Were talking southern whitetails. Load you use, please discuss. Thanks!

Not trying to be difficult, but anyone who wants to use it. It is definitely overkill, but so what. Use whatever load you want with a good expanding bullet and it will kill.

I killed a lot of whitetails with one. Impressive but way too much gun for the task at hand.

I have. I used the 165 Hornady at about 3300-3400fps. It will kill them. Lung shots didn't seem to tear them up to badly either. I have used the 180 Hornady and Partition also. It is nice to have overlooking a big soybean field. You don't have to hunt for them after the shot either.

I have used the .300 Weatherby with 125/150 and 165 grain bullets here in Texas along with one pronghorn and on elk in Colorado.

This Over Kill/Under Kill nonsense is just that, NONSENSE!

If you want to use it, find a load your rifle likes and go for it.

It is up to you to decide if it is what you want to use, because you will be the one using it. I personally like the caliber and before any of the "Peanut Gallery" starts making comments I have killed deer with a .22 Hornet and several with a .257 Robert's.

Despite some folks opinion, there is only one degree of dead.

I am loading 168gr TTSX with a near max load of H4831 and 215M primers in my 300Wby. If I wanted to hunt over a long soybean field it would be a rifle I would consider carrying. I generally carry an Encore in 25-06 or an AR15 loaded with 55gr TSX for deer.

B-h-B,

Funny that Ed Scarboro mentioned the 25-06 Remington as for the last several years despite a Gun Safe full of vanilla-flavored & exotic Boomers; my Go-To's have been the 25-06 Remington & 300 Witherbee barrels for my Blaser R93.

I've shot small Roe Deer (they're tiny - 40-45, large Buck perhaps 50 lbs), Red & Fallow Deer, Wild Boar from Piglets to large Boars, Foxes (surprisingly didn't rip 'em in half!), taken it to Namibia twice on all sorts of Plains Game both large/small and pretty much anything else that has stepped into the X-hairs of the vintage Zeiss Diavari 3-12x56.

I've used Privi Partizan Grom (translated=Hammer) 170 grainers (an outstanding inexpensive (?) semi monometal bullet), Barnes 130, 168 & 180 gr. TTSX's and currently a batch of 150 gr. Hornady GMX's that are doing Yoeman service. Again, like Ed above I load with H-4831 (and sc, although the regular version affords better density) with pretty much maximum loads that are listed in a number of reliable references (work up!), Federal 215M (R-P nickeled cases) or Winchester WLRM (Nosler Custom brass cases) primers and all of these loads will easily put 3 shots in much <than 1" Day-in/Day-out.

Quite frankly I'm disappointed that I didn't discover the joys of this cartridge years ago as FMPOV; it's the original Death Ray. Two years ago I shot 23 Red Deer (mostly Cows & Calves and at distance) in one season and of them, 18 dropped where they stood at the shot, DRT. The others wobbled or staggered 5-6 steps before expiring. Never had that happen with a .30/06 Sprg.

Am I gonna argue the merits of this cartridge vs. a complete array of other very capable 30 caliber standard & magnum cartridges? Nah, not really, for my hunting/shooting style this cartridge delivers performance on game from miniature to very large without a hickup; especially when 300+ meters is a consideration. Bean Field rifle? For sure, regardless of Deer size. Whitetails will succumb easily to alot less recoil, muzzle blast and down-range engery, 308 Win, 270 Winchester and the controversial .223 Remington also; it's about putting the bullet where it belongs. We can discuss the finer points of marginally dead, DRT, Totally Friggin Dead, etc., 'til the Cows come Home - who cares? FWIW; I've shot Roe Deer with a 375H&H loaded with 300 gr. Hornady R.N.'s; Elmer Keith woulda grinned in approval!

My Buddy's got a 300 RUM and it's more of a Good Thing, but if you compare all the traits, values, statistics, ease/complexity of ammo/cases, longevity, recoil, barrel wear and a myriad of other comparisons here in Europe; the 300 Weatherby is IMO one of the ultimate 30 caliber close/long range Magnums.

There's more easily obtained ammo, 300 Win Mag jumps immediately to mind and personally, I wouldn't consider this cartridge unless I could load for it (control my own destiny) as factory ammunition won't be located on the Discount Shelf (I do alot of shooting) nor as commonly available. Recoil is something that each individual shooter will have to be his own judge concerning their tolerance level; it's not for everyone.

