Hi Folks,
I have just laid away a Model 70 Winchester Sporter in .300 Remington Ultra Magnum (the full length version ) and I am in the process of getting the reloading gear together.

Does anyone have a pet load featuring the 165 or 180 grain Nosler BT or the new Accubonds for this big boy?

I plan on using it primarily as a long range deer whacker and later on for elk, etc.

Thanks for the input,

HBB

I never got the Nosler BT to shoot in my .300 UM.
It did, however, shoot EVERYTHING else I put through it well!!
180gr. bullet, I would start with 93gr. of RL 25, and go from there.
All 300 UM's that I know, really like the RL 25...good luck..sakofan..

My Sendero just won't shoot 165 grain bullets. 5 shot groups stay around 2". 180 grain Nosler Ballistic Tips shoot about .60" 5 shot groups with 95 grains of R25. R22 does well also. I just found out that you have to full length size your cases prety often to avoid having the bolt stick. These loads cause the brass to swell very quickly (3 rounds). You won't be able to load your bullets close to the lands (at least on the Remingtons) and still have the bullets fit in the magazine. But you don't need to! My rifle was accurate with factory loads, but man it really shines with my reloads! Now I'm shooting the Barnes Triple Shocks. They are very accurate, very fast, and they don't copper foul the barrel as bad as other bullets I've tried. I bought my rifle for the same reasons you discribed. I get ragged a little for hunting Bambi with it but hey, it sure works.

Good luck!

I have gotten to 87gr of RL25 and acheived ~3200fps from a 30" tube with a 200gr pill, and have not seen signs of pressure yet (THIS IS IN MY RIFLE,..REDUCE AND WORK UP IN YOURS)

Try H-1000 it is accurate in mine,....but I get the same group but 250fps faster with the RL25. I havn't tried the Retumbo yet,...or the WC872.

Not trying to steal the thread but tell me, how many rounds of this heavy kicker do you shoot in a session when working on your reloads? I've got a shooting rest that absorbs a lot of the recoil but 25 rounds is still all I can work up without loosing my edge. That makes for slow research on reloading!

Edited for spelling

[ 08-16-2003, 06:56: Message edited by: recoiljunky ]

95 grains of Retumbo, 200 Accubond, 3177 fps from my 26" A-Bolt. My rifle does have a slightly sloppy chamber so back way off that and work up in yours.

recoiljunky, you need a new screen name.

Thanks for the input guys. I was wondering if anyone has tried IMR 4350 in the 300 RUM?

According to the Nosler #5 manual this powder and "medium weight bullets" are supposed to be extremely accurate.

On the heavy recoiling inquiry, I usually limit myself to about 35-40 rounds at one sitting and use something like a P. A. S. T. recoil shield or sissy bag. I really don't like to use muzzle brakes if I can help it.

This particular rifle should not be too bad on recoil. It will shade 10 pounds when the scope and mounts are added and I am going to replace the factory rubber buttpad with a good thick recoil pad.
Good Shooting,
HBB

I use reloader 25 and 180gr ballistic tips in both of my 300ultramags.One rifle produces 3375fps with 96gr and the other 3395fps with 95gr.Both are using 26" pac-nor barrels.I have taken four elk and two bull moose with this load and the ballistic tips did well.One bullet passed through the chest and shoulder of a bull elk and was found against the hide on the offside.The other five bullets exited.

165's:
H-870 From 100.2 grains to 111.0 grains
Remington 9-1/2M Primer

180's:
RL-22 From 76.3 grains to 91.9 grains
Winchester WLR Primer

Pop the closest animal was a 1000lb moose taken at 80 yards.The others were between 200 yards and 377 yards.Most people don't realize that the ballistic tips made today are much tougher than the very soft earlier versions.Apparently they have been changed several times over the years to make them hold together better.The larger caliber ballistic tipsare also made tougher than the smaller caliber versions.A friend shot a moose with a 200gr ballistic tip out of his 338 mag at 10 yards and the bullet passed through the bull and exited as well.

The 300 RUM is extremely powder sensitive when seeking good accuracy, running the full range of 4350 to AA8700 as bullet weight is increased. The exception to this is reduced loads duplication the 30-06 with all bullet weights using XMP5744. Reciol is LOWER with the RUM than factory '06 rounds as the XMP 5744 charge weight is lower.

R25 is right on for the popular 180 grainers giving over 3300 fps in a 26 inch bbl, but the absolute accuracy king is AA8700 with 220 grainers. IMR 4350 will give good accuracy with the 180s at a shoulder saving charge weight of 82 grains and about 3200 fps.

