338 225gr Deep Curl

[thatguySHM]

So I'm planning on building a 338 Federal with a spare action I have laying around. It will be my third, very familiar with the cartridge, but this new one I'm setting up to shoot 225gr+ bullets rather than the 160-200 I normally use.

I was looking through the selection and found four boxes of 225gr Deep Curl bullets I bought years ago. I remember the reason I bought them was they were a heck of a deal, I had planned on using them in a 338-06 until reviews showed they were discontinued due to erratic pressures, so I shelved the idea, went with the 225 AccuBond, and am very happy with it.

So with a new build leaning towards heavies, I'm thinking about revisiting this bullet. Those who had success with the bullet, do you think it would work with velocities in the 2450 fps range or should I stick with the cup and core I generally use.

I love the 200gr HotCor for this cartridge, its just tough enough to truly act bonded at 2650-2700 at the muzzle, and really don't want to use my 200gr ballistic tips that I can't replace for this build.

I'm thinking of a 20" barrel with a 9 twist to help spin the heavies a bit more with lower velocities.

 

[Blkram]

I had originally heard too that the Deep Curl was the same as the Fusion bullet...but have not been able to find conclusive evidence of this through my limited search online.

I too really enjoy my 338 Federals!

I have 3 boxes of the 338 Federal 200 gr Fusion ammo, but have yet to try it in either one of my rifles.
It is rated at 2700 fps per factory specs.

As a comparison, the 200 gr Uni-Cor ammo spec'd at 2700 fps produces 2687 fps from my 22" Wilson barreled Sako 85. (1:10 twist) 0.654" 3 shot group accuracy at 100 yards. (My gunsmith produced a 0.477" group at 200 yards with the rifle and this ammo after recutting the chamber with a new reamer that reduced the throat, when the original reamer cut chamber failed to produce any decent groups.) Have taken 2 moose, a caribou and a stones sheep with this load so far.
The 200 gr TBT ammo spec'd at 2630 fps produces 2595 fps. 1.683" group.
And the 200 gr Trophy Copper spec'd at 2630 fps produces 2579 fps. 0.457" groups. (Load I am now hunting with at this time. Have taken 1 bull moose with it so far.)
The 210 gr Partition ammo spec'd at 2630 fps produces 2505 fps. 0.893" group at 200 yards. (shot by gunsmith). My Rebarreled Winchester Model 88 sports a heavy 20" Krieger barrel (1:10) and produces 1" groups at 100 yards with this 210 gr ammo. This was built for hunting in the thick timber and dealing with bears, so will be using only this ammo.
The 185 gr TSX ammo spec'd at 2750 produces 2700 fps. 0.827" group.
The 180 gr AccuBond ammo is the only one this rifle does not seem to care for as it produced a 2.764" group at 100 yards. Velocity was not recorded as my Chrony did not want to work that day...and I have not tried it again since getting my Garmin.

I hope to develop a good load with the 200 gr AccuBond for the Sako.
I also want to try the 215 gr SGK and 225 gr AB just to see how they perform in this rifle. (I have a good load with the 215 gr SGK in my 338-06; 2751 fps and produces 1/2" groups consistently.)
A 1:9 twist may produce different results due to a higher rpm of the bullet, but most rifles in this caliber are 1:10 so do not know what you may expect out of the faster twist, as I have not heard of anyone trying, yet. Will have to wait until you share your results! Best of luck!

But I must say, that I have never heard of any rifle that would not shoot the Fusion ammo at least acceptably well, regardless of rifle cartridge or manufacturer. Some produce excellent accuracy. Not all makes of ammo can make that same claim!
(It is the second most accurate ammo in my 6.5 PRC at 0.537" groups at 100 yards.)