I thought I'd post this information, as it might be helpful to to other TRG owners.
Most owners appear to have found that you can't get anywhere near jamming into the lands when loading for the TRG 42 in 338 Lapua, before running into magazine COAL restrictions. But no one has published here anywhere on the forum, near as I can find anyway, an actual maximum COAL for the 338 Lapua magzine.
I have experimented a bit. I found that at least on MY magazine, 3.7325 inches "works", but there is some resistance to feeding the 1st and 2nd rounds. 3rd and subsequent rounds feed without resistance, as there are fewer rounds in the mag at that point to "bind up" the spring when they drag on the forward face of the mag. The spring, at least on MY magazine, is VERY light comapred to most mag springs I have encountered on other firearms.
I found this last weekend though that when I tried 3.7295 inches or lower (actually 3.7265 to 3.7295, given the .003" variance on my current batch of Sierra 300g Matchkings), two good things happened:
1. No feed resistance at all with ANY of the rounds
2. The accuracy IMPROVED! My best 3-shot test group at 100 yards was a cloverleaf actually a bit under 1/4" center to center.
Soooo . .. longer "jump" is not necessarily bad.
Jim G
Most owners appear to have found that you can't get anywhere near jamming into the lands when loading for the TRG 42 in 338 Lapua, before running into magazine COAL restrictions. But no one has published here anywhere on the forum, near as I can find anyway, an actual maximum COAL for the 338 Lapua magzine.
I have experimented a bit. I found that at least on MY magazine, 3.7325 inches "works", but there is some resistance to feeding the 1st and 2nd rounds. 3rd and subsequent rounds feed without resistance, as there are fewer rounds in the mag at that point to "bind up" the spring when they drag on the forward face of the mag. The spring, at least on MY magazine, is VERY light comapred to most mag springs I have encountered on other firearms.
I found this last weekend though that when I tried 3.7295 inches or lower (actually 3.7265 to 3.7295, given the .003" variance on my current batch of Sierra 300g Matchkings), two good things happened:
1. No feed resistance at all with ANY of the rounds
2. The accuracy IMPROVED! My best 3-shot test group at 100 yards was a cloverleaf actually a bit under 1/4" center to center.
Soooo . .. longer "jump" is not necessarily bad.
Jim G
