Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles question on 300 wsm fading out...

So I went to Scheels today and wanted to look at 300 wsm's. Worker there told me that they don't carry wsm's anymore because the wsm is slowly fading out and they haven't had carried any for 2 yrs.

Question is are you guys seeing the wsm's slowly fading away?

From what I see, they are pretty popular.. Probably a clerk hired for the holidays and doesn't know squat about guns..

I think all magnums are fading out , most people at the range shoot standard cartridges -around here anyway .
The "I need a magnum" guys have their rifle and 11 "shells" left over from the past two hunting seasons.
Lots of rifle looney's here that love a variety of rifles/cartridges but looney's are few and far between overal .

I got a set of dies for 300wsm in a trade --that has been pushing me to get one since I have a set of dies = MOST PEOPLE don't think like that . grin .

I tried them, but got rid of them. Went back to the old tried and true 30-06. I can't really see the WSM fading away, as there are always people out there that believe it's better because it doesn't have that pesky belt, that is oh so troublesome..

Magnums many be fading in the Florida area, if they were ever popular there.. But in my part of the the world they are still very popular.. All you need to do is check the reloading die sales..

Plenty of guys use the 270/06, and I do myself.. But there are times when I want the flatter traj. and speed of the bigger rounds.. Turrets have allowed long range shooting with less powerful rounds, but in much of my hunting you don't have time to run turrets to fool with a range finder..

It won't go away. It's too good, and there's multiple brass sources.

The WSM's are popular in accuracy circles... a 7 WSM or 300 WSM can make a wicked LR rifle. The short action is a big bonus.

It'll always be a minor niche round. But it is a good round and ain't going anywhere. Anything with magnum on it is declining in sales numbers. But I think the WSM is the best choice if someone wants a 300 mag. It is a little slower than the others, but still beats 30-06 by 200-300 fps with manageable recoil.

We sell a fair amount of .270 & .300 WSM ammo, but very rarely have anybody ask for a new rifle so chambered.

I had a nice Super Grade model 70.. But I liked my two .300WM better, so I gave it to one of my younger pals.. It was a shooter especially ith Fed. blue bx. ammo..

Interesting comments. Thanks for the answers!

The short action is a big bonus.

Not according to legions of Tikkanuts. A half an inch. Whoopeeschitt.

HEAR !! HEAR !!

Short Action, Smort Action

Jerry

I've been preaching that SINCE I joined the 'fire'.

I musta lived in Wyo. in a previous life. <grin>

Jerry

Straight from the horse's ......

Another quotable quote.


Jerry

Well, Tikka should make a short action. They'd be twice as good...

rjf -

I don't have any axe to grind on any of the WSMs. The 300 WSM doesn't have anything to offer me except more expenses. I'm not being critical.

I've had 300 WMs since @ '78 so I've been equipped with dies and brass and for me to add or change it'd cost more than just the rifle itself. Plus the short/fat case doesn't hold as much powder SO it's some slower.

I'm happy with the WM so I'm not interested enuff to go to the extra expenses.

OTOH for someone wanting to get into a 30 mag, it might very well satisfy them.

Jerry

300 WSM? Yawn......




It's all right. Cant get excited over it.

My Kimber Montana 7mm WSM with it's 24" barrel is my lightest 7mm magnum!

With the Leupold 4.5-14X VX 3 on it it weighs 7# 1 oz

Lots of used short mags turning up for sale north of the border.

I took a Kimber 270WSM on trade a few years ago. Sold it w/o trying it out.

I know I won't be using my WSM much anymore now that I got similar performance out of the 06 class of cartridges and get lighter rifles and and extra round in the magazine.

I got suckered into the fad but have since seen the light.

Now to just avoid the 6.5 creedmor fad.....

The 300 WSM is a great caliber. I used one for about 10 years and shot quite a few elk and deer with it. It's very accurate. However, I added it up and found that there wasn't a single one of those animals that I couldn't have shot just as well with a 30-06. I bought an RAR that weighs a lb less than my 300 WSM. It's much more pleasant to the shoulder and legs.

There will still be demand for magnums as 30 cal bullets get longer and heavier as guys stretch shots out.

