Best .338 Win Mag loads for mule deer 16 of 17 .338 Win Mag factory loads carry 1,000 ft·lb and expansion velocity for mule deer; the best reach 900 yd (Hornady Superformance 225 gr SST). Ranked, with the drop chart for each.
Load gr Max ethical yd MV fps 500 yd ft·lb Shoulder shot Hornady Superformance 225 gr SST 225 900 2,840 2,001 behind the shoulder only Hornady Precision Hunter 230 gr ELD-X 230 900 2,810 2,267 yes Hornady Superformance 200 gr SST 200 850 3,030 1,873 behind the shoulder only Federal 200 gr Trophy Bonded Tip 200 750 2,930 1,681 yes Norma 200 gr Ecostrike 200 750 2,953 1,716 yes Remington 225 gr Pointed Soft Point Core-Lokt 225 750 2,780 1,652 behind the shoulder only Remington 250 gr Pointed Soft Point Core-Lokt 250 750 2,660 1,638 behind the shoulder only Norma 230 gr Oryx 230 650 2,756 1,403 yes Nosler Expansion Tip 225 gr E-Tip 225 650 2,750 2,092 yes Barnes VOR-TX 210 gr TTSX BT 210 600 2,865 1,810 yes Barnes VOR-TX 225 gr TTSX BT 225 600 2,800 1,933 yes Nosler Trophy Grade 225 gr AccuBond 225 600 2,750 1,949 yes Nosler Trophy Grade 250 gr AccuBond 250 550 2,650 2,052 yes Winchester 200 gr Power-Point 200 550 2,960 1,162 behind the shoulder only Hornady Outfitter 225 gr CX 225 450 2,800 1,862 yes Nosler Trophy Grade 250 gr Partition 250 450 2,600 1,688 yes Norma 225 gr Jaktmatch FMJ 225 wrong bullet 2,674 1,697 behind the shoulder only
Deer-class rules of thumb; a slightly bigger animal than a whitetail. Legal: CO: 1,000 ft·lb at 100 yd. Floor used: 1,000 ft·lb at impact plus the bullet's published expansion velocity. Orange = a target or varmint bullet (construction, not energy); red = never carries the energy. Sources: chuckhawks.com , www.petersenshunting.com .
All .338 Win Mag loads
Figures are the maker's published BC and muzzle velocity in the maker's test barrel, solved with ZeroDope's point-mass engine at 59 °F, 29.92 inHg, sea level, 100 yd zero, 1.8″ sight height, 10 mph full-value wind. Your barrel, your chronograph and your conditions change them — the app corrects for all three, then you true it on steel. Terminal figures are energy floors from the sources on each animal, not a licence; legal minimums vary by state. © ZeroDope.