Re: Barrel cutting questions
Mark,
I had a Sako Carbine in 338 win mag w/19" barrel and I never felt handicapped. I also had a Ruger 77 30-06 w/22" barrel that I re-chambered to 30-338. It shot well, and I never wished I had a longer barrel.
That said, I've owned and own 300 Win Mags with Factory 23", 24", and 26" barrels. Also other 338 Win Mags with 24" and 26" barrels. From a practical standpoint, I think a 22" or so barrel is about minimum I would go for a 300 Win Mag, due to muzzle blast and velocity loss.
A 338 Win mag can go shorter, 19" or 20". The 338 Win Mag has a better expansion ratio than a 300 WM, so muzzle blast and velocity does not suffer as much.
Bob