The .338 Federal, a necked-up .308, is just one year in circulation at this writing. In my view, this 33-bore cartridge makes a lot of sense. It carries more energy than a .308 and shoots about as flat. Unlike short magnums, it doesn’t require a wide magazine box, so it’s ideally suited to slim, welter-weight rifles. The relatively fast-burning, compact powder charge and generous bore mean you get efficient acceleration in short barrels.

The 84M is a well-balanced rifle with surprisingly light recoil, given the rifle’s minimal heft.

I had been intrigued by this round long before Federal brought it to market. A friend, Ken Nagel, had a .338/308 on hand several years ago, when I was about to leave for Africa. “Take this,” he said. And I did, killing a big hartebeest at 310 yards with one 200-grain Nosler Ballistic Tip.

It shouldn’t surprise me that once in a while the ballistics engineers have their way and deliver to shooters rifle cartridges that are truly useful. But during the last three decades I’ve written about many that aren’t—redundant magnums compete with deer rounds that dish out the recoil of yesteryear’s buffalo guns.

Three .338 Federal loads: 180 Nosler AccuBond, 185 Barnes Triple Shock, 210 Nosler Partition.

The .338 Federal is a reprieve from such nonsense. Factory-loaded with 180-, 185- and 210-grain bullets, it delivers between 1,820 and 1,920 ft-lbs at 300 yards, with an average bullet drop of less than nine inches (200-yard zero). That’s plenty of punch for elk and moose. The small differences in trajectory and ballistic package over the 30-grain weight spread of the bullets indicate good balance between velocity and energy.

Unlike cartridges that milk all their chart energy from speed and lack the bullet mass for a bone-busting hit or pass-through penetration, the .338 Federal gets a substantial share of its punch from hefty bullets. But these aren’t broad, blunt softpoints that wilt in the face of air friction and arc steeply to earth. These .33s are long spitzers that fly almost as flat as a 180-grain .30-06 bullet.

This compact, muscular round begs comparison with the larger .30-06 and the much larger .338 Winchester Magnum. The .338 Federal launches 180-grain bullets more than 100 fps faster than standard loads in the .30-06 and packs an additional 300 ft-lbs of energy at the muzzle. Downrange, the ’06 bullet reels in the .338 Federal, thanks to a higher ballistic coefficient. At 200 yards they match each other almost exactly in speed and energy. But remember that the .30-06 is a longer cartridge.

Winchester’s .338 Magnum has been around for nearly half a century now, and while it didn’t set sales records initially, it has recently become quite popular. Many elk hunters consider it the ideal mix of reach and bone-crushing power, in a case compatible with standard rifle actions. It recoils briskly, but fans say it is not brutal. While the .338 Federal cannot hope to equal the Magnum’s authority, it qualifies as an understudy. With a 180-grain bullet, the new round shoots as flat as the .338 Magnum with a 210 Partition. At the muzzle, a 210 in the .338 Federal clocks the same as a 250-grain bullet from the Magnum and strikes within a vertical inch of it at 300 yards. And the Federal round is much gentler in recoil.

The 84M action is perfectly sized for .308-based cases like the .338 Federal. No extra metal.

While the savvy people at Federal might be expected to field a practical cartridge every so often, I was astonished that this one showed up as an orphan. In regard to rifles, the .338 Federal had no American home when it debuted. Instead, it appeared in a brand-new Sako rifle, the M85. Drew Goodlin at Federal Cartridge explained. “The Finns were enthusiastic about this round and figured it would draw attention to the rifle. We were delighted because Sako has a great reputation.”

A black bear hunt in the spring of 2006 introduced me to the .338 Federal. While the bears eluded me, I did manage some time with paper targets. Federal’s 200-grain plated Fusion bullet shot tight; one three-shot series tore a single hole.