the first belted magnum based on the .300 H&H Magnum to be developed by Roy Weatherby in 1943. The cartridge is short enough to function in standard-length long actions with a brass length of 2.549" or 64.74mm and an overall length of about 3.295".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.416 Remington Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .416 Remington Magnum is a .416 caliber (10.57 mm) cartridge of belted bottlenecked design. The cartridge was intended as a dangerous game hunting cartridge and released to the public in 1989. The cartridge uses the case of the 8 mm Remington Magnum as a parent cartridge. When the cartridge was released in 1988, author Frank C. Barnes considered the .416 Remington Magnum to be the "most outstanding factory cartridge introduced in decades".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">P. O. Ackley</span> Gunsmith, author and columnist (1903–1989)

Parker Otto Ackley was an American gunsmith, barrel maker, author, columnist, and wildcat cartridge developer. The Ackley Improved family of wildcat cartridges are designed to be easily made by rechambering existing firearms, and fireforming the ammunition to decrease body taper and increase shoulder angle, resulting in a higher case capacity. Ackley improved not only standard cartridges, but also other popular wildcats, and was the first to create a .17 caliber (4.5 mm) centerfire cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.375 Weatherby Magnum</span> Rifle cartridge

The .375 Weatherby Magnum (9.5×73mmB) is a medium-bore rifle cartridge. The cartridge is blown out, improved and provided with the Weatherby double radius shoulder – given the Weatherby treatment – version of the .375 H&H Magnum. Unlike other improved versions of the .375 H&H Magnum like the .375 Ackley Improved, the .375 Weatherby Magnum is not a wildcat and existed as a proprietary cartridge until the CIP published specifications for the cartridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.30-06 Springfield wildcat cartridges</span> Non-standard rifle cartridge

.30-06 Springfield wildcat cartridges are cartridges developed from a 30-06 Springfield "parent cartridge" through narrowing or widening the cartridge neck to fit a smaller or larger bullet in an attempt to improve performance in specific areas. Such wildcat cartridges are not standardized with recognized small arms standardization bodies like the SAAMI and the CIP.

Nosler produces six different rebated rim hunting cartridges. The first to be introduced was .26 Nosler, followed by .28 Nosler, .30 Nosler, .33 Nosler, .22 Nosler, and .27 Nosler.

References

  1. 1 2 Weatherby Inc. .340 Weatherby Magnum information page Archived 2008-06-15 at the Wayback Machine
  2. 1 2 ".340 Weatherby". www.ballisticstudies.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  3. Bullets, Speer (2009). Speer Bullets Reloading Manual #14. Speer. pp. 602, 608. ISBN   978-0-9791860-0-4.
  4. Association, National Rifle. "An Official Journal Of The NRA | Behind the Bullet: .340 Weatherby Magnum". An Official Journal Of The NRA. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  5. Association, National Rifle. "An Official Journal Of The NRA | Head to Head: .338 Win. Mag. vs. .340 Wby. Mag". An Official Journal Of The NRA. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  6. "The .340 Weatherby Mag". www.chuckhawks.com. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  7. "Weatherby, Inc. - An American firearms company" . Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  8. Barnes, Frank C. (2006) [1965]. Skinner, Stan (ed.). Cartridges of the World (11th ed.). Iola, WI, USA: Gun Digest Books. p. 78. ISBN   0-89689-297-2.