Seems to be a very reasonable choice for a place in the best lower 48 rifle calibers for hunting. Anyone had any adverse experience, or failures worth noting?
Thinking 165, or 180 gr. A-Frame for elk this year. Load data/results appreciated. Shooting a Kimber Montana, or Sako 85 Finn Lite.
Thanks

Great cartridge! As for the rifle, I have no hands on experience, however, Kimber is hit or miss on quality. If you get a good one life will be bliss.

I actually have both of these, and like both very well. Will probably take the Kimber. It's topped with a Z6 2.5x10, and is pretty comfortable slung over the shoulder. Need to work up a good load. Still haven't decided on bullet, or weight.

No A-Frame experience, lots of TSX though. TSXs tend to be accurate, penetrate well and hit hard enough.

I have a montana rifle and shoot 180 grain nosler accubonds..I use IMR4831 with groups at 1MOA I get over 3000 FPS..There are tons of loads on the internet

I had a Kimber and couldn't get it to shoot a decent group no matter what I did. Different brands, bullet weights, etc. and I could not get any better than 2" groups. I ended up trading the rifle. Perhaps a hand loader would have had better results.

There is a single advantage to the WSM over other .300 magnums, which is that it can be built on actions which are 3/4" shorter and 4 to 6 oz. lighter than "full length" magnums.

There is a litany of disadvantages, some more important or less important depending on what is personally significant to you.

1. Magazine capacity. A WSM magazine will typically hold either one or two rounds less than a belted magnum magazine, and two or three rounds less than a .30-06. Some WSM rifles crowd three into the magazine, but lots will only hold two and still function (which brings us to)

2. Difficult feeding. As with any "short-fat" round, feeding tends to be somewhat jerky; and jams do happen more often than with more conventional cartridges.

3. Excessive pressure in factory rounds. There is no free lunch, so when a WSM is loaded to the same velocity as a larger capacity case there has to be more chamber pressure. The WSM cases are thick and strong, but it is not unusual to find bolt operation to be very sticky with many factory loads. I experienced this with a .300 WSM Kimber which I owned briefly.

4. Limited usefulness of heavy/long bullets. A 200 grain bullet, if you wished to use it in a WSM, has to be seated so deeply that powder space is compromised and maximum velocity is significantly lower than with a conventional .300 Magnum. The same is true of even 180 grain monometal bullets, which are generally too long to be practical in the WSM.

5. Cost and availability of ammunition. You're much more likely to find .300 Win Mag or .30-06 at a country hardware store if your ammunition is left, lost, or you simply run out. Either will also cost less than the WSM, if you could find it.

As I say, some or none of these disadvantages may be important to you personally, but how important is the 3/4" of length and quarter of a pound of weight?

I have a Kimber Select Grade in 300 WSM. holds MOA out to 500 yards with 180 grain Ballistic tips and H4350.I get 2950 fps with a l80, which is the high speed quoted on the Hodgdons site. It does that with a charge 1 grain over the minimum.

There's more than one way of looking at things. A short action may only be a few ounces lighter and the WSM doesn't keep up to a Win Mag. On the other hand, if you happen to like short actions the .300 WSM will absolutely run circles around a .308 which is the other 30 cal that fits in one.

I've got 5 Kimbers now, and they all seen to shoot. Some took longer than others to find a load for. Recoil is sort of funny; they jump around like they mean business then don't have the weight to crank you. Sort of like throwing a bag of potato chips as hard as you can.

I would happily receive a gift 300WSM.

I've been on the lookout for one of those really nice Kimbers that won't shoot to rebarreled with a standard weight barrel. You'd think that we'd be waist deep in them by now but that doesn't seem to have happened.

When a particular rifle is only available in the WSM cartridges, it is stricken off my list. Regards, Bill

300 WSM: A solution looking for a problem.

No thanks!

I have lightweight HS Precision rifle in 300 wsm which has become my all time favorite. If 180 grain mono metal bullets will do the job at nearly 3000 ft/sec than I can't imagine A better tool. Barnes x 180, Barnes triple shocks 180, Nosler E-tips 180 (favorites). Rl-17,Rl-22 powders work well. Accurate, lightweight, and easy to handle and shoot.

I was able to pick up a win 70 EW and I suppose that if I was to start my rifle collecting all over this would at the top of my list. Lightweight, shoots great, kills anything In NA, nearly indestructible with reasonable care, and shoots TSX's into tiny groups. What's not to like. This and a rem 700 KS in 7mm-08 are all I use nowadays in foul weather.

Give me a 300 H&H any time. Feeds like silk!

Just bought a 300 H&H today. My search is over.

great round .. rifles can be hit or miss -- win featherweights in 300wsm can be a joy

Agree, I think a Featherweight model 70 in a 300 WSM would be a great hunting rifle! Would love to have one with good wood.

quote:

Originally posted by tc98:
Agree, I think a Featherweight model 70 in a 300 WSM would be a great hunting rifle! Would love to have one with good wood.