If you're a hunter who doesn't hyperventilate requiring oxygen prior to stroking the trigger and can wait for a broadside standing lung shot it amazingly (as in Magnum Hunter 1's opinion, above also) doesn't rip up alot of Deer with proper bullets either. If you gravitate to light for caliber Nosler Ballistic Tips at Warp-Factor velocities (that's what this cartridge does well) and shoot 'em at various angles including stem-to-stern, the results may not be something you'd desire to display with a Happy Snap from your iPhone right quick, either.

The biggest down side to this cartridge IME is the quizzical glare (the acusative over the rim of their glasses stare) you'll receive from African PH's, German Forester's, Scottish Ghillies and the assorted Great Good & Unwashed who guide and facilitate hunting. As after delivering reasonably solid field perfomance (the Grinch manages to worm his way into the Works occaisionally when you shoot/hunt alot) their experience (as explained to me afterwards) is that many 300 Weatherby shooters somehow don't manage adequately with their chosen cartridge very well.

You'll have to decide - have fun with your choice.

We've shot our NY and ME whitetails with it over a couple of decades. Dressed weights from about 100# to 218#. We used 180 gr Rem PSPCLs at 2950 fps mv. Ranges from 35 yds to 350 yds. Plus a cow elk at 405 yds. We did not see any appreciable increase in meat damage vs '06 or .243. Placements mostly broadside or neck. Recovered two badly flattened but intact slugs from the two largest whitetails. Huge neck on one stopped it. Second was a matter of quartering angle. Majority were pass throughs.

Sam

My 300 Wby has seen use on whitetails, but only with Weatherby's factory ammo. It has been quite a while since I have used it for hunting; before I even started handloading. Mostly I used the 150 SP ammo. I believe they were Hornady's loaded in that ammo. It sure killed deer like lightning. A 180 Nosler Partition factory load accounted for the most spectacular kill I have ever witnessed. My brother shot a doe, which was bedded in tall grass, through the head. At a range of 50 yards, that Partition picked the doe up out of the grass and somersaulted her. The damage to the head was massive and the spinal column had been severed in the neck from the force of the impact. It was a great shot for putting meat in the freezer. Nosler has data for 150gr bullets using H4831 that are very accurate and can reduce the 300 Wby. down to hot 30-06 loads if one wishes. They sure have made paper punching with the 300 Wby more enjoyable and I am sure they would be highly effective on light game.

There is no such thing as OVERKILL, dead is dead. Use what gun and caliber that your body can handle and shoot. Fear, by the shooter is why a lot of comment is gathered about the Weatherby, but it sure can kill.

I've shot plenty of springbuck with a .300 Win Mag. I cant' see why a .300 Wby wouldnt' work great for deer. Obviously if they are close and you hit the big bones you will be losing quite a bit of meat. I'd avoid any shot that could exit through a back leg or the backstraps.

Like a guy in deer camp said once concerning a 300 Winchester on whitetails: "I like to see the ghost leave it's body."

Chris

I have never owned a .300 Weatherby but a .300 H&H and several .300 Win Mags.....andf have killed deer with both......and frankly don't think either killed faster or deader than with a .264, .257 Roberts, a .25-06 or several other firearms of substantially less energy levels.

quote:

Originally posted by vapodog:
I have never owned a .300 Weatherby but a .300 H&H and several .300 Win Mags.....andf have killed deer with both......and frankly don't think either killed faster or deader than with a .264, .257 Roberts, a .25-06 or several other firearms of substantially less energy levels.

Most of the rifles I own work in that 2600-2800 fps range. If I want to shoot longer range on deer, I'd probably use a 6.5x55 or 7/08 with 120 grain bullets. I like to keep most of my loads at around 2800 for extended barrel life and pleasant shooting. I do believe, dead is dead and you should uses whatever you want. This year, I'll probably hunt deer/hogs with my 350 Rem Mag which is overkill for deer but sometimes it's fun to pound a nail with sledgehammer.

quote:

and frankly don't think either killed faster or deader than with a .264, .257 Roberts, a .25-06 or several other firearms of substantially less energy levels.

With the exception of the .25-06 which I have never owned or shot, and the addition of .22 Hornet/6.5x55/7mm Rem. Mag./both the .300 Win and .300 Weatherby/.338 Win. Mag./.340 Weatherby Mag./.375 H&H/.38-55/.458 Win. Mag. and . .45 cal. muzzle loader using a patched round ball, I have never noticed or felt that any one cartridge/rifle killed any white tail deer I have shot any faster than another of the calibers I have used. Especially if I placed my shot accurately. As I have stated before, I believe there is only one state of dead, just as I do not buy into or subscribe to the whole Over Kill/Under Kill nonsense.