Yeah, that's me. With my Weatherbys and Winchesters in .30, I just have never felt the urge to spend money on one. Now if I win one at some banquet or drawing, I might play with it some.

I thought magnums were fading too until Nosler starting introducing their line of super magnums. Now Weatherby released a 6.5.

It's doing better than the WSSMs!

No the 300WSM won't pass the 30-06 in popularity, can't see it fading away either.

There are a plethora or rounds that can almost be duplicated by several next in line. We don't need to all hunt with or shoot the same chambering, do we?

My pair of 300WSM's are going anywhere. I feel that it's a great compromise of ballistics, recoil, accuracy, and portability.

I aint getting rid of my Sako Tecomate 300 WSM!

Thanks for the answers. I have considered a win mag instead but, still thinking of a wsm.

Reminds me of the old Malt-O-Meal commercial form the late 1950's or early 1960's:
"Tastes twice as good as that other tasteless stuff."



Never had a use for either the WSM or WSSM cartridges. The rifles were more expensive than other options, the ammo and brass were more expensive and the benefits more imagined than practical in actual use to my way of thinking.

Bought a Ruger .300WM in late 2003, two years after the .300WSM was introduced. The Ruger was $375 on closeout at Sportsman's Warehouse because it had the hated Zytel "boat paddle" stock. After 13 years of use, I can't see where a WSM would have provided any advantage.

Not knocking the .300WSM and realize a lot of folks are happy with theirs. Just wasn't right for me.

If you are thinking of the 300WSM, you might as well drink the Kool-Aid. I actually prefer the short mag over the wm, but not because it's short and fat or because it has no belt, but because you get a more efficient cartridge that treads on the heels of the wm, while burning up less powder. Like others have said, it doesn't kick as much, but you get damned near the same ballistics. However, There are some idiosyncrasies associated with the short mag. These are mostly caused by the shoulder angle and lack of body taper. These issues cause hard bolt lift on some rifles (look up bolt thrust problems), feeding and chambering issues, and handloading problems. Some of these issues can be remedied, but are indeed issues a new owner needs to be aware of...

I will look this up. Thanks for the info.

rjf

Don't be mis led ! The WSM means something. It does NOT equal the WM.

Jerry

I have all sorts of 300 mags but really do like the WSM. A heavy barreled monster for long range, a Tecomate for stand and general purpose, and a Model 70 FWT worked over by HCR that is a great carry gun for mountain hunts and such.

Where I deer hunt, probably 90% of hunting can be done with a .30/30, thus, the WSMs never really caught on up there.

I TRY to plant myself where I can get shots out to 300 yards, but sometimes even that's a struggle. My .270s do fine at that distance. And further, if I want.

Then again, that's northern Missouri, which is more open than this part of Kentucky, where a slug shotgun would work as well as anything else.

There just isn't a need, really, for a long-range rifle here, UNLESS YOU WANT ONE, of course.

In all my range time, I've never ran into anyone who had one, but I did find a box of empty cases at a range once. I brought it home as a curiosity, but it never got my blood up enough to buy one.

,300 WSM, ho hum.

Go with the 300 Win Mag. Short actions are best for 308 based cartridges.

My Tikka .300 win mag ,weighs 7lb 1 oz also with a 6x on it...........

I've owned a couple of 300WMs and one 300WSM. I don't own any big 300s currently because I just don't need that much power for our small southern whitetails. I almost bought a 300H&H just because I think it's a cool old cartridge.

The WSMs just don't excite me much. I'd have to run up on a fantastic deal to purchase another. On the other hand, I don't have any interest in another 300WM unless it's in a Sendero style rifle. Just too much recoil for my taste in a sporter weight rifle.

+1. Fading from what I see.

I chose the WSM over the Win mag when I was looking. No, I don't care if I can't 'duplicate' the win mag. My handloads don't bump against max anyway.



For deer I use something smaller, 243, 284, or 308.

Buncha short action haters!

I love short actions, much prefer them over long. When you can functionally dupe the performance of a magnum long action cartridge then it's just win/win. Or maybe win/win/win. Lots of "win".