Some featherweights do sneak though with good wood.

That is some awesome wood. Beautiful gun, best of luck with filling your freezer!

One of my go to guns...I never was a big 300mag fan until I got this rifle. I took a long range class and got comfortable with this rifle out to 600 yards. Now I never had to shoot a game animal that far but 350 yards on a Aoudad was a cake walk. 190 grain accubond 2825 fps will work!



Ed

I have not seen the troubles feeding in the 300 wsm like the wssm rounds. It is a perspective thing as far as performance goes. As stated it will run circles around the 308, but if you are trying to keep up with full length 300s get used to flat primers and short case life, and disappointment. As far as mag capacity is concerned, if you haven't hit him hard enough in 3 you probably have time to reload, and you probably shouldn't have taken the first one. I think they do have a spot in anyones gun cabinet that walks more than a mile a day after elk or moose. It is easy to look at dimensions and say there is no difference carrying a magnum sized rifle just man up. After 2 hours of climbing, the WSMs make sense. After 5 days of carrying it and not shooting it, it really makes sense. When the shot does finally present itself it is the same as any cartridge. If you did your homework, got your practice, take time to think about your shot, breathing, and trigger, it's time to use the knife. The 300 WSM is a very useful cartridge.

Great answer, and I totally agree. Folks get upset sometimes saying it's an effort to one up the classic 300's. I disagree, and totally agree that it has a place in the mountain hunters cabinet, and any others that walk extended lengths, or just prefer a lighter weight souped up .308
Shooting a 180g hunting bullet at 2900-3000 fps from a 7 lb. total weight rifle is a great option.

quote:

Originally posted by Quintus:
I have not seen the troubles feeding in the 300 wsm like the wssm rounds. It is a perspective thing as far as performance goes. As stated it will run circles around the 308, but if you are trying to keep up with full length 300s get used to flat primers and short case life, and disappointment. As far as mag capacity is concerned, if you haven't hit him hard enough in 3 you probably have time to reload, and you probably shouldn't have taken the first one. I think they do have a spot in anyones gun cabinet that walks more than a mile a day after elk or moose. It is easy to look at dimensions and say there is no difference carrying a magnum sized rifle just man up. After 2 hours of climbing, the WSMs make sense. After 5 days of carrying it and not shooting it, it really makes sense. When the shot does finally present itself it is the same as any cartridge. If you did your homework, got your practice, take time to think about your shot, breathing, and trigger, it's time to use the knife. The 300 WSM is a very useful cartridge.

Best answer!

We built a lot of rifles in 300 WSM in Australia when I was there. All of them shot well, to get them to consistantly feed worth a shit took an Accuracy International Magazine system (AICS), such as shone on the tan rifle above.

In a AICS system they work wonderfully. Most folks built them on long action 700's and 70's, and used the long action 300 Win mag magazine. But most of these guys are shooting 230 grain VLD bullets.

I've had two 300WSM's for over 12 years and have taken close to a hundred head of game with them-in the States, Mexico and in Africa. I've had absolutely no problems with either of them. Both are Winchester Model 70s. One was restocked as a thumbhole in fiddleback myrtle by Cecil Fredi, and the other restocked in bastogne walnut by LeRoy Barry. I've literally shot everything from giraffe, eland, zebra, gemsbok, wildebeest, etc. etc. etc, all the way down to the little critters of Africa with it, as well as desert mule deer and coues deer in Mexico, along with antelope, whitetail and mule deer in the States. It has been my 'go-to' rifle in nearly every respect and aspect. I've stuck with Federal 180 grain trophy bondeds for a majority of my hunts, but have used others with success as well. That's my actual hands on experience with the 300 WSM. I would have no hesitation using it on moose or elk.

Always liked the M70-FeathWght WSM rifle, just never bother to get one.
bUt to really make it worth my while in pursuit of lighter more handy rifle,
Id ideally want one done up with a shorter 23" fluted barrel, and Mc-Edge stock.
Id be just as happy with a .300saum or 300RCM in the same setup.

quote:

Originally posted by Use Enough Gun:
I've had two 300WSM's for over 12 years and have taken close to a hundred head of game with them-in the States, Mexico and in Africa. I've had absolutely no problems with either of them. Both are Winchester Model 70s. One was restocked as a thumbhole in fiddleback myrtle by Cecil Fredi, and the other restocked in bastogne walnut by LeRoy Barry. I've literally shot everything from giraffe, eland, zebra, gemsbok, wildebeest, etc. etc. etc, all the way down to the little critters of Africa with it, as well as desert mule deer and coues deer in Mexico, along with antelope, whitetail and mule deer in the States. It has been my 'go-to' rifle in nearly every respect and aspect. I've stuck with Federal 180 grain trophy bondeds for a majority of my hunts, but have used others with success as well. That's my actual hands on experience with the 300 WSM. I would have no hesitation using it on moose or elk.

That is a sterling recommendation.

