G'Day everyone,

Im looking into buying a 338 Winchester Magnum at the end of the for Sambar deer, and African Plains Game for the near future.

The rifles i have been looking at have been the Tikka T3 Stainless Synthetic and the Browning A-Bolt Stainless Stalker are the rifles in my price range and i was wondering if anyone give me some advice on the rifles and opinion on the two rifles. I will be putting a Limbsaver recoil pad on the rifle, im leaning more towards the Tikka, im a little worried about the recoil, a few mates say it will boot like all hell and read stuff saying with the Limbsaver they are good to shoot, this is one of the only times i have thought about recoil, i think the only reason that because i will be spending over $1000 for the rifle and i would be gutted if i wasted money on something i couldn't use right. The other thing i guess is that all the rifles i have used have been heavier rifles then the Tikka T3 Lite.

What is the best factory round for the 338 win mag for African Plains game?, I like the look of the  Federal Premium 225gr Accubonds and Trophy Bonded Bear Claw also The 225gr Accubond in the Winchester and the 225gr Remington Ultra Bonded Core Lock.

Thank you for your time.

Cheers

Jonathan McGee