As long as a bullet, regardless of speed/weight/diameter is placed accurately into the vitals of a white tail, it is going to kill that animal. That is proven annually around the country with .222 and .223 rifles.

For me, and that is the only person I can speak for, I simply like using the larger rifles and feel that they do give me a little bit of an edge, especially when doing spot and stalk, where the shot I might be presented with is not exactly textbook.

I use 150 gr hornady sst,s in mine with 86 grains of rl 22. shoots just under 3400 fps. gun only has a 24 inch barrel. in my gun at least rl 22 gave me a large boost in speed and accuracy over h4831 or h4831sc.

I have used 150 and 165s years ago on VA and NC deer 308 in and tennis ball out. My daughter has been using it the last few years with the 130 grain tsx at around 3650 and it is very effective with laser beam trajectory making 300 yard shots pretty simple for her. exits have been in the size of a golf ball with the inerds pretty well liquefied. 2 bucks have gone about 40 yards each and all three does have dropped at the shot. All have been heart/lung shots with complete penetration. All have been in the 110 to 210 pound field dressed weight.

Like they said above, find the one you like! My FN 300 Whby. has taken it's share of White tailed deer.
There is no such thing as too much gun after you shoot a deer and it runs off into the thick brush at last light.

I never understood the "overkill" theory. Another thing I dont get are the people that say the 30-06 is a great deer round, but the 300 win/wby are overkill. Isnt shooting a deer at 200yds with a 300 the same as shooting a deer at 25yds with the 30-06?

Good luck, Tony

I shot a handful of Deer with a 300 Weatherby. I used Remington Core-Lokt's before I started reloading. Killed them just fine.

If you like the gun, that's reason enough to use it.

I never felt too bad about being "over-gunned" in west river South Dakota last fall. My MRC1999 300wsm stoked with RL19 and a 165 SST did nicely on a 4x4 quartering hard to me at 50 yards. Ya I know I could killed it with any of my smaller calibers but I was really tickled nonetheless.

Lots of 300s and a lot of them are Wby are used in South Texas and West texas where ranges down the Senderos are 2000 yards or more, and a 400 yard shot is pretty common..I my sons 300 Win mag with 180 and 200 gr. bullets and it worked fine and pretty well ignored the wind.

In West Texas in the Big Bend country it all mountain and your shooting from one rimrock across to another rimrock and the 300s are popular there..they have Mule Deer, Whitetail and Coues deer and the Del Carmin Whitetail I suppose, but its just a new name for a Coues deer

I've never killed a whitetail with my .300 Weatherby, but I've killed a variety of other whitetail size critters from a Klipspringer and Blackbuck to a Blesbok and Scimitar Horned Oryx with it (and some larger critters like Elk and Sable).

Mine likes 168 and 180 grain TSX bullets and it really likes 168 gr TTSX bullets. One of those bullets on or just behind the shoulder of any of those critters resulted in a DRT kill and very little meat loss.

I've used my 300 Wby for Coues Whitetal here in Arizona. Long shots of 300-400 yards are common. The Coues deer are also very small - 120 lbs is a big buck.

I've used the Barnes 168 TSX match for years and have recently changed to the 168 TTSX. I made no changes to the load and it seem to work the same.

I've used several 300 mags (mostly 308 Normas and 300 Wbys) on several dozen deer. There is some meat damage so lung shots are preferred. I have found that the Barnes TSX and TTSX minimize the damage even when using them in the 300 RUM. As already mentioned they are an excellent rifle to have when you are on the side of a bean or alfalfa field if you can handle the recoil.

My brother has hunted whitetails (and everything else) with a 300 Wby for the last 15 or so years. He uses 180 gr. Grand Slams over about 76 gr. of IMR4350 IIRC. The rifle has a 1 in 10" Douglas barrel. The 1 in 12" Wby barrel would not stabilize the 180's.

I use a 300 wby almost exclusiveley. (I have three of them) Works great in west Texas around Pandale on a friends ranch I get to hunt on. On my place in East Texas shot a wild hog at 447 yds according to my range finder. Didn't allow enough for the wind and he needed another shot. I mostly use handloads with the 180gr partition. I have killed deer with the 180 accubond. I think I prefer the Nosler Partition for hunting but the accubonds might be a tad more accurate in my rifle.

The old questions of certain cartridges that are felt to be too "big" for deer is bit of a
distraction.