The difference in the hand of my short action 7 WSM "Sendero" build is night and day to a LA Sendero, which I have also owned. The velocity difference is inconsequential.

All personal preference of course, but that's mine. There has to be a pretty good reason for me to build on a long action. I have two builds going now. A 6.5 SAUM on a short action and a .338 EDGE on a long action. The EDGE will be a big braked beast of a rifle. There's not really a short action cartridge that'll do all the EDGE offers so I'll just have to suffer a long action.

Yes, pretty much from their introduction.

It's a real bummer that Winchester botched the 7 WSM rollout. That one is a standout.

I finally pick up my Kimber MA 300 WSM tomorrow that I had on order since July. Kimber rep said they were selling a bunch of them, thus the long wait to get mine.

It was never intended to match 300 WM. It does come within 50 fps and can be had in a rifle that is 1/2 lb lighter and still have the same or less recoil to a 300 WM in a heavier rifle. It was intended as an option for guys who wanted near 300 WM performance, but in a lighter mountain weight rifle that still had manageable recoil. It works just as designed.

The worst thing that ever happened to the round was Winchester putting the magnum tag on it. It was originally called the 300 Jamison after the man who designed the cartridge. Winchester stole the idea and lost a lawsuit where any rifle or cartridge sold must pay a royalty to Jamison.

That price difference has held the cartridge down, and forced Remington and Ruger to develop their own line of short action magnums rather than pay the royalty. There are only a few years left on that settlement. I look for the WSM line to pick up more interest when rifle and ammo manufacturers can sell at the same price as other rounds.

W/in 50 fps ? ? I don't believe you can get that close with my handloads. No way to find out w/o comparing at the same time, same components, same chrono.

IF the rifles are *identical*-- the WM should weigh LESS simply because there is more metal removed in the chamber.

Identical is the operative word because of the stocks. In wood that would be more difficult due to density issue. Maybe in composite they could be VERY close.

Granted the 300 WSM beats the 30-06
but trails the 300 W M--maybe not enuff to make a practical difference but chamber, neck, & bore differences could make them MORE---or LESS alike.

I repeat- I don't have any axe to grind. If I wanted a WSM I'd get one. If you like 30-30 get one. No Mas

Jerry

Honestly - no I'm not a S A hater, they just don't trip my switch.

That's why there's Red--Blue--Green
Ford--Chevy--Dodge; et.al. et.al.

Jerry

I'll take a short action in anything but blue, please!

They probably had to wait for a certain amount of orders to be placed. Just think, they waited for 5 months before they got an order for 10 rifles... ..... Keep us posted on how well you like the Kimber. We don't want to hear about any wonky problems like Samo is having with his either...

IIRC it was introduced as equivalent to the WM with factory ammo, which it is...at least with Winchester published velocities: 2960 for the 180PP in tne WM and 2970 inthe WSM. No doubt this is as a result of loading to a higher pressure.

No short action hater here - I have several and love them.

Browning B92, .44 Mag
Marlin 336, .30-30
Marlin 375, .375 Win
Marlin 1895, .45-70
Ruger M77, .257 Roberts (my favorite rifle)
Ruger MK II, .223 Rem
Ruger Hawkeye Gunsite Scout, .308 Win
Savage 11 FXP3, .243 Win

The difference between the WSM and the WM only matters if you're a chrono bug who just has to wring the last few fps's out of a round. In the field it makes no difference at all.

It's no trick to get 3,050 with a 180 and RL17, or 2,980 with H4350... That's 300 WM country. Personally, I prefer the WSM. It's not "fading" as much as its sales have predictably plateaued. It's a terrific round IMO. I've taken everything from pronghorn to elk with it.

Inquiring at several stores in Fairbanks this past September I asked if their respective top sellers were 338 Win Mags and they all said, surprising to me, the 300 WSM, and in particular the Kimber Mountain Ascent was their best mover. Nephew took a really nice sheep with his in September.

I agree! And to me, the short action handles better in the field.

Based on the responses, now it makes me wonder what the deal is with Scheels.