Just for the record, here's me and the 300 WSM thumbhole with a giraffe taken a few years ago in Zimbabwe. Note the snare around the giraffe's right back leg.
Here's also a cape eland taken in South Africa number of years ago with the 300 WSM: I could post scores of pics of other game I have taken with the 300 WSM, but this is sufficient proof that it will do what it needs to do.

U.E.G.:

Not to take anything away from your successful hunts, but thousands of head of the same animals have been taken with the .303 British or 7x57 Mauser. The question is not whether the .300 WSM will kill game, but "likes and dislikes" related to the cartridge.

I suppose that one "like" might be that the .300 WSM can kill game, as can hundreds of other cartridges, but the subject matter at hand is something different.

I think the fault of any 300 WSM owner is expecting it to feed in a typical floorplate magazine system.

When you forget about that and put it into a Accuracy International Magazine (damn the good looks I guess) it works well.

quote:

I think the fault of any 300 WSM owner is expecting it to feed in a typical floorplate magazine system.

My brother has at least 2- 300 WSM's, a 270 WSM and a 325 WSM, in Winchester and Browning rifles all of which I've shot many times all feed absolutely positive in every way, never a hiccup. I think this is another "stubby cartridges can't feed right" wives tale, if any of you are old enough or well read enough to recall the .284 Win was said to feed poorly as well but my oldest son has one in an old Ruger M77 flat bolt rifle and it feeds smooth as butter. People are still using .284's and 6.5/284's and the the legend of mis feeding has kind of lost steam.

I've got a couple WSMs in Kimbers. The 270 Wsm fed so smoothly that I got to thinking that the 300 could stand some tweaking. The left side stayed in the mag box a little longer so I massaged the front and back narrower to get it to jump the rail a bit sooner. It worked before, it just got a better feel this way.

I resisted the 300 WSM because I was invested I the Win, Weatherby and RUM. It didn't help that the first one I bought had to be the slowest one on the planet. When I jumped back in, mostly because I liked the rifle it started to grow on me. The chronographed speeds are only 150 fps slower than chronographed speeds of my 300 Weatherby. Since I've yet to find a boat-tail bullet that will shoot in the Weatherby the NBTs in the little WSM catch up and match the trajectory and energy at 500. They're not that far apart when a bullet swap will do that. It hasn't escaped my notice that the WSM does it with minimal recoil. I'm not recoil shy, but the skin on my elbows notices the difference.

Some feed, quite a few don't.

I don't have a problem with the cartridge at all.

It is not a 300 Weatherby or H&H. It's modern, and I think it is a wonderful cartridge.

Snellstorm: I agree with your assessment. I have a .325 WSM as well, and I have never had any feeding problems, adverse experiences or failures worth noting with it or with the .300 WSM in any of my three Model 70's. My .325 WSM is an MG Arms Ultralight built on a Model 70 action. There, now that directly answers the questions posed by tc98 and responds to Stonecreek's comments. Part of tc98's inquiry dealt with his thinking of using it for elk and thus, my pics to show that it could easily be used for elk or moose. I have also had no problems with, or dislikes of either the .300 WSM or the .325 WSM regarding the floorplate and magazine that came with all three rifles from the manufacturer. Others may have experienced problems with their WSMs in those calibers, but I have not had a single one with any of my three WSMs in .300 and .325. Do hope that this clarifies my prior responses and pics.

On another note, every single 300 WSM we built was an awesome shooter. Benchrest cartridge design for sure.

Especially with the new Norma brass.

Makes a lot more sense than the 300 Boo Boo that people make necking down the 8x68S cartridge.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Wonderful Wyoming:
I think the fault of any 300 WSM owner is expecting it to feed in a typical floorplate magazine system.

When you forget about that and put it into a Accuracy International Magazine (damn the good looks I guess) it works well.

They also feed flawlessly from a Browning X-bolt's rotary magazine. My .325 WSM feeds slick as glass.

I have a Kimber .300 WSM that I haven't shot yet. That may be a different story.

quote:

Originally posted by Big Wonderful Wyoming:
I think the fault of any 300 WSM owner is expecting it to feed in a typical floorplate magazine system.

When you forget about that and put it into a Accuracy International Magazine (damn the good looks I guess) it works well.

the actual issue is in feeding work from in a modified rifle .. if the 500 jeffe (which is a NIGHTMARE) can feed properly, and the 458 winmag (about the ultimate in short and fat) can feed, then there's no question on the wsm...

And it would be easier to get a Push feed action to feed WSM from the magazine than it would with CRF...?
and a straight vertical stack magazine would make thing smoother again.

PGW used to offer a straight stack magazine option in its 700 clone custom rifles.

quote:

And it would be easier to get a Push feed action to feed WSM from the magazine than it would with CRF...?and a straight vertical stack magazine would make thing smoother again.PGW used to offer a straight stack magazine option in its 700 clone custom rifles

Who says they have a feeding problem?
Read some of the posts above from "actual" users not armchair quarterbacks who think it shouldn't feed because it's short. Real life not gun writer magazine reality.