Sabot-How much accuracy does a person really need for hunting?Both of my 300ultramags average 1/2" groups with r-25 and 180gr ballistic tips.

stubblejumper,

I'm glad to hear of the success with the BT bullets on the larger moose and elk, especially at closer ranges too.

I killed a bear with a 178 A-Max with my Ultra and it performed as you said too, not what I'd gather from shooting it into sand at 800 yards tho... it was pretty broken up and didn't weigh much even at that distance.

I'm shooting 84.0gr RL22 with the 200gr AB bullet and it's holding under .7 MOA to 600 and 1.4 MOA to 1000, that was in 15 mph constant wind at 3 O'Clock. This is a sporter 700 in 300 Ultra at 3084 fps seated at 3.835" OAL to single feed .015" into the lands.

The 180 Scirocco and 92.5gr RL25 was practically the same for accuracy and at 3200 fps, so was the 220gr SMK and 87gr RL25 at 2950 fps... these were seated at 3.660" to feed from the mag.

The only load that was reduced for accuracy was the 180 at 92.5gr, the others were at or near max in my rifle.

Has anybody tried lighter bullets in the 300 RUM?

For Example, the 130 grain Barnes XBT. If it is accurate enough you should be able to approach near Lazzeroni 7.82 Warbird velocities with much less expense and powder expended.

I wonder how this bullet would perform on deer at 3700 fps+?

Thanks again for all the input,

HBB

I hunted with the 130 XBT pumped up to 3660 back when my rifle was a 300 Win Mag. Got an antelope and a few deer and every single one of them dropped in its tracks. It was impressive.

However, the accuracy was fairly lousy and the wind would blow those bullets all over the place. The only advantage you get is a flat trajectory. I'll take a rangefinder, better accuracy and less wind drift over a flat trajectory any day.

It was fun though.

On the light bullet thought, has anyone tried the 125 grain Nosler BT in the 300 RUM? I have used it in a 30/06 at 3000fps on medium sized deer (180lbs live weight) with good results.

I wonder if the jackets on this weight have been made thicker too?

Good Shooting,
HBB

I've been using B-Tips since they came out and Stublejumper is correct... they've been re-designed several times and are tougher than their original incarnation. I've botched several running shots in the past with them on deer. In both cases the B-Tip's (150/30-06 and 130/270) went through the rear ham, broke the pelvis and exited... I don't take running shots anymore, but the bullets certainly worked! Seems like a lot of the bashing of Ballistic Tips comes from folks who've never given them an honest trial and/or those who qoute the solemn and dire pronouncement's of highly prejudiced gunwriter's!

I tried IMR 4350 for some time in my 300RUM for 2 reasons: I have a ton of the stuff and because of what the Nosler manual stated. With both the 165s and 180s, the best group I could get was around 2". Not to mention that I was getting serious pressure signs when I got close to a max load. My recommendation is to give it a try, but don't waste much time on it. I recently switched to RL-25 and my groups instantly came down to 1.5". I haven't had much time lately, so I've only been to the range once using the RL-25. My guess is that once I play with it a little more, I should be able to get it around the .75" range.

165 Sierra GKBTHP and 94 grs RL22 for 3/4 groups and right at 3475 fps.

the 180 CTBST with the Lubalox coating and 96.5 grs RL25 went 3435 and shot in the .6`s.

150 Partition and 97 grs RL22 for .5`s and 3675 fps.

Hillbillybear,

Unless those deer are WAY out there the 165 Sierra load Mr big is using probably isn't the best thing. I think their "speed limit" for reliable terminal performance is 2800fps. At what range will it slow to that, given it starts at 3475fps?

Have you had any success with heavier stuff like 180 or 200gr? The heavier stuff should fly better at long range: the standard "heavy-for-caliber" school. Whatever you think of it, the RUM might be too much for the lighter stuff.

My WinMag really loves the 200 Partition, just so you know where I'm coming from. Good luck.

Hillbillybear- I have the same Rifle and mine Likes 150 grs Sierra Pro Hunters with IMR 7828-94 grs to 97 grs.(3300 to 3500 fps)using WLRM primers,Rem Case. Also IMR 4831,RL 22 and H4831 shoot well enough to use with the same bullet,all groups with the above are staying under 1" at 100 yards.
Odd thing on this is that so far I haven't got a group worth a darn with the Nosler Partition 150 grs haven't tried any other bullets except these two.Guess I haven't found the right combo for them yet.