Being a fan of the 308 and 30-06, I was very much a skeptic about the 300 WSM when it first came out, and it took me a long time to finally get one. Now it's my go-to big game round. As others have mentioned, it's very efficient (I get 3000 fps using only 65 grains of powder with a 180 AB) and easy to load for. Cases rarely need trimming due to the shoulder angle. Recoil is reasonable and easily tolerated. And the round seems to be inherently accurate; my rifle typically shoots under 1 MOA all day long with a factory barrel.

I don't really give a damn what the sales numbers are doing - the 300 WSM does everything that I need from a big game round, and I have enough brass stocked away to last me until I grow too old to hunt.

That said, none of that will keep me from building a 7mm MSM.

Sorry Bob, I just had to ! !

Couldn't have said it better.

Jerry

Every Scheels employee I've seen would have a hard time mounting a scope without reading the instructions. And then they would still proceed to fuqk it up royally.

In otherwords, your expectations are too high.

I've heard that guys that run with short, fat women tend to go for the short magnums.
Not sure if it's true, though.

Short, fat women run?

Not very far, I'll bet.🤔

It will never go away because it is more popular than the .264 Win Mag or .257 Roberts, and they didn't go away.

I think I've seen as many hunters with a .270 WSM.

Both are popular around here, but I think the 270WSM is moreso.

This is why I mount my own scope.

Brass availability is really what drives the "will it or won't it" survive thing, long-term. It's why I'm bumming on 7 WSM; Winchester hasn't made more, and nobody else picked it up.

However, both 300 WSM and .270 WSM have aftermarket brass support. Plus, 300 WSM is very well-liked by the loonyiest of loons, the competitive LR guys.

Then there's the question of whether it survives as a cool thing on this FORUM... grin... it seems a group of curmudgeons like to opine that it turned out to be not as good as say 300 WM, plus short actions suck, so it was just a stupid idea from the git-go. I'm JUST KIDDING here curmudgeons! Stop waving those canes around menacingly! Actually I'm kinda not kidding. There is a tangible sense that the elders disapprove.

So if you run a WSM, you not only get the benefits of a short action, which are REAL DAMMIT!, and no belt, and more efficiency, you are also stickin' it to the MAN!

Long live the WSM's!

If you want to talk short-fat and fading...think 6.5mm Remington Magnum.
More case capacity than .284win and feeds better than WSMs, SAUMs, but
mostly nobody cares for it, which is a real shame.

I think what really drives survival are not the loonies like us on here, but the run of the mill factory load/factory rifle shooters who buy factory ammo and factory rifles up the whazoo.

Really I don't think "we" drive too much of anything to the same extent that factory load shooters do as we are in the minority. If we did,brass would more available and not apportioned to factory ammo production.

That said I suspect the 300 WSM has earned a slot...after 4-5 of them I never fell in love but it certainly works

Bob..... as usual I agree with you. I forget how non-loony the general shooting public is. Of the several other guys at elk camp this year none had even FIRED their elk rifles since last year! That's just incomprehensible to me, but, it is my main hobby these days I guess, and I am capable of great feats of OCD'ness with this stuff and shoot a lot

Gayly enough I think the 270 WSM might actually top the 300 WSM, though I'm just guessing there. It does what people like about their .270's ("it shoots so flat I can blah blah blah!") only even more so. Put another way, it's not a magnum it's being compared against.

300wsm needs reloading. Factory ammo cripples it to not being much better than 30-06. However, I have had fantastic results with mine. 3250fps 1/2" groups with 165 accubonds, 2900fps 3/4" groups with 200 grain partitons...puts critters down nicely. Kimber MT is a dream to carry...love my 300wsm.

That's crazy talk. 300 WSM ammo is loaded to and beyond the gills.

I didn't know Kimber made a 300 WSM Massachusetts model... wool plaid Styrofoam stock pattern?

Never said that SAs suck, only that a 1/2" of action length one way or another is no big deal. Action length is only one element in how a rifle handles and balances.

The effiency claim is a crock, as has been proven by re-chambering the same barrel to successively longer .30 mags and comparing the velocities.

Cartridge (and rifle) groupies are like homosexuals that can't be content with just enjoying getting poked in the poop chute themselves; they want everyone else to like it too.😛