There was no "Protesting" of best edge scoring by the 224 and sub caliber nuts . . .
Prior to Jim Goody's run with his thirty Jaguar VfS rig (a THREE PEAT@ IBS Score Shooter of the Year and a Y2K National Championship !) and the simultaneous acceptance of the contemporary 30 BR, people weren't concerned with the "best edge" advantage of the 6MM bullet diameter over lesser calibers - the RULES were NOT changed to accommodate the thirty caliber "advantage" - they (the rules) were merely EXPLOITED!
AND, we exploited them via PRECISION, not VooDoo!
Thus, why should it be acceptable to "save" the 6MM as opposed to the .224 . .or, even a .177? Prior to the advent of the thirty caliber domination, because of "best edge", almost NOBODY shot a .224 - "ADVANTAGE 6MM" was quite acceptable!
As Al aptly stated, sans [at least] equal precision, there is NO advantage to the larger bullet diameter . . . but there IS a penalty for shooting the [necessarily] heavier thirty caliber bullets - it's called RECOIL! An often heard lament: "If I'd been shooting a thirty, I'd have gotten THAT X!" Well, assuming that, despite the increased reciol, one had executed an equally good shot - which some individuals simply cannot manage. The cliche "there is no free lunch" , aptly applies!
And so it would be with .338 caliber bullets - it would be difficult to make a BR quality bullet of much less than 135 grains . . . and THAT equals MORE recoil; a penalty which I hope to avoid!
But, if anyone has the balls to invest in dies,
AND the "pull" to get a supply of suitable jackets drawn, well, "bring it on"! I cannot find any phrasing in either the IBS or, NBRSA rule books, which limits the development of PRECISION to a specific caliber . . . perhaps, in the spirit of "original intent" , the SPORTER CLASS should be changed to .338 caliber!
RG