Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr – Superb Hunting Ammo

Description

Almost every box of 338 Lapua Magnum on a shelf is a match load, built around a heavy open tip bullet meant for paper and steel. The Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr is the unusual exception. It takes the cartridge that defined extreme range shooting and loads it with a bonded hunting bullet, sending 210 grains out at 3076 feet per second with 5222 foot pounds behind it.

• A hunting load in a target cartridge
• Full specifications
• Where a 338 Lapua hunting load makes sense
• Honest notes before you buy
• Twist rates and load data
• The bottom line

A hunting load in a target cartridge

The 338 Lapua Magnum was designed for long range work and most factory ammunition reflects that. Open tip match bullets are superb in flight and unreliable on game, because they were never engineered to expand. Hunters who wanted to actually use the cartridge on animals have historically had to handload. The Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr removes that requirement.

At 210 grains this is a light bullet for the case, and that is deliberate. The huge powder capacity of the 338 Lapua drives it to velocities no 338 Winchester Magnum can reach, and the bonded core keeps it together at those speeds. The Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr is the rare factory option that pairs genuine long range ballistics with a bullet built to open on flesh and bone.

Full specifications

• Caliber: 338 Lapua Magnum
• Bullet weight: 210 grain
• Bullet: Scirocco II bonded polymer tip boat tail
• Muzzle velocity: 3076 fps
• Muzzle energy: 5222 ft-lbs
• Ballistic coefficient (G1): 0.507
• Case: reloadable boxer primed brass
• Quantity: 20 rounds per box
• Part number: SB10052

Note the energy figure. At 5222 foot pounds the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr leaves the muzzle with roughly forty percent more energy than a 338 Winchester Magnum and close to double a 30-06. Even at 500 yards it is still carrying more than most cartridges produce at the muzzle, which is the whole reason anyone puts up with a case this large.

Where a 338 Lapua hunting load makes sense

Open country at genuine distance is the honest use case. Plains game, big elk across a drainage, anything where the shot is long and the animal is large. The Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr gives you a flat trajectory, a high retained energy figure, and a bullet that will expand properly when it lands rather than pencil through.

It is also a sound choice for a rifle that already lives as a long range gun. If you own a 338 Lapua for steel work and you want to take it hunting, the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr lets you do that without changing rifles or rebuilding your data from scratch. Shoot it, build a drop chart, and you have one rifle that does both jobs.

Honest notes before you buy

Cost is the obvious objection. The 338 Lapua Magnum is expensive to feed no matter what you put in it, and premium bonded hunting ammunition is the expensive end of an expensive cartridge. Most owners build their drop chart with cheaper match ammunition and reserve the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr for the hunt itself.

Recoil and blast are also worth naming plainly. Even in a heavy rifle with a brake, the 338 Lapua is loud and it moves you. Nearby shooters will notice. This is not a cartridge for a light mountain rifle, and the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr does nothing to change that. Bring a rifle built for the job and good hearing protection.

Twist rates and load data

Do not assume your match zero transfers. A 210 grain bullet at 3076 fps leaves the barrel very differently from a 300 grain match bullet at 2700, so the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr will have its own point of impact and its own drop curve. Build fresh data before you hunt with it, and confirm at the distances you actually expect to shoot.

Standard 338 Lapua barrels run a 1 in 10 inch twist, which stabilizes a 210 grain bullet easily. If your rifle was built for the heavy 300 grain match bullets it may use a faster 1 in 9, and that is fine too. Overstabilization is not a practical concern here, so the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr will shoot in essentially any 338 Lapua on the market.

The bottom line

If you hunt with a 338 Lapua Magnum, the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr is one of the very few factory loads that treats the cartridge as a hunting round rather than a target round. You can read more about the bullet design at swiftbullets.com, or browse the rest of our stock on the MAG5 Firearms ammunition page.

MAG5 Firearms keeps the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr in stock and moving, and we are glad to talk through bullet choice before you order. If you are working up a load for a new rifle, a single box of the Swift Scirocco II 338 Lapua Mag 210gr is a sensible place to start.