The real issue is impact velocity and bullet construction.

Of course impact velocity is dependant upon muzzle velocity and range.

The same bullet out of a 308 vs the 300 Wby can have the same impact velocity albeit at different ranges.

A better question would be "what do you think about a .30 caliber 180 Accubond(to use an example) at an impact velocity of 2000 fps for deer?"

There's no such thing as overkill!

About 10 years ago I wanted one rifle
to hunt big game with the exception of
dangerous game. I settled on the .300 RUM
which is very similar to the .300 WBY.

I have used that rifle to take whitetail, mule deer, antelope, elk, Axis, and plenty more. It
works the same for all. BANG flop. As a hunter
I want to kill quick and it does just that.
watch your shooting angles so you dont waste meat and you're fine.

Jason

Edited: iphone's suck

quote:

Originally posted by rembo:
The old questions of certain cartridges that are felt to be too "big" for deer is bit of a distraction.

The real issue is impact velocity and bullet construction.

Of course impact velocity is dependant upon muzzle velocity and range.

The same bullet out of a 308 vs the 300 Wby can have the same impact velocity albeit at different ranges.

A better question would be "what do you think about a .30 caliber 180 Accubond(to use an example) at an impact velocity of 2000 fps for deer?"

A thousand thank-youze.

This is exactly correct, IMO, and should be the baseline for any such discussion.

Can ANYONE present proof, that ANYONE has EVER been forced to use a .300 Weatherby for hunting ANYTHING?

There is no such thing as a rifle that is too big. If you destroy meat then you are hitting the animal in the wrong place!

My brother hunted squirrel with a 44 magnum - just taking the top of their heads off. He also hunts deer with a 6mm TCU and puts the bullets through their neck. I have used a 30-06 to hunt rabbits and never damaged meat.

There might be a gun too small for a particular animal but never a gun that is too big. (well, a howitzer might be too big for squirrels)

I built one with a 1:8 twist to shoot heavy bullets at 3000 fps or so. Right now I'm loading Lapua Megas. I built it too light and it really was unpleasant to shoot, so I suppressed it and now I think it'll be my go-to gun this season. With the suppressor it recoils like a 308 or 270. I've killed plenty of native Texas big game, hogs and exotics with every thing from a 223 to a 550 Magnum and the 300 Wby fits nicely right in the middle.

I don't have a .300 Weatherby but use a 300 Win Mag and have always had great results with the 180 gr. Nosler Ballistic Tips.

A few years back I had only a 300RUM available for a quick deer excursion. I ended up getting a 120lb doe at about 107 yards with a 180gr AB. Kinda seemed like the poor thing was bodyslammed. DRT for sure but way, way overkill, bloodshot!! meat. But it was also not a set up for deer.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:
Can ANYONE present proof, that ANYONE has EVER been forced to use a .300 Weatherby for hunting ANYTHING?

I had to shoot a hartebeest with one, once. It was either use the 300 Weatherby, or nothing.

It worked fine.

quote:

I had to shoot a hartebeest with one, once. It was either use the 300 Weatherby, or nothing.

Sorry Sir, THAT does not count.

Last January, I used a stainless 300 RUM (it was raining)on whitetails. Shot 1 at dawn and the other at 4PM on 1st day. The rest of the week it POURED......with me camped in my van with dog-pal.
The RUM did not do any more damage than a 30-06.

quote:

Originally posted by conifer:
Last January, I used a stainless 300 RUM (it was raining)on whitetails. Shot 1 at dawn and the other at 4PM on 1st day. The rest of the week it POURED......with me camped in my van with dog-pal.
The RUM did not do any more damage than a 30-06.

I'm not breaking your balls here but am interested in what bullet and what velocity you had loaded up your RUM. Was it downloaded for deer? If so please share the aprox recipe. I really like my RUM (700 action with a really nice English walnut stock) but I don't have much to hunt with it.....Time and dollars keep me from using it the way I want to!

I have shot whitetails with 30-06,300 Weatherby,7 mm rem mag,and 300 wsm calibers. First of all where you hit the animal is most important, second is the construction of the bullet, and third is the caliber in this groupe.The Nosler Partician in 180 grain in the 300 Weatherby is A wonderful load and causes only modest damage to the animal whereas the 06 and A frangible bullet can completely destroy a deer. The new mono metal bullets with the plasic tips that open quickly are impresive in their ability to penetrate completly, deliver A lot of energy with reasonable damage to the animal.